Paxton Shiraz Rosé

The trouble with writing a book is that you have to put the rest of your life on hold - family, friends and, these days, blogging. So I've actually been tasting some good wines and meeting some interesting organic and biodynamic winemakers without having a chance to write about them.

Anyway, a quick one about this Paxton Shiraz Rosé 2009 which is currently on offer at Oddbins* for £8.39 instead of £11.99 but probably won't be for much longer. It's made in McLaren Vale by the biodynamic producer Paxton Wines and is quite a curiosity - dark coloured with vivid cherry and raspberry flavours but surprisingly low in alcohol at 11.5%. What might throw you is that it has 12g of residual sugar but I reckon if you drank it with something hot, spicy and sweet (Sichuan Chinese, for example, or maybe a prawn curry) it would be perfect.

I got the chance to taste some of their other wines at the Australian Wine annual trade tasting on Wednesday and particularly liked the 2009 Quandong Shiraz which comes from the first vineyard they converted to biodynamic viticulture. It's made in open top fermenters and put mainly into old oak barrels - no fining or filtering - and it's lovely. Not jammy or over-extracted, just really well balanced. However it's the 2008, which I haven't tasted, that seems to be the current vintage in the UK. You can buy it from Wine Etcetera (£16.45), Barrels and Bottles £18.17 and Noel Young Wines (£18.49) among others.

Paxton is also a member of 1% For the Planet, a group of companies that donates one per cent of their profits to environmental organisations

* I've just learnt that Reserve Wines of West Didsbury near Manchester have it for £11.50. They also carry some of the other Paxton wines. Readmore »»

Torbreck Woodcutter's Shiraz: Australia's Proof of Greatness

At a tasting I did for some wonderful clients the other night, I poured an Australian Shiraz. It was well-received but then I got the question I get every time I pour Australian wines these days -- "Can you even get good Australian wine? I mean, isn't it all cheap, mass-produced stuff?" My heart broke a little for Aussie wine, but the question was completely appropriate and reflects the sad state of Aussie wine for a lot of wine drinkers these days.

So what happened to this giant of the wine industry that seems to have been usurped in popularity by stuff from South America, Spain, and even the rising stars of South Africa and New Zealand? Marketing happened. Too much marketing and not balanced enough marketing. Excess led to implosion.

Now, I've mentioned this before, but I have an MBA (go Tarheels -- I went to University of North Carolina!) and was a marketer/strategist for nearly 15 years. Even though wine is my passion and my career now, I am still a keen student of branding and marketing. So watching the rise and fall of Australia's marketing juggernaut has been particularly fascinating for me. My insights may be a little controversial, but I'm calling it like I see it.

As background, the Aussies started making wine in the 1820s - 1830s (although the first attempts were in the late 1700s when some dudes brought cuttings from South Africa -- another reason I think it's weird that we classify South Africa as New World. How can you be New World when you are established enough in the 1700s to be spawning whole industries on other continents? But I digress). This is when James Busby (the Scot pictured, left), who's termed the father of Australian wine, brought vine clippings from France and Spain. With this great raw material, the settlers figured out how to deal with the hotter than hell, sun-scorching (in most places) climate and got to business making some serious wines.

Unfortunately, like everywhere else in the wine world, in the 1870s that vine serial killer, phylloxera, hit. It's a bug that attacks the roots of vines, causing galls that result in mass murder of all things sacred in the vineyard and then multiplies like Charles Manson's disciples. In true American fashion, we caused the problem by spreading this louse from the Eastern US, but then we were also able to save the day by providing roots that were resistant to the bug and could have European grapes grafted on them without a change in flavor. It was a real boo/rah moment.

Whereas everyone else in the world picked up the memories of their shattered wine lives and decided to go back to making normal, awesome wine post-phylloxera, the Aussies got stuck and for about 100 years just made sweet wine, which they termed "stickies." Even their most famous and revered wine, Penfold's Grange, which is dry and unbelievably delicious was made under cover of night in the 1950s. Although Grange and a few others worked out ways to make dry wine, it wasn't until the 1980s that Australia as a whole had its coming out party.

