Aussie Wines

Where do you start with this? Ok, I'm not a big Aussie or New Zealand wine guy. Or let me rephrase that. I haven't seen/tasted anything new from down under that blew me away. Nothing personal at all trust me, but in the same respect I just started drinking Italian wines all over again. Maybe it's because I'm getting older, maybe because I appreciate the style more now than before. I dunno. Same with wines from down under. Maybe its because the little Kangaroos, koalas and penguins just destroyed the market not that I consumed those, but even still...10 years ago, if your vineyard did not make a Shiraz you were losing out. Much like the Pinot Noir phenom when Sideways came out and the negative demise of Merlot as a result. "I am not drinking any $@"& Merlot!"
Ok, back to the beginning. My first entry into Aussie Shiraz was a bottle of Yangarra Park Estate Shiraz, under $20 if I remember correctly. It was great! Literally flavors of dark cherries covered in mocha, velvety, silky smooth (Zohan reference) balanced tannins where they weren't killing my front teeth. Is that reaction to tannin just me? This was like textbook Shiraz. Like taking shop class and looking under the hood of a '79 Monte Carlo compared to today's cars. There's the carb, there's the timing belt, etc. From New Zealand I went for the Selaks Sauvignon Blanc. Again, text book NZ Sauv Blanc with tons of grapefruit, crisp acidity and balance between those two. Now over the years it's been a crap shoot of what's been brought to market but again ratings and reviews seem to drive that area of influence.
I once saw a great interview with the very lovely Laura Catena, famous winemaker from Argentina and doctor in her spare time. In relation to the grape Malbec, she stated that "now is the best time to drink Malbec before every winemaker gets one to market. In a few years the market will be so over saturated with garbage just so a vineyard can say that they have a bottle of Malbec on the shelves.". This was just three years ago and she wasn't kidding. I felt the same about New Zealand and Australia. Every NZ Sauvignon Blanc was like drinking battery acid mixed with a splash of Tropicana grapefruit juice. Every Aussie Shiraz was a huge fruit bomb and fell apart after that. Kim Crawford always gets huge ratings for their Sauvignon Blanc, but to be honest over the years it's changed so much. I will say this though, forget their Sauv Blanc and DO try their Chardonnay. That's some tasty wine. Crisp and clean without all of the humongous grapefruit overtones. Taste close to French Chard which is good for me. Now Australia seems to be making strides again. Here's my opinion as to what their problem was. They started off as a good valued wine producing region then as popularity grew so did the pricing. They were rushing products to market and losing quality. Then South America and Spain got into the game and are still pumping out tremendous wine under $10. Over the years I have tried some phenomenal red blends from Australia that have my attention. I'd like to try more once summer changes over to fall. Likewise I've had some great Pinot Noirs from NZ that were very Burgundian in style. Last week I sampled a trio from an Aussie producer called Vinaceous. A Chard, a Cabernet and a red blend with of all things Tempranillo which is primarily found in Spain. The Chard was very good but Aussie Chards just don't get the credit they deserve and likewise with the Cabernet. People don't "get" them. The blend was very interesting with little fruit and more earthy, smokey flint. That may appeal to some people but ehh, not right now or on it's own for me. So, hopefully we will see an influx of new wines from down under this upcoming season. Your homework, pick out something from down under and tell me about it! Make it something different. Tell me what you are tasting, smelling, etc. It's your palate and it has it's own opinion! Trust it.