In keeping with Aussie theme (despite the tennis not being on until 11:00), I'm having the newest vintage of one of my favorite big Shirazes. Thorn-Clarke makes several levels of Shiraz, with Shotfire being in the middle of the range, selling for around $20.
2009 was a very hot year in much of South Australia, and it shows in this wine. Clocking in at 14.8% abv, it is intense and full bodied. But despite the heat, the winemaker managed to keep the acidity at a proper level, as this has a near perfect balance.
Rich raspberry and blackberry fruit with a bit of spice gives way to a wonderful coffee to not-quite cocoa finish. A very good example of what I expect out of a Barossa Shiraz. I just wish I had a nice steak to go with it!
Recommended.
There's one thing I notice very odd about this wine (not really the wine, but the package). When I pulled the cork, I saw that there was virtually no red stain to it at all. Upon inspection, I saw that, while it is a real cork, the end was covered with a piece of plastic, so that the cork provided the seal, but the plastic was almost enough to keep the wine from touching the cork. I'm guessing this is to prevent problems from cork taint, but since I've never seen this type of cork before, I don't know.
ReplyDeleteIf it works, they may have found a great solution. The "no screw-cap" snobs will still get to pull a cork, and since it's a real cork, none of the problems of shrinkage or corkscrew damage associated with plastic corks.