It was then that the marketers got to work and Australia bet the farm on making high quality, inexpensive wine. Wine drinkers loved it. They bought in droves and the ride began. In the early 2000s exports increased 35 times what they were in the 1990s. Why? People around the world dug this stuff. It was fruity, mouth-filling, and most wasn't too complex...and it was cheap. What a great starter wine for people just getting into this kind of intimidating world!

The problems then arose (BTW, I kind of feel like a "Behind the Music" writer for VH1..."and then disaster struck when Ozzie Osbourne did an 8Ball one night..."). In the early 2000s every wine coming out of Australia was a so-called "Critter Wine" -- with the success of Yellow Tail I'm convinced that all the people that marketed those lameass Beanie Babies (oh yes, I did go there) lost their jobs when that craze was over and migrated to Australia to make up stupid critter names for wine brands. Pretty Penguin, Kuddly Koala, Wombat Wine, Kangaroo Kitsch (I making this up, but I'm not too far off) were manufactured to make us buy based on label. We all fell for it.

Then we all got over it. Many of us also got tired of these big, jammy wines. We wanted something more complex and interesting. We got our start in Australia, but we set our sights on Latin Lovers -- Spain, Chile and Argentina, and back on our old flames California, Italy, and France.

Uh-oh -- now what? Australia had staked its whole positioning on affordable wines with cute labels. Maybe they reasoned that Disney had been around forever with the cutsy thing. I mean couldn't Australia have that longevity based on their version of Mickey Mouse for wine? We voted with our dollars. No. The bloom was off the rose.

That's not to say that we were done with Australia, but it is to say that the exuberance was over and their industry started to feel it. I can tell you that the hot Australian brands at the large hulking winery that I used to work for didn't get the attention they used to. Money was redirected to Spanish and Argentinean brands, and back to funding successful California brands.

So that leads me back to the question I get frequently -- "Can you even get good Australian wine? I mean, isn't it all cheap, mass-produced stuff?"

And here's the answer. Although you can still get cheap, mass-produced stuff, Australians are not dumb. They know what happened and they are working to right the ship. They are focusing on re-branding. They are trying to let us know that they are dedicated to quality and to growing grapes in the best possible areas instead of everywhere there is available space that can be irrigated.

They're actually learning from their upper tier, I think. There are a few producers that have been leading the way and who haven't been slammed as badly as the lower tier producers. The success of Penfold's with Grange, Henschke with Hill of Grace, Clarendon Hills with Astralis, D'Arenberg with Dead Arm, and Torbreck with Run Rig show that first class wines can come from Australia and can command a premium. But they prove that care and feeding must be given.

Although I didn't have the Run Rig, I did have the delightful experience of tasting Torbreck's Woodcutter's Shiraz .

Before I get to the wine, I need to tell you that this is a freaking cool winery. David Powell, the founder and winemaker, was studying to be an accountant in Adelaide, following in his father's footsteps but he really loved wine. In his time off, he would go work at the wineries in the Barossa. The guy took his walkabout and wound up travelling to the great wine regions of Europe and even spending some time as a lumberjack in the Torbreck forests of Scotland (hence, the name). When he went back to Australia, he decided to go for it. He realized that there were a ton of neglected Barossa Valley properties that had old vines on them but weren't being maintained. He approached the owners to ask if he could work the land. Powell did this at a few farms and his first vintage launched in 2003, with great results. Torbreck is now iconic for the Barossa -- all hand-harvested wines that are highly rated and classic for the region.

So what does a good wine from Barossa taste like, here's what I thought of their base tier wine, the Shiraz:
The Wine: Torbreck Woodcutter's Shiraz
Where It's From: Barossa Valley, Australia
The Grapes: 100% Shiraz
Vintage: 2008
Price: $21.99

Color: Like most Australian Shiraz this wine was not shy on showing its color. It was nearly opaque and blood red. It stained the glass, it was so rich in color. The wine was nearly vampiric in appearance (any other Twi-hards out there? Sorry for the reference). This amount of color usually indicates big flavor, so I braced myself for the smell and taste of this.

