2010 The Lane Vineyard Block 5 Shiraz
Adelaide Hills, South Australia
This is one of the prettiest wines I have tasted this year and it is one that will add grace and elegance to any celebratory table or just your couch really. The Adelaide Hills region is producing some lovely reds with fragrance, elegance and texture, a counterpoint to the wines from the riper, more power driven reds from the neighbouring Barossa Valley.
Just so that you are sure of the provenance of this wine, the label carries the co-ordinates of the actual vineyard. You can’t get much more transparent than that. You can plug the coordinates into a GPS converter on line, see the satellite image of the vineyard and can sit back and imagine seeing those grapes actually ripening.
Keep these co-ordinates handy because when you are visiting the Adelaide Hills, they will lead you to the very stylish cellar door and bistro with some of the best views of the region.
Redolent with cherry, black fruit and warm spice, the fragrant nose, lifted with 2% Viognier, gives you some indication of the juicy plushness of the silky palate. It is ripely intense without sacrificing freshness. This wine could certainly be a wine to be enjoyed with your Christmas dinner but I shall take The Lane founder John Edward’s suggestion and have it with my favourite cheese – Comte.
Note: co-ordinates 35° 0’57.94″S 138°50’6.12″E
Distribution: fine wine shops and wine lists, cellar door
Value: $26.00
© Lisa Johnston November 2011
Wine Diva Wines of the Month, December 2011
