Most of us are buying and drinking less Australian wine these days for a myriad of reasons. Many of us assume that Aussies don't age or lack sophistication or nuance because of their big flavor profiles. Or the fall of the US dollar has made them relatively less affordable. I've not bought much in a couple of years, but have started to realize recently that they still represent a better value and better done than the majority of US syrah. Of course, there are some great US syrah like alban and saxum and carlisle and ojai and tensley. But then we open a bottle of this stuff, which received 97 Wine Advocate points (89 from spectator). Can't say that I've enjoyed a wine more than this in several weeks. Softening, with the alcohol and big fruit flavors starting to subdue (ok,honestly, but still plenty big and inky) and secondary flavors starting to reveal themselves. Liked this better than a 98 Penfolds Grange from last month.
Bottom line: Don't count the Aussies out. With the dollar strengthing, and the Aussies still the masters of shiraz/syrah, they'll be back.
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