Smell: Absolutely typical for a Barossa Valley Shiraz. Rich oak and ripe boysenberry just flooded out of the glass after a good swirl. There was a prune or raisin note to the wine, and lots of alcohol burn -- a cilia singer. There were these unbelievable black pepper, licorice, and bacon aromas (all from the grape -- Syrah/Shiraz often develops these delicious smells with time). The aromas imparted from the oak were unreal. Warm cinnamon and nutmeg, rich roasted coffee beans, savory herbs cooked in butter, and an aroma of maple or tree sap just made my mouth water. Complex aromas usually = unreal wine.

Taste: Torbreck did not disappoint (nor did I expect it to, given the reputation of the producer and the fact that they care so much about their wines!). Black cherry, boysenberry, and even a little black raspberry fruit flavors were so awesomely balanced with a bitter chocolate, nutmeg, cinnamon, coffee thing. But what made this wine so complete and different from a lot of Australian Shiraz -- it actually had a great balance of mouth-watering acid and mouth-drying tannins. What a beautiful thing.

Food: Here's a perfect match for roasted and grilled meats, and heavy beef or mushroom dishes. I do also think it will be equally at home with Mexican, greasier food, and anything from the barbecue. A really versatile food wine.


Drink or Down the Sink?: Drink it! This wine is evidence that Australia is not all about cheap 'critter wine' or Yellow Tail. When you get a quality producer who takes times with the vines and knows the land, they can produce a wine that proves Australia's future is in boutique wine that is made well and has a beauty and style all its own.

PS -- You may want to decant this wine (just pour it in a glass and leave it out) for an hour or so before drinking. Although I loved it, I found it was better the day after I opened it!
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Boekenhoutskloof Syrah: Good Wine But Needs Some Time...

A while back I was sent a shipment of Syrah for a Hospice du Rhône online tasting (yes, this wine was gratis, but I'm still going to tell you what I really think). I never got a confirmation that I was being sent wine for the event, so I didn't hurry to the FedEx to pick up the box. When I finally got down there and received the shipment, I had a horrifying moment of guilt -- I had missed the online gig by a day. Urgh.

The bright spot was that, in spite of the snafu, the organizers allowed me to keep these beautiful Syrahs that I've been making my way through. With this ridiculously frigid weather bracing Atlanta (didn't I move south for better weather?), Syrah is so warming and delicious that I'm happy I saved it a few weeks so I can really enjoy it.

Before moving on to the wine, I should probably explain what Hospice du Rhône is. It's a pretty cool organization that celebrates and elevates the profiles of producers who grow and make wine from the 22 varieties that go into Rhône wines. The organization has a big 3 day event every year for the public to educate folks on Rhône varieties through a grand tasting, which lots of international producers attend. If you love Rhône wines, get your ticket to Cali today, because it's in Paso Robles (South Central Cali) on April 29- May 1 this year.

Now, to this South African beauty of a Syrah. I have a special place in my heart for South Africa and South African wines. At the end of 2004 to 2005 (I spent New Year's there) I was lucky enough to go to this gorgeous place and explore wine country a bit (when I wasn't scaling rock face to get up the back side of Table Mountain and Lion's Head! Hiking is my other passion). I got to taste some wonderful wines, especially those from the Franschhoek area(where the wine below hails from), and got familiar with some of the stellar producers in the region. South Africa has a ton of potential and is worth trying if you haven't experimented yet!

The Boekenhoutskloof (AWESOME name, pronounced book-n-howeds-kloof) comes in a heavy bottle and is called Syrah. I bring up this second point because Shiraz and Syrah are the same grape, but producers use each term to indicate a style difference. Most South African producers want to be affiliated with Australian-style wines, so they use "Shiraz" on their labels. Interestingly, Boekenhoutskloof uses Syrah, which indicates to me that they were going for a more French style wine.I think they succeeded.

Here's the rundown:

The Wine: Boekenhoutskloof
Where It's From: Franschhoek, South Africa (near Capetown)
The Grapes: 100% Syrah
Vintage: 2006
Price: $40.00

Color: Um, just a little dark and opaque. Perhaps black would be a good description. The wine is intensely colored and although showing it's age with a brown edge, you can immediately tell that it was harvested in an area with a warm climate because of that dark color. Another giveaway -- the tears dripped so slowly down the sides of the glass, it was like honey. That indicates high alcohol, and the wine has almost 15% so my eyes did not deceive me.


