Tasting - Thorn-Clarke Terra Barossa

Wine Tasting #9
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Name: Thorn-Clarke Terra Barossa
Grape: Shiraz
Region: Barossa
Country: Australia
Year: 2012
Price: $14.99 (Kroger UCB)

The Australian Wine:
      "Helen McCarthy makes a range of excellent wines, including this generously satisfying and complex red. Bright, plump, ripe varietal plum and blackberry flavour with fruitcake, spice richness, a touch of oak and soft tannins characteristic of Barossa Shiraz. Food ideas: lamb burgers; eggplant lasagne."

Winemaker Note:
       "Deep red with purple hues. Sultry blackberry, plum and a subtle smoked meat character on the nose. The palate is soft and silky with strong flavours and a linear acid line. Throughout the palate the wine has subtle chocolate and cedar French oak character." Thorn-Clarke Viticulturists

Personal Review:
     This wine is very hot compared to other Shiraz I've had in the past, with an astonishing 14.5% alcohol content! Because of this high alcohol content, I rated the wine lower than what I normally do...in terms of the bouquet, I detected lots of fruit but nothing that really stood out so I would describe this aroma as a fruit bomb. Elements of plum stood out more than anything else, making me think of plum pudding. The taste was not as good as the aroma but still had some of that plum I smelled earlier. I personally couldn't get past the amount of alcohol on my mid-palette, making this wine rather unpleasant to drink without food. I will give this wine a "G" in my scale and will keep this wine in mind for a time when my palette has developed more in the future.

Personal Score: G (3.3/5)