THE YEARLING, A THOROUGHBRED TO ENJOY YOUNG

LAMB shanks, osso bucco or roast
beef perfect partners with this one.

Wc25Nov13

                

David Ellis

HAVING enjoyed a vintage in 2012 that most Coonawarra growers and winemakers agree was excellent, Rymill have released a Shiraz under their The Yearling label that certainly backs-up what all have had to say of that year.

Rymill's Senior Winemaker, Sandrine Gimon says the ideal fruit from the vintage was perfect for The Yearling reds, the label named after one-year-old thoroughbreds as it's designed to be enjoyed young… or as Sandrine says "hot out of the starting gates."

"2012 gave us low yields and smaller berries with lots of concentration of flavour, for those who can remember, it was very reminiscent of the exceptional 2004 vintage in Coonawarra," she said. "It's meant that the 2012 The Yearling Shiraz shows lots of dark red fruit character complexity, while also offering caramel, vanilla, cedar box and liquorice as well."

"FRUIT salad wine" to go with mildly-spiced
Asian dishes or seafood salads or platters.

This is a very generous wine with quickly recognisable plum, dark cherry and blackberry to the fore, nice soft tannins and a subtle Shiraz spiciness on the finish. Pay just $15.95 and enjoy with baked lamb shanks, osso bucco or roast beef.

ONE TO NOTE: CHENIN Blanc is often dubbed a "fruit salad" wine for its fruitiness and sweetness, and while vineyard areas in Australia planted to the variety have actually diminished in size in recent years, it's still a popular wine to put on the table with mildly-spiced Asian dishes – and equally with summery seafood salads or platters.

Western Australia's Voyager Estate has an exceptional 2013 Chenin Blanc that truly suits those suggested food matches above, the company having some of the oldest Chenin Blanc vines in the Margaret River region dating back to the late 1970s.

This wine has tropical papaya and melon to the fore, with suggestions of citrus and red apple giving it that typical Chenin Blanc "fruit salad" flavour. Pay $20 and enjoy with those mildly-spiced Asian dishes or summer-time seafood salads or platters.

NEED A FOOD/DRINK IDEA? Check out  http://www.vintnews.com We're also on Australian Good Food Guide http://www.agfg.com.au  in main blog.