Allegiance Wines The Artisan Shiraz 2023
$40, 14.5% alcohol, screw cap, McLaren Vale.
The balance of fruit and oak is excellent here. There’s enough oak to give the wine a gentle, smoky seasoning, and more importantly to add a bit of softness to the mouthfeel. But from there the fruit is allowed to swing freely through the palate, all sweet plums and saltbush, redcurrant and cloves. Everything works nicely here. 92 points.
Campbell Mattinson has been an independent journalist, wine critic and photographer for forty years. He founded The Winefront, is a former chief editor of the Halliday Wine Companion (and former editor of Halliday magazine), and is the only Australian to have won the Australian Wine Communicator of the Year Award more than once. He is 100% independent, and tastes between 5,000 and 10,000 wines each year, blind and in comparative brackets as often as is practicable.
Mattinson is also the founder of the Mattinson Photography business.
