Yes, Shiraz should be served slightly chilled, but there are numerous ways to go about this to have optimum flavor and wine-drinking experience.
Chilling a Shiraz improves the bubbliness and crispness of the wine, however, Shiraz shouldn’t be left chilled for too long as it can negatively affect the flavours and hamper the tasting experience of the wine.
Some winemakers and wine enthusiasts believe that it is best to keep a refrigerated shiraz for about 4 hours but to make sure that it is taken out for around 10 to 15 minutes before it is served. This is to ensure that the flavour can still be pronounced while keeping its cool and refreshing experience.
On second thought, Shiraz can also be chilled using an ice bucket. In the ice bucket, the bottle should be put in an upright position and allowed to sit in ice and water for about 30 minutes.
Some wine enthusiasts believe that the use of an ice bucket seems ideal for refrigerating the wine as they believe the wine bottle could burst.
Why is temperature so Important?
The right temperature is important for a bottle of wine because it reveals and sustains its initial flavors, just as intended by the winemaker. If you over-chill a wine, the flavors are detracted and the acid and tannin levels become sharper.
Wine enthusiasts believe that keeping your wine at an ideal temperature has better usefulness that the wine glass or letting it breathe.
Usually, most red wines are served at room temperature, the notion of drinking red wine at room temperature emanates from the chilly rooms of a medieval French castle. But in regions like Australia, the climate is excellent for wine production but not ideal for drinking, as the average room temperature in Australia is 23ᵒ degrees.
Shiraz Serving Temperature
As you will get to know, Shiraz is made in different ways all around the globe and each of these variants calls for slightly diverse serving conditions. For instance, the aged Shiraz wine should be served just below room temperature at about 65ᵒF. This is to allow the wine to sing.
Shiraz is well known for its peppery notes, serving the wine too chilled will prevent those notes from expressing themselves.
Younger Shiraz produced from vintners with a powerful style should be preferably served at a slightly lower temperature of about 60 to 63ᵒF. this is because the slightly lower temperature will help to cause an imbalance in the high alcohol levels on the palate. In most cases, by the time the wine is opened and served in a glass, the wine would have risen to this temperature by itself.
Shiraz; The Origin
In recent times, Shiraz is planted and cultivated around the globe. But its first appearance was discovered in the Isere district of the Rhone-Alps region of France. Shiraz was known to have stemmed from the combination of the red grape Dureza and the white grape Mondeuse Blanche.
Shortly after this discovery, the first shiraz cutting was imported into Australia in 1832 by a viticulturist James Busby, shiraz was only grown in the northern Rhone. However, up until this day, the world’s continuously producing Shiraz vineyards aren’t found in the Rhone Valley but rather in the Barossa Valley in southern Australia. the 198os and 90s witnessed the stardom of Shiraz as this wine began to gain more ground overseas.
Slightly different from the Old styles and flavors of Syrah, countries in Europe and especially the UK welcomed the fresh, nice flavoured strong and bold Australian Shiraz.
Shiraz is cultivated in every wine region in Australia, with each region breeding a distinct expression to this grape. Below are a few famous regions known for their distinctiveness in producing Shiraz
Barossa Valley
Barossa Valley is the home to the oldest and best-known wines in Australia. the Barossa style includes a full-bodied and strongly textured wine loaded with dark fruits and lots of spice.
Clare Valley
The Shiraz from South Australia’s Clare Valley benefits a lot from the long warm days and cool nights. As a result of this, they possess terrific acid retention with broad flavours. Despite the Riesling nature associated with this region, the Clare Valley shiraz is well-appreciated and widely accepted. Also, this region adds an inner core of steel which isn’t apparent but gives the shiraz wine good enough structure to age for many years.
Heathcote
Due to the favourable climate and ancient Cambrian soils of Victoria Heathcote, the Shiraz in this region have a similar weight and texture to those of the Barossa Valley but with more intensity. The shiraz wine in this region is richly flavoured and coloured with a texture akin to a great tapestry, which makes its multifaceted taste more significant.
Hunter Valley
This is Australia’s oldest wine region, hunter valley is located in new south wales, and shiraz wine is one of its major varieties. Because of the warm climate in this region, a medium-bodied and savoury shiraz is produced often.
McLaren Vale
Shiraz from McLaren Vale is usually full-bodied with rich blue fruits with a feel of chocolate. The wines here have an effortless opulence that has become a model for some other wine-producing countries. It is important to note that, Shiraz from this region is one of the leading Shiraz wines in the Australian market.
Grampians
The Victorian region is known for instigating a peppery style of shiraz that has become the keen interest of other Australians. The Grampians historic wineries along with their unique characteristics make the shiraz from this region in very high demand.
How Does Shiraz Taste Like?
In cool climates, Shiraz is driven by white pepper and red and blue fruits, with some floral notes. Shiraz from a cooler region is often savoury with some earthy tones.
