The wines that made Australia famous. Seven new vintages

Sure. It's cool to drink a bottle of great wine, but you never can get a true grip on 'how' good it was unless you have another bottle for context. Better than one other bottle, is two, or heck - a whole flight. Here, John Jens (aka JJ) and I open seven great Shiraz from Australia to see not just how the vintages are tracking post-release, but to see how their differences stack up on the table. In this video, we span different regions (Barossa, Hunter, Clare and Eden Valleys, Frankland River, South Australia and McLaren Vale), different vintages (2017 - 2021) and different styles of Shiraz. It was fascinating to open them all at the same time, and to look at the wines as they evolved over the course of an hour or so in the glass. I touch on a few past videos for context (links below), but perhaps most importantly, the concept of 'quality VS style', which I dive deep into in my recent scoring video.
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0:00 - Intro
1:51 - 2021 Tyrrell's 8 Acres Shiraz, Hunter Valley (13.3% alc)
5:44 - 2019 Torbreck RunRig Shiraz Viognier, Barossa Valley (15% alc)
8:37 - 2020 Swinney Farvie Syrah, Frankland River (14% alc)
15:00 - 2018 Penfolds Grange, South Australia (14.5% alc)
21:26 - 2018 Wendouree Shiraz, Clare Valley (13.5% alc)
26:20 - 2017 Henschke Hill of Grace Shiraz, Eden Valley (14% alc)
32:02 - 2018 Clarendon Hills Astralis Shiraz, McLaren Vale (14.5% alc)
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Video links:
How Wine Scoring Works - • How Wine Scoring Works
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We opened the new Grange + Hill of Grace, Astralis, Laird + Powell & Son - • We opened the new Gran...
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Penfolds Grange with Peter Gago - • Penfolds Grange with P...
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Any review you see on my socials ( / erinllarkin , this channel and my website (www.erinlarkin.com.au) are never paid for by wineries or anyone else: the wines are featured on their merits - because they have risen to the top in tastings. If you try the wines I recommend and you like them - good! Because so do I.

Пікірлер: 56

  • @chrisgibson2317
    @chrisgibson23173 күн бұрын

    Terrific comantry, at last compentant, E xperienced, confident wine evaluaters , no nonence, no bull, what a releif so enjoyable to listen to. With sutch great volcabulary and enthusiasm I could almost tast the wines whilst watching , thank you both. My first encounter, but will now seek you out.

  • @sdboothable
    @sdboothable2 ай бұрын

    Thank you for this video.

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    2 ай бұрын

    Thanks for watching 🙏

  • @nativedrop5355
    @nativedrop5355 Жыл бұрын

    I simply adore the tête-à-tête between JJ and yourself Erin - so much respect and adoration between you both. Having recently moved back to the UK after 10 years in Aus, I'm living vicariously through your videos. Gosh I miss great Australian drops (of which are lacking here!). Keep up the wonderful work as always. Josh

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Thanks for watching Josh! Ten years in Australia is a decent stint, a solid grounding for gaining a love/appreciation for Australian wines. Hopefully the quality/breadth of what is available in the UK improves in time

  • @pizzacatking
    @pizzacatking Жыл бұрын

    Charming duo! Well done. Erin has a way with words.

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Thanks Casey!

  • @hls8818
    @hls8818 Жыл бұрын

    love your work E & JJ. i did laugh ... i have none , i mean zero of these in my massive cellar :)

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Well you know what that means.......!

  • @rr6013
    @rr60134 ай бұрын

    Enjoyed Aussie beadlocks sparkling Shiraz once and damned if I can find another. Excellent with spicy Thai I’m grateful for a recommendation if they exist anymore. Thank you

  • @joshmackus3454
    @joshmackus3454 Жыл бұрын

    What a treat!

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Thanks for watching Josh!

  • @christophermullan3861
    @christophermullan3861 Жыл бұрын

    Great video. So many great wines that you could have included. I personally would have included Clonakilla Shiraz Viognier and Best's Thomson Family in this line up. Great to see Astralis get spoken about so highly as I personally rate it more highly than Grange and HoG. One point of correction though. Torbreck RunRig is made up of 6 vineyards, including fruit from the Hoffmann vineyard in Ebenezer. The Laird and The Descendant are the single vineyard Shiraz wines at Torbreck.

