Ben says
★★ Great Wine “A little dusty and closed but with brooding bramble fruit underneath the mask. As the wine opens up the fruit becomes more pure, dust turns to cracked black pepper, clove and toast. It is a richly satisfying wine in the mouth, bold and dark yet ending with a sharp, fresh bite of raspberries and dried blackcurrants. Chocolate and vanilla come into play, along with a warming, satisfying finish. A wonderful Shiraz!“
KEY POINTS
Varietal Shiraz with 14.5% abv. Hand-harvested from 100 year old Shiraz vines. Gently crushed and fermented in open vats. The wine is then hand-plunged twice a day for 8 days to extract colour, flavour and tannin before the juice and skins are pressed with the resulting juice racked off into French oak and matured for 18 months.
Grown in: Barossa Valley, AUSTRALIA.
Food Pairing
This wine was delicious with quesadillas packed with refried pinto beans, stir-fried bell pepper batons and caramelised onions. We also had some corn on the cob brushed with coriander, chilli and garlic butter. Yum 🙂
Disclosure & Price
Purchased from Little Fine Wine Co. as a half bottle. Find in the UK for circa £8.95 for a half bottle, or the 2021 vintage is available in the UK in 75cl for c. £17-£20.
Reviewed and tasted: 27/06/2024
About the Producer
Dandelion Vineyards was founded by the winemaker Elena Brooks, originally from Bulgaria where her mother worked in a winery. She met her husband and settled in the McLaren Vale, making wines that have met critical acclaim, including the Dandelion Vineyards Lion’s Tooth of McLaren Vale, which won her the Bushing Queen crown at the McLaren Vale wine show in 2021. Brooks prefers to work with older vineyards and she has an appreciation for the terroir and the environment. Brooks is a member of Sustainable Winegrowing Australia and working towards the certification.