Some wine enthusiasts have likened Shiraz to a chameleon as it can change how it looks depending on the terror and winemaking technique used, for instance, Shiraz in the cool regions often tastes different from Shiraz in the warmer regions.
Moreover, in warmer climates, the Shiraz has notes of dark fruits, fruit cakes, plums, jam, and chocolate with a hint of liquorice. Structurally, Shiraz has moderate acidity with medium to strong tannins’ concentration. This factor is specially controlled by the vintners. Also, as shiraz ages, the strong tannins soften and the wine becomes more savory and earthy.
Ageing Shiraz
When it comes to the ageing process, shiraz falls into two major categories. The first category of Shiraz should be consumed at most five years after its winery release and purchase.
These classes of shiraz are very delicious wines with great value for the price, also, they come with subtle fruity notes accompanied by a great flavor to make an excellent pair for your hearty meals and red meats.
The second category of Shiraz is the ones made to age for a long period. They have very strong tannins concentration which is one of the leading factors responsible for their long life. They have subtle lush fruit notes just beneath the bitter flavours.
This phase goes on for about 5 to 8 years after which the wine proceeds into a dumb phase. In a nutshell, due to several enzymatic chemical processes, shiraz which is usually 5-13 years old can prove to be aromatically quiet with strong astringent and tannin notes dominating the wine.
During the 12th to 15th year, the Shiraz begins to open up. 15 years is a long time to wait, but it’s worth waiting because this Shiraz is one of the most pronounced wines around the globe. Even some Shiraz from over 50 years ago is still in demand in the auction today due to their vintage characteristic.
Syrah or Shiraz?
Well, maybe. The two wines have their origin from the same variety of grape, however, the manufacturing process and flavours accustomed to each are slightly different.
Shiraz is a dark-skinned grape variety used in making medium to full-bodied red wines. The mother grapes are Dureza and Mondeuse Blanche. Shiraz is also used to make mono-varietal wines and blends. In the case of blends, shiraz is often blended with Cab Sav.
Shiraz and Syrah are just two diverse names for the same grape variety. However, in recent years, the nomenclature of these wines has come to give an insight into the styles of the wines. Syrah is used for the variants produced in the Old World wine regions, majorly France while New World wine regions such as California, South Africa, Chile, Australia and so on now adopt the name shiraz or Syrah.
Shiraz’s taste profile highly depends on the winemaker’s techniques, as well as the type of vessels in which it is being aged, such as oak, steel and cement. The strong fruity tones make shiraz the perfect pair to go with veggies, barbecue, grilled meats, hamburgers or veggie burgers.
Here are some of the best Shiraz in today’s market:
Brash Higgins:
This shiraz oozes with flavours of blackberries, nutmeg, liquorice, smoked meats and citrus zest. This shiraz gives an expression of both the Old World winemaking and New World fruits. Its smooth acidity and tannin levels are responsible for its complex savoury finish.
The Chook Sparkling:
This is one of the favorite Australian reds. It comes with notes of blackberries, blueberry jam, liquorice, and black tea. These notes are mainly responsible for their lushness and velvety finish. The Chook Sparkling is best served chilled while being paired with meats, pizza, or pasta.
D’Arenberg The Footbolt Micro Wines:
Chester Osborn created this vibrant, palate-coating wine. This wine comes with notes of red fruits, pepper, blackberry jam, pepper and sweet spice. Also, there is a fine balance between its acidity and tannin levels.
After many years of studying Australia’s winemaking processes, American wine master, Sommelier Jonathan Ross started making his variants and developed Micro Wines.
The fruit used for this wine is gotten from Bannockburn Estate in Geelong and is 20% fermented in steel tanks, accompanied by 12 months of aging in large casks. These wines come with notes of cured meats, plums, briny olives and salt.
Penfolds Koonunga Hill:
This is a classic Shiraz that originates from Australia’s oldest winery, which was founded in 1844. The wine has a nice finish due to the presence of some flavours such as berries, raspberry compote, and sweet spice.
Shiraz Food Pairing:
Here is a few best food match for Shiraz;
Chinese Roasted Duck with Cherry Salsa:
The sweetness of the Shiraz is responsible for making the duck taste way better, with the wine’s acidity cutting through the duck’s fat.
Assorted Breakfast Dishes:
You would love to pair your Shiraz with bacon and egg or cream pancakes.
Dark Chocolate Mousse:
This dessert perfectly matches a chilled Shiraz. The tannin pairs greatly with the richness of the chocolate while the fizz lifts its residue off your plate.
Conclusion: Is Shiraz Served Chilled?
Shiraz should be served slightly chilled. Keeping Shiraz extremely chilled can detract from the flavour and drinking experience wine enthusiasts derive from taking this wine.
According to signature cellars (2020), the optimum temperature of Shiraz is around 10 to 12 degree Celsius. You should ensure that your Shiraz sits perfectly at room temp after being refrigerated for about 10 minutes before consumption for the optimal experience.