McLaren Vale 14.5% Screwcap $55
These two wines are part of the collaborative McLaren Vale “Scarce Earth” project designed to highlight the diversity of (single block) terroir within the region through its signature variety – Shiraz. The sites used to source the fruit for each wine lie just 50 metres apart.
I remember meeting chief winemaker Michael Fragos for the first time last year and asking him where he thought the future of Chapel Hill lay given the success of Italian varieties such as Sangiovese and Sagrantino. His answer was unequivocal; Chapel Hill’s focus was Shiraz because that’s what the Vale does best. A bold reply these days. Not long ago, UK wine writer Andrew Jefford suggested in Decanter magazine that the grape was unsuitable for the GI. He made those comments after being invited to visit Australia…his explanation for that visit?
“The overall aim of the year is to research and write as much as possible of a book on terroir in Australia … or, if you prefer, what makes Australia’s greatest wines and vineyards different from each other and from those found elsewhere on the landmasses of our precious blue planet.”
All I can say is that I’m glad a group of wineries have taken concrete steps to explore their terroir, their diversity, their uniqueness, themselves.
2009 Chapel Hill The Chosen House Block Shiraz
Despite the vintage, this is an outstanding wine that will live a very long time. Breathtaking architecture, intricate tannic form and supreme balance assure that. It’s a wine that throws up a word not often used when it comes to describing reds from McLaren Vale – elegance. Bright cherries and raspberries provide a sweet counterpoint to what is essentially a savoury wine. Ferrous earth, sand and gravel alongside dark chocolate shavings and ground coffee beans. Some darker plummy notes appear with time. Length is a real feature here. A serious and defined wine that will improve with age.
2009 Chapel Hill The Chosen Road Block Shiraz
In many ways, this is a more archetypal expression of McLaren Vale Shiraz. It’s more approachable and cuddly. The fruit is mostly in the darker spectrum although redcurrant flavour is woven through it. Ripe and generous with supporting notes of mocha, spice and liquorice as well as an undercurrent of salinity. An enthusiastic and bold wine that lacks a little of the gravitas and precision of the House Block.
Winery website- http://www.chapelhillwine.com.au/