1997 Fox Creek Reserve Shiraz

[corcoran]

Still an incredibly youthful lighter purple color, with great opacity.
The flavors have evolved from the blackberry/vanilla flavor to intense licorice, with hints of blackberries, cassis and leather. Very interesting, and significantly different than when last tasted 2 years ago. This wine seems to have significant aging ability. I would not be surprised to see it holding up for another 10 years. Rated as Excellent with **, this cost me a bundle in the states.

[David Lole]

Brian,

Thanks for your note.

I tried this wine a few months ago and agree about its' improvement over the past few years and bright future ahead. Unfortunately, at release, the overt oak and a disjointed tannin regime deterred me from purchasing more than the tasting bottle. Subsequently, this label has gained mini-cult status and prices on the secondary market have increased dramatically as a result. All in all, a great result from a difficult vintage.

[TORB]

David,

The Cabernet frequently goes for very reasonable prices on the secondary market as Mclarne Vale is not world renound for its Cabernet.

[michel]

thank Brian
I will try it soon
I bought some quite cheap 30 aus dollars and was worried about the vintage not being a good one
michel

[kenzo]

I can vouch for the 97 - it's not far behind the 98 in quality at all. I was in fact pleasantly surprised - as I have been with other McLaren Vale 97s. I think that perhaps this region didn't suffer as much as Coonawarra or the Barossa in the 97 vintage (or Bordeaux, for that matter!).

I don't drink much McLaren Vale shiraz nowadays (unless it's the sparkling Joseph!), but when I did the Fox Creek wines were up there.