The Auswine Forum

Over the last couple of weeks I've enjoyed a few bottles of the 2016 Wily Trout 'Nanima Block' Pinot Syrah and in the past I've enjoyed several bottles of the 2008 Bannockburn Douglas (cab, merlot, shiraz, pinot). Research tells me that blending Pinot and Shiraz has a long history in Australia, notably in the Hunter, but apart from the Mount Pleasant Mothervine, the Bannockburn Douglas and the Grand Casino Pinot Shiraz I am not aware of any other similar blends.

I was wondering whether other Forum members could recommend any other Pinot Shiraz blends?

Meerea Park comes to mind (Indie but it's a Shiraz Pinot), but can't think of others off the top of my head.

Not quiet what you requested - however something similar :
De Bortolli la Boheme Act 4 Syrah Gamay. I recently posted a tasting under "what are you drinking....". At under $20, maybe worth a try ( it needs a good couple of hours to open up).

I'm sure the Mothervine is just Pinot, the Henry is the Shiraz Pinot blend which is one of my favourite wines.

The Douglas is mostly Cabernet as you know, and there isn't always Pinot in the blend, varies with vintage. It sure is an interesting wine in the vintages I've tried, something different.

Hunter is still the place - in addition to the Meerea Park above, Andevine make a Pinot Shiraz, and Silkman make a 50/50 blend Shiraz Pinot. Both well reviewed on WF, though I haven't tried either.

Pinot can be a cash cow if you get it out quick enough (akin to white wine). if it is ordinary Pinot, blend it with something else to get it out of the cellar and not tie up cash any longer than needed.

Paradise IV have one, I think, and perhaps Quealy ??

I realise this has a bit of tradition in the Hunter, but seriously, why would you bother?

I can't recall ever having a straight pinot/shiraz.
I know that the Vinteloper Adelo always has a bit of pinot in it, but it is predominantly touriga nacional and shiraz and the pinot is there for aromatic lift. I think the last one had some Grenache in it as well

There is a French guy making Pinot/Shiraz blend in Hunter but can't remember the name it was Chateau something?
I had a few of his different vintages back in around 2005-8 and they were not bad at all.

I've can only ever recall having a Pinot blend twice, once in New Zealand and another at a tasting. The New Zealand blend was with Cabernet Sauvignon and it was not very nice, and while I cannot recall the second blend it was not something I would want to buy. So it is interesting to hear that wineries such as Mount Pleasant and Meerea Park are also making these. When I was in the Hunter I do not recall seeing any of these wines but I can only assume that if they are making them the wines must be pretty good.

I'm not sure I would consider a dash of Pinot to be a blend in the conventional sense. Much like Grange and St Henri aren't blends just because there might be some Cabernet in them.

Cheers ............................ Mahmoud.

Here's one I had the other day, it was very nice, particularly on the 2nd day.
I believe it's 51% Shiraz, 49% Pinot

2011 McWilliam's Mount Pleasant Wines Mount Henry Shiraz Pinot Noir
Colour is still a darkish purple with hints of ruby red. Nose was very fresh cherries and strawberries with some earthiness too, just a real fresh nose. Initially more "Shirazy" than "Pinoty".
Tasted a little acidic and some tannins were there, however opened up very nicely with time in the decanter and swirling. Left vacuum sealed overnight and the fruits, tannins and acid all appeared to be in a perfect place the next night with more "Pinoty" characteristics showing through. Initially the alcohol felt a touch strong, but was not an issue after a glass. Finish was long, and left me wanting more. 91pts

mjs wrote:I realise this has a bit of tradition in the Hunter, but seriously, why would you bother?

if you had a great batch of fruit
great clean old barrels
and you were
Maurice Oshea
i reckon it would be pretty good

"Thousand Candles" by William Downie is a Shiraz Pinot blend. 2011 was a Shiraz Pinot with a splash of Sauvignon Blanc, 2012 was Shiraz Pinot and 2013 was the same as 2011. I have 3 of the 2012's in the cellar but haven't tried one yet.

It's a Yarra Valley wine.

Cheers
Ian

The best pinot shiraz blend I had was the 2013 Arete LDR (light dry red). Unfortunately pinot shiraz blends are not very popular, which may explain why Arete no longer exists

ticklenow1 wrote:"Thousand Candles" by William Downie is a Shiraz Pinot blend. 2011 was a Shiraz Pinot with a splash of Sauvignon Blanc, 2012 was Shiraz Pinot and 2013 was the same as 2011. I have 3 of the 2012's in the cellar but haven't tried one yet.

It's a Yarra Valley wine.

Cheers
Ian

2011 had sav blanc or riesling as well
A dire wine
Too scared to try 2012
Vinomofo was flogging it cheap
Correct me if I am wrong but didnt they cut Mr Downie loose after two releases?

michel wrote:

ticklenow1 wrote:"Thousand Candles" by William Downie is a Shiraz Pinot blend. 2011 was a Shiraz Pinot with a splash of Sauvignon Blanc, 2012 was Shiraz Pinot and 2013 was the same as 2011. I have 3 of the 2012's in the cellar but haven't tried one yet.

