2022 Arakoon Big, Fat & Gutsy Shiraz

We aren’t going to beat around the bush; this Arakoon Big Fat & Gutsy Shiraz does everything it says on the tin and more.

It’s got chutzpah. It’s got gravitas. It’s got the intensity you’d find in an All Blacks haka.

Uttered in the same breath as cultish Vale monsters like Noon, Shingleback & Mollydooker, the wines of Arakoon hold a special place in the hearts of many. Robert Parker was a fan. And so to the rest of the world, where Arakoon has an enormous export market bringing their luscious and rich style to the world.

So how does it taste? It’s generous and mouth-filling with notes of plum jam, olive tapenade, bourbon-scented oak and dark chocolate ganache tannins. It’s the quintessential full-bodied McLaren Vale red from a by-gone era.

If you pine for the olden days when sitting down for a glass of Shiraz requires a knife, fork, and a flashlight to see through the treacle dark fruit, then this hedonist's dream (thankyou Robert Parker for that one) is for you.