Mollydooker, Carnival Of Love Shiraz, McLaren Vale

Hasn't budged a lot since its youth, still dark garnet-purple and opaque. The nose is pure black fruits. The flavors are typical dense and concentrated, moderate but soft tannins. The epitome of the Sarah-Sparky style, should last more years. Ric

2011 vintage

Inky purple full body big n bold oak earth leather blueberry dark fruit licorice dry slightly acidic mellow chewy tannins

2011 vintage

Last one! The right time to finish up but still a delicious wine! Great QPR.

2011 vintage

Consumed over multiple evenings with spouse. Deeply concentrated, 16% abv (yikes) this reminded me of an El Nido Clio in its intestity. Blackberry, black cherry, anise, toffee and olive all stand out. Pretty well balanced given the alcohol level. The tannins are nicely integrated. 2nd night a little more chewy/gritty but still same impressings from first night. Don't buy many Ausie wines. Think I've been sitting on this since release and properly stored the whole time.

2007 vintage

Brought to a Passover Seder by a relative. I wanted to like this wine so I could thumb my nose at the AFWE tyes. I like California Rocket Fuel and I like aged Aussie Shiraz. The largest components of my cellar are Saxum, SQN, Carlise, Aubert, MacDonald and similar wines with punch. However, this wine was a mess. It was not the ABV. It was the disjointed bittereness that made it undrinkable. I could taste the fruit that I enjoy …

2011 vintage

Great wine. Drink now. Wonderful nose long finish. Smooth . If you still have some you are fortunate. Enjoy. My last bottle.

2007 vintage

WOW

2011 vintage

Still good!

2011 vintage

Excellent

2011 vintage

Maybe a bit early, yet so promising. Great Shiraz...it just still seems so young even as the alcohol dissipates and the tannins get silky.

2011 vintage

Sixth time tasted over five years. Very dark garnet-purple, 100% opaque, no brown at the edges. Extremely viscous, very slow "legs." Powerful aromas from first pour, of blackberries and black cherries, with an earthy and tar component, some smoke. Full-bodied, mouth-coating flavors, also black fruits, a bit of a coarse texture, but still loads of fruit, nice acidity, and soft tannins. Despite 15.5% alcohol it's not too hot. More power than elegance; compared with a 2011 Reynvaan Stonessence, which was …

2011 vintage

Filtered and decanted for 1 hour, then rebottled with the "shake." Well rounded, soft and approachable, despite the high alcohol content. Beautiful color and fruit mingled with acid and some tannin. Drinking well now and should continue to do so for a few more years. Would be interesting to see what it does in another decade, but, unfortunately, this is my last bottle.

2011 vintage

Big bold beautiful!

2011 vintage

Compared in blind tasting a with a bottle opened three weeks ago, a glass removed, and the rest frozen. That bottle was preferred by 9 of 14 tasters. Very dark garnet-purple, 100% opaque, no brown at the edges. Extremely viscous, very slow "legs." Powerful aromas from first pour, of blackberries and black cherries, with an earthy and tar component, some smoke. Full-bodied, mouth-coating flavors, also black fruits, a bit of a coarse texture, but still loads of fruit, nice acidity, …

2011 vintage

Had to filter twice...

2007 vintage

"This 2011 continues with a big powerful concentrated, dense, deep and complex wine, black inky purple in color, with super ripe blackberry and raspberry and layer of blueberry flavors that are a bit over the top for my preference, almost being raisiny and hint of herbs in their concentration, with tones of spicy cinnamon and clove, and hints of creme de cassis, mocha and black pepper on the smooth lingering sinewy tannin finish. This is not for the faint hearted …

2011 vintage

I am not afraid to admit that this a marvelous Australian Shiraz that benefits from age, is overflowing with bold fruit, and develops character and sophistication over time. At 20 years it will be magnificent.

2011 vintage

Fabulous wine! Last tasted 2015. Very dark garnet-purple, 100% opaque, no brown at the edges. Sparky said "I don't make red wines. I make BLACK wines!" Here's a perfect example. Extremely viscous, very slow "legs." Powerful aromas from first pour, of blackberries and black cherries, with an earthy and tar component, some smoke. Full-bodied, mouth-coating flavors, also black fruits, a bit of a coarse texture, but still loads of fruit, nice acidity, and soft tannins. Despite 15.5% alcohol it's not …

2011 vintage

Friits, fruits, and more fruits. Very smooth and long finish. Less tanin, less spice due to aging over 10 years? Soft acidity; pleasant sweetness. But does not show much complexity; very fruit-oriendted. Bella’s Garden might be a good alternative.

2011 vintage

45mins in bottle, let it breathe in glass. Dark opaque red, bricking on edge. Powerful nose - cherry, tar, overripe fruit. Full body with a little bit of acidity (surprisingly). Firm/structured tannins, lush mouthfeel. More approachable at this age, but feel like it lost some of it's luster. If you have it in the cellar I would open soon.

2011 vintage

One of the best Carnivals, at its peak, but not going to fade anytime soon! Still dark garnet and completely opaque, with no hint of brown edges, still huge and powerful, with their typical aromas of massive black fruits with some oak, very pronounced. Extremely full-bodied but better integrated than when younger. It has softened a bit more since our previous bottle a year ago. The tannins have resolved, it is not as hot tasting (but still has high alcohol), …

2007 vintage

Very nice. Seemed a bit dumb or flat (even after the MD shake) but became more expressive with about fifteen minutes in the glass and was drinking great the next day but tannins are quite round here. No rush but drink in next 2 or (maybe) 3 years.