Smell: I love Syrah because when it's good, the aromas just keep coming. Boekenhoutskloof
is layered and refined and complex. Rich dark berry, black plum, and raisins came first. Then coffee and mocha from the oak and a violet, dark flower perfume. There was a underlying mineral quality and a wet soil character that made this wine more Old World in style than New World. What an impressive nose! The only giveaway that this isn't from France -- you could smell the alcohol (Ok, time for a confession. Although I mostly drink wine, my dear friend and neighbor Lauri can vouch for the fact that I have a special place in my heart for Irish coffee. This wine smelled like coffee with whisky, Bailey's, and cream. Delicious.).

Taste: The wine delivered on the nose, which was great. It tasted like deep rich fruit, with more identifiable stuff on the palate than on the nose. Blackberry, dried cherry, prune, and cranberry were pronounced.

The secondary notes were interesting and yummy. The wine was like a main course and dessert in one. The entree featured a distinctive dark earth, bloody, meaty flavor. I'm a pescatarian but I just loved this character. It was raw and delicious. This was followed by a finish that was like dessert -- with coffee, mocha, espresso and chocolate hanging around and leaving a last impression. I guess you can drink a meal (even without that Jack La Lanne juicer liquifier thing that is always on infomercials).

Before I wrap on the taste, the texture is worth noting. On the positive side, I was surprised that I didn't taste the alcohol, which I expected to feel after smelling it and seeing in in the glass. That said, the wines seemed to lack acid to balance the tannin. Although I liked this wine, I found it fell flat on the finish. The flavors were there and the tannin strong, but without the acid the wine was just pretty good, not phenomenal.

With that criticism, though, I got to give the marketers some props -- on the wine note they acknowledge that the vintage is really tight, needs cellaring, and that it shines in secondary and tertiary, rather than primary, flavors. I couldn't agree more. Good for them for being honest and not trying to spin. We need more people like that in wine. It makes me want to buy more of their product and support them (if it's true that all they need is a few years in the cellar to bring this back to life!).

Food: Given the bloody quality of the wine (at the risk of sounding vampiric, I mean this in a positive way), I think a complementary pairing with rare steak is your best bet. This wine requires heavy stews and rich, dark flavors. Beef, mushroom, braised pork -- you get the gist.

Drink or Down the Sink?: Drink, but not now. It's a little pricey for the quality as it stands. If you buy this wine you will need to cellar it for 3-5 years. If you're willing to wait, it should be well worth it. I have a feeling that with some time, the tannins and delicious flavors that are in this wine now will develop into something heavenly!

Bonus picture: me atop Table Mountain after a LONG climb


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My Week of Shiraz...Wine #1: Hewitson Ned & Henry's 2007, Just Ok

Australia is clearly one of the great winegrowing regions and the Aussie wine companies have done a hell of a job marketing themselves as the Shiraz capital of the planet. If we were playing wine dork word association and I said Australia, there's a good chance you would say Shiraz immediately... Now that's great marketing. And it's also often great wine.

I received a shipment of wine from a PR company that was all Syrah/Shiraz from Australia and South Africa and I'll be reviewing them over the next few days and share with you my opinions (as I've said before, I don't alter my take on the wine just because it was sent gratis!). I love Syrah/Shiraz, so this will be a completely hedonistic experience for me, and I'm looking forward to sharing it with you!

Before we get started on the review of the Hewitson Ned & Henry's 2007 Shiraz from Australia, I want to touch briefly on the whole Syrah/Shiraz issue. If you didn't already know this, they are the same exact grape. Yes, I know they taste different but that's only because, generally speaking, the names are used to connote different winemaking styles and different regional origins. Like twins separated at birth, the wines are similar but also really different from one another. If you still don't believe me, think about a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand versus one from California -- very different wines, but they have the same name. We actually luck out with the Shiraz/Syrah thing because if you prefer one style over the other, you can pay attention to the name and get what you are looking for rather than risking buying something you don't like.

