Shobbrook Wines 2012 release

Shobbrook Wines 2012 release

Tom Shobbrook normally has a spring and an autumn release but this year he has decided that they are all ready to go at the same stage. I tasted my way through his 2011 & 2012 range and the thought that kept coming to the fore of my mind was “in a difficult year tom can produce excellent wines and in 2012 the quality level has shone through”. Tom believes that the great wines of 2011 are unbelievable but the lows are very low whereas the 2012 wines in the Barossa are pretty much good quality across the board.

Didier Cinsault 2012

This is a new label from Tom and one that is supposed to embody finesse and structure in the Barossa. The wines are all 12.5% alcohol or below which is unheard of in this area. All of these wines are fully ripe and ripping value. This wine is 100% cinsault which is a variety that loves the heat and dry conditions. Thank god for 2012 as it has produced a wine of medium body with flavours of fragrant grated black pepper and raspberries. Literally it is like someone has stood over me dropping them into my mouth while another person grated the pepper straight in. These flavours quickly transition into dried licorice and tobacco leaves before a hint of baked earth and cola set in. The structure of the wine easily takes hold as it is firm but it isn’t impulsive so it lets the flavours do the talking whilst it watches the show. I would give this another few years in the bottle to fill out a little but it still look3 so good now.

Alcohol: 12.5%

Price: $26

Rated: 89

Drink: 2014 – 2020

Didi Novello 2011

This wine is produced from a blend of Woodside Nebbiolo and Forreston Sangiovese and the flavours are very savoury. There is a jubey cherry component mixed with ultra-sour fruits and Asian spices which make this a complex wine that makes think about what you really like in wine. The only drawback I could taste was a little heat on the back palate. I think this would be a beautiful wine on a by the glass wine list so people could try it with a little meaty style main meal. The savoriness and the structure would offset the meaty flavour just brilliantly.

Alcohol: 14%

Price: $21

Rated: 86

Drink: Now or over the next four years

Shobbrook Wines Syrah 2011

Most of the wines I have tried from the Barossa in 2011 haven’t been up to their normal standard but this wine was beautiful and a little more medium bodied than normal. There was that normal richness in the form of chocolate and plums but it was joined by cinnamon, spice and a floral component. Once I stopped thinking in terms of flavour I immediately thought that there is a hell of a tort structure underneath that is alive and pulsating. It didn’t creep up me but it did saturate my tongue in a sweet rice bubble like flavour. In the end the wine finishes with mouthwatering acidity.

Alcohol: 14.5%

Price: $46

Rated: 92

Drink: 2018 and on

Didier Syrah 2012

Welcome to 2012 I say. The grapes from this wine are from the Shobbrook property so this really showcases what tom can do with his own grapes and the practices he implements.  On the palate the wine slowly moves across my tongue with flavours of savoury black fruits, spice and earth. The flavours don’t leave my tongue for what seem like minutes and in doing do they begin to morph into ground cinnamon and cumin. It is an experience this wine as the flavours are a mile from what I would normally expect yet they all feel so familiar. There are three things that are amazing in this wine. Firstly the length is spectular. Secondly the structure is super fine with great balance between acidity, mouthfeel and sculpted tannins. Lastly the flavours are savoury and loving. All up the wine is a massive winner and one that lovers of elegant wines should get their hands on.

Alcohol: 12.5%

Price: $60

Rated: 95

Drink: 2020 – 2035

Didi Sabia NV

This is a wine that tastes like a sherry but it is a little lighter than the normal oloroso. The wine comes across as nutty with specks of sea salt and spice. The wine feels like and delicate on the nose and this pretty much transfers onto the palate with the minor exception of the back palate. I would be most inclined to serve this as an aperitif with a plate of olives or freshly roasted nuts but Tom says he wants to drunk this down on the beach with a plate of sardines or whitebait.

Alcohol: 15%

Price: $26 (500ml)

Rated: 89

Drink: Now or whenever