Nick Holmes kicked off McLaren Vale's Shottesbrooke way back in 1984. He was one of the nice guys of the Australian wine industry who I really enjoyed catching up with during the Trade Show season each year.They seem like distant memories now with Trade Shows not what they used to be and Nick more in the background nowadays. I've sold plenty of their wines in past years but the contact lapsed.
But now they're back under the care of Wayne the Bird who is very much of the old school and understands I do need to taste wines before I recommend them [you'd be surprised how many reps just don't get that] So eleven days ago Wayne brought in 7 open bottles for me to try. The two cheapies were perfectly pleasant but there are plenty of those around. It was the five Estate wines that wowed me and while we don't particularly need another Sauvignon Blanc or Shiraz at the moment, they were too good ignore.
My favourite, just nudging the cabernet, is this. Produced from 30yo vines they were planted to provide a blending option with Cabernet but Nick realised that this Merlot excelled as a stand alone variety. A happy accident perhaps but this is the best Merlot I've tasted in years. A medium weight, complex, intriguing red in perfect balance. This will be one of our stars over the next few months,
Our Price: $17 per bottle by the dozen
SOLD OUT
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