Sparkling Shiraz Wines and Other Australian Sparkling Reds

Sparkling Shiraz Wines from Australia

 

The Sparkling Red is a staple at the Australian Barbie. It is uniquely Australian, and in most cases its main constituent is shiraz, although there are other red grapes used in its production, the style of wine is commonly known as Sparkling Shiraz, or in the past as Sparkling Burgundy. Other red grapes used include Chambourcin, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Duriff

It was first produced in 1881 by the Victorian Champagne Company in collaboration with the French winemaker Auguste D’Argent. The wine was rose coloured, and rather short lived. Production was less than a year. Sometime after sparkling burgundy was created, another fellow Frenchmen Edmund Mazure began winemaking in Australia. He was interested in producing sparkling red varieties and worked in South Australia on a shiraz vineyard.

The wine is initially made as still Shiraz but is then subjected to secondary fermentation in the bottle to develop the uniquely sparkling style. This secondary fermentation is commonly known as “methode champenoise” as it is the same process that the French wineries use to produce Champagne. A significant difference is that grapes for Champagne have to be certain varietals and from the defined area of Champagne, whereas in Australia the control of the process is not as rigid as that applied by the AOC regulations in France.

There is another way to make a sparkling wine which consists of infusing the wine with CO2 and is seen by purists as cheating. However, this is often used in the production of Prosecco and has the advantage that this style of wine, often known as “frizzante”, avoids the higher levels of duty imposed in the UK, on Sparkling or “Spumante” wine. Interestingly some people believe that frizzante wines have more depth and flavour than spumante wines as heavy fizz often dampens the taste.

Sparkling Shiraz is seen as uniquely Australian, although sparkling red wines are produced in several other countries including France, Portugal, Italy and the USA. Italy has long had a tradition of making sparkling red wines, but these were often sweet in nature, and not readily available outside Italy. The USA is a new entrant to this market but at the moment production is not widespread and wines are mainly sold domestically.

The market in the UK is not well attuned to Sparkling Red Shiraz or other varietals. It is often seen as sacrilege to a conservative English red wine drinker to make wines in such a fashion, and this belief is almost reinforced by the fact that in the 1970s and 80s sparkling reds were often very sweet and bought as inexpensive party drinks to be glugged down as none too ambitious mood enhancers. The word Lambrusco conjures up images of house parties and sweet low alcohol wines which most people seem to have grown out of.

Today Australian Sparkling shiraz is a light year from those early red sparkling wines. It is complex, held in high esteem, drunk throughout the day, and provides an accompaniment to barbecues, breakfasts, special occasions and as a perfect aperitif.

Nothing says magnificent like a glass of sparkling shiraz, highlighting dark berries, sweet plum, cherry and spices. A simple addition of this sparkling red can transform any table into something spectacular. Although Australia cannot claim the shiraz grape itself, the sparkling shiraz style is uniquely Australian. It’s a diverse variety, enjoyed on a hot summer’s day by the pool, with a lazy lunch hovering around the barbecue, and on special occasions when dozens of indulgent dishes populate the table — sparkling shiraz is Australia’s ultimate companion.

It is great with breakfast foods such as omelettes, eggs, pastries, and beans. It can be drunk with strong full-bodied meats such as roast beef, pork, duck, and lamb. It even goes well with fruit forward desserts and puddings.

Even more outlandish are some of the suggestions I have seen for drinking sparkling shiraz in cocktail style party drinks.

Mix with Sangria, adding lemon or orange rinds, cinnamon, brandy and soda. Maybe add a squeeze of orange juice. With so much fruit this version would be great before lunch as well as at the meal itself. It could even be classed as one of the five a day.

Make a punch. Add fruit, mint and soda, or maybe lemon juice. At dessert add vanilla ice cream for an epic accompaniment to your afters.

So Sparkling Shiraz is a versatile favourite of the Australian nation. In the UK it is not as well known or popular but is growing in demand due to the influence of ex-pats and Brits converted to the cause. Whilst not to everyone’s taste, it has something to offer in a well-stocked wine cupboard, and can offer a special surprise to friends, family, and guests alike.

Prices range from below £10 for volume sparkling reds in some supermarkets to around £30 for excellent quality branded red sparklers in good wine shops. Supermarkets supply high volume basic wines to suit a certain taste but will only carry “supermarket” brands. Wine shops stock the better premium wines, but the decline in independent wine shops have made this specialist wine difficult to find. The online retailers may stock these wines, but only the specialist online outlets will carry a range of product. Normal websites will perhaps carry one or two different wines, but not a range where you can make an educated choice. Their remit is to sell a breadth of product without any real depth of product.

Australian Wines Online is a focused specialist online retailer of Australian wines. This includes many wines only currently available through a small number of outlets in the UK. Sparkling Reds, “Sweeties”, Sparkling Shiraz, budget and premium wines from all Australian wine producing regions. Vegan, vegetarian, Organic, Biodynamic and all types of viticulture and manufacture are included in our extensive list. We currently sell over 450 different wines across the website at prices from £6.99 to £599.

We stock a range of Australian sparkling reds/shiraz. You can see and purchase them at our website Australian Wines Online

Sparkling Shiraz Wines– fun wines with a serious background.

For more information on Australian Sparkling Reds go to Wikipedia