Peter Fraser bottled his first preservative-free Shiraz in 2013. Because he was nervous about sending such a naked wine into the wilds of the marketplace without any preservatives, he sterile-filtered it. After tasting it in late 2013 I asked whether he’d bottled some of the batch unfiltered, as a comparison out of interest. He hadn’t, but the following year he did - and he and I both prefer the way the unfiltered version is ageing: unlike the round, sweet, softness of its filtered counterpart, the raw, completely unadulterated 2014 PF Shiraz (certified biodynamic viticulture, wild yeast, no added acid, no fining, nada, zip) has a lovely earthy complexity and sense of place. Despite the success of that trial, though, Fraser did filter his 2015 - partly because the success of the first two vintages has led to greater demand from more distant markets such as the US, and he isn’t confident that a totally unprotected wine will always be stored with appropriate care. Nevertheless, this young, vivid wine is beautiful: essence of purple fruit, lively, juicy, spicy.

Top 100 Australian Wines of 2018 - #91 Dark plums and some lighter redder fruits, as well as spicy, earthy and tarry elements. The palate has a seamless, deep-set and layered mouthfeel with a strong and fresh spine of dark plums. 95 points.

Gold Medal

Gold Medal

Gold Medal

A Toast to Earth Day - The Biodynamic Wines of Yangarra This wine is all about texture. The meaty blueberry hint is sometimes like prosciutto or other dark charcuterie meats; the figgy base tones provide a solid base flavor, the cleansing natural acidity working with the tannins to draw the finish out to a delicious taper with a long aftertaste where those cherries evident in the bouquet.

Yangarra Estate Vineyard: Southern Rhône Specialists in South Australia’s McLaren Vale 2014 Yangarra Estate Vineyard Shiraz — brilliant ruby in the glass with generous aromas of red fruit, dried herbs and black tea aromas. Flavors of tart red fruit, crushed flower stems, dried herbs are supported by juicy acidity. Tannins are substantial and drying, but well integrated with the flavors. The body is medium and the length moderate+. This lovely (and lively) Shiraz shows an exciting tension between the red fruit flavors and acidity that is punctuated by drying tannins. It is a delight to sip and made a delicious pairing for oven roasted chicken and Brussels sprouts with bacon.

Outstanding.

To quote the late, great David Bowie, “leather, leather everywhere…” A-.

A 2013 Shiraz, labeled PF (for Peter Fraser), whole Shiraz grapes cofermented with 3 percent Roussanne, was made with no additions at all—no acid, no tannins, no cultured yeasts, no sulfur dioxide, and sterile-filtered to keep it stable. I found it fresh, with an expressive richness. For me, the assurance that nothing is going to spoil in the bottle makes up for any loss of texture from the filtration.

For our small birthday table, we also visit the hotel’s famous wine cellar, choosing a pretty special local Yangarra 2012 Ironheart shiraz to fit the celebration. Good red goes with anything in my book, including my star choice of fish wings.

Top-flight producer, Top flight wine. You could almost put any price on this and you'd still be reaching for your credit card. It's perfumed and polished, but rich with dark saturated, complex fruit and oak flavour. Tannin motors away in the background. By any measure this wine falls safely into exceptional territory.

The 2010 Iron Heart Shiraz, from those red gravel soils, was less opulent than expected, a more upright style, taut, focused, more structural than flavorful. Clearly, it's built to develop in the bottle.

Very dark crimson. Peppery nose signals Shiraz almost Syrah loud and clear. Very refined richness with leathery character. Admirably avoids being simply sweet and tough. There is lots of potential here. Firm and well balanced. With lots of vitality. Should make rather ravishing old bones. Probably worth waiting. Attractive, and unusual in Australia, dustiness. Very impressive persistence. Very interesting!

So much prettiness and power at once for so little money; gorgeous ripe fruit, teasingly soft texture, haunting persistence of flavor; perfect Aussie shiraz.

Very dark blueish crimson. A bit of oak on the nose and then very sweet, spicy and round initially though pretty tight and tart on the finish. Initially seductive, this wine is pretty demanding by the time it exits the mouth. Though the tannins are much smoother and the whole experience much sweeter than the Australian norm.

So much prettiness and power at once for so little money; gorgeous ripe fruit, teasingly soft texture, haunting persistence of flavor; perfect Aussie shiraz.

This wine exhibits great structure with a nice berry fruit nose and flavors. Good acidity and soft tannins would make this wine great for summer barbecues.

The 2009 Yangarra Estate McLaren Vale Shiraz...has an alluring aroma of dried wild herbs, and while the wine does suggest blackberries, its fruit is spicy and tangy, not sweet and enveloping. The wine is subtle...

Zippy acidity lifts toasty oak, chocolate and black-fruit flavors.

Interesting nose of mint sauce, blackcurrant, spice, blueberry, pepper and oak. Lots of fruit offset by good acidity, cinnamon and clove spice with a hint of vanilla.

Developed fresh nose of spice, herb, red plum, oak, coffee, coconut, red and black fruit. Rich, earthy, complex and flashy - a fine combination. A very enticing wine with supple, ripe tannins. Lovely palate.

A very good wine for the price and a panel favorite. Supple with black pepper, mocha, blueberry, menthol, black fruit, spice and toasty aromas and flavors, soft yet complex.

This wine is perfectly balanced and presented, showing both concentration and elegance. The brambly blackberry, blueberry and plum fruit flavors and aromas are quite inviting and will compliment many dishes...