I don’t drink a lot of Australian wine in my house. Which is a bit strange now that I think about it. The first real wine that I loved was Wolf Blass Yellow Label Cabernet Sauvignon – I started drinking that wine when I was 19 (okay maybe a year or two sooner). But when I moved to Ontario from Saskatchewan in 2007 and had access to better, and more wine I tasted a bit of everything. So I remember revisiting this wine a couple of times in 2007 and just feeling underwhelmed. I also remember when I first started hearing about Australian Shiraz – but also had my heart broken by Yellow Tail. It just has come to be that when I think about Australia I’m thinking about mass produced manipulated wines.
Now fast forward to the past few years. If you have been following my podcast – Two Guys Talking Wine – Michael and I have been fortunate enough to talk with Clonakilla. (You can hear those chats here, and here) A fantastic Australian winery doing outstanding work with Riesling, Chardonnay, and Shiraz. These wines definitely speak to being in a warmer climate in terms of ripe flavours – but they are cool climate wines to their core with fantastic acidity and structure.
Fast forward to April 2019 – I was at the Family Wine Merchants tasting at the Wine Academy. The Jim Barry winery stole the show with a table full of Riesling, and Shiraz from Australia that offered perfect balance and fantastic ripeness. Needless to say, I was stunned – and moved a little bit. While it was exciting to have the opportunity to taste two vintages of the Armagh (2002 and 2014). The lineup of Riesling and Shiraz really stole the show. I’m going to have to stay the thanks to Jim Barry, and Clonakilla I’ve firmly had my attitude readjusted when it comes to Australia and it’s time to hunt for some more of these great wines.
2018 Jim Barry Watervale Riesling – $25.00 Licensee/Consignment from FWM – **** – This wine offers some very nice ripe fruit flavours – exactly what you would expect from Australian Riesling – but the bright crisp acidity is something that was a little unexpected. Keep in mind that this is an entry level bottle, but there is nothing entry level about the quality of this wine. The aromas are peach, gala apple, and lime. Flavours match the nose and the finish is clean and bright. The best part about this balance is that even though the fruit flavours will make you think this has some sweetness, this wine is bone dry. I expect to drink a lot of this during the hot summer months.
2017 Jim Barry Lodge Hill Riesling – Vintages TBD – $25.00AUD – **** – As if it wasn’t good enough that there was one good Riesling on the table – I had to taste this second one from Clare Valley. Bringing a similar timbre to the glass of the watervale – the best way I can compare is that if Watervale is a great movie in HD, Lodge Hill is that same movie in IMAX. The acids are sharper, the fruit flavours of apple, lime, and peach are more focused, and there is a nice mineral note starting to poke through on the finish that you didn’t notice in regular HD. Fantastically food friendly and this feels sweeter than it is (it’s bone dry).
2017 Jim Barry Single Vineyard McKay’s Riesling – Vintages TBD – $35.00AUD – **** – The back label on this wine says that the folks at Jim Barry harvest it a little later to deliver a more generous and opulent style. The thing about harvesting Riesling later – especially in a climate with hot summer days is the challenge of holding onto your acidity while pushing the ripeness of your fruit flavours. This delivers everything I experienced from the Watervale and Lodge Hill Riesling – but the concentration is off the chart. Simply put, this is an exceptional bottle of Riesling from anywhere on the planet – the fact that it’s Australian just makes it exciting.
2016 Jim Barry Lodge Hill Shiraz – Vintages April 27 – $22.95 – ****+ – This is the bottle of Shiraz that will change your mind about Australian reds. If you’re like me there’s a good chance that you’re experience with Shiraz sub-twenty dollars instantly makes the back of your tongue feel that cloying sickly sweet over-confected red fruit. (Which – has a time and a place, and if it’s your jam please don’t take this post as an attack). This is not that wine. What can you expect from this twenty three dollar bottle of Aussie Shiraz? Restraint, elegance, and balance. This actually reminds me of my recent trip to the northern rhone. So you can expect black currant, blackberry, nice spice, and whispers of smoke. The tannin is soft and well integrated – there is no need for cellar aging here. The acid rises up to make this a stellar bottle for whatever is on the grill. I hope we see this on some wine lists in the city in the near future.
2016 Jim Barry Clare Valley Single Vineyard Shiraz – Vintages TBD – $35.00AUD – ****+ – I know that on a recent trip to Toronto that the folks from Jim Barry presented this wine to the LCBO – it should retail for around thirty dollars. If the LCBO decides to list this wine we are all in for a treat. There is a richness and depth in this bottle the definitely screams Australia, but the moment you take your first sip you will be stunned at how elegant, yet concentrated these flavours are. The aromas are black currant jam, blackberry, blueberry, cedar smoke, and notes of black pepper and clove. In spite of the symphony of flavour and concentration the acids keep this wine in check, and focused. This is an outstanding bottle to enjoy right now, but I would think about cellaring this for 3-5 years.
2014 Jim Barry The Armagh – $399.95 – ***** – As I’m writing these notes, I was lucky enough to have a bottle to ponder while writing about the rest of the fantastic Jim Barry portfolio. A wine of this depth, complexity, and concentration is something that is meant to be pondered. I keep raising the glass to my face, and I keep forgetting to take a sip because the rich aromas are satisfying in their own right. The flavours are the most concentrated black currant, blackberry, clove, cinnamon, cherry, and smoke that you can imagine. If I had to level some criticism to this wine, I do wish that this wine was a little less money – but that’s being a little selfish as I know deep down inside this is worth the price of admission. This wine is already 5 years old but it’s still a baby – you can expect it to cellar for 30 years easily, and do so with confidence thanks to being sealed with a crown cap. Should you have the means – I highly recommend it.
