Young reds of any variety can be raw and edgy but most will soften and mellow with a year or so's bottle age. The best will continue to develop and change for many years rewarding those with cellars (and restraint) with complex, velvety wines.
Although wine sent for review is tasted blind to eliminate preconceptions, all wine tastingand evaluation is subjective. These are personal recommendations.
Brown Brothers Victoria Shiraz 2009, $19
Three and a half stars (out of five)
Good value
Spicy with hints of eucalypt, malt, a suggestion of French polish, mellowed fruit, a velvety texture and easy finish.
Three and a half stars
Good value
Bright and youthful with hints of blueberries, a spicy edge, intense fruit with savoury undertones and firm tannins. Will develop and mellow over the next year or two.
Three and a half stars
Average value
Fragrant, with hints of chocolate and rich fruitcake, spicy oak supporting the generous sweet fruit and a pleasing, firm finish. Drinking nicely but will continue to develop for a couple of years.
Three and a half stars
Below average value
A bright, peppery wine with hints of freshly sawn timber, edgy fruit and firm grippy tannins. Lively and slightly hard-edged at present, it is likely to mellow and soften with another few months or a year's bottle age.
Four stars
Average value
A dark, dense young wine, rich with sweet generous fruit and spicy, toasted oak, savoury undertones and a long finish. This big, textural wine needs another year or so's bottle age to mellow and develop. Promising.
Four and a half stars
Below average value
At four years old this is deliciously mellowed with hints of blueberries, spice and even tar. It's concentrated and textural, generous with depth on the palate and firm but velvety tannins on the long finish.
ANOTHER GLASS
Te Mania Nelson Syrah 2010, $22
two and a half stars (out of five)
below average value
A light, peppery, edgy wine, slightly confected, firmly structure with lots of oak, a savouryundertone, and a crisp, tingly finish.
