themselves and make the investment required to craft truly top-drawer wines. In the tasting, many wines showed potential greatness and offered excellent value, but did not quite fulfil their promise. The varietal question also looms large. Which grape is destined to be the king of McLaren Vale? Is it shiraz, grenache, cabernet sauvignon, alternative varieties, or some combination? Cabernet sauvignon may seem like an interloper in this crowd, but it remains the second most planted grape variety in the region and, potentially, its most undervalued. Over the course of our travels, a number of leading figures were singing cabernet sauvignon’s praises, one for its sheer drinkability that wows international audiences, while another potentially places its faith in cabernet shiraz for a winery icon. With the current status of the relationship with China and a national oversupply of shiraz, it is clear that the best wineries are putting serious effort into varieties other than shiraz, and this has become a regional trademark. Grenache has been considered elsewhere, so here we focus on the state of play with a range of other grape varieties.
40
The Vintage Journal – Regional Focus
Powered by FlippingBook