Deep ruby-purple color; plum, blueberry, blackberry, camphor, tobacco, oak on the nose and palate.
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Dry; ripe, tasty, almost jammy fruit; medium acidity; soft tannins. Soft, easily approachable easy drinker with rich, deep darker fruits. Very fruit-forward. Full body. Individual parcels harvested and fermented. Hand-plunging three times a day, then rested on the skins for 32 days. After such long exposure to the skins, basket press needed to extract the wine and avoid harshness and bitterness from seeds. The wine then spent 27 months on new and seasoned French oak barrels. 14.5% ABV
Stone House Vineyards is a Texas-based winery that has an Australian company in the Barossa Valley of Australia. Basket Press Shiraz is made with grapes grown in Australia, then produced in Australia and shipped bottled to Texas. Distribution primarily is through their Spicewood, Texas tasting room and direct-to-consumer. Angela Moench is the co-owner and winemaker.
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Angela Moench is from the Barossa Valley. For many years she organized international loan art exhibitions. That profession introduced her to the American West and to Texas. She has been making wine in Texas since 2002. In an online interview with Texas Wine Lover, she noted: “The wine and grape industry in Texas has come a long way in the years I’ve been involved and I feel a sense of privilege to be a part of it.”
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Angela is the widow of Dr. Howard Moench (1936-2015), a radiation oncologist. In Texas, they focused on norton grapes because of norton’s relative tolerance of Pierce’s Disease, a plague of Texas vineyards spread by sap-sucking insects, particularly glassy-winged sharpshooters and spittlebugs. The winery is located in Spicewood near the Colorado River, on the shores of Lake Travis northwest of Austin and southeast of Marble Falls. The winery features 2,000-pound limestone blocks—thus the brand name. The winery reflects Dr. Moench’s architectural flair; he was the leader in the design.
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The couple planted a seven-acre vineyard in 1996. Success with the vineyard led to the launch of their winery in 2005. They also own Stone House Vintners in Australia, so their wine line features efforts from both locations. Dr. Moench sadly died in 2015, leaving Angela to soldier on. The enterprise now has a wine list of 23 wines made with grapes from Texas, Australia, and California.
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Stone House Vintners B.P. Basket Press Shiraz, Barossa Valley, South Australia 2017 delivers soft and easily enjoyed ripe, rich red wine—Australian syrah—from a Texas wine maker. The Texas owners also are Aussie owners—and if you know know Texas and Australia, this is not a surprising meld. Almost jammy, sure to please sippers who are into ripe and rich pours. Pair with beef—short ribs, roast beef; lamb; wild game—venison, wild boar; pasta dishes; comfort food—pizza, meatloaf, mac and cheese, gourmet burgers; cured meats—salami, prosciutto; spicy foods—chili, chili and beans; pork—barbecued, baby back ribs. Cheese—bolder the better; halloumi, gouda, asiago, gruyere, pecorino, parmigiano-reggiano, grana-padano, camembert. $49