Many of you may remember my asking a few weeks ago about cheap Oz Shiraz
recommendations for a friend's wedding. Suffice it to say that I took
up your recommendations and went shopping in our "local" market (went
down to Indy today). We tossed in a couple of Zins for comparison's
sake. Here's the lineup and tasting notes from our sampling today:

1. nose: stones, leather, Syrah fruit, slightly medicinal
palate: acidic entry, medicinal, slightly tannic, moderately fruity

Jean found this wine "stinky" in the way that she finds many French
Syrahs. She also found it to have notes of eucalyptus and pine

Wishing Tree 2004 Shiraz ($10.29)

2. n: sweet oak, minerals, MINT
p: MINT, acid, moderately fruity, acidic finish

I just couldn't get past the mintiness of this wine, an experience I
last had tasting Penfolds' latest releases earlier this year. In fact,
had I known that there were no Penfolds wines in the lineup, I'd have
guessed that that was what I was drinking. Jean didn't think there was
much in the nose, but found that this wine was the only one in the first
flight to not have the dreaded "Syrah stink"

Rosenblum Vintner's Cuvee XXVIII Zinfandel ($9.99)

3. n: smoke, berry fruit, pencil lead
p: acidic entry, berryish fruit, herbal notes, very acidic finish

Jean found little sense of fruit in this wine. She got brush in the
nose, and green tannins on the palate. I, OTOH, found this wine to be
the most typical Syrah of the flight.

Wynn's 2003 Coonawarra Shiraz ($10.99)

4. n: stewed fruit, iodine
p: hint of Syrah character, moderately tannic, acidic finish

Heat damaged? Jean found this wine stinky with eucalyptus notes and
acidic. Neither of us cared for it much.

Barossa Valley 2002 'Spires' Shiraz ($9.99)

5. n: minerals, tart raspberry and blackberry fruit, eucalyptus
p: sweet entry, berry fruit, eucalyptus, med-full body, acid finish

Jean liked this wine a lot, finding it juicy, round and filled with
blackberry fruit and good acidity

Cline California Zinfandel 2004 ($9.99)

6. n: Vicks Vapo-Rub [1] (!!)
p: eucalyptus, raspberry, moderately tannic, acids in finish

Jean found leather, eucalyptus, dust, medicinal notes in the nose, with
decent fruit and oak and a long, brooding finish

Wirra Wirra 2002 'Scrubby Rise" Shiraz ($10.99)

7. n: pencil lead, oak, berry fruit
p: rich entry, good acid, deep berry fruit, slightly tannic finish

Jean thought that this wine had cherry, oak and a slight Syrah stink
with dusty and oaky flavors.

Woop Woop 2004 Shiraz

8. n: pencil lead, cedar
p: rich entry, medium-full body, pencil lead, fruit, slightly tannic finish

Jean thought that this wine had green tannins, and tart green apple
flavors, with oak, dust and bitter fruit

Wyndham Estate Bin 555 2003 Shiraz

There was clearly a lot of divergence in opinion between us, mostly a
result of Jean's dislike of the stinkier aspects of Syrah. However, we
both agreed on the Woop Woop as the most likely crowd pleaser of the
bunch, with the Cline Zin running a hard second. For my money, the
Wyndham Estate and the Wynn's Coonawarra got the prize for best varietal
character in their price range. Overall, I was struck by how much Syrah
character these wines had, by and large. The Barossa Valley seemed like
it was probably cooked, which is a shame. I was particularly
disappointed with the Wirra Wirra, as the '98 Church Block really made
an impression on me.

I *did* manage to find Peter Lehmann Shiraz locally, but at $17.99 it
was just too pricey for our event.

Our next installment will be on cheap CalChards (with two white
Burgundies tossed in for the heck of it).

Mark Lipton
[1] For those of you who didn't suffer from respiratory problems as
children in the US, Vicks Vapo-Rub is a balm containing camphor and
menthol, as has an incredibly pungent odor. Not soon forgotten, it is.