Shobbrook Wines, "Poolside" 2018

A beautiful, sad, and true way to think of this wine is as a winking farewell, like leaving home with no return date. Such melancholy bedevils the bottling itself, which is a vibrant, exciting ‘Poolside,’ a cuvée embodying the rejection of the Barossa Valley Shirazes of yore. Here is a direct, gentle pressing of Shiraz (also known as Syrah) with a pinkish hue. As for the melancholy-note, you can think of this bottling as a ‘farewell’ because it is the last of Tom Shobbrook’s much-beloved ‘Poolside’ cuvée that was grown, harvested, and vinified at his old family estate in Seppeltsfield, Barossa Valley, South Australia. Since then, the family farm has been sold and he’s bought up two hectares of vines in nearby Flaxman Valley. His first vintages there are the 2019s, so this selection is a last hurrah of a renegade classic. But for now, here’s to Seppeltsfield, and to the growth of a Natural Winemaking Pioneer who has begun to branch out and prosper even more, a winemaker who has helped re-shape the face of an entire viticultural region. One final note: the cuvée’s name is a kind of homonymic pun, an homage to the beautiful pale-red Jura wines made from the Poulsard grape. Kick-ass wine. 

Vinification: 100% Shiraz hand-harvested from biodynamically-grown vines in Seppeltsfield, Barossa Valley, South Australia. The grapes are directly, gently pressed and spontaneous fermentation takes place over the course of five-six weeks before being bottled unfined, unfiltered, with no additional SO2. 10.4%ABV 

Tasting: Light, cloudy, bubblegum pink in the glass. Chalky and lip-smackingly juicy in texture. The palate is like a piece of strawberry-rhubarb pie, topped with a dollop of whipped cream and a dusting of lime zest. A hit of VA and a slight, pleasant effervescence may underly the rich fruit and texture, making this a perfectly refreshing rosé for a balmy August afternoon.