Print this Wine         1998 Hewitson "Barossa Valley" Shiraz   BAROSSA VALLEY                 January Release   Shiraz       Dean Hewitson continues to impress with every new release. Realizing the amazing quality of the 1998 vintage in the Barossa Valley, and indeed virtually everywhere in Australia, Dean sought out some special fruit. He found a vineyard with 70 year old Shiraz vines. Vineyards of this age tend to produce high quality fruit every year, but when the climate is just about perfect the fruit will be even better than normal. The appearance is very deep dark and brooding. Dark crimson with almost black tints and no drop off in color near the rim of the glass. This promises concentration of flavor with plenty of other characters apart from simple fruit. Immediately the bouquet shows this concentration. The fruit flavors are very powerful with super ripe juicy plums being the most readily identifiable. The other flavors evident are blueberries, blackberries and cherries. Already the wine shows complexity and this will further develop with more time in the bottle. These extra flavors are sweet candied boiled treats, mocha and licorice. Its almost like being in a candy shop. As well as these sweet things there is some earthy, mineral notes which makes for a very complete wine. A very thick and viscous texture greets you on the palate. So thick you could almost eat the wine rather than drink it. The wine seems more complex when tasting rather than when assessing the nose. This is probably due to the heavier, earthy flavors not being as lifted as the fruit. These deeper flavors seem to play a more important role in the total make-up of the wine. Such is the concentration of all these flavors I can’t see the new oak, yet 40 % of the barrels used for maturing this superb red were new French barriques. At the back of the palate you just start to taste the firmness of the tannin. It appears quite soft but this is due to the amazing concentration of the fruit and other associated flavors. The wine has aging potential written all over it. These great old vines wines can be enjoyed at any stage right from the present to 15 years or more. I see no reason why this wine wouldn’t last that long. When looking for a food match you have to come up with a complex dish to match the variety of flavors. Braised dishes with a multitude of ingredients represent the best choices. Try a hot pot inspired by Northern Chinese cuisine with star anise and Szechwan peppercorns as the featured spices. These flavors will re-inforce some of the characters so appealing in the wine.         How do I download Hi-Res Labels?

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