Doncaster Estate Shiraz 10

Well, it is already time for Australian 2010 vintages to arrive. Remember that their season is half a year ahead, so you could compare it to a 2009 1/2 from the Northern Hemisphere. This one appears to be bottled in American Canyon, Ca? So, it may be shipped here in bulk to be bottled.

The bottle says it is from South Eastern Australia and it a great place to grow this variety. "Bright berry fruit characters on the nose give way to rich soft fruits on the palate, supported with a firm tannin structure and light oak notes." Make sure you enjoy it responsibly with friends and eat it with a barbie or blah blah. 13.9% alcohol. This bottle has a screw cap.

The color is fairly light and the nose does have soft berry notes. The wine is light on the palate (or less charitably THIN) and does give way to a firmer finish. There is a pleasing peppery taste that is characteristic of Shiraz/Syrah. The initial tastes are best, since the wine does not get more complex and seems to have a bit of harsh sulfide treatment?

It is tough to be too critical of a wine you can pick up for $3.99. It does belong in the below $10 group, but is is a good deal? I would not run out and buy a case, but if you can't pay more than $4 for a bottle this is drinkable.

Element 79 Barossa Shiraz 2008

The Grocery Outlet chain must have been offered a big lot of Aussie Vineyards wines. Element 79 is another of their lines. It is the "big brother" to their original Au brand. Look closely and you can see the Au watermark under the name. While sitting down to taste the wine, we were delighted by their intelligent marketing. The "Au" says Australia and gold (medal winning?) and the Element 79 reference to the periodic table has to appeal to geeky science people.

The bottle says this is a "limited release" from "the finest estate-grown fruit." It is from the Barossa region which is producing many highly rated wines. "Our 2008 Barossa Shiraz exhibits intense purple and red hues with rich aromas of dark berry fruit on the nose. Your palate delights with blackberry and licorice flavors, while firm, balanced tannins deliver a satisfying long finish. Shiraz from the Barrossa rarely disappoints, and our 2008 vintage is no exceptions following an excellent growing season". This wine has a GOLD screw cap, of course. 13.8% Alcohol.

We found a lot of agreement with the bottle on our tasting. First is the amazing color; this wine is so dark that it lets very little light through and leaves a red impression on the glass for quite a while after it is swirled. The nose does have nice fruit and spice. On the first taste, you get strong grape, stone fruit, and spice with a smooth finish. As the tasting continued, the tannin became more noticeable, but paired with palate cleansing food, we were delighted with each return to the wine. The spice is at a nice level for a Shiraz. Our guest taster felt the wine built up a metallic/spice taste on the finish as we were drinking (maybe appropriate for Au.)

At $3.99, for a $27.99 comparison, this was a great buy. Element 79 - check it out on your periodic table and pick up some wine that wins our Gross Out Gold Medal. We are going to pick more up, if we can, to confirm our winning ticket first impression.

Fly Shiraz 09

We know that wines with animals on the label sell better(?), but "Fly"? This wine has a fly fishing theme to the label, so if you are a fan of that pastime, this might really sound great. The (Mc)Fly theme almost convinced us to pass this one up at our local Gross Out, but we tried it out. This is another line from Aussie Vineyards importers.

The bottle drones on about Fly fishing, then it doesn't describe the wine at all. 13.8% alcohol (wow, they always seem to hit that mark...) The bottle has a screw cap and has a dimple between 12 Apostles and Tamborine, so you might expect a mid price wine.

We were pleasantly surprised by this wine. It had a deep color in the glass. The nose was light with a hint of oak. The wine on the palate was smooth up front with some spice on the finish. It was quite drinkable like a "light" version of Rosemount Shiraz with more berry.

At $3.99, we thought this was a good deal and will look to pick up a couple of bottles.

12 Apostles Shiraz 09

This wine is a much like the Cab of the same year. Again, it is a cheaper made bottle and has the low three buck price point at Gross Out. The bottle says that it has a bold introduction and finishes with finesse. "Aromas of dark berry and licorice fill the palate ahead of fine oak tannins." Well, maybe...

The color in the glass was a lighter purple. The nose had noticeable fruit with a little vinegar. We found the initial palate to be light berry with stronger tannins in the finish. A bit of the spice you expect in Shiraz, but not distinct pepper.

At $2.99, it almost has to be fairly priced if you can drink it. We certainly place it above the common Yellow Tail, but not close to the Rosemount standard. We will not buy this again.

Cliff Edge Shiraz 03

This wine is from Mt Langi Ghiran in Victoria, Australia. We picked it up since you don't see many 2003 in Gross Out.

The bottle says "this complex blend of our best vineyard sites offers dark berry fruit flavors of blackberry and liquorice with subtle spices and toasted oak notes. Fine tannins are supported by generous fruit and persistent acidity." This bottle had a screw cap. 15% Alcohol. (Higher than any we have seen from Australia.)

We drank this wine over two days and had quite different opinions for the two glasses. The first day we felt it was not complex (bland) and too bitter. The color is quite dark in the glass. The nose improved to nice berry notes on the second day. The taste was light berry and graphite with a strong finish. After breathing, it was much better, but still had strong tannins punching the back sides of the tongue. The experience was much more like a Cab than a Shiraz.

