The Under $20 A Bottle Wine Thread:

[SeanGAR]

Most of the upscale Aussie syrahs I have had in the last 5-7 years were over ripe, jammy, high alcohol, and unpleasant. Big fruit perhaps, but out of balance and undrinkable after a half a glass. Made to show "big" in a comparison tasting, not to be a nice wine with a meal.

What chemicals are you referring to when you say 'chemical driven plonk'. Sulfur is a chemical. Flavor compounds extracted from oak barrels are chemicals. Wine is nothing but a bunch of chemicals in a glass that can taste good or not, depending more on a person's personal preference than anything. I dislike the super ripe walla walla/HHH wines, but some people really like them. Who is right?

[TheRiddick]

Originally Posted by SeanGAR

Most of the upscale Aussie syrahs I have had in the last 5-7 years were over ripe, jammy, high alcohol, and unpleasant. Big fruit perhaps, but out of balance and undrinkable after a half a glass. Made to show "big" in a comparison tasting, not to be a nice wine with a meal.

What did you drink?

Did you have Mt. Langhi Ghiran? d'Arenberg, Parker Station, Torbreck, 3 Rivers, Run Rig, E&E, Cimicky? And what were your impressions?

With Oz Shiraz, you need to pick and choose carefully. That same Mt. Langhi Ghiran needs at least 5-7 years to get going and is a very balanced wine once there. 1995-1997 d'Arenberg Dead Arm are legendary and pretty much killed any and all competition in all blind tastings I have done (WITH FOOD). Cimicky are still undervalued as they were 10-12 years ago (as is Mt. Langhi, IMO).

If you really want to try some small Oz labels there is a shop in SF I can hook you up with, the buyer there knows Oz and NZ wines like no one else in USA and has an incredible selection in the back room. That was my learning grounds years ago :-) Before I worked in wine retail and sold a number of these myself.

In general terms, I won't touch any Oz Shiraz these days that sells under $25 a bottle, sounds elitist, but that's reality if you want anything drinkable.