Curiosity got the better of me with this one. After reading headlines such as, "Best red wine in Australia," I had to see for myself what the fuss was all about.
And before sceptics jump to conclusions suggesting I'm trying to cut down the tall poppy, let's just put a few things out there for consideration...
This year's Barossa Wine Show was one of a handful that have managed to go ahead given the current circumstances we live in - the committee deserve respect for this. However, the judging panel was limited due to restrictions and thus were all South Australian locals. Curiously, one of the chief judges who stood on the trophy judging panel is linked to Pinnacle Drinks, the Woolworths arm of the company that produced this wine. To that judge's defence, knowing all those wines intimately is impossible but it's not a good look at the same time.
When some savvy thinking PR folk suggest this to be the "Best Red Wine in Australia" it is drawing a long bow, but modern media loves a beat up to draw an audience. Casting an eye across some of the best Barossa Shiraz wines produced, many didn't even present for the show. There was no Torbreck, no Rockford, no Schild Estate Moorooroo, I could go on but you get the picture.
Fundamentally, many mass produced wines from such big brands perform well at shows because they are made to appeal to the judges. This Shiraz presents itself glossy and polished. There's a good dose of blueberry and mulberry fruit. It shows typical Barossan spice in the form some Christmas cake and brown spices. Those spices drive long with a firmish edge.
Wines with whole bunch of funk generally don't rate. Wines with heavy oak don't show their best until some bottle age calms the farm. Wines with firmish acidity are made for the long haul and will be passed over quickly by a judge as well. None of those were present here.
Day two of tasting brought out a deeper side, but note, wine shows don't look at a wine over a couple of days. For trophy judging, a new bottle would have been opened and poured. Here, dark chocolate in the rum 'n' raisin were more prominent. Still spicy the length on close was respectable.
In the end, the judges can only score what's in the glass in front of them at the time and this Fat Cat obviously stood out to all.
Congratulations to the winemaking team for the gong and all those involved, but let's not gloss over the facts when almighty claims are made just to sell some booze.
*Note - I bought this wine via retail as I do not receive samples from Pinnacle Drinks. The wine was tasted over two days and was not tasted blind.
Drink to five years+
91/100
Region: BarossaRRP: $24
Source: Retail
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