Welcome to Wine 102, a deeper dive into some of the less common varietals you see on store shelves or restaurant wine lists. To round out the lesson, we’ll close with Syrah.

Syrah (or as the Australians and occasionally South Africans know it, Shiraz), is one of the most prominent grapes both the Northern Rhône in France and Australia.  Despite this, the wines are substantially different, but equally delicious.  Those coming from France, have beautifully nuanced plum, leather, green peppercorn, and are leaner in character.  Meanwhile, the Australians have crafted huge, jammy, almost syrup like concotions of blackberry jam, vanilla, chocolate, and cigar box that kicks like pack mule (Barossa Shiraz in particular got an interesting reputation thanks to it’s high alcohol, which sometimes crests 16%).  That said, Syrah can provide enormous flavor for not a lot of cash, and at it’s best makes captivating wines that are powerful and spicy.

Quick Facts on Syrah:

Color: Red
Style: Dry
Body:  Medium – Large
General Characteristics:  Jammy Berries, Plum, Tobacco, Chocolate
Notable Regions:  Northern Rhône (France), Australia, California, Walla Walla (Washington State)

Sure, Yellow Tail gets all the love, but can Jacob’s Creek Reserve Shiraz 2013 show what great Shiraz is made of?

Sight:  Bright pink edges with a deep purple core.

Smell:  A spice box with lots of black pepper, cloves, and smoke.  Jammy blackberries,  smooth vanilla, and fresh currants with hints of espresso and mocha.  A touch of dusty earth adds up to a rather stunning bouquet.

Sip:  Soft, and with lots bright currant and blackberry, it mixes with huge amounts of spice.  A light smoke continues through the background with a sort of espresso character.  It comes off deeper and darker, and more brooding than it looks.   There’s a sort of interesting volatility to the body

Savor:  The ending is grippy, with good tannins and a nice mix of espresso, cigar, and blackberry.  The mix carries on for a good amount of time.

Jacob’s Creek Reserve Shiraz is punching well above it’s weight.  Deliciously deep flavors of dark fruit that are packed on top of a bright body make this Shiraz amazing value for the price.  Texturally, it has a soft character, but the coarser tannins might be the only area of immediate improvement.   As examples of what shiraz can be, Jacob’s Creek Reserve Shiraz is a fantastic warm climate

Verdict:  Blackberry, Spice, Smoke, Currant, Smooth
Price: $10.99
Barossa, Australia
Available at Wine.Com