Clarendon Hills Liandra Syrah 1998
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Robert
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A very complex and concentrated bouquet immediately greets you. There is aniseed and some floral notes such as violets. In addition there is roasted meats and underlying raspberry, blackberry and plum fruit characters. This adds up to a wine that is quite reminiscent of the Northern Rhone, and certainly a fair way removed from its origins in South Australia. With all the fruit and spice it is hard to detect the oak character such is the concentration of these flavors.
Fabulous mixture of flavors over the palate which has a sweet and savoury taste at the same time. The sweetness is in the form of fruit which is again to the fore with blackberry and plums being most obvious. The savoury components are the herbal aniseed lift and the roasted meat character which is unique to the Shiraz grape variety.
The wine, despite its concentration, is easy and enjoyable to drink. There is chewy texture and plenty of viscosity across the mouth. The structure completes the wine with big strapping tannins combining with sufficient acid to provide a slightly sour counterbalance to the sweet fruit.
This wine is, however, most attractive right now which must be seen as a bonus. If you can be patient put a few bottles away for 10 years.
Whilst drinking the wine in youth select a dish that combines rich flavors with just a hint of sweetness to soften the tannins that are quite aggressive at the moment. Slow cooked Beef cooked in red wine, onions and plenty of herbs would be just about ideal.
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- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
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Marked by an unmistakable deep purple hue and savory aromatics, Syrah makes an intense, powerful and often age-worthy red. Native to the Northern Rhône, Syrah achieves its maximum potential in the steep village of Hermitage and plays an important component in the Red Rhône Blends of the south, adding color and structure to Grenache and Mourvèdre. Syrah is the most widely planted grape of Australia and is important in California and Washington. Sommelier Secret—Such a synergy these three create together, the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre trio often takes on the shorthand term, “GSM.”
Known for opulent red wines with intense power and concentration, McLaren Vale is home to perhaps the most “classic” style of Australian Shiraz. Vinified on its own or in Rhône Blends, these hot-climate wines are deeply colored and high in extract with signature hints of dark chocolate and licorice. Cabernet Sauvignon is also produced in a similar style.
Whites, often made from Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc tend to be opulent and full of tropical, stone and citrus fruit.