Product Review
The 2004 Shiraz Eleventh Hour is a blend of fruit from a 60-year-old Greenock vineyard (60%) and a 90-year-old vineyard in Nuriootpa (40%). It was aged 18 months in used French oak. Its dense ruby/purple color is followed by aromas of peppery black currants, roasted meats, new saddle leather, and earth. This opulent, rich, full-throttle wine exhibits a smooth, long finish with a stunning texture as well as richness. Consume it over the next 10-12 years.
Depending on where it's grown and how it's made, the variety has two names. In France, where it goes by Syrah, it makes a huge contribution to the red wines of the Rhone Valley. In the southern Rhone villages of Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Gigondas, and Vacqueyras it is blended with a number of varieties but mainly Grenache. It is in the northern Rhone, including Hermitage, Crozes-Hermitage,Côte-Rôtie, St. Joseph, where it most often stands out on its own, and is only occasionally blended with the region's white grapes. More recently, in the late 20th Century, Shiraz has put Australian producers such as Penfolds and d’Arenberg on the fine wine map, with cult wines like "Grange" and "The Dead Arm". Generally speaking, the style from the old world is more savoury, expressing aromas of pepper, cured meat and leather. The hotter climate experienced in Australia results in more upfront, dense and even jammy fruit. The grape has also taken off with rapid success in California and Washington, as well as South Africa and New Zealand. Producers in these regions often name their varietal wines according to the style they intend.
Accounting for nearly half of the country’s production, South Australia is one of the most important wine producing regions and consequently reflects the majority of our selection of Australian wine. Production is focused in the south eastern corner around Adelaide where the sub-regions Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale, Adelaide Hills, and Clare Valley are located. Further south in the state is the Limestone Coast Zone where the cooler sub-regions of Padthaway and Coonawarra produce some of the country’s finest Cabernet Sauvignon.
Red wine is wine made from dark-coloured grape varieties. The color of red differs based on the grapes variety or varieties used.Interestingly, black grapes yield a juice that is greenish-white. The actual red color comes from anthocyan pigments (also called anthocyanins) from the skin of the grape (exceptions are the relatively uncommon teinturier varieties, which produce a red colored juice). Most of the production centers around the extraction of color and flavor from the grape skin.
