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  • Country ranking ?

    242
  • Producer ranking ?

    22
  • Decanting time

    8h
  • When to drink

    from 2018
  • Food Pairing

    Lamb Stew with Spring Vegetables

The Tb points given to this wine are the world’s most valid and most up-to-date evaluation of the quality of the wine. Tastingbook points are formed by the Tastingbook algorithm which takes into account the wine ratings of the world's best-known professional wine critics, wine ratings by thousands of tastingbook’s professionals and users, the generally recognised vintage quality and reputation of the vineyard and winery. Wine needs at least five professional ratings to get the Tb score. Tastingbook.com is the world's largest wine information service which is an unbiased, non-commercial and free for everyone.

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The Story

The Story Behind The Name / Dead Arm is a vine disease caused by the fungus Eutypa Lata that randomly affects vineyards all over the world. Often vines affected are severely pruned or replanted. One half, or an ‘arm’ of the vine slowly becomes reduced to dead wood. That side may be lifeless and brittle, but the grapes on the other side, while low yielding, display amazing intensity.

The Characteristics

A classic Dead Arm in every sense o...

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Wine Information

The Vintage  / 2009 was one of the best vintages for Shiraz in the last decade. Sufficient winter rains set up the vines well with good canopies. December and most of January were very cool with only three days above 30°C until late in the month. There was a string of days above 40°C in late January that had little effect as most vines were going through veraison. The mild weather that followed ensured that ripening was stress free and grapes ...

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Vintage 2009

Near-optimum rainfall over winter, followed by dry, mild conditions over spring provided a good environment for budburst and an ideal start to the growing season with canopies developing well. Climatic conditions favoured flowering and set with mild and calm weather, however there was some shatter in Shiraz across parts of the state resulting in small crops for many regions. Some early to mid-December summer rainfall was follo...

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Tasting note

color

Deep, Purple and Healthy

ending

Long, Vibrant, Extensive and Neutral

nose

Youthful, Pure, Opulent and Generous

taste

Average in Acidity, Warming, Balanced, Concentrated, Multi-dimensional, Youthful, Full-bodied, Aggressive, Ripe, Powerful, Focused, Dry and Hard tannins

Verdict

Exotic and Well made

Written Notes

Youthful vibrant crimson. Some development here but all part of an impressive, complex wine. There are notes of cold tea, bergamot, dry herbs and forest floor. Spices. A lovely complexity. Structure is impressive. Very good length. Plenty of grip but finely managed. A really good wine. Always one of McLaren Vale's best.
  • 94p

Black fruit, hint of tapenade, touch of licorice - in short a dark brooding, sullen wine.

Smooth on entry, a little short; pastille like fruit presence, but somewhat lacking in firmness and fullness. Feels a little dried out, heat makes itself known.

Finishes with drying and mouth-coating tannin and concludes with moderate length. I think on this occasion it doesn't wear its icon status sash too comfortably. 89 - Good

  • 89p
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Information

Origin

McLaren Vale, South Australia

Winemaker

Chester Osborn

Vintage Quality

Excellent

Value For Money

Very good

Investment potential

Below Average

Fake factory

None

Glass time

2h

Other wines from this producer

Adelaide Hills Chardonnay Lucky Lizard

Chardonnay Adelaide Hills The Olive Grove

Chardonnay South Australia Barrel Fermented

Custodian Grenache

d'Arry's Original

Feral Fox Pinot Noir

McLaren Vale Cabernet Sauvignon Copper Mine Road

McLaren Vale Cabernet Sauvignon The High Trellis

McLaren Vale Grenache The Derelict Vineyard

McLaren Vale GSM Cadenzia

McLaren Vale Ironstone Pressings

McLaren Vale Roussanne The Money Spider

McLaren Vale Semillon The Noble

McLaren Vale Shiraz Old Vines

McLaren Vale Shiraz The Footbolt

McLaren Vale Shiraz Vintage Fortified

McLaren Vale Viognier The Last Ditch

Pollyanna Polly

Port Australia Vintage

Sauvignon Blanc The Broken Fishplate

Stephanie the Gnome with rose tinted Glasses

Sticks and Stones

The Anthropocene Epoch Mencia

The Cenosilicaphobic Cat

The Dead Arm Shiraz

The Dry Dam Riesling

The Galvo Garage McLaren Vale-Southern Fleurieu

The Galvo Garage Proprietary Red

‘The Hermit Crab’ McLaren Vale Viognier Marsanne

The Innocent Weed GSM

The Laughing Magpie

The Noble Botryotinia Fuckeliana

The Peppermint Paddock

The Stump Jump

The Stump Jump Sauvignon Blanc

The Twenty-Eight Road Mourvedre

The Witches Berry Chardonnay

Inside Information

The Characteristics  / Dark fruit and savoury characters leap from the glass, in particular there is liquorice and blackberry, laced with a hint of char. Complexity in the shape of iodine and soil like notes follow. Each whiff brings out something new. 

The wine is powerful and structured. There is a plethora of sweet fruit character, plums and mulberries, but not a hint of fatness. Rather the wine is quite compact and focused. Again layer upon layer of exotic characters, earth and crushed ants among others, only add to the intrigue of this wine. A powerful yet refined expression of Shiraz with balance, complexity and persistence….. and unmistakeably d’Arenberg. 

Cellaring Potential 

While enjoyable in youth, this wine will reach its full potential with bottle age up to at least 20 years. The considerable structure and depth will ensure that the fruit characters will develop over time revealing more complexity and providing immense interest. This wine is best stored in an environment free of direct sunlight and with consistent temperatures between 10°C and 15°C.

Harvest dates 

3 Feb - 16 April 

Alcohol 

14.5% 

Residual sugar 

2.9 g/l 

Titratable acid 

6.9 

pH 

3.31 

Oak maturation 

18 months 

Chief Winemaker 

Chester Osborn 

Senior Winemaker 

Jack Walton 

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