Saturated ruby. Pungent, spice- and smoke-accented aromas of blackcurrant, cherry pit and pipe tobacco, with a peppery topnote adding vivacity. Fleshy and expansive on the palate, offering sweet black and blue fruit flavors and a touch of bitter chocolate. Finishes spicy and long, with fine-grained tannins and a jolt of cracked pepper.

Deep garnet colored, the 2008 Ironheart Shiraz presents a pronounced nose of warm blueberry compote, just starting to evolve into sandalwood, baking spice and anise elements with a hint of meatiness. Very full-bodied and concentrated with berry preserve, prune and spice characters, it has a medium level of velvety tannins, a crisp acid backbone and a long finish. Drink it now to 2020.

This wine wobbles along the line between superripe and overripe, at times seeming a bit raisiny, at others seeming just right. It's full-bodied, soft and expansive, with a lush, long finish, but drink it over the next few years.

Blackberry pie on the nose and palate. Juicy, full-bodied and layers.

Juicy and dense, ripe and showing blackberry and racy acidity; toasty, smooth and neatly balanced.

Ripe and distinctive for its gamy, spicy character, a fleshy Shiraz with fine tannins wrapped around the generous berry and licorice flavors at the core. Finishes long. Best from 2006 through 2010.

Yangarra is becoming synonymous with excellent wines at fair prices. Nose is a little hot at first, but later reveals pastry flour and black pepper aromas. Ripe red plums and vanilla accents unfold in the mouth. Not a huge, rich wine, but certainly a class one.

Kendall-Jackson's foray into OZ produces a fairly tannic, ripe and spicy shiraz that needs another year or two in the cellar. Cherry, blackberry, mocha and eucalypt aromas. Very ripe and creamy berry fruit matched by good acidity and tannic grip. Fairly complex and exhibiting impressive depth and structure.

South Australia: Part Two — Mostly McLaren Vale A blend of 58% Grenache, 24% Shiraz and 18% Mourvèdre, the 2016 GSM was fermented in open-top vats with indigenous yeasts and aged in older French oak for ten months. Like all the Yangarra wines, it will benefit from some aeration. Only then will the cherries come out to play with the black olive and sandalwood notes. It's medium to full-bodied, with a smooth, silky mouthfeel and a lingering finish. -

A blend of 68% Grenache, 26% Shiraz and 6% Mourvedre, the 2015 Grenache / Shiraz / Mourvedre sports a medium garnet-purple color and a nose of black cherry compote, red currant jelly and fertile soil with hints of Indian spices, black pepper and tar. Medium-bodied with a great intensity of earth and black berry flavors, the fruit is well-supported by rounded tannins and plenty of freshness, finishing long and peppery.

Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2015 Mourvedre has a pronounced blackberry and blueberry preserves nose with suggestions of eucalyptus, fragrant earth and baker's chocolate. The medium to full-bodied palate delivers a lot of vibrant fruit with an appealing spiciness coming through on the long, chewy finish.

Straight up confession; I am wary of wine that is heavily framed around process as it can often see actual wine quality shuffled back in the pecking order. Not so here. This is a tiny make of carignan (46%), roussanne (42%) and graciano (12%) all fermented in amphorae that contain some Yangarra clay. Pale red with a gently creamy foam, it smells of dried cranberries and goji berries, clear yeasty notes and some dried yellow rose and stone fruit perfume. It foams and fizzes smoothly on the palate, delivering a burst of raspberry and very gently sweet nectarine flavor, yeasty savory notes kick in and the finish has a neat phenolic stamp. Chill and drink fast and don't mind the red crystalline sediment, it's a natural by-product of the last phase of fermentation of grape sugars in the bottle, which is what gives the wine its light fizz.

Deep, dark red-purple hue and a meaty, pepper and spice aroma, loaded with character. The wine is intense and structured, with some fruit sweetness, and a certain animal note which is common in this grape. It's tightly focused and firm to finish.

