Clos Clare Shiraz 2003 Friday, Mar 31 2006
Tasting Notes and Australia and Clare Valley and Variety and Red and shiraz et al
Clos Clare is in the Clare Valley (not surprisingly) and quite near the town of Watervale. Noel Kelly runs the winery and is one of the friendiest gents you will ever meet. Though in the past the wine has been contract made, he now makes most of the wine-making decisions himself.
The 2003 vintage was a hotter vintage with more extreme temperatures than 2002. The grapes for this wine come almost equally from two vineyards - one near Leasingham and the other just north of Clare. Each vineyard is around 30 years old, dry grown and hand pruned. The fruit is hand picked and the yields are around 3 tonnes per acre. The wine is aged in a 50/50 mixture of new and old American hogheads.
A lifted nose, bitumen and tar, rich fruits like red cherries and red plums, pine nuts, a splash of vanilla. The palate shows blackberries and leather, coffee and caramel, raisans and some char. The finish is drying. Despite the ripeness, there is a fair amount of acid in the wine. There also seems to be a lack of freshness which I found off-putting. A wine of quality, but perhaps a bit of an ugly duckling at the moment - leave another year and drink over the medium term.
Rated : 88 Points
Tasted : Mar06
Alcohol : 14.5%
Price : $25
Closure : Screwcap
Drink : 2007 - 2010+
Source : Cellar Door
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