Yes, you read correctly. Yellow Tail has released a Reserve Shiraz. All and all, it is pretty darn good juice, with all the eucalyptus, plums and vanilla present. Its very good length and some background tannins round out the enjoyable experience.
Cold soaked and stainless steel fermented with 20% in Slovakian oak for added heft. Tropical and citrus notes upfront with some mineral hints, followed by a well-balanced palate, supported by good acidity, with fresh fruit flavours of lemon and gooseberry through a fresh, clean finish.
Clear, silvery yellow. Rich and complex nose including gooseberry, guava, stone fruit, pineapple and apple aromas. Medium-bodied, riper and denser than most NZ Sauvignon Blancs but with balancing acidity. Ready to drink when it reaches your house. A reliable house wine, and great value. Delicious with broiled fresh figs topped with goat cheese.
This comet is a full-bodied Fiano, ripe with quince, fleshy white peach, almond blossom, chamomile, acacia, Mediterranean herbal scrub scenting the generous palate. This was grown on lime-chalk soils, affording a pixelated lemon acidity and stream of saltiness that rockets this upwards. Apricot and sea salts lingers on the lengthy finish. Impressive showing; this is a brightly shining wine even at 14% — part of the striking allure of Sicily.
Some of the aromatic components that distinguish the 15-Year-Old expression can also be found in the 18-Year-Old, but there is an added layer of pear, vanilla, hard toffee and an interesting floral edge. Nougat, dried apricot, sweet pear and a touch of warming, peppery spice are evident in the whisky’s flavour profile, along with a hint of sweet raisin pie that persists on the palate as the primary flavours gently slip away.
Dark berry fruit accented with cinnamon, clove and a splash of caramel on the nose leads the way for well-integrated dark fruit and spice on the palate. Harmonious and full-flavoured but rather subdued on the finish.
For a first effort, this sure hits all the right notes out of the gate. The wine shows a fine and sustained bead of bubbles in the glass and offers aromas of lemon, creamy pear, toast and brioche. It’s electric on the palate, driven by firm acidity and citrus zest that offers complexity, verve, freshness and flinty minerality.