2001 The Ironstone Pressings

Less evolved and more powerful than the 2000, the 2001 The Ironstone Pressings (which I misidentified in issue #143 last year ... it should have been listed as the 1999 Ironstone Pressings) is a blockbuster effort displaying a deeper, more saturated color as well as more aging potential (12-15+ years). Possessing a boatload of tannin, huge blackberry, peppery fruit notes along with hints of balsam wood and loamy soil undertones, it is an extremely impressive yet tightly-knit red that will be even better with another 2-3 years of bottle age. Chester Osborn, the remarkable person behind this enormous array of both impeccably high quality and value-priced wines, deserves considerable accolades for what he is able to achieve at all price ranges. If you love Australian wines, d’Arenberg is a winery to seek out as these offerings all possess abundant soul as well as character. In short, the accolades that proprietor/winemaker Chester Osborn receives not only from The Wine Advocate, but virtually everybody in the wine world, are all well deserved. Importer: Rob McDonald, Old Bridge Cellars, Napa, CA; tel. (707) 258-9552