Possums McLaren Vineyards
ShirazMcLaren Vale, Australia
2003
15%
$25 – Chapel Hill, NC
Color: Deep red, a slight tinge of purple
Nose: Creamy, vanilla, coffee
Body: Dense
Front: Creamy caramel
Middle: Pepper, coffee, cedar
Back: Maybe a little plum
Burns clean?: Yes
Cap: Cork
The cork on this wine smelled so good when I pulled it that I almost ate it for dinner. There's only the remotest hint that this substance was derived from fruit. It's an astounding synesthesia. At this percentage, it ought to be hot, but there's none of that. This is what cigars ought to taste like. This is what dessert ought to taste like. This is what everything ought to taste like.
Note (Dec. 2, 2007): A friend shared the 2002 vintage of this wine with me last night and it was fabulastic; even better than the '03.