A blend of 54% Grenache, 28% Shiraz,18% Mourvedre, the medium to deep garnet-purple colored 2012 GSM exudes a pretty perfume of red berry coulis and potpourri with hints of white pepper, cinnamon toast and violets. Medium to full-bodied with plenty of warm red berry flavors and complementary baking spice highlights, it is structured by medium level, rounded tannins and lively acid then finishes long. Drink it now to 2018+.

The 2010 Mourvedre has a medium to deep garnet-purple color and an earthy / meaty nose over a good core of ripe black fruits and a whiff of black olives. Full-bodied, rich and savory in the mouth, it has a medium to firm level of chewy tannins making for a more structured style, which the finish is long with some peppered notes coming through. Drink it now to 2017+.

Very spicy/savoury and with more grenache confection from the High Sands or Old Vine 100% grenache; however, the wine has length thanks to its tannins.

Bold, ripe and generous in flavor, aristocratic in structure, with delicious blueberry laced currant and plum flavors that remain round and appealing as they linger on and on. Beautifully structured, and it can grow in the cellar.

Kendall-Jackson's project in Australia has captured the austere richness of Coonawarra cabernet, here in a contrast of tight and firm structure filled by fruit that's gentle, almost lush. Ripe black cherry scents and cool blackberry jam in the middle turn toward blueberry in the end, lasting in that contrast with all the black tannin. Lean and correct, this should put on weight as it ages.

South Australia: Part Two — Mostly McLaren Vale I'm afraid this is one of those wines that sounds cooler than it tastes. The 2016 Roux Beaute Roussanne is made in ceramic eggs, 60% had 137 days of skin contact, the other 40% was made traditionally. So, what's the issue? It tastes disappointingly normal. There are pretty pineapple aromas, hints of black tea and citrus, a medium-bodied palate with surprisingly little phenolic grip, and a pleasant, lingering finish. As long as you don't go in expecting something orange, phenolic and funky, you'll be pleased.

It's fairly rare to see Roussanne in Australia and even rarer to see it as a stand-alone wine. But if there's anyone Down Under who understands Rhône whites, it's winemaker Pete Fraser. His version is medium to pale gold in color and sings a subtle tune of apple and stone fruit harmonized with ginger, white spice and a savory, salty trill. Texturally it's both slippery and chalky, spicy and fruity, with a salty finish.

The 2016 Roussanne opens with fragrant white peach, orange blossom and allspice notes with touches of baking bread and honeycomb. The light to medium-bodied palate is elegantly played, with a quiet intensity of savory and spice box flavors complementing the stone fruit, finishing long and lively. -

Try this Wine: Amazing Spring Whites Yangarra makes an Estate Roussanne for less than half the price of the Roux Beauté. I tasted the 2016. On first sip, it didn’t impress because it needed oxygen. With several hours of decanting, it began to reveal itself as a dynamic wine capable of putting on complexity and intrigue with more air or age. That is a clear sign of quality and precise attention to detail. The nose wafts lean aromas of sweet dandelion, mild Meyer lemon, tangerine peel and under ripe mango. It’s medium weight on the palate, with balanced and crisp acid that forms a nicely textured backbone. The flavors are just beginning to define themselves, and there is enough nuttiness already to suggest a really cool evolution over the following five-ish years, if not longer. Fresh almond, lean lemon, tart mango and pineapple, unsweetened vanilla, salty minerality and bitter greens form the basis of the flavor profile. Tasty now, it will develop complexity and a more dynamic structure as it ages.

The 2014 Roussanne has spiced apples and poached pears on the nose with wafts of honeyed apricot. Medium to full-bodied with satiny texture and plenty of freshness, the palate has nice balance and a long, yeasty finish.

The 2013 Roussanne is redolent of fresh apple slices, lemon peel and white peach with hints of straw and honeyed toast. With plenty of peach, citrus and toasty flavors on offer in the medium-bodied palate, it has a refreshing acid line and a long, silken-textured finish. Drink it now to 2017+.

Gleaning light green-gold, the variety speaks more of texture and structure than any particular flavour; a faintly flowery/blossom/nutty bouquet, then a distinctive minerally palate, although the nutty characters linger.