2011 vintage

100% Aussie Shiraz = muscular and dense. Calling this wine full-bodied would be a serious understatement. 4-hour decant yielded enormous flavors of asphalt, anise, baked blueberry pie with black plums, and a top layer of smoked bacon - all buried deep inside this baby monster. Nearly black, it finished a bit sweet but overall was very rich & impressive.

2007 vintage

Very concentrated and strong, but overly oaked to the bitterness.

2007 vintage

Drinking a little past it prime but still good High alcohol and strong black pepper notes

2007 vintage

Dark purple in color. Notes of blackberry, spice and white pepper. Great wine, still so young for 14 years of age.

2007 vintage

Medium to dark purple with a healthy dose of garnet going brown. Blackberry and black cherry with tobacco spice and eucalyptus. Palate is black cherry raspberry with very nice spice. Moderate acid with fine tannins and a very long finish.

2011 vintage

Wonderful and likely to not get any better. Love it

2011 vintage

Fruit is rounding out and not much tannic structure left. Age will not improve this wine. Drink up.

2011 vintage

Last wine of the night and the worst wine. Popped and poured. It drank like an overdone oozy mess. Worse than I remember the last time.

2007 vintage

I realize to an extent that these are controversial wines. I think that Australian wines don't get enough credit for aging beautifully (a certain rush to judgment a few years back). My sense is that this is a terrific bottle of wine... a guilty pleasure of incredible fruit... however based on its transformation throughout both the first and second nights these wines will likely continue to improve and age beautifully for another decade!

2011 vintage

Plums, warming, almost smoky. Absolutely lovely and drinking very well.

2011 vintage

One of the better vintages. Decanted for an hour. Liquid chocolate covered Skittles. So dense and overripe the alcohol is not noticeable. A total fruit bomb and so jammy sweet it is almost a dessert wine. Still, the quality is unmistakable.

2007 vintage

One of the best Carnivals, at its peak, but not going to fade anytime soon! Still huge and powerful, with their typical aromas of massive black fruits with some oak, very pronounced. Extremely full-bodied but better integrated than when younger. Plenty of tannin but enough fruit to stand up to it. Long, hot aftertaste. Best to give it several hours in a decanter. Ric

2007 vintage

This was dark inky garnet purple colored, full bodied, expressive fragrant floral notes, dense, deep concentrated, complex fruits of sweet black cherry, black raspberry and hints of blueberry fruits accented by creme de cassis, cinnamon and clove spices with a layer of charcoal that detracts from the harmonious desirable fruit and spice notes. The finish is long with crisp acidity and soft silky tannins. https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2020/08/carnival-of-love-for-anniversary-dinner.html

2011 vintage

One of the best Carnivals, at its peak, but not going to fade anytime soon! Still huge and powerful, with their typical aromas of massive black fruits with some oak, very pronounced. Extremely full-bodied but better integrated than when younger. Plenty of tannin but enough fruit to stand up to it. Long, hot aftertaste. Best to give it several hours in a decanter. Ric

2007 vintage

Really terrific right out of the bottle and finished 3 days later. Deep color, sweet finish, lingering on the palate. Youthful.

2007 vintage

As others have recently noted, this is still seemingly young. Plenty of fruit and a nice meaty savory element. 16% (?!) Alcohol is well hidden.

2007 vintage

Is it the Stelvin caps? It hasn't aged practically at all from the last time I had this wine several years ago. Still same dark purple color and fruit forward.

2007 vintage

Still incredibly young and fresh to drink. Feels a decade younger than 2006. Great stuff!

2007 vintage

A purple almost black color with moderate to fast legs. On the nose black and white pepper stewed black fruits like blackberries and blueberries. Palate was smooth, rich and both red and black dried and stewed fruits, sage, Indian spices and the classic pepper nuances.

2007 vintage

Overly oaked wine that makes the wine hard to drink and enjoy. Very ripe fruit with good acidity, otherwise.

2007 vintage

- Brick color. It's in total harmony with a full body. Satin-Like texture with a long finish.

2007 vintage

My best experience with this wine. This time I fully decanted over an hour and it helped reduce the jamminess I had experienced in earlier tastings. This time I got a pretty nose of black fruit and herbs. The palate was well integrated if a little alcoholic with loads of ripe black fruit, smoked meat and spices into a long but simple finish

2007 vintage

Much better than the last bottle I had. I decanted this heavily for an hour and a half which subdued the animal spirits of alcohol and oak so that you realise underlying that there is quite a good wine. The nose is overt with blackberry, chocolate and spice. Leads to a full bodied, unctuous palate of concentrated black fruits, smoked meats, and spices in a full bodied, hedonistic style with a nice long finish. Jammy yes but with a long …

2007 vintage

Decanted one hour. This is a powerful, jammy modern style wine which no doubt delivers over the top hedonism but lacks a certain distinctiveness. Nice nose with blackberries and violets. The palate is concentrated and jammy but also smooth with a heavy application of new oak. Flavors of blackberry jam, chocholate and spices are prominent. Alcoholic but I didn’t sense much heat. Full bodied with a long finish. The question is will this evolve and be able to absorb some …

2007 vintage

Still very fruit forward. Big and burly. Typical eucalyptus in the background. We loved it.

2007 vintage

Sans prise de notes.

2007 vintage

Très belle fiole!

2007 vintage

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Mollydooker, Carnival Of Love Shiraz, McLaren Vale

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