Review: Mereea Park 2011 The Aunts Shiraz

The low-down: Mereea Park is a charming, boutique wine maker from the Hunter Valley. Currently it doesn’t own any vineyards, rather, it sources grapes from other vineyards around the valley and does the blending itself. The grapes for The Aunts are sourced from the Homestead Vineyard planted in 1965.

My drinking partner R and I visited Mereea Park in January 2014 towards the end of a typically hot Aussie summer day. Their cellar door is located on the grounds of Tempus Two next to the Smelly Cheese Shop. Our guide had taken us through their current vintages and we had then selected a couple of 2011s. I turned to him and hesitantly confirmed: "Should be 5 or 10 years in the cellar mate?" To which he replied: "Why would you wait with something so delightful?" He was right - I waited 6 months! Are you a patient storer or a hedonistic drinker? Or both like me ... it depends on the bottle right!

The take: On appearance, a rich purple, dark and very opaque. Not leggy. On the nose initially sour with tomato and chalk. With more time, an interesting balance of jam/cooked fruits and old leather. On the attack, a pleasant mix of sour blackcurrant, pepper and coffee.

In closing: Delicious and very well balanced. Nice acidity, little tannins.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

Fact corner:

Country: Australia

Region: Hunter Valley

Producer: Mereea Park Wines

Vintage: 2011

Grape: Shiraz

Alcohol content: 13.8%

Serving temperature: n/a

Price range: Mid-range

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