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World Wine Travel Writers Dig into Victoria Reds
This month, our World Wine Travel writers are exploring the red wines from the state of Victoria. Due east of South Australia, Melbourne is the big city located in the region. Victoria has a wide variety of growing conditions thanks to ocean influence that extends well into the countryside. Along with well-known Shiraz, regions like Yarra Valley and Mornington Peninsula are cool enough to grown high quality Pinot Noir. Take a look farther down in this post for a variety of experiences with Victoria red wines from my fellow World Wine Travel writers!

Wines from Victoria are not particularly well represented in Minnesota, I only had a few bottles to choose from. I did find a bottle labeled with the typical Shiraz and another from (cool) Yarra Valley labeled Syrah. Intrigued, I decided to compare the two to see if there was anything significant in the choice of grape name. Having a little fun with Shiraz and Syrah, I’m reminded of a classic song from the 1930’s, one version shown in the Youtube video above.

Shiraz vs. Syrah
Syrah and Shiraz are both wines made from the same grape – Syrah. Syrah is an adaptable grape and is planted in quantity in France, Australia, South Africa, Chile, the US and elsewhere. The grape is known as Syrah in most places except Australia where it’s typically called Shiraz. Due to Australia’s generally warm climate, Shiraz wines are traditionally high in alcohol with bold dark fruit flavors, high but soft tannins and supported by generous oak. Occasionally, a Syrah based wine from outside Australia is called Shiraz, probably as a nod to this wine style. What has your experience been? Does Shiraz always show as a different style of wine as compared to a wine with Syrah on the label?

McPherson Wine Company MWC Shiraz Mourvedre 2018, Victoria ($18 locally at France 44) 14.5% abv
95% Shiraz 5% Mourvedre. McPherson Wine Company is proudly the least well-known of Australia’s top twenty wineries. They pride themselves in taking the care of a small winery with the economies of scale of a large operation.
Eye: Medium ruby
Nose: Medium plus intensity aromas of rich, ripe blueberries, blackberries, black plum, cooked figs, leather, vanilla, cinnamon, black pepper. Nose is a bit hot.
Mouth: Dry, medium plus acidity, medium satiny tannins, full body, high alcohol, medium plus intensity flavors, medium plus finish. Flavors follow the nose, with the oak a little more noticeable on the palate though very well integrated.
Observations: Classic Australian Shiraz albeit with a bit more restraint than usual in the use of oak. The wine is aged in neutral oak, but still acquires a nice touch of vanilla and cinnamon.

Jamsheed “Harem La Syrah” Yarra Valley, Victoria 2017 ($29 locally at France 44) abv 13.5%
Listed on the label as being sourced from a single vineyard, with a large percentage of whole cluster grapes, fermented with indigenous yeast. The wine was aged in a blend of new and old large French barrels. Given its Yarra Valley source and winemaking, one might expect this wine to differ from a typical Shiraz labeled wine.
Eye: Cloudy medium ruby
Nose: Medium plus intensity aromas of bright tart red fruit – cranberries, raspberries, underripe strawberries. The wine has a vinegary nose, likely from volatile acidity.
Mouth: Dry, high tart acidity, medium tannins, medium body, medium alcohol, medium finish. Medium plus intensity flavors echo the nose with bright crunchy red fruit but overshadowed by tart vinegar.
Observations: I rarely report on a wine I wouldn’t recommend, but my purpose today is to compare Victoria wines labeled Syrah and Shiraz. The winemaker’s intent is clear with bright red fruit, medium body and alcohol; unfortunately, something went wrong somewhere between Jamsheed and Minneapolis.

World Wine Travel Writers Explore Red Wines from Victoria
Make sure you take a few minutes to link over to other posts from our World Wine Travel writers, then join our conversation on Twitter. We chat for an hour on Saturday, April 23 from 10-11am CDT at the hashtag #WorldWineTravel.

• Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm writes “An Australian Farm to Table Dinner“
• Robin at Crushed Grape Chronicles shares “Celebrating Rutherglen Red Wines with Bobbie Burns and a Stovie“
• Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Camilla writes “Turmeric-Kissed Salmon, Coconut Rice, and a Pinot Noir from Victoria“
• Susannah at Avvinare shares “Finding Value in Victoria, Australia” 
• Linda at My Full Wine Glass writes “Can Low-Priced Shiraz Really be a Good Value?“
• Terry at A Good Life shares “Bone-in Grilled Pork Chops Paired with The Butterfy Effect Shiraz“
• Lynn at Savor the Harvest writes “Going Woodfired with De Bortoli Australian Shiraz“
• Jeff at Food Wine Click! writes “You Say Shiraz and I Say Syrah…“