From the Cellar
Slap Shot 2003 Shiraz (Australia)
09 Dec 2016- Details
- Category: Uncorked Tonight
(April 21, 2016) ... It's April and we are finally getting around to having an Australiana friend over for 'the holidays', hey don't judge, we've all been really busy. As a lark I though I'd get an Aussie's take on a wine I bought from my buddy Dave in Michigan a few years back - before I was even married, so this bottle goes back at least 6 years. At that time Dave told me to buy a few (which I did), take one and open it, try it, then wait till the next day (again I did as he said) ... And wasn't I astonished, the harsh, tannic wine turned soft and supple and delicious; he must have given the same advice to other clients cause when I returned to the wine shop two days later to buy more, he was sold out of this $6 wine - yes it had been deeply discounted.
The wine was made by Kilikanoon and was called Slap Shot because it was one of the first celebrity hockey wines to hit markets, backed by Detroit Red Wing, Igor Larionov. It boasted a whopping 15% alcohol. 13 years from vintage date has derived minty, blackberry, sweet dried fruits, and hints of pepper ... Still vibrant, almost fresh, but with great pepper/spice finish. Our Aussie friend thought it right where he thought it be, based on the region it's grown and made, and the producer ... He was also blown away by what I paid for it. His final comment was the funniest, "exactly where it should be, dad would approve." So did we all.
