d'Arenberg Footbolt Shiraz 2001

[liamdc]

I tried a glass of the 2001 d'Arenberg Shiraz McLaren Vale The Footbolt in Boston about a month ago. I found it to have no nose and a very flat taste. Almost no character at all, frankly. I gave it a while to breathe, but it made little difference. A more wine-knowledgeable friend came to a similar conclusion.

Any thoughts on what went wrong with a wine that is supposed to be a goodie? Does this vintage need more cellaring? Might my description suggest it was a bad bottle?

[GordonCooks]

Assuming that this was a new bottle - it was probably cooked. I would have expected a really rich, spicy nose and a very fruit forward wine. You should have gotten a lot of alcohol on the palate if anything.

[Carema]

I tried a glass of the 2001 d'Arenberg Shiraz McLaren Vale The Footbolt in Boston about a month ago. I found it to have no nose and a very flat taste. Almost no character at all, frankly. I gave it a while to breathe, but it made little difference. A more wine-knowledgeable friend came to a similar conclusion.

A glass? Was this at a restaurant? If you were poured a glass at a restaurant and it tasted as you described it had probably died allready. High alcohol, low acid wines such as the Footbolt are really bad choices for BTG programs because they have no shelf life. Unless you are going through a bottle every three hours and then making sure the next day you open a fresh one you are serving dead wine to people. I think your wine had aspirated its last rattly breath hours before you got a glass. You might have politely requested a glass from a freshly opened bottle citing reasons like "this one seems a little off" Most places worth their salt would have kindly accommodated you.

[Coop]

I agree with Carema, this is why I rarely order wine by the glass. The worst time is at lunch, the glass is likely poured from a bottle opened the previous night. I had the same experience this summer with a Montes cabernet, after a few sips I knew I had made a mistake.

I have had this wine from the 2000 vintage and found the fruit to be prevelant with a great soft finish.

[liamdc]

Thanks for the feedback. I *think* the wine was from a new bottle, but it was awhile ago so I can't be certain. In any event, I'll have to give this one another try.