Mitchelton Print Collection 1991 Shiraz

Taking a 17 year old bottle of wine to a dinner party is a bit of a gamble. We were going to pull the cork beforehand to check it was OK, but didn't get around to it. As it turned out, we needn't have worried as the condition was superb and the quality of the wine belied its age.

If this wine had been served at a blind tasting I would have estimated it to have been 5-8 years old. The colour was deep purple with a youthful appearance. The fruit and oak showed a seemless integration, and on the nose, slight spice/chocolate/berry fruit aromas. I have seen references to other vintages in terms such as baby "Grange" and although it's a long time since I've tasted a Grange, this wine must be up there in the flavour stakes at a fraction of the price. I could well imagine the wine keeping for another 15 years with good cellaring without changing much. This wine had to be one of the best ever tasted from our cellar and underscored the rewards one can reap for cellaring good quality red wines.

Unfortunately the bottle was left with our host, so I can't give you the details from the label. Current vintages of this wine go under the label of "Print Shiraz"