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Yellow Tail Shiraz

Yellow Tail is not a producer of wines. Rather, they sell wine that is already made for them. There are no Yellow Tail vineyards. That doesn't mean they necessarily sell bad wines, but that they are not wine makers. What they do best, and are apparently brilliant at, is marketing their wines to the USA public.

I've had YT shiraz any number of times and it's a consistently average to below-average and forgettable wine. Fruit forward, no real body or depth, and little finish. Tannins may be described as "silky" but a good shiraz may well have some tannins that add to the complexity of the wine. FWIW, if the high point of a wine is its color that's like saying the food at a restaurant was not very good, but there sure was plenty of it!

I have nothing against mass produced highly marketed wines, but there are so many better values out there than YT. But they make a safe predictable product that obviously millions of people enjoy. But then, so does MacDonalds.
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I'm not a big red wine drinker. While I usually keep my pantry's stock full of amber ales, commandaria, and Liebfraumilch, my wife and I usually don't consume a lot of dry reds. But I was surprised by this one.

Yellow Tail Shiraz is the flagship wine of Casella Vineyards of Australia. I received this wine as a housewarming gift from my in laws after I purchased a new apartment with my wife.

Price - After looking online, you are going to pay around 7 to 12 USD for a bottle. Not bad for a table wine.

Quality & Value: Good solid Shiraz. Though I've had better.

Flavor: Berry and dry front, with spicy and licorice middle. The finish is dry with leather and mocha tones.

Aroma: Berries and spice. Nothing remarkable.

Color: In my opinion, this is where Yellow Tail truly shines. It is probably
one of the darkest shiraz's I've had in my life, almost like a Montepulciano. Just looking at it reminds me of blood, Anne Rice, and chanting dark incantations. A perfect beverage for Halloween.

Package: I don't really like the label, but I guess it sticks with Australia's Aboriginal motif.

Summary: If you want a good shiraz that has lots of body, but silky tannins, give it a try. It goes well with meat dishes, and anything with grill marks (i.e. I'm having it with Hungarian Goulash tonight).
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