LCBO Sale Wine of the Week: February 7

Two Hands 2016 Gnarly Dudes Shiraz (South Australia)

Sale $21.95, Regular $24.95
Discount (until February 25): $3.00
Vintages #660043 | 750 mL bottle

Tastes like: Sweet and spicy strawberry, blueberry and plum. Licorice, cassis, blackcurrant and pomegranate juice. Herbal. Quite pretty for a big Aussie Shiraz.
Pairs with: Anything grilled: steak, bison, wild boar, lamb, etc. And burgers done to the nines.
Good for: Sipping or grilling.
Alcohol: 14.5%
Drink: Now to 2020.

Why we're drinking this
Australian Shiraz is such a stereotypical “big and bold” wine that, honestly, we’ve come to be a bit fatigued by its predictable profile. But maybe that’s as much our fault. At “peak Shiraz” a few years back, the wines were everywhere. Now, not so much. So it’s with great delight that we recommend this very pretty Shiraz. It surely is big and brutish as is its wont, but there’s finesse and style here. It’s a pretty, elegant take on the style, more fruit forward and less spice and meat. The grapes for this wine come from mature vines from the western ranges of South Australia. The wine was matured in French oak for 12 months, only 15% new oak so those flavours are nicely integrated.

Tasting note
It’s deeply coloured and smells like purple popsicle. More aromas of strawberry, blueberry and plum, with licorice and blackcurrant. It’s a juicy, voluptuous wine, with sweet spice and pomegranate and an herbal/menthol finish. Despite very high alcohol at 14.5%, all is integrated and harmonious: the ripe fruit more than matches the high alcohol, and keeps the tannins (soft, ripe) in check too. Juicy acidity keeps the finish going. A very nice wine, good for sipping or taking down wild game and beefy beef.

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