2012 INKWELL PERFECT DAY - SHIRAZ
Australian Wine Review - Review by Andrew Graham
I can’t help singing Lou Reed songs when I taste this wine. Am I alone there?
Anyway, these latest Inkwell releases are, by a fair margin, the best that Dudley & Irina have made, led by this Shiraz – which is a prime McLaren Vale red, in the ripe and luscious mode, which shows the value of great fruit and a light touch in the winery.
Wild fermented (which is still rare in McLaren Vale for Shiraz), this was aged in 50% new barriques. TA 5.9g/L (be gone added acid), pH 3.92. Minimal SO2 added.
Really classic lines here. It’s deep plum purple red and smells very ripe and generous, the nose starts with vanilla bean oak, then masses of black plum, and then black jelly beans and a little road tar.
As ever, what sets this apart if the evenness – the acid is all natural, the ripeness almost too much but then stops before going over into any notion of dead fruit. Just proper ripe.
It’s rare to talk about balance in McLaren Vale reds but I found myself thinking over and over again just how well this sits in the mouth. It straddles the ripeness tightrope, the acid all naturally low, the tannins just a bit raw but not enough to do anything beside reinforce the seriousness.
Vale red at its ripe and detailed best.
Best drinking: 2018-2030. 18.5/20, 94/100. 14.4%, $40. Would I buy it? Sure would. Something steak would match this nicely.
Published: November 10, 2016
The Wine Front - review by gary walsh
I have bottle #0034 of 2400 bottles. Feed animals in the zoo. No additions aside minimum effective SO2, with 50% new French oak (back label) or 50% new French oak (website). You made me forget myself.
I really like what I smell and taste here: a whole lot more McLaren Vale should take a leaf out of this book. Subtle violet perfume, toasted hazelnuts, blackberry, spice and sweet sweet earthiness. Medium bodied, full of freshly crushed blackberry and boysenberry, bitter dark chocolate, silty tannin, and a dried herb and liquorice laced finish of fine length and shape. Has an almost southern Italian feel to it, and a kind of unfettered energy. It’s a beautiful wine."
Rated : 94 Points
Tasted : Sep.16
Alcohol : 14.4%
Price : $40
Closure : Screwcap
Drink : 2016 - 2025
Posted: 21 October 2014