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    You're right Christopher - good pick up! Ian H pulled me up on that a few months ago. I have been to the Run Rig vineyard and it stuck in my mind. Lot's of great wines to include in this video...

  • @phoenixis2good
    @phoenixis2good10 ай бұрын

    Great and informative video. I would love to see more videos like this showing your favourite reds under different price categories eg. $30, $60, $100. Art is also in the value!

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    8 ай бұрын

    A little suite of these videos upcoming!

  • @chrisdavies5515
    @chrisdavies5515 Жыл бұрын

    Wow what a great review, absolutely love listening to both JJ and yourself Erin, true ambassadors of Australian wine, I have a couple of these and can’t wait to taste in 10+ years time. Once again fantastic and blessed to have you both doing videos xx

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Thanks Chris!

  • @wyattalexander4041
    @wyattalexander4041 Жыл бұрын

    Such grand wines as always with all the passion, knowledge, conjecture, and love for the them we all look forward to indulge When clicking on these videos! Happy New year and much congratulations on the news 🍾 I see if this is how the year starts it going to be a great one! 🍷

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Thanks Wyatt! 2023 will certainly be a busy one. Happy new year to you

  • @tarekabdel-hamid2226
    @tarekabdel-hamid2226 Жыл бұрын

    Erin… First Happy New Year Thanks for another entertaining… informative… insightful video. Your videos OPENED MY EYES to Aussy wines… I loved what I saw (and tasted)… and am now a BIG FAN. Keep up the GOOD WORK.

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Thanks Tarek! So much to taste, so little time.

  • @colinpetersen1173
    @colinpetersen1173 Жыл бұрын

    Erin I love when you talk about having difficulty sourcing things like Standish, Wendouree etc.. It's surprising from the outside that someone with your connections and platform can't get basically anything you want, so it's cool to hear you sometimes share the frustrations of we common folk in this regard 😄 Sami-Odi seems to be the next gen Wendouree, but at least Fraser uses email 😁

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Haha. Yes - he does use email! Although there is romance in hand written letters. I think it would be presumptuous of me to assume that I could get whatever I wanted because of my job. It definitely helps, but I don't make a habit of pushing!

  • @paulfelefle
    @paulfelefle Жыл бұрын

    So good listening to both of you guys. Having this inter generational context is a real eye opener and as always great education. And congrats on the New Zealand news, that is awesome! Really looking forward to some Kiwi Syrah/Pinot Noir reviews! La Collina was one of my first ever wine loves!! Still remember my first encounter with that drop to this day lol

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Gorgeous wine - ages gracefully. Thanks very much for watching, and for your comments!

  • @BigBobDookie
    @BigBobDookie Жыл бұрын

    This was a great piece. Lots of very useful information and education. I’m going to write that letter to Wendouree. 😊

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Me too!

  • @OrionMetallica
    @OrionMetallica Жыл бұрын

    Watching this whilst sipping on a sisters run shiraz (great wine btw). Been looking for an aussie wine channel for so long, never hit the sub button so fast! Great video :)

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Thanks very much Shaun! 🙏

  • @HONDACHAMP2
    @HONDACHAMP2 Жыл бұрын

    Fabulous video, gotta get onto that Tyrrell’s mailing list!! Thank you Erin and JJ.

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Good luck!

  • @jorgenmillton1166
    @jorgenmillton1166 Жыл бұрын

    Finally your are back on track again, great video as usual. Always nice when you and JJ collaborate together, it makes it more interesting becouse you both see things from different perspectives. Personally I would have put in The Schubert Theorem from Standish, but the problem is that you have so many diffrent producers to choose from :) I'm still trying to get hold of some of the bottles from the Margaret River Cabernet video, but I will get there in time. Looking forward for your upcoming videos, take care!

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    I obviously agree about Standish - there are a host of other wines to include... but we can't have them all, all the time. Plenty of Standish and Sami-Odi context upcoming in 2023! Good luck with the Margs Cabs, can be tricky, but my advice is buy them on release, and pounce on them when you see them on auction at a good price. They won't always be cheap.

