One of my pet peeves with the wine industry over the years has been their occasional practice of inventing a new term to describe an already defined word. This results in only further confusing we already bewildered American wine consumers who must regularly deal with labels in foreign languages and nonsensical descriptions of wines as being “ethereal.” Anyway, I was reminded of this recently when someone asked me to describe the difference between red wines syrah and shiraz. Well, for those of you who don’t know, syrah is the world-famous grape that has been grown and produced in the Rhone Valley of France for centuries.
Shiraz, on the other hand, is an invented word that some wine marketer decided to call the syrah made in Australia and South Africa – and now sometimes even in California. You won’t see the word syrah mentioned on any Rhone label because the wine there is identified by the producer and the place (like Cote-Rotie or Cornas) but most red wine from the region will be comprised of that grape. I mention this because if you don’t sip syrah, or even the stuff labelled shiraz, you’re missing out on wines that, while different in name, place and in the way they’re vinified, are both excellent and worthy of your exploration.
The best Rhone producers are E. Guigal, Paul Jaboulet Aine, M. Chapoutier, J. Vidal-Fleury and Delas Freres. These wines are more restrained, complex and less highly alcoholic than most of the Australian, South African and American versions of the syrah called shiraz. In the US, wine labelled as syrah was not widely available until the 1980’s when the “Monty Python” of California wine makers, Randall Graham (Bonny Doon Vineyards), was one of the first to introduce syrah and other Rhone varietals to California. If you’ve never read one of Graham’s pun-filled, semi-wine related, opera-inspired tomes, you’re missing a great opportunity to add knowledge and humorous wine education tidbits to your appreciation of the fruit of the vine. Check out his book: “Been Doon So Long.” It’s a riot!
Two Australian Shiraz worth seeking out
If you would like to sample syrah from California, some of my favorite labels are Qupe, Onx, Ascent, Cayuse, Babcock, Alexander Valley Vineyards and Beckman. The Australians, particularly in the Southeastern Barossa region around Adelaide, make a fuller-bodied style of shiraz. My favorites from Down Under are Clarendon Hills; Torbreck Woodcutters Red, Penfolds Kalimna, Lindemans Bin 50, Elderton and d’Arenberg The Dead Arm Shiraz. Whether you call it syrah or shiraz, go out and experience the tasteful versatility of these delicious wines.
***
I
remember
a
time
–
just
a
couple
of
decades
ago
–
when
perusing
a
wine
list
in
a
West
Virginia
restaurant
took
about
ten
seconds.
The
choices
usually
included
a
“house”
white,
red
and
rose’
usually
supplied
by
some
mega
jug
wine
producer
in
California.
If
you
wanted
a
varietal
like
pinot
noir
or
chardonnay,
the
wine
list
might
have
a
“Burgundy”
red
or
a
“Chablis”
white.
If
you
wanted
anything
more
upscale,
you’d
need
to
drive
over
to
The
Greenbrier.
But
thankfully,
times
have
changed,
and
our
state
boasts
some
excellent
restaurants
that
feature
a
wide
selection
of
domestic
and
international
wines.
To
recognize
restaurants
that
have
the
most
exceptional
wine
lists,
each
year
Wine
Spectator
Magazine
singles
out
eateries
for
special
awards.
Congratulations to four West Virginia restaurants that have been recognized by the Wine Spectator for having award worthy wine lists. The Final Cut Steakhouse at Hollywood Casino and Racetrack in Charles Town received a “Best of award of Excellence” while three other state restaurants rated an “Award of Excellence,” including The Wonder Bar Steakhouse in Clarksburg, Bistro 112 in Shepherdstown and Sip Downtown Brassiere in Huntington.
And
a
special
shout
out
to
The
Wine
Down,
Charleston’s
new
wine
bar
at
114
Washington
Street
West
in
Elk
City.
Open
most
afternoons
and
early
evenings,
The
Wine
Down
features
a
rotating
selection
of
reds,
whites,
sparklers
and
rose’s
along
with
charcuterie
plates
and
other
wine
friendly
small
tapas-like
dishes
to
pair
with
their
eclectic
and
always
changing
list.
Check
it
out.
John
Brown
is
also
a
novelist.
His
latest
book
–
Augie’s
Wine
–is
now
available
to
order
online
or
at
his
website
wordsbyjohnbrown.com.
His
first
two
books–
Augie’s
War
and
Augie’s
World
–
are
also
available
online
and
at
bookstores
around
the
state.
You
can
find
out
more
about
his
novels,
and
review
all
of
his
archived
Vines
&
Vittles
columns
at
wordsbyjohnbrown.com
John Brown is also a novelist. His latest book – Augie’s Wine –is now available to order online or at his website wordsbyjohnbrown.com. His first two books– Augie’s War and Augie’s World – are also available online and at bookstores around the state. You can find out more about his novels, and review all of his archived Vines & Vittles columns at wordsbyjohnbrown.com