At $6.99, this is a more expensive bottle for Gross Out and had a hard to believe markdown from $35(?). So, we expected more from it and it really only delivered the second day. The obvious advice is that this needs decanting to open up. My wife enjoyed this wine more than I did, so we have a split decision.

12 Apostles Cabernet 09

The bottle is noticeably "cheaper". It seems lighter weight while you hold it. The bottom has a very shallow indentation which is also a sign of a budget bottle. The name comes from the 12 rock formations off the coast of South Eastern Australia. This is one of the Aussie Vineyards wines (Tamborine is also one of their wines.)

We found this wine to have a mild character overall. The nose was a little light. It had light blackberry and peach on the palate with a smooth finish. No real complexity here. .

At $2.99, this wine was a good value compared to "three buck Chuck" or Woodbridge. No long shot winner here. So, it is a bit odd, but we are tagging this as a "Good Value" and "Cooking Wine". You might try this for yourself if you are planning a big party with unsophisticated tastes -- you'll only be out $3 to see if it works for you...

Barren Jack Shiraz 2009

From the bottle: "Barren Jack was the original name for the dam now called Burrinjuck. It was a major dam that was built to provide water to dry lands, which are now flourishing as grape growing areas." Isn't it nice to have an Australian geography lesson? About the wine, it says, "full of vibrant berries overlaid with chocolate and spicy notes. Ripe fruit with smooth tannin and a touch of oak, this wine is perfect with (blah blah)." Well, maybe not sooo complex, but the description is not too far off. 13.9% alcohol. This is actually a Shiraz(54%), Cabernet(38%), and Merlot(8%) blend. The bottle has a screw top (which we don't mind since it is more dependable.)

We found this wine to have a light red color and almost no nose. The flavor was surprisingly bold considering the lack of nose with a very peppery taste. It was not heavy on the berry taste but seemed like blackberry and plum. It had a nice finish and moderate tannin and oak.

At $4.99, we rate it as a good value for Gross Out. About as good as a Rosemount we would use for comparison, but much cheaper.

Tamborine Shiraz Granite Belt 2008

Another wine from Aussie Vineyards in the Tamborine line. We still aren't sure how these wines are related to the Mt Tamborine winery that was winning awards a few years ago. (Mt Tamborine wines go for about $35 a bottle.) This wine seems to be from the same region as the Cabernet, but it gets a "granite belt" appellation.

The bottle doesn't vary much from the Cabernet that we tasted a few nights ago. This wine also hits 13.8% alcohol and has a screw cap.

We found the wine to have a deep purple color in the glass. It has a light nose with mild fruit. The taste is fairly light for an Australian Shiraz. It has some of the pepper we like, but not as distinct as the Rosemont standard that we would use for comparison. The finish is lighter, so probably not as much oak or tannin. This wine didn't have the "fizziness" of the Cabernet; it is much more ready to drink.

At $3.99 a bottle at Gross Out, we rate this a winner in the wine lottery and are looking to pick up more along with the Cabernet.

Coorong Shiraz

I think the name is supposed to remind us of Coonawarra. The bottle says "Coorong" means "long neck" and refers to the long peninsula that runs along the southern part of Australia. This bottle gets a Limestone Coast appellation. It also has a "Reserve" marking that can signify the best from a winery. Interestingly this was bottled by Wine Trees, American Canyon, Ca. So it may have been shipped bulk(?).

We found this wine to have deep red color and a very light nose. There was not any huge berry taste and only a little of the pepper taste we like so much in Shiraz. The tannin and oak of a big red were the main features. My wife liked this one more than I did. We put it in the drinkable category, but not very far in...

At $4.99, this was a not a great deal compared to some others at Gross Out. Certainly not a winning ticket.

Tamborine Cabernet Sauvignon 2008

Tamborine wines 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon, no it's not a Shatner tribute wine (although they do have a Dan Aykroyd wine in the store right now), it is an Australian import currently at Gross Out in Washington.

The bottle says it is from the Coonawarra region on the East Coast of Australia with views of the Gold Coast and Pacific Ocean. It should be paired with hard cheeses or red meat dishes. There are no real details on the wine or wine makers other than it is produced by Aussie Vineyards. 13.8% Alcohol.

The color was an agreeable clear deep red. We found the wine to have aggressive fruit on the nose and on the first taste. Blackberry and cherry were more evident than typical for Cab. The tannins were fairly light and there was very little oak. The wine had a slightly "fizzy" feel that we have mainly experienced with newer, unfiltered homemade wines. We felt that this wine may improve greatly with time, so we are considering cellaring a few bottles to let it develop. This wine has a screw cap.

At $3.99 a bottle, this is a good value. (We did not find an independent price quote for this wine.) It's not quite a Jackpot at this point, but could be after cellaring.

Update: We had part of the bottle left the second day and the wine had improved quite a bit. The "fizziness" was gone and the berry tastes were more subdued, so the idea of cellaring it is promising. We suggest decanting this wine to improve it if you are drinking it now.