Product details
The 2014 Hawkes Bay vintage was one of the best years yet in Hawkes Bay for producing ripe elegant Syrah. This Syrah has complex flavours of dark berries and plum with hints of violets pepper and smoke on the nose. The palate is rich and silky with a long fine spicy finish.
Dan Murphy’s rates as 95/100.
Click and Collect if your local store has stock
Don’t forget to use CashRewards etc. if buying online. Stack with Woolies WISH cards for an extra 5% off.
I saw that but it goes to prove that morons come in all shapes and sizes…
Have you tried it yourself?
This is highly recommended. You can clean anything with it. Query - how were they able to get the cat to stay on the bottle whilst filling it- 95 pts.
Dan Murphy's rating is always all over the place. Take a bag of salt or find another review and ignore it.
Syrah!?
We call it Shiraz in this country, mate.
Should Oz winemakers such as McWilliams be changing the name of their syrah then?
yep.
Well, obviously there is no law against pretentiosness in the the wine industry.
But since the frogs complained about Australian Burgundy, Claret etc, we have been using grape varieties to label our wines, regardless of the style of wine-making.
Syrah refers to the Northern Rhone style, not the alcohol fruit juice Shiraz style.
SHIRAZ V SYRAH
by , 09 November 2017
Is there a difference between Shiraz and Syrah? It’s one of the most common confusions in the wine world, so we’ve taken a moment to clarify the difference.
The Grape
Firstly and most importantly, both Shiraz and Syrah derive from the exact same grape varietal.
In general, Shiraz and Syrah wines are bold, packed with flavour and full bodied in structure. There is also a huge range in the flavour profile of Shiraz and Syrah wines, dependent on the vineyard and region that they are grown.
A lot of the difference between the two comes down to where you are and where your wine is from. However this also means that there is a difference in the style of the wine, because of the style of winemaking and influences of terroir.
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Europe
European countries that label their wines by varietal use the term Syrah. In France the wines are labelled by region not varietal, but the wines from regions such as H’ermitage are usually mostly Syrah.
Syrah is the great grape of the northern Rhône, responsible for the dense, burly, deep-coloured, long-lived, savoury and peppery wines of Hermitage, and the slightly more seductively perfumed (traditionally thanks to some co-fermented viognier in the blend) Côte-Rôtie.
Unlike other varieties, it demonstrates a strict relationship between how severely it is pruned and how good the eventual wine is. It can also lose its aroma and acidity quickly if left past optimal ripening stage.
Australia and South Africa
In Australia and South Africa, the term Shiraz is used almost exclusively. However there has been a growing trend in recent years to use Syrah for wines that are made in the Old World style, being less fruit forward and possessing floral aromatic and medium tannin style seen in the classic French and European wines.
Cuttings of Syrah, called Shiraz, were probably brought to Australia by the so-called father of Australian viticulture James Busby in the early 1830, when he traveled around France and Spain looking for vine cuttings to plant in Australia. It flourished and spread, with individuals like Maurice O’Shea perfecting the art of making Shiraz in Australia. Today, there are 42,000 hectares planted to the varietal.
Elsewhere in the World
In countries outside of Europe, South Africa and Australia, the term Syrah is mostly used. When Shiraz is used, it usually means that it is not made in the Old World style and is more closely aligned with the Australian style.
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The Differences:
Syrah Flavours: The (slightly)leaner than the Australian style, yet more complex (spice, cherry, tar, smoke, cassis, plum, etc), earthy, lively (more acidity),softer tannins, and typically capable of short to long term bottle aging.
Shiraz Flavours: Shiraz wines that are full bodied and encouraged to produce rich, ripe, and intense fruit flavours (plum, blackberry, cherry, etc), as well as hints of black spice. They can also have a higher alcohol content due to longer ripening on the vine before picking. These fruit driven wines are usually made in an easy drinking style and are good everyday wines but are able to age for many years.
The difference is clear in the McW 660 Reserve range. The typical old-world Syrah is lighter and leaner than the intense Shiraz wines of Australia, which tend to be richer intensity, fruit forward and more full-bodied with tannin. The difference between the Canberra Syrah and Hilltops Shiraz exhibits this difference very clearly.
As more Syrah wines come on to the market, it will be important to know the difference when choosing a wine.
If you like bold, fruit forward wines with tannin, stick with Shiraz. If you’re looking for something a little more elegant and complex, the Syrah could be a good option
Brilliant summary and I particular the last part. NZ Syrah is absolutely less bold and more complex than Aussie Shiraz. Almost more towards Pinot Noir in style but with a deeper cherry or chocolate style.
So if you expect and Aussie style Shiraz don't buy it. If you want to try a different style then $10 might not be a bad choice.
I agree but a complex wine is how it's made, not the way it's made. Since new world Shiraz can age long term, the complexity grows. Recently open a bottle of 12 yo Bendigo Shiraz, the whole room filled with this amazing fragrance, with noticeable roasting ham nose. It's complex I can assure you.
A badly made Syrah is similar to a badly made Pinot Noir. Not enough flavour juat like water used to wash wine cask.
Just one other thing. This seems to be selling in NZ for $19 so the original price is misleading but it's still half price.
has complex flavours of dark berries
..we ran out of grapes
and plum
..we ran out of berries too
with hints of violets pepper
..we ran out of fruit full stop. so we just chucked anything we could find in, including flowers and spices
and smoke on the nose
..just when we thought things couldn't get better, a bushfire swept through.
please by our wine, we need the money.
Classic - you should write a wine translator program.
Geeez…have a read of the 1 customer review of the wine!
I prefer the expert review.
Raspberry, white pepper, garrigue nose - a modern, medium bodied wine with dried black currant, hints of anise and swooningly soft, yet deliciously chewy tannins. An elegant bargain.
There's no guarantee the moron who wrote the customer review
A. Was reviewing the correct wine
B. Knew what they were talking about.
….'swooningly soft'! :D
Dan Murphy's reviewer certainly doesn't rate it a 95 lol