  • @whitty75
    @whitty75 Жыл бұрын

    Loved it. Had them all although sadly only a couple are still in storage.

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    The sign of a great wine is often its absence from the collection. A problem I frequently encounter! (ie, I drink them all)

  • @joehunt385
    @joehunt385 Жыл бұрын

    Thanks Erin and John, great to hear your thoughts on these incredible wines. Would love to see you look at some top Vic shiraz as they are quite different in style to the wines from the other states, yet still up there in terms of quality and age-worthiness.

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Agree! Some excellent Vic Shiraz. One of my favourites is the Best's Thompson Family Shiraz. Yikes. Excellent.

  • @michaelpapp7371
    @michaelpapp73719 ай бұрын

    Hello Erin and John, Loved the video Have you ever done a line up of Rutherglen durifs or Rutherglen muscats/topaques in the same format as this video

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    8 ай бұрын

    Thanks for watching Michael. Id love to do an Australian fortified video, featuring Rutherglen and Swan Valley! I’m sure JJ would agree 😉

  • @michaelpapp7371

    @michaelpapp7371

    8 ай бұрын

    Fantastic, Warrabilla Parolas durifs is awesome. If you get your hands on a 2015 you would love it

  • @nickkowal6537
    @nickkowal6537Ай бұрын

    Wendouree is impossible to get outside Australia. So sad.

  • @raphaelna2981
    @raphaelna2981 Жыл бұрын

    No Chris Ringland?! I got a 2015 but concerned about its extremely high 18% alcohol level, what should I expect, too “hot” to be enjoyable even after 20 years cellaring?

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    I spent a day with Chris last year, and spoke at length with him about his wines and his philosophy: he is an incredibly intelligent, thoughtful man. I personally find the alcohol quite high in his wines, but from a quality standpoint they are made with impressive attention to detail and focus. I don't know what you could expect in 20 years. Part of me thinks that because the alcohol is high, they run the risk of falling apart (high alcohol, means much of the acid will have softened during that process, and acid important for ageing), but equally, the alcohol could fortify them in time. As I say, they are made very well so I'd be surprised if they didn't go the distance. Let me know!

  • @Maxindifference

    @Maxindifference

    Жыл бұрын

    Ringland wines are terrible. Alcoholic Cough Syrup with VA's verging on 1.5gm/L. Undrinkable

  • @stephenking3849
    @stephenking3849 Жыл бұрын

    I would love to see a video of you and John each picking your favorite 12 Australian reds and then comparing

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Good idea!

  • @vangstr
    @vangstr8 ай бұрын

    You left out Yalumba.

  • @alexanderertl9530
    @alexanderertl95304 күн бұрын

    Wendouree is the best value wine in this country....nothing compares to it

  • @The_errant_society
    @The_errant_society4 ай бұрын

    whats a good affordable wine for thats tasty.im new to wine and would like to partake but most reds tast strange should i go red or white??? wghats an affordable tasty as wine please?

  • @greenteaenjoyer9068
    @greenteaenjoyer9068 Жыл бұрын

    Hi Erin, thanks for the content. I am fairly new to the wine world and the first wine that has "wowed" me was Standish - The Relic 2019. After that I have tried more Shiraz wines and I love this grape variety. Do you perhaps have recommendations for me based on me loving The Relic?

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Ah well the Relic is a special wine. The RunRig here is also very good (also a Shiraz Viognier, but the oak is very different - more pronounced - and it is a different wine to Standish). Each of the Shiraz in this video will bring pleasure, but not all 'value'. I did an Australian Shiraz Viognier video a couple of months ago, each of those wines are pretty sensational iterations of Aussie Shiraz V if you're keen on the blend. Let me know how you go!

  • @stephenking3849
    @stephenking3849 Жыл бұрын

    Where is the Chris ringland dry grown shiraz

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    Quite right. An important wine in the history of Australian wine review on a global platform

  • @stephenking3849
    @stephenking3849 Жыл бұрын

    Does any other country blend Shiraz and viognier as well as aus does it are our blends the best

  • @erinlarkin

    @erinlarkin

    Жыл бұрын

    The home for this style is the Northern Rhone in France