I opened this bottle while cooking our meal for Superbowl. I still laugh a bit at screwcaps on "fine wine" ... thinking back to my early college days with Boone's Farm wine and flavored brandies. :bottle:
I poured just a small taste after removing the top and was rather amazed at the restricted flavors. I've read so many comments about how big these Aussie Shiraz wines are, so I was a bit disappointed at first. So I poured the rest of the bottle into the decanter. Another surprise was the amount of sediment. There was at least a tablespoon on the side and bottom of the bottle. This is rather interesting too as I later read that the wine maker recommends you shake up this bottle prior to opening.
So about two hours later as I was sitting down for kickoff I took another sip. All I can say was "Wow! This wine sure is aptly named." What a difference a few hours makes. Bold, dark, jammy fruit flavors with hints of coffee, pepper, chocolate and licorice that just coated my mouth. There are some tannins in the background also, but they were quite smooth. This was the perfect wine for the rib eye steaks we were eating. The sweet spiciness just seemed to accent the food flavors.
I've read lots of love / hate comments on this particular brand ... but for now you can definitely put me in the love column. IMO, this is also a good value at around $20.
I poured just a small taste after removing the top and was rather amazed at the restricted flavors. I've read so many comments about how big these Aussie Shiraz wines are, so I was a bit disappointed at first. So I poured the rest of the bottle into the decanter. Another surprise was the amount of sediment. There was at least a tablespoon on the side and bottom of the bottle. This is rather interesting too as I later read that the wine maker recommends you shake up this bottle prior to opening.
So about two hours later as I was sitting down for kickoff I took another sip. All I can say was "Wow! This wine sure is aptly named." What a difference a few hours makes. Bold, dark, jammy fruit flavors with hints of coffee, pepper, chocolate and licorice that just coated my mouth. There are some tannins in the background also, but they were quite smooth. This was the perfect wine for the rib eye steaks we were eating. The sweet spiciness just seemed to accent the food flavors.
I've read lots of love / hate comments on this particular brand ... but for now you can definitely put me in the love column. IMO, this is also a good value at around $20.
