2016 Chalk Hill Wines Shiraz

Community Tasting Notes (1) Avg Score: 80 points

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  10/3/2018 - forceberry wrote: 80 Points

  14,5% alcohol.
  
  Almost fully opaque black ruby color. Very dark-toned, brooding and quite toasty nose with oak-driven aromas of cocoa, blackberry marmalade, some mint chocolate, a little bit of mocha latte, light plummy tones and a hint of sweet baking spices. The wine is ripe, sweet-toned and full-bodied on the palate with rather dense mouthfeel and pretty woody flavors of peppery spice, ripe blackberries, some extracted woody bitterness, light plummy tones, a little bit of oaky chocolate and mocha latte, a hint of herbal minty character and a touch of toasted caramel oak. The medium-to-moderately high acidity and ripe medium tannins aren't sufficient to keep the wine in balance and it starts to come across as quite ponderous rather quickly. The high alcohol feels pretty much to the fore throughout. The finish is coarse, woody and quite warm with powerful flavors of peppery spice, extracted and rather bitter woody oak, some chocolatey tones, a little bit of sweet - almost overripe - blackcurrant-driven dark fruit and jammy boysenberries and a hint of toffee. The jammy fruit flavors fade away rather quickly, but the oaky tones persist for a long time.
  
  Meh. Not really up my alley. This is a classic Aussie Shiraz made in the style I don't enjoy: very ripe, sweet-toned and drenched in oak. The acidity feels a bit inadequate in comparison to the big body and the tannins even more so. This is an acceptable wine if one likes big and oaky wines with a lot of alcohol, but if you prefer structure and harmony, this really doesn't have either. Pass.

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