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[LONG] TN: Cheap Shiraz results

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Mark Lipton

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Mar 5, 2006, 12:33:30 AM3/5/06
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Many of you may remember my asking a few weeks ago about cheap Oz Shiraz
recommendations for a friend's wedding. Suffice it to say that I took
up your recommendations and went shopping in our "local" market (went
down to Indy today). We tossed in a couple of Zins for comparison's
sake. Here's the lineup and tasting notes from our sampling today:

1. nose: stones, leather, Syrah fruit, slightly medicinal
palate: acidic entry, medicinal, slightly tannic, moderately fruity

Jean found this wine "stinky" in the way that she finds many French
Syrahs. She also found it to have notes of eucalyptus and pine

Wishing Tree 2004 Shiraz ($10.29)

2. n: sweet oak, minerals, MINT
p: MINT, acid, moderately fruity, acidic finish

I just couldn't get past the mintiness of this wine, an experience I
last had tasting Penfolds' latest releases earlier this year. In fact,
had I known that there were no Penfolds wines in the lineup, I'd have
guessed that that was what I was drinking. Jean didn't think there was
much in the nose, but found that this wine was the only one in the first
flight to not have the dreaded "Syrah stink"

Rosenblum Vintner's Cuvee XXVIII Zinfandel ($9.99)

3. n: smoke, berry fruit, pencil lead
p: acidic entry, berryish fruit, herbal notes, very acidic finish

Jean found little sense of fruit in this wine. She got brush in the
nose, and green tannins on the palate. I, OTOH, found this wine to be
the most typical Syrah of the flight.

Wynn's 2003 Coonawarra Shiraz ($10.99)

4. n: stewed fruit, iodine
p: hint of Syrah character, moderately tannic, acidic finish

Heat damaged? Jean found this wine stinky with eucalyptus notes and
acidic. Neither of us cared for it much.

Barossa Valley 2002 'Spires' Shiraz ($9.99)

5. n: minerals, tart raspberry and blackberry fruit, eucalyptus
p: sweet entry, berry fruit, eucalyptus, med-full body, acid finish

Jean liked this wine a lot, finding it juicy, round and filled with
blackberry fruit and good acidity

Cline California Zinfandel 2004 ($9.99)

6. n: Vicks Vapo-Rub [1] (!!)
p: eucalyptus, raspberry, moderately tannic, acids in finish

Jean found leather, eucalyptus, dust, medicinal notes in the nose, with
decent fruit and oak and a long, brooding finish

Wirra Wirra 2002 'Scrubby Rise" Shiraz ($10.99)

7. n: pencil lead, oak, berry fruit
p: rich entry, good acid, deep berry fruit, slightly tannic finish

Jean thought that this wine had cherry, oak and a slight Syrah stink
with dusty and oaky flavors.

Woop Woop 2004 Shiraz

8. n: pencil lead, cedar
p: rich entry, medium-full body, pencil lead, fruit, slightly tannic finish

Jean thought that this wine had green tannins, and tart green apple
flavors, with oak, dust and bitter fruit

Wyndham Estate Bin 555 2003 Shiraz

There was clearly a lot of divergence in opinion between us, mostly a
result of Jean's dislike of the stinkier aspects of Syrah. However, we
both agreed on the Woop Woop as the most likely crowd pleaser of the
bunch, with the Cline Zin running a hard second. For my money, the
Wyndham Estate and the Wynn's Coonawarra got the prize for best varietal
character in their price range. Overall, I was struck by how much Syrah
character these wines had, by and large. The Barossa Valley seemed like
it was probably cooked, which is a shame. I was particularly
disappointed with the Wirra Wirra, as the '98 Church Block really made
an impression on me.

I *did* manage to find Peter Lehmann Shiraz locally, but at $17.99 it
was just too pricey for our event.

Our next installment will be on cheap CalChards (with two white
Burgundies tossed in for the heck of it).

Mark Lipton
[1] For those of you who didn't suffer from respiratory problems as
children in the US, Vicks Vapo-Rub is a balm containing camphor and
menthol, as has an incredibly pungent odor. Not soon forgotten, it is.

Nils Gustaf Lindgren

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Mar 5, 2006, 8:40:09 AM3/5/06
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"Mark Lipton" <not...@eudrup.ude> skrev i meddelandet
news:KKuOf.5906$oL.5235@attbi_s71...
<snip>
> ... the dreaded "Syrah stink"
<even more snip>
Curiouser and curiouser said Alice. Could you expand a bit concerning this
"Syrah stink"?
As time goes by and my ignorance is approaching academic proportions, I have
learnt that a lot of what I previously took for granted was, in fact, false,
such as, Syrah in the New World being mostly grown in regions as warm as or
warmer than Northern RHone - apparently some of the Australian regions are
quite cool, if not down-right brass monkey愀. That, therefore, some aromas
associated with New World Syrah is in fact brought about by poor ripeness.
(Of course some Syrah in Oz is grown in a Hellish heat!)
So, please to explain to the foreign getleman.

Cheers

Nils Gustaf
--
Respond to nils dot lindgren at drchips dot se


Mark Lipton

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Mar 5, 2006, 4:36:14 PM3/5/06
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Nils Gustaf Lindgren wrote:
> "Mark Lipton" <not...@eudrup.ude> skrev i meddelandet
> news:KKuOf.5906$oL.5235@attbi_s71...
> <snip>
>
>>... the dreaded "Syrah stink"
>
> <even more snip>
> Curiouser and curiouser said Alice. Could you expand a bit concerning this
> "Syrah stink"?

What I'm referring to are what to me seem to be meaty/gamy notes in the
nose and on the palate, especially prominant in Cote-Rotie and
Hermitage. It's close to what people associate with Brett, but it does
seem to be much more common in Syrah than in other grapes. Jean's
overly sensitive to it, just as I am to TCA, mint and eucalyptus. She
finds it akin to a sulfur smell (thiols) and that's not a good thing in
her book.

Mark Lipton

DaleW

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Mar 6, 2006, 11:13:43 AM3/6/06
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Mark,
thanks for notes.
The 2004 Woop Woop sounds like the 2001, a decent popularly styled
Shiraz (I found the 2002 to be actually sweet, and more globby). Glad
to hear it sounds like the Cline Zin is back on track (the '99 is a
contender for best under-$10 US wine I've had in last decade). Cheers

Mark Lipton

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Mar 6, 2006, 12:13:32 PM3/6/06
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One thing that definitely surprised me in this tasting, Dale, was the
lack of truly "gobby" Shiraz along the lines of Rosemount or Yellowtail.
I suppose that's the result of polling wine geeks for their favorites
;-) My notes on the Cline don't make clear just how Clineish this
bottle was. I guessed it blind with no effort, as it had that sappy,
Eucalyptus character that I find in most all of Cline's Zins. It was
(to me) far more appealing than the Rosenblum.

Mark Lipton

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