Description
First Drop 2% Shiraz is my kind of wine. From the warm parts of the Barossa, it is rich, ripe and plush. Look for dirt, dark fruits, raspberry. The palate on this First Drop 2% Shiraz is viscous, juicy, but has a refreshing acidity. The palate is long finishing, with floral notes on the end and just a hint of coconut. The flavours linger for a long time after you swallow the First Drop 2% Shiraz. It embraces the oak use, but it integrates into the flavour of the wines. The First Drop 2% Shiraz has 2% Moscatel, which is a very Barossa thing to do. With a few years in the bottle already, you can drink this First Drop 2% Shiraz now or leave it for another 5 years.
First Drop 2% Shiraz Barossa Valley 2019, and all wines are eligible for at least 5% off any six bottles. And 10% off any 12 bottles. Some wines will be at a more significant discount and not subject to further discounts.
First Drop 2% Shiraz – What First Drop says
“Our reserve Shiraz is sourced from vineyards in Seppeltsfield, Greenock and Ebenezer. Dense, earthy dark berry fruits, with hints of tobacco and cocoa are further enhanced by subtle use of oak. This wine has been matured in a combination new and old French oak hogsheads and American oak barriques for 20-24 months, resulting in a sexy, textured palate. And who’s 2%? Moscatel! Just to add a splash of funk.”
First Drop 2% Shiraz Wine Review
James Halliday Australian Wine Companion 2019 Edition, page 248.
Rating: 94 (Silver)
“Yes there’s size and warmth but it has a smile on its dial and charm on its side. It’s light and heavy at once, floral and fat with ripe berries, its buzzy alcohol drenched in juicy, dark, energetic fruit flavour. It’s a toothsome red wine.”
Two friends, Matt ‘Gantos’ Gant and John ‘JR’ Retsas, brought First Drop into being in 2004. First Drop makes wines to drink rather than pontificate upon. Their base is the ‘Home of the Brave’ in the heart of the Barossa Valley. The house style of First Drop is silky, textural, drinkable wines with a hint of funk and a lot of interest. They source an eclectic range of varieties and produce a diversity of wine styles. The fruit comes from vineyards in the Adelaide Hills, McLaren Vale and Barossa. The packaging completes the wines, engaging and often humorous labels and stories behind them.
Barossa Valley
One of the major wine regions of Australia. Known for making great Shiraz by any standard as well as Grenache, Mataro, Semillon and much more. There has been a lot of work finding the sub-regions that excel for each style and variety planted.
Shiraz/Syrah
A bit of a chameleon, Shiraz can change how it looks depending on the terroir and/or winemaker influence. The Syrah-based wines of Northern Rhone are dry and austere, while the Shiraz of Barossa is rich and fleshy. A variety that lends itself to long aging but can be drunk at any time of its evolution.
Muscat Of Alexandra/Moscatel
The same variety that makes Moscato d’Asti, Muscat Beaumes de Venice and Australian Muscat. The naturally high sugar and acid in the grape made it a robust and, therefore, popular wine before sanitation was properly understood. The balance and highly aromatic nature of the grape make it a beautiful variety for sweeter wines.
Australian Wine
The invasion of “Sunshine in a bottle” put Australian wine on the map. The fruity, easy-going, somewhat samey wines were endearing for a short time. Then the next big thing knocked them off their perch.
This forced producers to increase quality and emphasise the special terroirs of Australia. Of which, there are many. And many more yet to be discovered.
Wine
Wine is the result you get from fermented grape juice. There is proof of wine production dating back 8000 years ago. Fashions, innovations and many other factors have influenced the way wine has evolved over the years.
The wine grape is special. It contains everything you need to make grape wine except for the yeast, which lives on the outside of the skins.
Human inputs can influence the final product, including the viticulture (growing) choices. And the winemaker can shape the wine to a point too.
The best wines of the world often refer to terroir. Terroir is a French term that refers to all the climatic, geological and topographical influences on a specific piece of land. And it is true that neighbouring vineyards, grown identically, can taste noticeably different.
Red Wine
Fun fact; most of the colour for wines comes from the skins. There are only a handful of grapes that have red juice. Alicante is the most well known of these grapes.
By macerating the juice on the skins, the wine gains tannins and flavours. Certain compounds change the chemistry of the wine too.
Red wines tend to have higher alcohol. More tannin and more oak flavours compared to other styles of wine. But the thousands of grapes and terroirs they grow in influence this.
The Wine Depository
I, Phil, have been running The Wine Depository since 2011. The Wine Depository exists to make sure you are drinking the good wines. You can browse and pick what is interesting to you. Or you can make contact with me. I’ll make sure you get what you want, to your palate, to your budget and to your door.
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