‘I need a red’ trio

About the wines.

Australia has built most of its global wine reputation on Shiraz. A very versatile, tasty and food friendly variety that grows well in many areas. I enjoy McLaren Vale Shiraz because it is full flavoured, medium to full bodied, well structured and balanced and is rarely ‘jammy’. This particular Shiraz was made with fruit from three individual vineyard blocks located in different sub-regions of McLaren Vale. Gentle hand-plunging and basket pressing has brought out the flavour and aromas while leaving a silky smooth palate. Enjoy this medium bodied red with any of your favourite red meat, or savoury / umami veg dishes.

Winemakers have loved Grenache from McLaren Vale for a very long time but shaking the Tawny Port and light bodied red stigma took some effort. Now it’s fast becoming the hero of McLaren Vale reds. This Grenache / Shiraz / Mataro blend is a simplified version of the French Cotes Du Rhone wines. These varieties complement each other extremely well adding further depth and complexity. Its bright fruit flavours and medium body pairs well with anything from lamb chops to pizza.

Tempranillo is a variety widely grown in Spain, and incidentally blends very well with Grenache. There are many climate similarities with Spain, and as our Summer temperatures are increasing, varieties that can handle heat are becoming much more important. Tempranillo needs good temperatures in the growing season to ripen well. The added bonus is that the fruit flavours become ripe at a lower sugar level, leading to a lower alcohol percentage in the finished wine. Typically it’s 1% less than other reds such as Shiraz and Cabernet. With quite a fruity and fleshy palate, this wine will pair well with roast lamb, bbq, pepperoni pizza and spaghetti bolognese.