Reviewed by Stewart Noble from WineWithoutBS.com.au for AdrianErdedi.com
On a recent trip to the Hunter Valley I was interested in the fact that many wineries I visited were offering both a Hunter Valley Shiraz and Barossa Valley Shiraz. Two unique regions that do have their noticeable difference. I’ve been to the Barossa a few times before and don’t recall any of their wineries offering me a Hunter Valley Shiraz!
The 2007 Vintage in the Barossa Valley wasn’t a great one so perhaps what the Hunter Valley wineries are doing is capitalising on this point, as I can say from all comparisons I tried at various cellar doors , the Hunter Valley shiraz in 2007 was the better drop.
One of the Hunter Valley’s relatively new star wine makers is Andrew Thomas, whom after working at length with Tyrrell’s, took the plunge and started his own label called Thomas Wines. The thing I like about Thomas Wines is that they only make two varieties, Semillon and Shiraz, which many would argue are the Hunter Valley’s two most successful varieties.
This Shiraz has a deep plum purple colour with an aroma of dark fruits and slight hints of vanilla as a result of the use of new French Oak. It’s wonderfully smooth to drink and the flavours of fruit and oak are very well balanced. I found the alcohol slightly noticeable yet not in any detrimental way and at 14.3% it is actually well within the normal range for Australian Shiraz.
Thomas Wines 2007 Kiss Shiraz
Price - $64 from Nick’s Wine Merchants
Region - Hunter Valley, NSW
Final Sip - One of the finest Hunter Valley Shiraz’s I’ve come to experience and something I’d definitely buy more of for cellaring.
