Good Evening, All. I hope you're enjoying my write-ups about wine and food. I hope to continue a couple of times a month. I hope that it assists you in your wine making decisions. I also use it for myself to keep track of what I like... or, don't. We did just order a pizza and garlic knots tonight, so no recipes to share. So, let's get right to the wine...
This evening's selection was a 2003 Raydon Estate "Tails South" Shiraz. It's been a super long time since I've had a Shiraz so I've been looking forward to tasting this one. So, what does it mean to be called "Shiraz" rather than "Syrah"? It is the same grape after all. The only difference is Northern Hemisphere vs. Southern Hemisphere. Shiraz is Southern. This particular Shiraz is from the Langhorne Creek area of Australia. Other popular areas are the Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale and Clare Valley. The pairing itself with the pizza probably doesn't show it off as well as a nice steak would have, but that doesn't make it bad.
The wine is a deep purple color, like deep, you can't see through this at all. On the nose, I initially got peppered alcohol. Not the best initial reaction, so let's let it open up a bit.... There, that's better. Still, it's a pretty potent wine, very intense in it's peppery nose. When I taste it, it's such a rich black pepper, maybe a little chocolate. And, raisin? I think so. This is a very full bodied wine and I am really enjoying it tonight. The more it breaths, the smoother it gets.
Truly, not the best pairing with the pizza, but I could totally see this with a nice grilled steak. This is a wine I picked up through my Wine of the Month at Amanti Vino. They suggest pairing with a beautiful beef stew. I have a California Syrah on my rack, so I hope to plan a better pairing for that one. In the meantime, I'll continue to enjoy what's open =)
In Vino Veritas!
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