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Chris Sherman
2006 D’Arenberg Galvo Garage Cabernet Sauvignon (McLaren Vale, Australia
2006 D’Arenberg Galvo Garage Cabernet Sauvignon (McLaren Vale, Australia) 24.99
No room for shiraz here, Chester Osborn is playing the garagist game mixing and matching Boredeaux varietals like the indy vintners of France. He too works in a galvanized shed and goes further in artisan production, hand and foot, crushing the grapes by feet before a gentle basket press. Osborn puts together four of the classic five grapes into a lush and lively drink. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot carry the bulk of the cherry and chocolate flavors. Cab Franc and Petite Verdot add a bouquet of flowers and spice and a spicy punch at the end, all in the fine-grained tannin structure you get in Dead Arm and Footbolt. A great Cabernet for Shiraz drinkers — and right bank Bordeaux lovers. Get thick steaks or chops and have a red-ribbon day.
90 Points, Chris Sherman
Staff Selection, September 2010
2007 Mitolo Shiraz Jester (McLaren Vale, Australia)
2007 Mitolo Shiraz Jester 15.99
Jesting aside, this is serious shiraz. Grower Frank Mitolo and wizard Ben Glaetezer put in hard work; grapes spend extra time on the skins and ferment more in the barrel. The result is pure, elegant pleasure. Oh so ready to drink, black coffee, chocolate and raspberry on the nose, big ripe and rich on the tongue like blackberry plum pudding with a tad of bacon fat or maybe Vegemite; fine soft tannins lead to a velvet finish. The laughline is the price , half what it could be.
91 Points, Chris Sherman
Staff Selection, August 2010
2005 Bacchantes ‘The Dancer’ Shiraz Gomersal Vineyard (Barossa, Australia)
2005 Bacchantes 'The Dancer' Shiraz Gomersal Vineyard (Barossa) 14.99
No contest. This fat and juicy shiraz wine knows it can dance tonight and 10 years from now. And leap and twirl, wearing a perfume of blackberry, fennel and pepper, surprisingly delicate and poised for such a voluptuous wine with strong backbone. Credit that to its single-vineyard roots in 120-year old Gomersal and young partner Ben Glaetzer, Oz winemaker of the year in many books, and the first Aussie to collect 100 pts. from Parker. A rich taste of Glatezer style for pennies.
91 Points, Chris Sherman
Staff Selection, July 2010
2009 Kung Fu Girl Riesling (Columbia Valley, Washington St.)
2009 Kung Fu Girl Riesling Evergreen Vineyard $11.99
“Kung Fu Girl Riesling. Laugh not, grasshopper. Inside the bottle is an orchard where all the fruit is ripe now. Taste of the peach, the mango and the lime. Splash in the bubbling brook. Only then will you know pure riesling and find the path to the valley of Columbia. And bliss.”
93 Points, Chris Sherman
Staff Selection, June 2010
2009 Crossings Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough, New Zealand)
2009 Crossings Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough) $9.99
“New Zealand sauvignon blanc at fighting varietal prices and it has all the crispness of its neighbors. This packs tropical fruit and melons as well as telltale grapefruit zing and rippling creekbed minerality. Easy to drink, bouncy body, but not a lightweight. Buy a case for your next fish fry, clam bake or Chinese wedding banquet.”
89 Points, Chris Sherman
Staff Selection, May 2010
2008 Morse Code Shiraz (Padthaway, South Australia)
2008 Morse Code Shiraz (Padthaway, Australia) $8.99
“The latest dispatch from the good-hearted folks on Henry’s Drive (the home of Pillar Box) is more fruit basket than telegram, very ripe fruit, and at bumper crop prices. All shiraz in old fashioned, no- pretense Oz fashion, well-met all around the barbie, Intense concentration of cherries, blueberries and all that razz is spiced with a touch of pepper and mint,. unhindered by oak. Smooth and happy on the tongue and all the way on. You’ll go through a case in a month. Buy now STOP Drink now STOP Buy more STOP.
91 Points, Chris Sherman
Staff Selection, April 2010
2008 Jacob’s Creek Reserve Riesling (Australia)
Jacob's Creek Riesling Reserve ($9.99)
Cool, cool, cool Riesling so bracing you’d think it was from the Mosel not the Barossa. Jacob’s Creek, the giant of Oz, handled these South Australian grapes with great care, night-harvests and cold fermentation so the wine bursts with juice, the tang of a lemon-lime gelato with a sprinkle of almonds. The structure and acidity is as refreshing, like a shower in a mountain waterfall. Critics who overlook mass market wineries couldn’t ignore this limey blast. It’s 73 on the WS Top 100 list, one of the best bargains – and all the harder to find. We’ve got plenty for every pad Thai, oyster fry and shrimp salad you can eat this year. Get a case for the boat or beach – and set a bottle aside one for 3-4 years to watch it mellow and sweeten up.
91 Points, Chris Sherman
Staff Selection, March 2010
2006 Kaesler Stonehorse GSM (Barossa, Australia)
“The label’s new to some U.S. drinkers, but Kaesler is old Barossa, old barrels, fairly old vines and an old Rhone blend. Not another Shiraz blend, but an elegant package, a lovely to drink early on. Grenache leads the flavor, with lots of flowers and jammy plums, while the Shiraz and Mourvedre provide structure, body and polish. It’s broad, sturdy but soft and thick. Don’t expect the pepper and spice of simple Rhones; you’ll get more licorice, coffee and chocolate. Not a wine for rustic lamb and game, this Stonehorse rides with good beef where Pomerol might go.”
2006 Kaesler Stonehorse GSM (Barossa, Australia) – 14.99
92 Points, Chris Sherman
Ferbuary 2010
2008 Stump Jump Shiraz (Australia)
2008 Stump Jump Shiraz ($8.99)
This is the juice to last you all winter, a $10 bottle with a bushel of flavor. This Aussie Shiraz has more plums than most fruit pies, jammy from the nose all the way through the palate to the end, as if they’d come off the trees and berry bushes at the last minute. Ripe with hints of cinnamon, pepper and licorice, the favorite candy of Oz, and surprisingly soft. Maybe D’Arry and Chester Osborne got your attention with a Top 100 nod from Wine Spectator (No. 82), Winery of the Year honors from Wine & Spirits or just the great names; it’s a teddy bear in a red ribbon, and a great value.
92 Points, Chris Sherman
January 2010
2007 Tablas Creek Cotes de Tablas Rouge (Paso Robles, California)
Rein in the Rhone Rangers to let the elegant grand marshal parade by. This is thoroughbred Rhone, bright with cherries berries and peppers yet with smooth, silky texture Burgundians would envy. No thorns or brambles, but the grapes could not be more French, brought direct from Chateau de Beaucastel and carefully raised on Paso dirt and sun. Heavy Grenache,with Syrah, Mourvedre and a rare touch of peppery Counoise. It has a modest body, shiny color like a rare steak just off the grill – and flavor to fit that steak and stouter fare. Robert Haas and the Beaucastel Perrins have bottled exceptional polish at this price and give you a whiff of Esprit, their masterful California Chateauneuf in the USA.
2007 Tablas Creek Cotes de Tablas Rouge (Paso Robles, California) ($19.99)
- 91 Points, Chris Sherman, Email: Chris@b-21.com