2001 d’Arenberg “The Dead Arm” Shiraz, alc 15%, $75…bought at release and cellared…dark tooth staining purple in the glass…a little tar on the nose…slightly sweet and very monolithic and un-giving on the palate…not impressive at this point…no clear flaws, no TCA, not excessively tannic, just not impressive…
a famous critic “Readers should be on the look out for the 2001 The Dead Arm Shiraz, one of the greatest examples of this cuvee…98 points…drink from 2008”…well at least not this bottle at this point in time…
I have versions of this wine from the '98 through to the '05 vintage (12 bottles in total) with the exception of the '04…guess I’ll let them sit for at least a few more years and hope for the best…
Stephen, if it is ‘not impressive’, did it give you any indication that it was closed up, that there is some fruit in there, buried under a brick wall, or was it just not a good wine?
It was a bit “brooding” but didn’t give the distinct impression of a hidden stash of significant fruit or other structure just under the surface…I have a relatively long track record with Aussie Shiraz from the '96 vintage forward and this doesn’t strike me as just “too young”…I’d love to be wrong and hence the purpose of the post
Bought a six pack of these after release in the US. Initially tight but very good w a couple hours of air. However last botle about a year ago was fading fast. No bottles lived up to the score from rp. Save maybe 1 bottle.
this is extremely funny as i had a half bottle of this 2 nights ago.
i was tempted to post but was not sure what to make of it.
the nose was a little muted with licorice and chocolate notes.
the palate was insipid
short, shrill. un-joyous
i then went back to the nose and imagined some cardboard, and i was going to write it off as minor-cork
but since this was posted here, i feel compelled to say 77 points
Charlie, the importer (Old Bridge Cellars) is sitting on huge amounts of 2005 and 2006 of this wine.
I suspect that Cinderella will eventually offer it out for under $25, maybe $20/btl.
This is why Jay Miller is giving up reviewing Australia and handing it off to Lisa Perrotti Brown after the next issue. The region is DEAD DEAD DEAD (without arms).
First I heard the news about Lisa Perrotti Brown. Are her tastes in line with Parker or should we expect a different kind of Australian wine to get the limelight?