I have had the 2008 Dead Arm from Mclaren Vale before and thoroughly enjoyed it.  This bottle has been sitting longer in the cellar and comes with very lofty ratings from the pros.  I decided it was just what I needed with the Sunday Roast.  It was a perfect pairing.  I found myself wondering about this wine and how best to describe it.  My thoughts are this- it is pubescent.  Not young and primal anymore, yet not fully blossomed into that full blown creature it has the potential for.  It is at a crossroads in its evolution.  Stick with me…

A hazy purple in the glass with a nose of mature plum, star anise and cocoa.
Super smooth entry with blueberry, damson and oak. Levels of flavor lead to a somewhat complex wine that is primarily fruit driven right now but I could see evolution into secondary flavors. Still quite tannic with opposing acidity make this a young and balanced wine that will age gracefully. 92 points, 2014-2025 and for $50 make this a 4 star wine worthy of cellaring.  Here’s the kick:  RP gave it 95 points with a drinking window of 2018-2036 while on the other side of the fence WS gave it 91 points with a drinking window of 2009-2016.  Very opposing views of aging capacity and technical merits.  Five years after their initial write-ups and I am in the middle of both parties as to the ratings and aging potential.  Perhaps provenance and cellar conditions will be the greatest influence from here on in.  Either way, bang for the buck you can’t go wrong with this polished Shiraz from down under.  Salut….

Every once in a while I come across a score that I totally disagree with.  This one is definitely in that camp.  The wine was a dark purple in the glass which was a good start.  On the nose I coaxed fruits of blue and red currants by swirling like crazy.  Once I tasted the wine I wrote ‘Picture blue plums’.  That’s all I could muster.  Bracing acidity with mild tannins made for a rather boring drink that I was trying to pair with some Hanger steak.  Two of the reviews gave this McLaren Vale Shiraz 93 points and WS gave it 88.  I’m going with 87 personally and for the $20 retail price, it gets 2 stars.  Salut….

It’s Sunday, March 16 in Northern Virginia, a few days before spring.  It’s snowing outside, I’m listening to the BBC radio from England and drinking this amazing Mclaren Vale Shiraz from Australia….

We promptly lost all electrical power at 6 pm and finished our evening sipping this purple nectar whilst playing Pay Day with two of our kids by candlelight.

The evening started with me sending this young bottle of Shiraz through my Vinturi and into a large Riedel decanter for about an hour.  I figured this wine would need coaxing to get it going at such a young age.  It has just recently been released and WS gave it a whopping 98 points.  I have had numerous wines from Mollydooker and have grown accustomed to their style and sort of know what to expect with respect to the profile and tastes involved.  I did not know to what level and depth this particular cuvee was capable of….  I’m jumping the gun.

I decided to grill some Cornish hens after marinating them in garlic, herbs and lime.  The sides included riced cauliflower and sautéed spinach with goat cheese and pine nuts.  I figured this melange would be able to stand up to the wine and vice versa.  It worked a treat.  Now to the wine.

I first poured off a half glass to make room for the ‘Shake’ prior to decanting.  My initial impressions:  Dark and brooding in the glass with a nose of tar, licorice and black fruits.  On the palate I got an intense black berry component.  I timed a 2+ minute finish.  The wine covers the palate in an indescribable way, from front to back.  I believe they call it fruit weight, a catchy term but very appropriate.

I then moved on to the aerated and decanted wine and was in for a further treat.  The first thing I noticed was a bracing acidity on the front end that was entwined with a gorgeous black cherry component.  Capsicum and blue fruits came across in various waves as the wine progressed, an interesting combo if you ask me.

Close your eyes and imagine drinking—— purple.  That is possibly the best descriptor I can think of to emphasize the wine’s purity and concentration.  It is rich and layered, precise without being bombastic, lengthy.  A slight hint of its 16% alcohol comes out on the nose yet is well crafted into the wine so you can’t taste it.  The wine gives me the impression that it was stirred with an oak ladle, imparting only a touch of wood and not over doing the treatment.  The extremely fine-grained tannins are a pleasure on the palate and give this wine a drinking window between 2016-2025 in my opinion. I would look forward to this wine evolving somewhat but think it will be a pleasure to drink at an early age.

At $180 this is no everyday drinker, but a super special treat wine.  I think its depth and complexity will please any fan of red wines as it offers multi-dimensional flavors and great length.  Pairing it with food would be ideal, but enjoying it on its own is certainly one way of experiencing its many nuances.  I have only had a handful of 98 point wines in my life, to be able to taste near perfection is truly a treat.  If you can find a bottle or two, get them, cellar them and enjoy them.  PS. Did I mention that the packaging is amazing: a velvet black bag and velvet-like labels with a lithe bottle shape- all adds up to an incredible wine.  4 stars when you weigh the price and value.  Salut….

The crowning touch…

Tools of the trade.

The pairing

This is the first of a 4 vintage vertical tasting of this fabulous Shiraz.  I managed to find the ’09,’10 and ’11  on my travels while the ’12 was sent courtesy of the folks downunda.

I started off by sending the first glass throughout the Vinturi and then I performed the Mollydooker Shake on the rest of the bottle to open it up some.  What I saw was a deep inky purple wine that showed off some gorgeous damson plums and Dr. Pepper soda on the nose.  The first sip was amazing.  Blueberry pie, blackcurrant and nutmeg formed the basis of the flavor profile with some smoke and ink lingering on the mid palate.  The level of fruit is amazing and the focus is razor sharp.  The wine coats the mouth with the multiple layers of fruit and leaves it rather refreshed by the fine grained, well integrated tannins.  The acidity is totally in balance and there is no dryness to the finish.  The word ‘concentrated’ keeps popping in my head, I guess I should tell you that this wine is very focused on giving you its all, up front and direct.  It is a powerful wine that is not for the faint of palate.  Hiding in the swirls of fruit and oak is a well disguised 16% alcohol, not once making its presence known, yet crucial to the backbone of this extracted beast.

I thought this one out and decided to pair some NY Strips with it, going for a lower fat cut due to the relative age on the wine.  I also prepared some riced cauliflower with sautéed jalapeños and some green beans with toasted almonds.  The combination was perfect with the heat of the jalapeños giving the wine a new dimension while the steaks provided the texture I was looking for to offset the raw power of the wine.

This wine got an average of 93.5 points from the big boys and I am in agreement.  94 points from me for this $90 treat which makes it a solid 4 star wine in my books.  I would love to re-visit in 5 years but alas I only bought one bottle.  If you can find it you may want to try it, it’s that good.  Besides, the artwork is fabulous on these bottles.  Salut….