Stonehaven Shiraz – Box

Price: $20
Maker: Stonehaven Vineyards, Riddoch Highway, Padthaway, South Australia
Variety: Shiraz
Packaging: 3-liter box
Alcohol: 13.5%
Our Rating: 8.5 out of 10

We’ve liked several of Stonehaven’s bottle offerings, and Stonehaven Shiraz (Box) is definitely in the same family. This is a non-vintage offering, but we found it fairly similar to Stonehaven Shiraz 2004.

The nose of this medium-bodied Shiraz is mostly cherry fruit. The wine’s flavor has cherry and plum notes, with some of the expected pepper and a hint of vanilla. The finish adds some oak. The tannins are balanced, and for an inexpensive wine, this Stonehaven Shiraz has good structure.

We’re glad to see yet another credible boxed wine offering from an Australian wine maker. This wine may not distinguish itself as a great one, but it’s certainly very drinkable and yet another demonstration that decent wine can come in boxes. The Stonehaven website indicates that the firm has a fairly large variety of wines, though in our market we mainly see their value-priced offerings. We hope they increase distribution of some of their higher end offerings.