TN: Stonewell Shiraz 1996

[Guest_Anders]

Hi,

Thought I'd give this a try. I am talking about contributing with a tasting note.

Opened the bottle, decanted it and allowed ot to breath for 1/2 hour.

Colour: Clear, purple with just a hint of redish-brown rim.

Nose: Sweet blackberry and dark cherries, Well integrated oak, a faint smell of nail polish remover (?), but all in balance and integrated.

Taste/Palate: Medium bodied (a bit surprised), elegant (even more surprised), sweet, blackberries (black berry jam) dark cherries, well integrated oak, very fine tannins, well balanced, still quite fresh.

Total impression: Loved it, even thoough I had expected a BIGGER wine. It was all there, a lovely Barossa Shiraz, but just in "smaller" portions, a very elegant wine and balanced wine, and I thinkk it'll be even better in 3 - 4 years time.

Kind regards,

Anders

[markg]

Hi,

Thought I'd give this a try. I am talking about contributing with a tasting note.

Opened the bottle, decanted it and allowed ot to breath for 1/2 hour.

Colour: Clear, purple with just a hint of redish-brown rim.

Nose: Sweet blackberry and dark cherries, Well integrated oak, a faint smell of nail polish remover (?), but all in balance and integrated.

Taste/Palate: Medium bodied (a bit surprised), elegant (even more surprised), sweet, blackberries (black berry jam) dark cherries, well integrated oak, very fine tannins, well balanced, still quite fresh.

Total impression: Loved it, even thoough I had expected a BIGGER wine. It was all there, a lovely Barossa Shiraz, but just in "smaller" portions, a very elegant wine and balanced wine, and I thinkk it'll be even better in 3 - 4 years time.

Kind regards,

Anders

Thanks for the note Anders.

Have you had any of the later Stonewalls ? How this one compare ?

[Guest_Anders]

Hi Mark,

"Have you had any of the later Stonewalls ? How this one compare?"

Well, I have had the 92 Stonewell, buut that was quite some time ago, and I don't have any notes from that. From memory though, I enjoyed it, but I remember it being a BIG wine (one of the reasons I was surprised at the 96's "elegance").

Anders

[MartinC]

My impression:

1994 - Poised and perfectly balance.
1996 - Forward, ripe & fruit driven.
1998 - Tannic, structured and backward. 1 for the long haul.

Cheers,

[lantana]

Hi Anders,

Nice note about the 1996 Stonewell, concurs pretty much with my own experience.

A word of warning about the 1995, it's a shocker! Totally out of balance with massive tannins & no fruit, does anyone agree or disagree, I was with a group when we opened this last year & it was universally panned.

lantana

[TORB]

Hi Anders,
A word of warning about the 1995, it's a shocker! Totally out of balance with massive tannins & no fruit, does anyone agree or disagree, lantana

Lantana,

Lets put it this way, I was not tempted to buy any when it was released and I had purchased many previous vintages.

[David Lole]

Hi Anders,

Thanks for the note.

Perhaps worth mentioning that '96 is, generally, an outstanding vintage for reds in the Barossa and Coonawarra (haven't got any Clare, have tried many McLaren Vale yet) Hope you have some put away for a rainy day!

[Guest_Anders]

Thank you!

96's put away for a rainy day:

Stonewell x 2
Bin 389 x 2
Limestone Ridge x 2
Grange x 2
Signature x 1

I am looking forward to open and trying them all (not at the same time though).

Anders.

[TORB]

Thank you!

96's put away for a rainy day:
Stonewell x 2

Anders,

IMO the 96 is not a long term wine and is unlikely to get any better.

[Guest_Anders]

Thanks Ric,

I just didn't think it had developed any secondary characters and the colour was still purple with just a hint of red. I am not planning on keeping them for long though, but I do think (and hope) they'll improve over the next two to three years, but I might be wrong.

Kind regards,

Anders