Kaesler, Stonehorse Shiraz, Barossa Valley

great on the pop n pour but fades after about an hour. fiunky nose. i liked it others did not so much. big fruit supported by nice acid. a funky balsamic rubbery profile which might sound weird but it is tasty...

2002 vintage

Similar to last bottle. A refined older Aussie. Nice bottle overall. Drink now or let it sit another 5 years.

2002 vintage

Quite happily surprised by this wine. Drinking great with fruit still present and complex and balanced. Smooth and tasty. Nice.

2002 vintage

Last bottle, going out with style. Very enjoyable over three nights under pump. Good flavors, and licorice subtle, making for nice overall taste Don't throw this out, but drink up.

2002 vintage

Exceeding my expectations. Was planning to use it for cooking, but proofed too nicely. Dense nose, spicy, dark red fruits. Quite heavy on the palate but still lovely. What a surprise. A treat for cold winter.

2002 vintage

This has been standing for awhile. It's hard to find an opportunity to drink the Aussies these days. Highly opaque dark purple with a bit of brown maybe. Very beefy nose, maybe a bit of mint and some spice. Very full-bodied and rich. The alcohol level is definitely high, I'm buzzed after the first glass, but it doesn't taste boozy. Good finish, no bite. As Aussies go this is a gem! I imagine it could go a few more years.

2002 vintage

Exceeded expectations, plenty of fruit remaining. Well balanced. Last bottle, wish I had more.

2002 vintage

Fading, but still drinks nicely over a couple nights.

2002 vintage

OK....good news (to me) is my last bottle was BAD. opened another...cork crumbled so I didn't have much hope. deep purple color...strong fruit....a bit candied and syrupy...but really doesn't seem like it's aged at all...young for 17 years. As it gets air the fruit disperses into blueberry, boysenberry, and cassis...nice wine that I will continue the experiment on...aging Aussie shiraz.

2002 vintage

oh boy...strange experience and I have 5 left. cork crumbled...seems hollow so no rating as this may be a bad bottle. fruit gone...rust colored, thought (after reading recent tasting notes) I may have kept this too long beyond the damaged cork. first glass aired for over 2 hours while sipping. pretty horrible stuff and undrinkable. no fruit, tar, bitter. vacuum pumped and put in fridge to see if it changed. next day...dark purple and fruit returned. I wouldn't say this …

2002 vintage

Took on a road trip with us. After several days of wine tasting in Central CA, we decided we'd have this with our dinner one night. We were really impressed - this was as good (in fact better) than most of the syrahs we had tasted. Age has been very good to this wine. Great depth, concentration, and balance. Our last bottle, a great showing, and a true bargain at $26.

2002 vintage

Still nice, but seems to be on it's decline (or it suffered from travel shock?). Decanted, lots of sediment. A lovely nose, bricking in color, lots of dark fruits, spice, bit of wood. First glass very nice, but subsequent glasses faded quickly. Probably shouldn't have let it breathe. We have one left which I've targeted to drink within the next 6 months.

2002 vintage

Good bottle of wine but it is showing its age. It is just beginning to show some tiredness. That being said it has nice developed fruits mainly dark berries and the 15% alcohol does not show at all; finish has some long but moderate tannin. Based on this bottle everyone should drink up immediately

2002 vintage

From a passive cellar, still showing upside.

2002 vintage

Still good, but going downhill. Drink up.

2002 vintage

Spicy and dark fruits. Great on its own or paired w food

2002 vintage

I'd have to say that I haven't seen a marked improvement in this wine with 7 years standing. It's a nice GSM, but it still has an alcohol burn aftertaste and it hasn't undergone a radical transformation in the bottle over that time.

2008 vintage

Still drinking great. More mellow than 5 years ago. Still a touch of tannins to resolve. Lots of dark berry flavors with some spice, pepper, and mintiness. Great QPR. Two more - plan on drinking over the next 2-3 years.

2002 vintage

Browns suck (again) - Wines are great (again) (My home) : Another example that well made shiraz can age beautifully. Purple in color. This was pop and pour and seemed to be drinking great from the start. The nose has black raspberries, black pepper and a slight herbal note (mint?). great texture. Still youthful. Slight tannin's. Juicy acidity. Great black raspberry fruit on the palate. Drinking just great.

2002 vintage

Been a long time since I've had one of these, and not sure why I waited so long. This was a great buy at $17/btl. and remains a good weekday wine. May be nearing a point of fading, but still drank well.

2002 vintage

Opened 1 hour. Deep opaque purple. If bricking present it is invisible due to depth of color. Black cherry and pencil box nose. Very smooth, stoney and mineral elements, integrated tannins, fruit in balance. Drinking very well. Ei liked. very good, bordering delicious, except for slight softness, good finish but classic weakness in the mid-palate; almost a watery feel before tannins kick in on the finish. Drink now.

2002 vintage

Bra viner från Australien med Lasse Solum - Munskänkarna Tyresö : Ganska stor doft av mörka bär, drottningsylt, lite ceder, kaffe och lakrits. Sötfruktig smak med fina tanniner, medelstram och hyfsad längd. Grenache, Syrah och Mourvedre. Lite för fruktstinn för mig. (SB, 83508, 222kr)

2008 vintage

Nice dark fruit which required a 2 hr decant to show it's best. This is a bit shut down based on the amount of extraction here but will probably continue to develop. For pure hedonistic drinking i would concentrate on the 2002 GSM

2002 vintage

Full bodied and stewed fruit profile. A bit more subdued and closed even after decanting for a while compared to a bottle from last year. Goes ok with food but could be going in or coming out of a closed stage.

