2019 Bannockburn Shiraz

Community Tasting Notes (2) Avg Score: 91 points

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  11/8/2023 - Tudz Drkl Likes this wine:

  Visually this was ruby with violet highlights, medium opacity and medium thinning to the edges. On the nose there was smoked meat, cola and candied red fruits. The palate was savory, pure red and dark red fruits lifted by medium plus acidity and chalky, full medium tannins. Very enjoyable.

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  3/14/2023 - Rote Kappelle Likes this wine: 91 Points

  The Pyrazine Kid rides again! Every now and again I enjoy drenching myself in capsicum juice, rolling in a mix of slightly sour plums and cracked pepper and sniffing the baking tray where I have just cooked a roast. This was such an occasion. I have very good associations with this winery and am inclined to overlook many of its eccentric ways and fruit nasties.
  
  Objectively, I think that a lot of people would find this wine very difficult, if not hateful, assuming they had normal tolerances for 'green' characters in wine. It sure as hell is no Parker wine, or typical Oz fruit bomb. It does remind me of some of the better 2012 vintage Northern Rhone's (like them it also has a slight sensation of 'wateriness').
  
  We get a long finish, fairly good intensity, tannins that support and, interestingly, are not especially 'green' or 'hard'. This surprises me a bit, as ripe tannins and green fruit are not usually a combination. However, my reading indicates that pyrazines may be formed very early in the fruit development stage and relate to things like canopy management, shading of bunches, amount of water received. So, it should be possible to develop pyrazines early and then to fully ripen the grapes and the tannins within, for example by managing the canopy later in the grape's development.
  
  This wine works really well with steak and pepper sauce, but you would need to take care in food pairings.
  
  I do note that the Real Review (a pretty solid wine review site in Oz) rates this vintage highly and talks of Iodine, Bresaola, Wakame, which I see as a more positive take on the green characters. It also speaks of plums and mulberry - if I squint right I could imagine mulberry.
  
  I am scoring this as 'Excellent' on the CT scale, because I have some tolerance for greenery where there is also ripe fruit and, especially, ripe tannin. The finish and intensity also speak of a quality wine. However, I could easily see a pyrazine intolerant reviewer scoring this in the mid-80's. Always read what is said about a wine and then think about the number given - relying on a number score alone is really dangerous. I hope I have done this wine justice and also given readers a review that will enable them to know what they are getting into or avoiding.

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