It's a Yarra Valley wine.

Cheers
Ian

2011 had sav blanc or riesling as well
A dire wine
Too scared to try 2012
Vinomofo was flogging it cheap
Correct me if I am wrong but didnt they cut Mr Downie loose after two releases?

Everyone's favourite Mr Halliday gave the 2011 95 . I haven't heard any kind words about it. The 2012 I've been told is quite good. I only bought some for something different to try. Some rave about it so I guess I should probably try one. I do wonder as Halliday also gave the 2012 95 as well.....

Cheers
Ian

michel wrote:

ticklenow1 wrote:"Thousand Candles" by William Downie is a Shiraz Pinot blend. 2011 was a Shiraz Pinot with a splash of Sauvignon Blanc, 2012 was Shiraz Pinot and 2013 was the same as 2011. I have 3 of the 2012's in the cellar but haven't tried one yet.

2011 had sav blanc or riesling as well
A dire wine
Too scared to try 2012
Vinomofo was flogging it cheap
Correct me if I am wrong but didnt they cut Mr Downie loose after two releases?

Bill has been credited for 2011, 2012 and 2013. Don't know what happened after that

I recall having a highly enjoyable Eden Road 400 Shiraz Pinot Noir which IIRC was named after the fact it spent 400 hundred days on skins!

ticklenow1 wrote:

michel wrote:

ticklenow1 wrote:"Thousand Candles" by William Downie is a Shiraz Pinot blend. 2011 was a Shiraz Pinot with a splash of Sauvignon Blanc, 2012 was Shiraz Pinot and 2013 was the same as 2011. I have 3 of the 2012's in the cellar but haven't tried one yet.

It's a Yarra Valley wine.

Cheers
Ian

2011 had sav blanc or riesling as well
A dire wine
Too scared to try 2012
Vinomofo was flogging it cheap
Correct me if I am wrong but didnt they cut Mr Downie loose after two releases?

Everyone's favourite Mr Halliday gave the 2011 95 . I haven't heard any kind words about it.

Well 95 points from Halliday these days is a pretty low score...

Pinot with Shiraz from the right regions is great. i.e. warm climate for both I think.
Yarra Yering make one now, and of course we had Mountain X from 2006, 2007 as Shz/Pn blends.
It's growing in popularity.

Gary W wrote:Pinot with Shiraz from the right regions is great. i.e. warm climate for both I think...
It's growing in popularity.

Good to hear...

Thanks too for everyone's insight.

I personally hear people compare Pinot, like those from Tasmania and/or Central Otago, with Shiraz/Syrah. I'm not a winemaker, but it would seem to me that they would be more obvious as blending partners. Maybe Pinot is, as pointed out above, seen as too valuable to blend.

A bit of serendipity here because a few days after reading this thread I spotted a Vins de Pays (France) Pinot Noir-Syrah called C'est La Vie. This wine is really a supermarket wine flogged by an importer with no emphasis on the producer. At the bottom of the back label was the cryptic "Mis en bouteille par MAB". Anyway, after this thread how could I not try it and see for myself despite it being a $12.60 wine. At home I worked out that MAB stands for Maison Albert Bichot, a negociant from Burgundy. I thought that was interesting.

Last night we opened the bottle (screw cap for those who feel it is vitally important):

2014 C'est la Vie, Pinot-Syrah, Pay d'Oc, France, 12.5%
- translucent, deep ruby red, had good viscosity with lots of fine-boned legs coating the glass, more than I expected.
- the nose was aromatically very pinot-like, coupled with a hint of spiciness from the Syrah, strawberry, spice and herbs, quite nice.
- fresh and bright on the palate, a bit of a lolly attack, the wine is light to medium-bodied with dry cheery fruit and a leathery, herbal finish. This is an easy going drink that is more pinot than syrah. I has a mature, warm character, and a touch of funk and if I didn't know the vintage I would have guessed it to be older.

This is not a serious wine, rather a warm and welcoming wine quite suited to mid-week drinking with lighter foods. I now know that Pinot-Syrah is a blend that can be done reasonable well even at the lower level.

Cheers .................. Mahmoud.

Back in the day Charlie Melton used to make a Pinot (Meunier) Hermitage which was spicy and delicious. A mate found a 98 in the back of his cellar earlier this year and it was still very much alive and a lovely drink. I still wish he made it.

-- George Krashos

michel wrote:

mjs wrote:I realise this has a bit of tradition in the Hunter, but seriously, why would you bother?

if you had a great batch of fruit
great clean old barrels
and you were
Maurice Oshea
i reckon it would be pretty good

+1

Sarah Crowe ( ex Hunter winemaker) has been down at Yarra Yering for a couple of years and has now started making a 50/50 Pinot Noir/Shiraz blend as per the old Mount Pleasants from OShea and Brian Walsh.