My first experience with a sparkling shiraz, first impression on pouring is WHOA!!! , following by WOW! mixed with compulsive giggling. As you may have guessed, I had absolutely no idea what to expect. After all, Champagne is made with Pinot, which is a red grape, and it comes off with barely a tint. Not so here.

This stuff was very cool. Startling deep red in color, but damn! There are bubbles where there ought not be any! In a red wine!! Quite tannic, but amazing friendly and drinkable, huge berry flavors, and a delightful lingering finish. An outrageously fun experience, and would make a fantastic wine for brunch.

I had poured this with family, and reaction was across the board. Most of us (myself included) loved it. One hated it (sacrilege I think was the term she used), and a few were just unsure of the whole thing.

I have had a sparkling Shiraz before, but I can remember the bottling. It is something that if you have not tried you should at least once. Thanks Eric

Hi Eric

You got it re sparkling Shiraz, they're fun to drink!

I must say it is hard to get many US wine drinkers to try them, which is a shame, after all, they're just red wine with bubbles!

Glad you liked it, and nice note!

Gavin, I loved it! And you should have seen the reaction on peoples faces when they saw it - priceless! I do plan to seek it out again, it's quite an experience.

Another one to try is D'Arenberg's Peppermint Paddock. It kind of looks like blood with bubbles.

Eric,

My reaction to sipping my first sparkling shiraz was very similar to yours. It was '94 Leasingham Classic Clare SS, and was like a licorice whip, pop rocks and toast rolled into one boisterous glass.

Cheers,

Otis

In reply to:

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a licorice whip, pop rocks and toast rolled into one boisterous glass

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So, like a normal breakfast ... but in a wine glass? Hmmmmm...

Sounds like I need to try this if only for the expereince of seeing a red wine bubbler....

Easy to find?

IIRC I purchased this from Southern Hemisphere Wine for ~$20-$25.