Recently Wine Exchange Asia held a vertical of Elderton Single Vineyard Command Barossa Valley Shiraz where we were lucky enough to taste a vertical of vintages 1999 through 2007 inclusive.
I am a big fan of Command and Elderton wines, so was really looking forward to this. It was an interesting night, made more so because of a fire in Boat Quay on the day of the tasting, which meant a late change of venue. Both Wine Exchange Asia and the venue, Boomerang, did a great job to accommodate the late change of notice.
And now for the wine!
The Wine
wdt_ID
Wine
Photo
1
Name: Elderton Command Single Vineyard Vintage: 1999 Region: Barossa Valley, South Australia, Australia Varietal: Shiraz Alcohol: % Colour: Dusty brick Aroma: Subdued nose, hints of plum and spice aromas Palate: Uninteresting at first, then smooth and balanced, then lifeless Tannin: Subtle Finish: Medium-long
Comment: At first this was a bit lifeless, but with a bit of time it opened up to show its quality, unfortunately it fell off again after short while. Possibly the bottle as my own bottles of this that I have had this year were great once they had opened up
2
Name: Elderton Command Single Vineyard Vintage: 2000 Region: Barossa Valley, South Australia, Australia Varietal: Shiraz Alcohol: % Colour: Dusty dull crimson Aroma: Mix of vanilla, blackberry and hint of oak aroma Palate: Medium-bodied Tannin: Subtle Finish: Medium - long
Comment: It was ok, not great.
3
Name: Elderton Command Single Vineyard Vintage: 2001 Region: Barossa Valley, South Australia, Australia Varietal: Shiraz Alcohol: % Colour: Youthful deep ruby Aroma: Pleasant combo of blackberry, plum and a hint of spice and vanilla aromas Palate: Medium-bodied, balanced, decent structure Tannin: Subtle Finish: Medium-long
Comment: Nice wine, had a bit of heat on the finish.
4
Name: Elderton Command Single Vineyard Vintage: 2002 Region: Barossa Valley, South Australia, Australia Varietal: Shiraz Alcohol: % Colour: Dull deep ruby Aroma: Pleasant mix of blackberry, plum and spice with a hint of vanilla Palate: Medium/full bodied, balanced Tannin: Smooth Finish: Long
Comment: Getting better, enjoyed the smooth tannins and balanced palate
5
Name: Elderton Command Single Vineyard Vintage: 2003 Region: Barossa Valley, South Australia, Australia Varietal: Shiraz Alcohol: 14.5% Colour: Youthful deep crimson Aroma: Enjoyable combo of plum, blackberry, spice and maybe a little mocha aromas Palate: Full-bodied, structured, balanced Tannins: Smooth Finish: Long
Comment: Now we are talking, this vintage has improved since I last tried it. Needed time to open up and had a bit of heat on the finish, which detracted from the rest of the wine
6
Name: Elderton Command Single Vineyard Vintage: 2004 Region: Barossa Valley, South Australia, Australia Varietal: Shiraz Alcohol: % Colour: Youthful deep crimson Aroma: Mixture of blackberry, vanilla and spice aromas Palate: Medium/full bodied Tannin: Savoury Finish: Medium-long
Comment: Another nice wine, but was hoping for more. A good wine to drink, but not a star
7
Name: Elderton Command Single Vineyard Vintage: 2005 Region: Barossa Valley, South Australia, Australia Varietal: Shiraz Alcohol: 14.5% Colour: Youthful deep purple Aroma: Combination of plum, blackberry, vanilla and spice aromas Palate: Medium / full bodied, balanced Tannin: Savoury / smooth Finish: Long
Comment: Did not wow me, think that this wine still has a fair bit of evolution to go, hopefully. Patience required
8
Name: Elderton Command Single Vineyard Vintage: 2006 Region: Barossa Valley, South Australia, Australia Varietal: Shiraz Alcohol: % Colour: Youthful deep ruby Aroma: Pleasant mix of cherry and spice aromas Palate: Full / medium-bodied, structured, balanced Tannin: Smooth / savoury Finish: Long
Comment: This wine has the traits to evolve into something special, patience is needed.
9
Name: Elderton Command Single Vineyard Vintage: 2007 Region: Barossa Valley, South Australia, Australia Varietal: Shiraz Alcohol: % Colour: Youthful mid-light ruby Aroma: Mix of cherry, blackberry and vanilla aromas Palate: Medium / light bodied Tannin: Evolving Finish: Medium
Comment: I was disappointed with the vintage, gets some great reviews, but I found that it is still immature and needs, hopefully, more time to evolve. Reminded me of a heavier style Pinot Noir
Whilst I was a bit disappointed with some of the wines, I think that, with patience, that a number of these wines will improve (at least I hope so) and will live up to expectations.
My picks of the night:
2003 Elderton Command Single Vineyard Barossa Valley Shiraz
2002 Elderton Command Single Vineyard Barossa Valley Shiraz
2006 Elderton Command Single Vineyard Barossa Valley Shiraz
Robert Rees of Wine Exchange Asia reviews the Elderton Command Vertical
Cheers!
Thanks to winehouse.com.au for the images, mine were not that good!