Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/457084
8 { THE SOMM JOURNAL } FEBRUARY/MARCH 2015 first press of phylloxera in the latter part of the 19th century, Shiraz contin- ued to grow in acreage and image. Today, some of Australia's oldest Shiraz vines date from this mid-nineteenth century surge in plantings. Even the wave of popularity of planting Cabernet Sauvignon in the 1970s didn't slow Shiraz down as many producers experimented blending the two together, a popular combination of grapes that still exists today. The arrival and success of Australia on the international wine scene in the '80s and '90s was largely fueled by Shiraz. During this period, a lot of larger production Shiraz wines could be relied on for stylistic consistency, sourced from huge plantings of the grape throughout Southeastern Australia and masterfully blended by Australian winemakers. The style of these wines, with their readily identifiable ripe dark fruits, toasty American oak and high alcohol, made Australia Shiraz one of those "bankers" in a blind wine tasting. Changing Times My how times have changed! With more than 4,400 growers of Shiraz now spread throughout the country, coupled with winemakers focusing less on oak and alcohol, Australian Shiraz has shed its singular style image. Michael Fragos of Chapel Hill Wines agrees. "It's a really exciting time for Australian Shiraz at the moment because I think there's a renewed focus on purity of flavor. That's really important because we have these amazing vineyard sites in Australia with really unique geologies, soils, eleva- tion and climate. It's about going back to basics and showcasing these unique sites in the bottle." Regions like the Barossa Valley (with as many acres planted to Shiraz as Riverland) have a wide range of terroirs. Vine Vale, east of Tanunda, features deep, sandy soils that pro- duce rich, forward wines. The soils around Greenock and Maranga have significant amounts of ironstone and less water, producing powerful, ageable wines. Light Pass, east of Nuritoopa, is known for con- sistent yields from their loamy soils and Kalimna possesses a number of the old-vine vineyards in the area that survived phylloxera in the shallow sandy soils that dominate in this area. It's the sheer size of Australia, however, that makes this country an incredibly viable candi- date for a multitude of regional terroir expres- sions, which include McLaren Vale, Clare Valley, Coonawarra, Langhorne Creek, Heathcote, Bendigo, Hunter Valley, Eden Valley, Margaret River, Goulburn Valley and Great Southern. Apart from the twin towers of quality dem- onstrated by Penfolds "Grange" and Henschke's "Hill of Grace," there are now many more skyscrapers in the Shiraz skyline. A recent tasting of Australian Shiraz with fellow Master Sommelier Tim Gaiser, identified three broad categories/styles and some very high quality wines. Interestingly, only one of the wines was over 14.5% alcohol. One of these styles features the ripe fruit and prominent oak that made Australian Shiraz famous. Another style showcases a great balance of fruit, alcohol and oak with distinct regional character. The third style showcases cool climate Shiraz produced in a very northern Rhône like style. Although winemaking remains a part of the personality of Shiraz, it seems to be a much smaller part of the picture. With a few exceptions, most of the cool-climate wines reflect a more restrained style of winemaking, while the warmer climate wines show a greater range, from restrained to enthusiastic. Although it might be frustrating to some Rhône purists that Australian Shiraz can taste like Crozes Hermitage, what's amazing is that it can. And that speaks to the current state of Australian Shiraz, the abundance of styles may make blind tasting Shiraz a little more challenging, but infinitely more interesting. Bob Bath, MS, thought it interesting that only one of the wines in the group was over 14.5% alcohol.