One of the bonuses of all this COVID madness is that its given me time to clean up around the place. Last week I moved a box to find a sample wine from Huntington Estate that had somehow escaped and become hidden away under a pile of stuffed toys.
The timing was perfect for our regular Wednesday tastings, and cracked the top off the Huntington Estate 2015 Special Reserve Shiraz, more commonly referred to as their gold label range.
Its highly fragrant, initial whack of vanillin from the use of the oak, then the underlying notes of earthy rainforest floor with choc-mint and deep dark jammy notes in there for good measure.
On the tongue its loaded with flavour, massive deep dark notes, a slight touch of fortified notes that faded off quickly, more to do with our weather and the way it was stored than wine itself. Its plummy and chocolatey, with strong dried fruit notes with an underlying brambly/briar note, some faint coconut notes. Alcohol and tannin structure combine here for a long lingering, slightly bitter finish, that is actually very moreish.
This is a powerful wine and intense wine built for cellaring, best drinking will be about 2021 and should age till about 2030. 94/100 RRP $45