Omrah Shiraz

Angela and I were fortunate enough to visit the Plantagenet cellars at Mt Barker in Western Australia last November. Mt Barker is about the size of Cheviot and the winery is on the edge of the town. We found that the wines were more expensive there than we could buy them for in Christchurch!

We tried a 2003 vintage a few weeks back and discovering a number of 2001 in the cellar we thought it would be interesting to compare the two. The back label of the 2001 says "great drinking now, the wine will become more complex over 3-5 years".

The 2001 wine had a smoother more rounded mouth feel and the fruit and oak integration was very good It is probably drinking at its best now and for the next year or two. The fruit in the 2003 was still a bit zingy which to some is quite attractive, but both wines were very good whatever the preference. A very good value for money label.

Current vintage is 2004 and if you wish to know more about the wine the website is http://www.plantagenetwines.com

2004 vintage available on special at under $16 from VinoFino Christchurch