So I'm blabbing on about the name but I still haven't defined the difference from a taste perspective. Here goes:

• I find Syrah, which is usually from France or the US, to be more subtle, with an earthy, barnyard (sounds gross, tastes good), and dried herb smell and flavor. It's pretty powerful stuff -- very tannic (mouth-drying) and complex (you can use lots of words to describe it and still have more to say!).
  
• Shiraz, on the other hand, tends to be from Australia or South Africa and is usually very fruity, soft, and goes down the hatch easily. Not too complicated, it's a good weeknight wine and one that drinkers who are new to the varietal really love. The expensive ones are so fruity that they are often hard to pair with food, but are knockouts on their own.
  

Because someone recently asked me this question, I'll also bring up Petite Sirah. This is a completely different grape, also called Durif. You'll find Petit Sirah to be exclusively from California. It's kind of bitter, plummy, and less complex than Syrah/Shiraz, which is layered and rich in character. (I know I just dissed Petit Sirah, but I don't really dig it in comparison to Syrah. Sorry, gotta be honest).

Ok, so now with all that information, let's get to the wine at hand:


The Wine: Hewitson, Ned & Henry's Shiraz
Where It's From: Barossa Valley, Australia
The Grapes: It's mostly Shiraz, but the wine notes say there's some Mourvedre in it too.
Vintage: 2007
Price: $21.99


Color: What a color! This is just what I expect in Australian Shiraz: Dark ruby with purple undertones. All that sun down under develops lots of pigment and ripeness in grapes, so the wine is almost opaque and really viscous. What does that mean? Color like that usually points to the fact that its going to be a rich one.

Smell: All fruit and flowers, all the time. Again, sort of typical of an Australian Shiraz, this wine smelled like a bowl of purple fruit. Blackberry, black plum, boysenberry -- it was a juicy sort of smell. MC Ice and I both noticed a sort of perfumed, floral note like dried rose petal. Also, and I'm not sure why this is, but there was a chlorine-like note to the wine, kind of like a pool, which was a little unsettling (although we still drank it heartily, of course).

I was surprised at the absence of other stuff I usually like in Shiraz -- black pepper, leathery scents were not in this nose of this wine at all. I stopped being surprised when I looked at the vintage notes: 2007 was ROUGH for Barossa Valley and it explained why this wine was less interesting than I usually find Barossa Shiraz. Drought, frost, and heavy rain really affected the Shiraz and it's obvious in this wine that the vintage suffered from being small and lame (fewer grapes = fewer blending possibilities so you kind of get what you get -- a one note wine).

Taste: My first impression was that the wine was really chocolaty. All the luscious fruit I smelled was hanging around in the scenery, but not on center stage. Happily the stuff missing on the nose appeared on the palate -- light black pepper, leather, and even something like tobacco showed up in the wine. Strangely yet pleasantly, I also tasted some musky cantaloupe-like thing.

I think more than flavor though, texture dominated the wine. It was super soft and delicate. There were good tannins, but the wine lacked some acid so I think it was on the verge of flabby but not quite there (this explains to me why the winemaker added the Mourvedre -- this powerful, flavorful, dark, tannic grape, added the structure to the Syrah, which seems to have needed it!).

Food: This is a "brown food" wine, if you know what I mean. Meats, mushrooms, hearty stews -- that's what this needs. If you do buy it, be careful that the flavors of the food are rich, yet delicate. The wine could easily be overpowered by something with too much punch. I did eat it with sauteed mushrooms and it was fine, but had I put in more garlic or made my food more complex the wine would have really fallen flat.

Drink or Down the Sink?: I can't say down the sink, but I wouldn't buy this wine for this price. I think it's got promise but this vintage just misses the mark for me. Maybe a different year would produce a better result, but I think for the price you could do better. I'm open to trying future vintages of this wine and when I do, I'll let you know what I think!

I'm hoping the other bottles of Shiraz I got in this shipment are slightly more pleasing, to say the least. Tune in again to see if my Shiraz-fest meets my expectations! Readmore »»