WTN: Balmoral Syrah 1998

Rosemount
McLaren Vale

Decanted about 15 minutes before supper.

Very dark purple in the glass.

An incredible nose: black plums, backberries, spice, pencil lead, earth, violets, iodine.

Black pepper, black cherry, raspberries, red currants, medium weight, peppery, earthy, quite rich, coffee, cocoa.

Berries, currants and drying on the finish.

An incredible wine, lacking the fruit bomb-ness of bottles consumed years earlier, perhaps thanks to a bit of age.

Purchased at $59 (Canadian) in November 2001.

Thanks for the note, Bruce.

Have to admit that my last bottle of the 2001 a few months ago was in a bad place, rather acrid, showing the alcohol. Maybe if I had waited a little longer it would have come around.

I have the 93, 94, 95 and 96. Time to set up a vertical!

[David M. Bueker]

Somewhere around 2000 they jumped on the ripeness is king bandwagon.

Somewhere around 2000 they jumped on the ripeness is king bandwagon.

For many SA red producers, running a vertical around 1998 (i.e., covering a few vintages either side of there) can be very telling I think. I reckon you'd see a stylistic change in a lot of them somewhere in there.

Tasted the '98 about 8 months ago. It has definitely gotten rid of some baby fat. But in its infancy, it was as ripe as it gets. And for what its worth, the '00 Balmoral was good, not great, and ripe is not a descriptor I would use...