12 years age for South Australian red wines amounts to little and this wine is no exception. American oak dominated most Aussie reds a decade ago. Browns used a blend of American and French for this label which has softened out the vanilla taste associated with American oak. A rich flavour with all the leathery, licorice, boysenberry and plum tones we come to expect from SA shiraz.

Open another bottle of this vintage in another 12 years and it will probably have changed little (as long as you haven't been unlucky to find it with cork taint!).

This has never been an expensive wine and represents top value for money. The current vintage on sale at the moment is 2008 and can be bought for as low as $16. If you are starting out stocking a wine cellar, buy a truckload of this, you'll never be disappointed.