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Welcome

This is a resource for people who want to buy an interesting bottle of wine on a budget of about $20. If you get lost between Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon and have access to a Dan Murphy's or Vintage Cellars (or Aldi, as of 2015!), you've come to the right place. Where possible, wines are listed with their single-bottle price from DM/VC/A and the winery's home page.

A good place to start is the 'Index', or if you know what type of wine you want, head straight to the 'Recommended Reds', 'Worthy Whites' or 'Stunning Sparklers' that only show 4 & 5☆ wines.

Your experience will be different to everyone else's, which makes wine such a pleasure. The same vintage wine at different ages will be distinct, as will the same aged wines from different vintages. What the glass holds is a unique parcel of time that should be enjoyed as such.

Friday, 17 January 2020

(R) D'Arenberg: "Footbolt" Shiraz 2013, from McLaren Vale, South Australia, Australia

Appearance
Deep garnet, which is unsurprising in a 7 year-old Shiraz.

Smell
Lots of black fruits, dominated by blackberries. Some savoury herbal notes of unripe bramble fruits & a touch of white pepper.
Later: End of bottle aromas

Palate
Dry & reasonably acidic, but the acid is well integrated. Lots of thick, coating and dusty tannins with high alcohol & full body, as expected from the McLaren Vale. It's certainly a fruit-forward Shiraz with a sweetness to it, however it's also quite simple & very easy to drink.

Tale
d'Arenberg are a stalwart of Australian wine, & one of my absolute favourite wineries. It's worth reading the story as told by the winery. The condensed version follows Joseph Osborn planting Shiraz in 1912, however half of the initial 8 acres died.

Joseph's son Frank marries Helen d'Arenberg, & in 1926 Francis d'Arenberg Osborn (aka. d'Arry) is born. d'Arry left school at 16 to join the family business, & in 1959 d'Arry launched his own label, with a distinctive diagonal red stripe. d'Arry's son Chester is born in 1962, and takes over as chief winemaker in 1984, aged 22. Chester remains the chief winemaker to this date.

The story behind this particular wine:
"Joseph Osborn was a successful racehorse owner and Footbolt was the pride of his stable. In 1912 he made the hard decision to sell his horses to purchase the d'Arenberg property."

Price: $19
Quality: ☆☆☆☆
Value: ☆☆☆☆

www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_75976
https://www.darenberg.com.au/the-footbolt-2017
https://www.darenberg.com.au/assets/files/d'arenberg-the-originals-the-footbolt-shiraz-2013.pdf



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