DAN'S WINE BLOG-THIS WEEK'S WINE REVIEW

THIS WEEK’S WINE REVIEW:

?Friday, August 4, 2023:?When I joined the wine industry in the mid-late 1980s almost nobody had heard of Heathcote Victoria as a wine region, even though vines were first planted there in the 1850s. The region fell victim to phylloxera in the late 1880s – early 1890s and all but a few vines were lost. While there continued to be a small amount of wine made there it wasn’t until its resurrection started in the 1970s that the volumes increased.

?I can remember first hearing of in it the 1990s when tasting a big, rich Shiraz from a winery that auctioneer and wine guru, Colin Gaetjens, was involved with. Wow, what an eye opener that was! Soooo different from the Barossa Shiraz I was accustomed to, more elegant and graceful yet full-bodied and oh, so rich.

?I didn’t think much more about Heathcote for years, as these wines were not available in Adelaide, until I met Andreas from Domaine Asmara at the Winestate Magazine stand in the Hong Kong International Wine Show a few years ago. Well his Heathcote Reserve Shiraz knocked my socks off! It was even more salubrious than his stunning Durif and that is saying something!!

?Since then I have been keeping a bit of an eye on Heathcote Shiraz and therefore was utterly chuffed to recently try the De Bortoli “Handcrafted” 2020 Heathcote Shiraz.

This glorious wine is deep inky in colour, has a gentle, attractive bouquet of plums with a wisp of dried herbs. The palate is utterly gorgeous, rich, beautifully rounded with lashings of flavour leading to a slightly grippy finish that lingers for eons. DROP DEAD GORGEOUS!! Also this wine is vegan-friendly.

?Whilst De Bortoli is one of the top 20 largest wineries in Australia, best known for its casks and commercial wines, they have long been innovators, like creating Australia’s first ever Botrytis wine in 1982 (still drinkable today), producing the Vat 1 Durif in the Riverina – which gives many a Rutherglen Durif a run for its money.?They have also gone about re-inventing themselves by diversifying into firstly the Yarra Valley (including winning the 1997 Jimmy Watson Trophy with their Yarra Shiraz) and more recently into Heathcote.

?So please do your palate a favour and check out the extensive range of excellent wines that De Bortoli make – including the superb Woodfired Heathcote Grenache (Oh Yum!) on their website (see link below) – you will be surprised by the range and depth of quality wines they produce.

?Cheers, have a great week and remember to #chooseaustralianwine

?Winery Link:?www.debortoli.com.au