2004 Clarendon Hills "Astralis" Syrah South Australia (nicked label)
98
Wine Advocate
Review Date: 10/2006Read All Reviews
One of Australia’s most prodigious Syrahs, Clarendon Hills’ 2004 Syrah Astralis is fashioned from vines planted in 1920, and spends time in 100% new French oak from the cooper, Cadus. It boasts off the charts intensity as well as an opaque purple color, and notes of spring flowers, blueberries, blackberries, roasted coffee beans, pepper, smoke, and a hint of sweet toasty oak. This full-bodied, rich, intense, backward Syrah needs 2-3+ hours in the decanter if one is going to approach it at this point in its life. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2040+. (RP)
Read All Reviews
Price: $219.99
QTY
Product Availability
Professional Reviews
98
Wine Enthusiast
Review Date: 12/2006
The flagship of the Clarendon Hills line, this comes from a patch of 80-year-old vines that winemaker Bratasiuk claims routinely provides his best fruit. The 2004 is a stunner, yielding up scents of flowers and spice, framed by hints of vanillin oak. It’s dense and amply textured in the mouth, packed with wonderfully expressive blackberry and blueberry fruit, then shows layers of rich tannins on the finish that leave no doubt this needs time in the cellar to show its best. This is a tour de force of Australian winemaking... (JC) *Cellar Selection*
97
Wine Spectator
Review Date: 10/2006
Deep, dense and brooding. A smoky, thick Shiraz that feels open and welcoming as the finish expands and persists. Cherry, chocolate and espresso notes mingle harmoniously and hint at loamy earth as the finish sails on and on. (HS)
96
Vinous
Review Date: 07/2006
Inky, bright-rimmed purple. Explosive, captivating aromas of every imaginable red and dark berry, kirsch, spicecake, pipe tobacco and floral essences. Thick and velvety in texture, with a stunning vibrancy to the boysenberry and blackberry liqueur flavors. Chewy and almost colloidal, but there's superb energy and vivacity here as well. A wild, almost overwhelming wine with great intensity and concentration, not to mention sweetness and purity. Does the finish here ever go away? I hope not. (JR)
Read 2 More Review(s)
Product Details
Origin: McLaren Vale, South Australia, Australia
Type/Varietal: Shiraz/Syrah
SKU: #2043694