Wine Wednesday: Archetype Shiraz

This weekend I walked into the local Harris Teeter and was greeted by the Bargain Carts. There were two grocery carts filled with discounted (probably discontinued) bottles of wine.

Whenever I see these I feel like a kid at Christmas opening presents! What will the cart hold? Will it be something I like?? I hope it's a pony!! Oh, wait, sorry. Got carried away!

I glanced through the bottles, most of which I've never heard of -- and a few which I won't buy. But as I was looking, I ran across a bottle of 2006 Archetype Shiraz. Moderately aged -- I like that. Australia makes a good Shiraz (a.k.a Syrah) -- I like that too. It only costs $10, discounted from $15. I like that even more!

So, I bought the bottle. And last night I served it with Four Cheese Tortellini with Marinara Sauce. It was great with this meal.

This Shiraz is a little heavier and thicker than I'm used to from Shiraz. In some ways it almost seemed more like a Cabernet Sauvignon. It has strong currant, black pepper, and spice flavors with a hint of vanilla. It goes down smooth, is slightly dry, and has a mild acidic kick at the end.

Overall a great wine, and if you are fortunate to find it, I recommend you add this to one of your meals.

Score: 3.5/5

Price: $$ (Just over $10 -- on sale)

Wine Info:
2006 Archetype Shiraz
Barossa Valley
Australia

Wine Wednesday: Rosemount Shiraz

Last weekend I hit the local grocery store and wanted to find a red wine that I'd never tried before. I didn't know what I wanted -- but I'd know it when I found it. After a few minutes of perusing, I found it.

A 2005 Rosemount Shiraz.

For those of you who don't know -- the syrah and shiraz grapes are the same. Most of the world uses the name syrah. However, in Australia they like to do things a little differently -- so they use the name shiraz. Also, the bottom of the bottle is square -- literally!

But if this wine is different -- I like different!

This 2005 Shiraz is one of the smoothest red wines that I've had. There was never an acidic kick. It hit the tongue smooth, went down smooth, and left me wanting more. It was sort of like drinking water -- REALLY REALLY tasty water!

This Black Diamond Label from Rosemount had a stong currant flavor, with a hint of cherry, and an whiff of leather. All these flavors mixed together well and produced a light, yet deep, red that would seem to compliment anything from pizza and pasta to steak and lamb. However, because of it's smoothness, it would also be perfect just for sipping.

Add this to the fact that this wine is less than $10, and I've come to believe that this is a wine that everybody should have in their house.

FYI, according to Rosemount's US website, it looks like they've got some sort of sponsorship deal with the upcoming Season of Hells Kitchen on Fox. So, this winery may become a household name pretty soon.

Rating: 4/5

Price: $

Wine Info:
2005 Rosemount Shiraz, Bkacj Diamond Label, South Eastern Australia
Rosemount Estate
GPO Box 753F
Melbourne VIC 3001
Australia
p) +61 3 9633 2000
http://www.rosemountestate.com/