Astralis

Just wanted to see if anybody had a different experience than we had last night. We had a 96 97and the 98 Together. Very underwhelmed especially compared to similar vintages of Noon,Run Rig and Greenock Creek…Only the 1997 showed decent fruit and verve.All were bought on release.Low 90 ratings at best.
Thoughts please?

used to buy it, found it didn’t age well or wow me when tasted, too pricey. Divested the stash.

Had a 95 in 2013 and it would have been an OK QPR if it was $10. Purchased at release.

Had a glass in 1998 and loved it. My wife glared at me when I said I wanted to buy some. Being fond of living, I did not buy it.

Thank God for my wife!

Haven’t had one recently but the 1991 Clarendon Hills Shiraz, the precursor to Australis, remains one of the greatest Shiraz wines made in our country for mine. It has aged magnificently. Sadly I only have one bottle remaining.

Astralis needs tons and tons of air. 24 hours. Not kidding .

Never experienced any fireworks with Astralis. For the scores and price, I was underwhelmed. I’d say Torbreck RunRig is the bar for high level Aussie Shiraz. Tried the Laird a couple times and was mind blown, but the budget doesn’t allow for to experience those bottle that often.

Must agree with Jeremy here, I popped a 1990 Clarendon Hills Shiraz (all Astralis) fruit for Ronnie Sanders a few months back, it was very special and held up for the whole evening, the Astralis vineyard is farmed by controlled/neglect, very old vines with the non farming being very ordinary, I took the 90 year old block adjoining it this year and its look amazing in barrel, Blewitt Springs is an amazing place and if you can track down bottles of Brian Lights 94,95,96 Reserve Shiraz, you’ll be blown away, I have popped 3 x 1994 over the last year for people and its performed perfectly on cue every time MT

No one on this board does multi-day preps of their wines.

This board is strictly pop-n-pour.

If you talk about multi-day oxygenation, they seem to think you’re insane.

I’ve been consistory impressed with Astralis. Not so much any other wine from Clarendon Hills (especially the Grenache) which tend to be wild and volatile and age quite poorly.

Whew, loved 1997 & 98 on release but never pulled trigger. Have to dig out ‘97/8 grateful palate stuff and see what happened.

It’s a polarizing wine, which does seem strange considering its provenance. I’ve never been a fan. I’ve had several 90’s vintages and 2001, though all when they were quite young.

Had the 05 and 06 (96 and 93 points). Love Run Rig. Excellent wine for the money. Greenock Creek is probably top 3 producers in Australia for me.
Clarendon Hills had a ton of Shriaz/Grenache wines on WTSO years ago and they were the best deals I ever got from them.

2007 Clarendon Hills Syrah Hickinbotham - Australia, South Australia, Fleurieu, Clarendon (4/29/2015)
Pop and pour. Spice box, floral, white pepper, stone and red fruits. There is a flint character on the palate. Very Northern Rhone like and tasty. Drink now or hold for five. (93 points)
2007 Clarendon Hills Syrah Liandra - Australia, South Australia, Fleurieu, Clarendon (4/15/2015)
Outstanding. Beefy wine with black pepper, minerals, roasted meats and vanilla. Medium plus finish and balanced. These 07s from Clarendon Hills have been some of the best deals I have purchased in a long time. (93 points)
2007 Clarendon Hills Syrah Brookman - Australia, South Australia, Fleurieu, Clarendon (3/27/2015)
Dark purple. Wonderful, fragrant nose. Blue fruits, spices, coffee, charcoal and floral notes interweave into a complex, long finish. Highly recommended and should age another five plus years. (94 points)
2007 Clarendon Hills Grenache Kangarilla - Australia, South Australia, Fleurieu, Clarendon (3/13/2015)
Really tasting and easy drinking with spices, jammy fruits, dust and cedar. Medium plus finish and complex. Great value. (92 points)
2007 Clarendon Hills Syrah Brookman - Australia, South Australia, Fleurieu, Clarendon (2/6/2015)
Wow! Pop and pour this is a beast in a good way. Roasted meats, spices, floral and red currants. Medium to long finish and I will revisit over the next few days. Thanks WTSO.

Day 3 even better with soy, roasted nuts, floral, red currants, plums and exotic spices. This has proven to be one of the better values in years. 95. (95 points)
2007 Clarendon Hills Grenache Hickinbotham - Australia, South Australia, Fleurieu, Clarendon (11/16/2014)
Vibrant nose of floral, raspberries and spices. The palate is flavorful with spices, dust, floral and sweet fruits. A bit out of sorts from the last bottle so this is another one I will hold off to judge until day 3 or 4.

Suuuurrrrreeeee…

The last two times I opened a 98 Astralis suggested it was a bordeaux blind. They are not even close to the intense fruit monsters they used to be, but they are beautiful to me.

What Berto said—there are not many, if any, wines I can think of that underwent a more dramatic transformation for me. I’ve only had it twice. First time was, I think, 2002 or so. I had to use a spoon to eat it with, but it was magnificent in how lush and plush and dynamic it was. Second time was, I think, 2012 or 2013. Totally different wine, very much as Berto has described, it had become smooth and long, almost to the point of being slightly lean. But I still really liked what was on the bouquet and palate.

Nathan–bite your tongue [grin.gif]. Almost all my Sauternes get at least 2 days’ opening and almost all my white burgs get slow-ox for a day with partial decanting.

BTW, welcome to the board, Jay!

Really? Are you still hurt that some of us disagreed with you? Get over it.

Thank you Mike! I’m in Toronto a few times a year and find LBGO very discouraging. Just wondering if you get anything decent in Canada?

PM me if you know in advance, would love to meet. Chuckle, not that much here, though occasionally something does appear on the shelves. If Aussies are a go-to, there’s a specific LCBO store that specializes in the city.

Find the selection much better in Alberta, where government stores exist side-by-side with independents. My last trip out there, I came back with 16 bottles of wine and 2 bottles of scotch.

Anyone had the Bakers Gully I have some ‘06, was wondering if I should pop one