Tait Wines The Ball Buster Barossa Valley 2012: Deep black-purple color; plum, creme de cassis nose; big blackberry burst on the attack,
followed by raspberry, plum, black olive, chocolate, meat flavors; smoke, bitter cherry, lick of acidity on long finish. Juicy, rich, velvety mouth, smooth tannin, superb balance given 15.5% alcohol. Blend of shiraz 78%, merlot 12%, cabernet sauvignon 10%. Big Aussie pour still has smooth, elegant style wine writers adore: Parker 11 straight years of 90 or more points; Wine Spectator and Natalie MacLean, 90 points. Tait Wines say this about the name: “Initially we did have reservations on the name, however, after a few hours of soul searching we decided to go for it! We wanted this wine to make a statement; we wanted to break the wine snob barrier; we wanted to make great tasting wine at an affordable price; wine that people could enjoy and have a laugh about.” The Taits clearly pull it off with a wine that consistently is called one of Australia’s greatest wine values. $18-22 