wine
Reddy to celebrate

Sparkling reds are true blue, as Valmai Hankel writes.

IN an industry full of tantalizing appeals to all of the senses, there can be few more irresistible sights than pouring a just-opened sparkling red carefully into a clean glass – no dishwashers or detergent to dull the bubbles, please – and watching the creaming cherry-pink froth (I should say mousse) rising seductively up the glass atop the crimson-purple-black liquid.

Remember to hold your glass by the stem, not the bowl, unless you want to warm up the wine.
Since 2000 we haven’t been allowed to call the wine sparkling burgundy, so most of today’s sparkling reds are named from their grape variety, or have some other distinguishing moniker such as Peter Lehmann Black Queen or Mitchell Sparkling Peppertree.

Until Dr John Wilson of the Wilson Vineyard in the Clare Valley delved into its history about 10 years ago, most people thought that Australian sparkling burgundy grew out of a demand by troops returning from the Great War who had tasted it in France and wanted a local version. Not so.

Frenchman Edmond Mazure, who was in charge of winemaking at the Auldana vineyard in the Adelaide foothills, probably “put down” his first sparkling burgundy in 1893. It was almost certainly made from shiraz, initially from Auldana and later from the Clare vineyard of AP Birks. While earlier winemakers may have been experimenting with sparkling reds, the Auldana was the first commercial release.

We know that Hans Irvine was making a sparkling burgundy at Great Western when Seppelts bought the business in 1918. The tradition continues. Today, Seppelts produces two classic sparkling reds – Seppelt Original Sparkling Shiraz (1998, about $19) and the much more complex, velvety Seppelt Show Sparkling Shiraz (1990, about $65).

The style suffered a severe setback in the 1960s and 1970s when a sweet sparkling red called “Kalte Ende” – literally “Cold End” in German because it was usually served chilled at the end of a meal – was made in the Barossa. In 1970 Kaiser Stuhl launched a similar style called “Cold Duck” – the German for “duck” is “Ente” and for centuries “d” and “t” were interchangeable in German. The inexpensive and sickly sweet wine was not a German but an American inspiration and was churned out – and drunk – in huge quantities. As a result, for years serious wine drinkers wouldn’t be seen dead imbibing a red wine with bubbles.

The revival began in the 1980s, and today there is a wondrous array of sparkling reds. The most popular grape variety is shiraz but just about all of the better-known varieties get a guernsey, especially cabernet sauvignon and merlot – but also pinot noir, cabernet franc, grenache, durif, chambourcin and petit verdot.

In recent weeks I have tasted many, at various prices. What you get is usually what you pay for. There are several at lower prices which I believe represent good value, especially if, as often happens at this time of the year, you are quaffing with mates and just want something to enjoy rather than mull over. Some are young and fruity with varying degrees of sweetness, others with more age, complex, dry and subtle.

Hardys has a deservedly high reputation for its sparklings, which represent good value. There are three reds: Hardys Omni Red, not over-sweet (about $10, often discounted); Banrock Station Reserve Sparkling Shiraz (about $13), excellent value, vibrant purple, with an energetic mousse, full of raspberry fruit; and Hardys Sir James Sparkling Shiraz (about $24), with spicy berries and a hint of mocha.

Long-time sparkling red enthusiast Peter Rumball has a Sparkling Merlot (about $24) from McLaren Vale, with 15 per cent petit verdot to add pizzazz. He also has a sparkling shiraz and cabernet from Coonawarra at the same price.

From Coonawarra, it’s instructive to compare 2001 Majella Sparkling Shiraz (about $30), tasting of ripe blackberries with a hint of sweetness, with its neighbour, Balnaves Sparkling Cabernet (about ($33) with juicy blackcurrant flavours. I had long wanted to try the enticingly-named Rymill Coonawarra The Bee’s Knees ($25 cellar door only), a blend of 50 per cent cabernet franc, 25 per cent cabernet sauvignon, 25 per cent merlot, all from 1998 – and was much taken with its complex, bold blueberry flavours and lasting dry finish.

Recent Coonawarra arrival, DiGorgio Family Wines, has a fruity 2001 Sparkling Merlot ($19 cellar door) made by Pat Tocaciu, who pioneered the style in Coonawarra after earlier working with merlot magician James Irvine. Tocaciu released the region’s first sparkling merlot for Hollick Wines in 1994. Hollick’s current release is 2001 ($26 cellar door), plummy yet elegant. I tasted the 1997 version. Beetroot coloured, the mellow wine showed how the style can mature.

Others which I’ve recently enjoyed include Mitchell Sparkling Peppertree (about $34), with intense dark cherry flavours; Scarpantoni Estates Black Tempest ($28), a black brooding wine which demands time and a game dish; the famed Rockford Black Shiraz ($53 cellar door) made by sparkling red devotee Robert O’Callaghan, full-bodied, mouthfilling, very dry; 1998 Yalumba D Black (about $34), an Adelaide gold medal-winning cabernet sauvignon-shiraz blend; Fox Creek Vixen Sparkling Shiraz-Cabernet Franc (about $24), all stewed plums and velvet; Tatachilla Sparkling Malbec (about $20), from Padthaway, a drink-me-now wine; and 1995 Leasingham Classic Clare Reserve Sparkling Shiraz (about $46), a longtime favourite of mine.

Drink these beguiling, festive-looking, surprisingly filling wines with just about anything; a smoked salmon omelette, eggs benedict, Christmas turkey, game (especially kangaroo, with a fruit or sweet sauce), with blue or matured cheese, Christmas or summer berry pud – even as a nightcap with Haigh’s dark chocolate.


Valmai Hankel, a wine judge and avid collector, has a consuming interest in wine and its literature.