2006 vintage

As per previous. Drinking perfectly

2006 vintage

Doftar massivt av mörka mogna bär; körsbär, björnbär, blåbär. Kryddigt av torkade örter och peppar. Choklad, vanilj, jordighet och torkade charkuterier. I munnen är det väldigt mycket mörka söta bär, chokladiga fat och eldig alkohol (16%!!) Detta är på gränsen till portvin. Lite väl massivt och sötfruktigt men funkade ändå ...i små klunkar då det är extremt svulstigt. Inte min typ av vin riktigt men var ändå lite kul i sin okompromisslöshet.

2008 vintage

We three all agreed, a wonderful wine and great expression of Aussie Shiraz. A great balance of dark fruit and earthy notes with long finish. Decanted 3 hours prior.

2002 vintage

- Brick color - Better on second tasting, this really has depth and flavour of the stereotypical Barossa shiraz. Dark stone fruit, cherry and pepper spice. Long and furry tannins that finish strong.

2008 vintage

- Brick color - Black, bold and tannic. Predominant oak on the bouquet with a hint of tobacco. Black fruits on a jammy start, but with a little air, the fruit tightens to a tart finish that hits medium in length. A little cloudy on texture, and not expected to improve IMO.

2008 vintage

- Garnet color with medium forming legs with a medium/full body. Polished texture with a medium finish - Very smooth. Drinking perfectly right now

2006 vintage

I found this bottle rather tamed by Aussie standards. With a floral nose and not too sweet blue and red fruits on the palate, with hints of mint. And spice. The finish was a bit short, but overall smooth and enjoyable,

2008 vintage

Held up very well, great QPR. Minerality and nice dose of white pepper/black pepper. Balanced, served with braised short ribs and the wine had the backbone and mouthfeel to counter the richness of the dish. A nice reminder of why Aussie was so popular for a while. Great to see this perform at 10+ yrs.

2002 vintage

Reasonable wine for the price on sale ($20). A bit of a harsh finish and not as much length as I was hoping. Probably won't buy again.

2008 vintage

Deep red/black color. Nice nose of cool blue/black fruits and maybe a hint of menthol/eucalyptus. On the palate I found the kind of sun-baked/roasted/stewed red/black fruits that I find to be a signature of Barossa. Mild tannins on the finish. To me the nose was the best aspect of this wine. (87) Bumping this to 89 on the second night, where it seemed to open up a bit and offer a greater sense of cool, sweet fruit, with less of …

2008 vintage

I have cellared a number of bottles in proper conditions and have seen this wine get better over time. The fruit is well balanced with the tannic structure. It is full and flavorable with good finish. I don't think this will start to diminish in the near future.

2002 vintage

Very dark ruby color; redolent, roasted plum, licorice, charcoal nose; complex, charcoal, baked berry, licorice palate; medium-plus finish 92+ points

2008 vintage

Past its time

2002 vintage

As noted in the other reviews, this one is very 'over the top' for the blend. I hadn't initially realized the 16% alcohol. So, between the strong fruit dominance and the higher alcohol, it wasn't what I'd expected. Still, it did improve with time in the glass and was enjoyed. But, compared to a French or European blend, this is quite a bit stronger, less elegant, and a better one to pair with food, rather than to savor on its …

2008 vintage

Black, big, high alcohol Some underlaying tobacco, strong blackberry jam, sweet Powerful fruit forward jammy wine, hint of spiciness, tea tree with a medium plus finish, "mouth filling" round, a little hot Pleasantly surprised with this wine, great quaffing wine

2008 vintage

Came after Barolos and Burgundies. Horrible, with sweet and cooked fruit stew/marmelade.

2006 vintage

Same note as before

2006 vintage

Kaesler wine-tasting (Watson's, Hong Kong) : 20-40 year old vines - named arbitrarily after a stone horse-statue in a room when they were thinking up the name, apparently. This used to be GSM but they market this vintage as SGM as the Grenache suffered in the heat. Slight alcohol on the nose - no surprise, this is 16.4%! Round and mellow with spice, chocolate and integrated tannins.

2008 vintage

Really improves with standing in the glass. Beautifully soft and smooth GSM

2008 vintage

Like others have said this was a big wine that hits you with the fruit and alcohol. Definitely needed food and I was unprepared with the right food to drink this with - it's not a salad, cheese & cracker wine! I liked the wine overall but not very subtle for a pinot drinker like me!

2008 vintage

A gigantic wine, coming in at 16%, that reeks of concentrated juices. Over the top grape flavor; I guess the "complexity" comes in smacking you in the face with flavor. I don't consider that a good thing. Nuanced is not the word you'd use to describe this wine. I get artichoke, white pepper, and wheat in the nose. Thick body with rigid alcohol, finishing with underripe blackberry, grape juice, and balanced tannins. Will age for a few years, but is …

2008 vintage

tasty, big flavors that are a bit rough on the edges and high on alcohol. This has the potential to improve with another 1-2 of cellaring as previous Kaeslers I've tried have. Not in a rush to get more as there are better aussie Syrahs or GSMs at this price point. Solid Monday night quaffer nonetheless.

2008 vintage

Very classic barossa, in a good way! This is very well done!

2008 vintage

very fruity and conecntrated, feells like there is some residual sugar or at least feels so.. very conectrated in mouth as well but too sweet

2008 vintage

A vibrant red in colour the nose shows bright fruits of plum and cherry. The wine is fruit driven with only ever so slight oak influences on the light to medium bodied palate. The wine itself has a good array of red fruits, a touch of spice but lacks power and drive on the finish. Review Link - www.winereviewer.com.au (drink by 2014)

2008 vintage

Black color, black berry jam nose. Delicious fruit, savoury in a BIG style.

2008 vintage

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Kaesler, Stonehorse Shiraz, Barossa Valley

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