- McLaren Vale, SA - $22-$31
- Cork
- 14.5%alc
McLaren Vale's Pirramimma is almost unanimously considered one of Australia's leading makers of straight petit verdot. In my opinion the 2002 was their finest achievement this century with the lesser known Bordeaux variety, which I previously rated 93 points back in August 2007.
Showing a clear whiff of fresh cedar, this 8 year old petit verdot opens to a settled, dusty and savoury bouquet of chocolate raisins and cooked meat overlying nuances of dried herb and pencil shavings. It's very silky, long and smooth, with a powdery framework set around its complex yet totally harmonious interweaving of medium-bodied red/blackcurrant, cedar, earth and dried herb flavour. Bearing the mark of true length of fruit sweetness (thank you 2002 vintage), it finishes with expansive notes of chocolate raisins and raspberry bullets touched by a moderate dryness, growing ever more compelling with every sip; just like a good mature red should.
ü+ Surprisingly complex, this wine changes unequivocally with time, air and temperature. All the same it's a great little expression of a McLaren Vale Bordeaux-style, and I've probably underestimated its cellaring life a fraction. Drink to 2012.
92 points
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