The Best and Most Popular Shiraz

Shiraz

One of the original grape varieties brought into Australia, Shiraz is Australia’s best known and most widely planted variety. You can find Shiraz growing in virtually every wine region in Australia, particularly the Barossa Valley.

This adaptable grape can be grown in moderate to cool regions as well as warm to moderate regions where it thrives. The flavour and structure of the wine varies depending on region, climate and of course, winemaking techniques, however, you can expect medium to full-bodied wines with typical flavours including spice, red fruit, pepper and black fruit.

Barossa Shiraz is one of the most widely available and best-known red wines globally with Penfolds Grange, perhaps one of the most famous and collectable Australian Shiraz, coming from here. Shiraz from the Barossa is full-bodied, bold, richly textured with blackberry, pepper and spice characters.

Shiraz from cooler climates in Australia, such as Yarra Valley and Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, produce more savoury and medium-bodied styles. Showing a lot of diversity, they make a great food-matching wine. Characteristics you can expect from cooler-climate Shiraz are attractive pepper and spice aromas and fine tannins and acid structure.

A few facts about Shiraz:

• Planted in 1843, the world’s oldest and still producing Shiraz vines are found in the Barossa Valley at the Langmeil Vineyard.

• A uniquely Australian application of Shiraz is to blend it with Cabernet Sauvignon.

• Shiraz has been a uniquely Australian name. Most of the world refers to the grape as Syrah, the French name.

• Shiraz, however, is now so widely recognised and highly marketable that the naming convention is now common in the US, South America and Israel. There are also a handful of producers in France labelling their wines as Shiraz.

• Due to the strong tannins and concentrated flavours, Shiraz is very age-worthy with age giving the wine a rounded, gentler character.

• The vast majority of the world’s plantings of Syrah are located in France, primarily in the Rhone region which extensive DNA testing concluded is where the grape originated.

• Food pairing – red meat, lamb, venison, light cheese

Best Shiraz Wine (from wine-searcher.com, based on scores from a wide range of critics, updated monthly)

Most popular Shiraz Wine (from wine-searcher.com, based on frequency, updated monthly)

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