Rather a lot of shiraz has found its way into the ground in Western Australia in recent years, much of which is already winning new friends. Led by several sumptuous and long-living releases from Vasse Felix and Cape Mentelle, Margaret River shiraz is showing some promise, although many are too meaty and tomatoey for my liking. There’s also a lot of shiraz at the region known variously but unofficially as Pemberton, Manjimup or the Warren Valley, but with only the odd exception, these shirazes are presently too vegetal as well. The region certain to make the best Western Australian shiraz is the Great Southern, although its cooler climate may mean it does so less consistently than the others. Ever since the 1994 vintage it has proven an ability to make world-class shiraz of a kind poles apart from the currently popular but riper, softer and more jammy Barossa and McLaren Vale styles that are usually matured in American oak. There’s more of an international flavour about Great Southern shiraz that is also being sought after by those at the cutting edge in places like Stellenbosch in South Africa and Washington State in the US. An irregular shape, the Great Southern occupies a trapezium of about 15,000 square kilometres roughly bordered by the coastal towns of Denmark and Albany and the inland townships of Mount Barker and Frankland. Its climates alter from the maritime to the continental, while its topography includes the rolling, rustic farmlands of Mount Barker, the world’s oldest mountains in the Porongorup ranges and the blackboy scrub of Frankland. The southern reaches of the region are significantly cooler than the north, enhancing the region’s diversity of style. Shiraz reacts differently and most distinctively throughout the Great Southern. Lower Great Southern Shiraz is more supple and fleshy, with sweet, ripe, heavily-spiced fruits and occasional black pepper. Mount Barker’s shiraz is instantly appealing, with intense red berry fruits, cracked pepper qualities and a ripe, fleshy texture. Its tannin tends to be fine-grained and its longevity medium to long term. Porongorup shiraz is cooler, spicier and more leafy, reflective of its cooler climate origins. The northern shirazes from Frankland River are undeniably different from the rest, despite their clear flavour connections with those made further south. They’re more structured, with firmer tannins, wilder, more pungent spices and darker, black fruit flavours, occasionally with a wild fennel character. 1999 was a difficult year around Mount Barker and Porongorup in the region’s southern extremes, but was sufficiently warm in the north to ripen shiraz rather late to full ripeness, without any porty or overcooked flavours. Alkoomi’s flagship Jarrah Shiraz from that season is complex and earthy, with meaty, licorice-like complexity that contributes character and personality to its intense flavours of small dark fruits and black plums. It’s pliant, creamy and savoury, and will mature well. While Houghton has already released its intensely flavoured and almost exaggerated Frankland River Shiraz 1999 under its regional label, it recently added a very special wine to its range. The new Gladstones Shiraz 1999 has been introduced to partner its now celebrated Jack Mann red blend. Made from low-yielding 30 year-old vines, it’s a Frankland River shiraz of stature and breeding. Named after Dr John Gladstones, a well-known research scientist in WA agriculture who had much to do with the introduction of shiraz into the region, it’s deep, dark and peppery. Powerful, voluptuous and full of impact, it still reveals the suppleness and fineness associated with northern Rh̫ne shiraz. Its slightly smoky and leathery flavours of blackberries, black cherries and mulberries work perfectly with firm but fine-grained tannins and creamy vanilla oak. No give-away at $60, it amply justifies the price, being substantially better than a number of fashion labels priced significantly more expensively.
