Word of Rory Lane’s efforts with the “The Story” label in Melbourne meant that this choice from a wine list was something less than a random walk, more perhaps blindfolded rummaging at home.  Rory sources the grapes for this wine from the Westgate Vineyard in Armstrong between Great Western and Ararat in western Victoria.  The vineyard was planted in 1969, and extended in 1988, mainly with the “St Ethel” clone of shiraz, the clone not being a name I see much of.

Happily, the wine in the glass is very good indeed, gently reminding of the regional interest and potency of Grampians shiraz.  It has aromatics that remind of eucalyptus, spice and plum.  The palate is full bodied, yet it also retains a balance in its deep expression of plum, pepper and eucalpytus characters.  This is an excellent wine that is ready to drink now, but almost certainly has a long life ahead of it.

Rating: Very Good, Abv: 14%, Price: $50, Vendors: http://www.wine-searcher.com/, Website: http://thestory.com.au, Tasted: 2014

Mount Langi Ghiran have produced a very good Cliff Edge shiraz in 2012.  A very consistent, and very Grampians region style of shiraz, it has aromatics of blackberry, plum, spice, pepper and echoes of dried eucalyptus leaves.  The palate ventures down a similar path, with flavours reminding of plum, eucalyptus leaves, and cedar.  Overall, this is a very balanced wine whose length (medium, probably a bit more) and interest improved with time in the glass, and is easy to recommend.  Good to Very Good

Abv: 14%
Price: $30
Source: sample
Vendors: http://www.wine-searcher.com/
Website: http://www.langi.com.au
Tasted: 2014

Another new release from the Mount Langi Ghiran, this time their “Cliff Edge” shiraz from the 2011 vintage.  It’s a step up in price and quality from their good value “Billi Billi” shiraz (the 2011 vintage is reviewed here).  The aromatics remind of pepper, eucalyptus, green peppercorn, plum, asphalt and chocolate liqueur.  The palate has high acid, and an expression of pepper, plums and eucalyptus, in a medium bodied less fruit concentrated style.  It’s a pretty good balanced wine overall.  Good

Abv: 13.5%
Price: $30
Source: sample
Vendors: Check http://www.wine-searcher.com/
Website: http://www.langi.com.au
Tasted: 2013
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Mount Langi Ghiran’s “Billi Billi” shiraz is a safe choice at the mid $10s price point, and I have not infrequently found myself buying it by the glass at cafés since it can represent good value.  The lighter 2011 vintage is a medium intensity ruby in colour, with aromatics of green peppercorn, spice, thyme, pepper and some underlying red plum.  The palate is dry with its aromatics carrying through to the palate, with the addition of a generous dose of black pepper and a sprinkling of eucalyptus.  There’s a touch of dilution here I think from the vintage, but this wine has typicity and balance and is a good introduction to Grampians region shiraz.  Acceptable to Good

Abv: 13.5%
Price: $16
Source: sample
Vendors: Check http://www.wine-searcher.com/
Website: http://www.langi.com.au
Tasted: 2013
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The 2000 vintage in the Grampians saw a hot summer, and rain in autumn.  Mount Langi handled their top label 2000 “Langi” shiraz very well though judging by this bottle.  It is quite charming aromatically, with notes of pepper and spice.  The palate has resolved plum, dried herb and Christmas cake characters, together with balanced acidity and good length.  Overall, this is a good, perhaps even very good quality wine.  Its attractive dark plum characters carry through to the back palate and its mix of pepper and spice, so typical of shiraz from the Grampians, add regional interest.   Good to Very Good

Abv: 14%
Price: $50s
Vendors: Check http://www.wine-searcher.com/
Website: http://www.langi.com.au
Tasted: 2013
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The Grampians region in western Victoria and shiraz sit comfortably together for my palate, at their best achieving a savoury pepperiness and less commonly some stunning fruit concentration.  The Mount Langi vineyards are in a particularly remote corner of this remote region.  “The turnoff is further than you think” would be good advice to a first time visitor.

The 2010 vintage of Mount Langi Ghiran’s Cliff Edge is ruby in colour, and opens to attractive aromatics of pepper and cloves, the latter being dominant.  It is immediately quite typical of the Grampians regional style of shiraz.  The palate is dry, with a medium body and expressions of plum and black pepper.  This is a perfectly pleasant current drinking Cliff Edge vintage that delivers its price point with a bit of spicy complexity.  Its finish is not long, and its fruit concentration is dialled back, but it is nonetheless enjoyable and food friendly.  Overall, the 2010 Cliff Edge is an acceptable to good quality wine, most likely the latter.  Good

Abv: 14.5%
Price: $30
Source: sample
Vendors: Check http://www.wine-searcher.com/
Website: http://www.langi.com.au
Tasted: 2013
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After drinking a somewhat disastrous sangiovese from Mt Langi, I was a bit perhaps irrationally reticent about opening another bottle chosen from the same trip.  Irrationality sensibly gave way to mid week “need”.

And fortunately Mt Langi’s Cliff Edge shiraz proved to be a very good wine.  Indeed, the earth moved literally in Melbourne as I tasted it, though it would turn out not because of it.  The 2005 Cliff Edge is purple, with a clean aroma of thyme, pepper and that bracken undergrowth you find in eucalyptus forests.  High acidity, green peppercorns and savoury plums fill out the palate.  A lovely savoury cool climate shiraz that is ready to drink now.  88-89 points (very good)


Abv: 14.5%
Price: mid $20s
Vendors: try Graysonline
Website: http://www.langi.com.au/index.php
Tasted: June 2012

Wine of course evolves over time.  I’ve tried this wine over a few years now, it being originally a cellar door purchase.  I didn’t particularly like it in 2012 but I think there’s a certain honour in drinking one’s errors and so I tasted it again in 2014.  Here’s the chronology.

2011: At the cellar door, I remember being quite impressed by this wine’s youthful vigour and quality.  Here are the winery’s notes.  Tasting it again in 2011, there was an aroma of spice and cherries, and a palate with considerable spice and a little length.  Acceptable to Good

2012: What I didn’t remember from that first tasting was its almost overwhelming acidity.  I am not entirely worried by acidity in wine, but this is a wine for acid lovers.  If there are food wines, this wine requires a banquet.  The wine tasted a little thin and sharp, with a bitter pippy flavour more prominent than previously.   Drink up, or tip out.  Poor to Acceptable

2014: The wine is starting to fade, but the acid is much more in balance than in 2012 and there are some warm, albeit not complex, tapering earth and spice characters.  This presented more like a faded version of my 2011 tasting of this wine than the 2012 version.  Acceptable

Rating: Acceptable (in 2014), Abv: 14%, Price: $25, Vendors: www.wine-searcher.com, Website: http://www.langi.com.au, Tasted: 2014