Below are the May, 2008 Featured Wines for the Wines by Jennifer Wine Club.

 

White Wine 2007 Thorn - Clarke Terra Barossa Pinot Grigio Eden Valley, Barossa, Australia   The Thorn-Clarke family already has a long history in the Barossa - six generations of involvement in the region's world-famous wine industry. Their four estate vineyards shown below highlight the individual micro-climates of the Barossa, with each of the four quite different terroirs bringing additional complexity and interest. The Terra Barossa range of wines was developed initially for the American market and offer outstanding value for money. The range is named in honor of the rich soils in the region which are a major factor in the Barossa being considered one of the great wine regions of the world. The color is mid straw. The nose is clean and vibrant, showing honeysuckle and subtle honey notes. The honeysuckle follows through on the palate with rockmelon undertones. There is a lovely sweet fruit richness contrasted with a zingy acid finish. The Barossa Valley was settled in the early 1840's by small farmers and artisans seeking religious freedom from their native Silesia (now Poland). The warm, fertile valley was ideal for ripening winegrapes and Australia's largest wineries made their headquarters amongst the vineyards. In the cooler ranges above the Barossa, known as Eden Valley, English settlers created large pastoral runs for sheep and cattle, but also planted vineyards to ensure a supply of table wine. In the early 1990's, Australia created a Geographic Indication for each wine region so that they were recognized under international law. The Barossa was proclaimed a wine zone, as were the two regions within it, Barossa Valley and Eden Valley. Over two centuries the Barossa has become the headquarters of the Australian wine industry and the most famous Australian zone internationally.

Red Wine 2005 Split River Estate Shiraz Great Southern Region, Western Australia   Split River Estate is nestled in the southwest corner of Western Australia, positioned in a picturesque Great Southern valley surrounded by beautiful woodlands. The wine was named after the Perup River, which dissects the vineyard from east to west. The river acts as a cooling influence that allows for the continual creation of elegantly balanced wines generous in flavor and softly textured. The growing and ripening conditions of the 2005 vintage produced Shiraz fruit with intense color, ripe tannins and an ideal flavor profile for this medium-bodied wine. The winemaker's philosophy is to produce wines that are fresh, stylistically appropriate, and in beautiful balance. This 2005 Shiraz was matured in oak for 6 – 9 months to ensure the subtle background oak flavors are in balance with the fruit flavor profile and soft tannins. This Shiraz is deep crimson with purple hues. On the nose, there are fragrant aromas of maraschino cherries and sweet strawberries, while the palate is fresh and lively with fleshy berry flavors, a warm anise oak finish, and very fine tannins. Alcohol content is 13.5%. This wine is drinking beautifully today, but is capable of cellaring up to six years from vintage. Try this terrific Western Australia Shiraz with beef or lamb and roasted vegetables. The Great Southern region is the largest, in area, of all wine regions in Australia and produces 37% of wine grapes produced in Western Australia. The climatic figures for the lower Great Southern region agree well with medium bodied Bordeaux-style red varieties and with the slightly earlier maturing Shiraz.

Wines by Jennifer is also proud to announce our new "Cellar Club", featuring a new wine each month suitable for long-term aging. Call the shop and ask for Jennifer for all the details on this exciting new Club, or visit our Featured Cellar Club Wine page for details on this month's selection.