I opened this up on the weekend by accident – was on the hunt for the Chardonnay instead (should have really spotted when the wine came out red, not white).

Anyway, this really deserves longer to settle, the colour and nose showing a barrel sample-esque freshness and exuberance, all pure squished berries and sweet oak. Very modern and juicy.

Pleasingly, the palate is much more savoury and interesting than the quite obvious nose would suggest, a nod to the talent of Oliver Crawford, Devil’s Lair winemaker (who is a former Penfolds white winemaker)…


There is more than a little of the tapenade rolled-in-dirt Margaret River Shiraz character too, the a black fruit filling out the mid palate very nicely. It’s just a bit raw and chunky to finish but really quite a deal of power and length to cap it off.

Really, genuinely good for the dollars (it can be picked up for less than $19 around the place). Score is only going to go up.

Source: Sample
Tasted: February 2014
www.devils-lair.com
Score: 17.5/20, 91/100+
Would I buy it? If I was looking for a sub $20 savoury red with character then yes.