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Syrah and Shiraz

Tasting notes from an informal gathering of friends to look at a few off-the-shelf wines based, largely, on Syrah and Shiraz. (4/7/01)

Tasting Notes

Tasted in July 2001. Click to locate stockists.

R & G Sallet Mâcon-Uchizy 1999: A pale wine, with some appealing, fairly lean lemon Chardonnay fruit and a dash of minerals on the nose. A light, fairly elegantly textured wine, with some rich orange peel and marmalade notes developing toward the endpalate. Fresh acidity. A good wine to start with on such a warm summer evening. 14/20

Garnet Point Zinfandel Barbera (Modesto, California) 1999: A moderate intensity of colour. An earthy nose, with some confected, stewed red fruits, together with some medicinal and infused herb aromas. A medium bodied palate with soft tannins. Very spicy. Some good red fruit flavours come through on the midpalate. Seems unbalanced, and lacks the intensity of flavour and body that you might expect from these grapes. 13/20

Best's Shiraz (Victoria) 1999: This is a dense, red-purple wine. The nose reeks of sweet, over-ripe, warm climate Shiraz fruit, plump blueberries in particular. A big, soft, sweet, cloying wine on the palate. Low acidity. Nevertheless it has some pleasant fruit. It has obviously seen some barrel ageing as the mid to endpalate is dominated by spicy oak, which persists on the short length. 13/20

Fox Wood Old Bush Vine Syrah (VdP d'Oc) 1999: The winemaker behind the Fox Wood wines is Michael Goundrey, of Goundrey Wines in Australia, and the Aussie style of winemaking shows through. A good intensity of colour, with a young and vibrant red-purple hue. Lots of ripe, chewy black fruits on the nose, with some notes of orange peel. A palate loaded with blackberry fruit, with very appealing ripe, slightly spicy tannins, and fairly soft acidity. Although it struggles with balance, this wine is very drinkable. Undoubtedly the bargain buy of the night. 15/20

Cuvée Bois d'Esclo Côtes du Rhône 1999: A Grenache dominated blend, but there must be some Syrah in here somewhere! A less deeply coloured wine, although it has the same appealing, vibrant, red-purple hue. Sweet and just a little confected on the nose, with some blackberry fruit and a touch of molasses. A soft, medium bodied palate, with quite a good, chewy richness to the texture. Moderate but sufficient acidity, with some clean, blackberry fruit. 16/20

Voge Cornas 1994: A less dense colour again to this wine, but it still has a bright, red vibrancy. Fading somewhat at the rim, but no real tawniness to speak of. Liquorice and crushed raspberries on the nose, with an edge of leather. This wine has faded from the full bodied, aggressive stance it had when I last tried it in 1998, and now has a gentler, raspberry and tobacco flavoured palate, with a medium body and dry, integrated tannins. Very nicely poised. Good length. 16.5/20

Vidal-Fleury Côte-Rôtie 1994: A good colour, with a very slight mahogany tinge to it. Appealing meaty, bacon fat aromas on the nose. There are some stony, mineral and tobacco nuances to the fruit, but none of the elegant, floral notes that I look for in Côte-Rôtie. A soft, well rounded palate, balanced, with integrated tannins, some fruit and more of those meaty notes. Although it fills out with aeration, the overall impression is of a fairly lightweight wine, which lacks real character. 13.5/20