MEDICUS MARCH 2016

W I N E

W ine writer Joe Fattorini, said in an article for The Herald Scotland that “there’s so much nice, solid, dependable wine out there. But they’re rather like the nice, solid, dependable girls my parents used to implore me to ask out as a teenager – they just don’t turn me on. I want something dangerous, seductive, alluring...” An interesting way of looking at wine and maybe, he has a point. One should not just stick with the wines one knows and enjoys, when there are so many interesting varieties and styles just screaming to be tried. The Rieslingfreak No.3 Clare Valley Riesling 2014 from Clare Valley is a case in point. This wine is dry in style, with strong hints of orange blossom. It has intensity with lashings of lime juice and spice and is lifted and lively. The Koelher-Ruprecht Kallstadter Saumagen Riesling Auslese Pfalz 2007 is from one of the very best German producers. This wine comes from the Saumagen grand cru vineyard in the Pfalz. The grapes are harvested with up to five selective pickings by hand. They’re crushed and then macerated between 12 to 24 hours before undergoing spontaneous fermentation. The wines are aged in traditional oval-shaped oak or chestnut barrels ranging from 300 to 2400 litres, with up to nine months on the lees. They are lightly filtered and bottled just before next harvest. The wine has wonderful aromatics and citrus and crisp apple flavours with plenty of acidity. The Donnhoff Oberhauser Riesling Kabinett 2014 displays a fragrance of

peach and spicy citrus fruit, with lively acidity, perfectly balanced by zesty orange; the residual sugar not allowed to dominate. The wine is very elegant with a wonderful balance between fine fruit sweetness and firm acidity – the sort of Riesling that gives Kabinett a good name. The 2013 Izway Bruce Shiraz is a good example of the Izway philosophy – wine making is simple and minimalistic, based on old world, hands-on techniques and terroir. As the makers say: “Bruce is a man of very few words. The first wine ever made by Izway, and we would like to think the wine still does the talking.” The vintage produced classic Barossa Shiraz with depth, concentration and complexity. A very good year and most similar to 2003. The light harvest will mean the wines will be in high demand. The 2013 Bruce has piercing high tone aromatics and amazing tannin structure. This wine is a balance between power and elegance, the trademark of a great Barossa Shiraz. Given the quality of the vintage, this wine has great cellaring potential and will be in its prime around 2020 and 2030. Michael Hall’s Eden Valley Syrah 2013 really is an alluring wine, with a floral and exuberant purple fruit style, that has deep plum and mulberry notes plus fine spice and pepper, a heap of graphite, and really fragrant stony elements too – a reflection of terroir. The palate is neatly cut into shape with crisp, smooth and layered tannins that deliver ripe juicy dark plum and red fruit flavour. The fruit shines bright through the finish, with the tannins deep and long.

The 2013 Izway Bruce Shiraz is a good example of

the Izway philosophy – wine making is simple and minimalistic, based on old world, hands-on techniques and terroir

Wine has many facets for you to see and “is about so much more than what’s in your glass,” says Fattorini.

“It’s about the people who make it and the beautiful places it’s grown. It’s magical to meet passionate winemakers and grape growers, and visit places you normally only read about in books or

magazine articles.” ■

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