TN: Whicher Ridge ‘Long Road’ Shiraz (Frankland River) 2016

[Waiters Friend]

G'day

Whicher Ridge is located just north of the Margaret River boundary, and is in the Geographe GI. The fruit for their Shiraz, however, has almost always come from Frankland River. I suspect this is where the ‘Long Road’ moniker comes from, given the distances involved. The shiraz consistently cellar well. Two years in oak (I don’t know if any is new).

Purple black in colour and quite dense in the glass. Lots of developed dark fruits (blackberry, blueberry, black plums) on the nose, with vanilla, a fair amount of chocolate, and a whiff of white pepper.

The palate is medium bodied while showing prominent dark fruit flavours. There’s a little Chesterfield leather and plenty of mocha as well. Acid is in the background and the tannins are fine and drying, sucking the cheeks in slightly. Medium to long finish.

Probably unlikely to improve much further, but also no rush to drink my remaining bottles. This should plateau for a while.

Whicher Ridge is an under-rated producer in my opinion, and have made consistently good wines for close to 20 years (to my knowledge). I should get there more often. The winery /farm is off the beaten track a little, but well worth the visit, for the wines, the wine sensory garden, the bocce courts and of course Polly the Wine Dog.

Cheers
Allan