The Barossa Valley Estate GSM 2013 is a blend of 45% Grenache, 41% Shiraz (also known as Syrah) and 14% Mourvedre sourced from vineyards in the Barossa Valley of South Australia.Vineyards have been planted in the Barossa Valley since 1843 and many of Australia’s best known wineries are located here. The valley floor can get very warm during the growing season, but gets progressively cooler as you travel up into the foothills. A GSM is a classic French Red blend found primarily in the Rhone Valley of Southern France and especially in the Chateauneuf-du-Pape region. Barossa is famous for its high quality Shiraz. so a GSM blend is well suited to the area. This blend ia aged in French oak barrels for 12 months. The alcohol content is 14%.
The color is a dark, barely see-thru black cherry red. The nose is oak spice, light perfume, cherry, a whiff of smoke, dark chocolate, menthol, and raspberry. This is a dry, sleek, spicy, fruit-forward, but nicely balance Red blend. It starts with tart cherry, licorice, Altoids spice, plum, and chocolate powder. The mid-palate shows blackberry, tart, sour cranberry, exotic cooking spice and a touch of cream.This is a fun blend, the different grapes hit your palate at different spots, the Shiraz hit the back of throat, the Grenache hits the tip of your tongue, and the Mourvedre soothes everything. The tannins are smooth and there is plenty of acidity to work as a food wine, but not too much to interfere with you’re sipping pleasure. The finish is full and quite lengthy.
The Barossa Valley Estate GSM 2013 is a pretty good GSM, I think it holds its own with the French blends in this price range.There is tons of flavor and its well-balanced, there was a time when Australia was known for big, bold wine, and while this GSM is fruit-forward they did not lose the balance.This is a wine that has flavors that would pair well backyard BBQ, chicken, pork or beef would all do just fine. I am partial to Australian wine, it was Australian wine that first led me to believe wine could be something special and the Barossa Valley Estate GSM 2013 upholds that tradition.
