Four Pillars gin gains from shiraz, West Winds’ from vermouth

Gin is gin, right? Not any more. Two local producers have spiced theirs up with shiraz and vermouth. Result: delicious.

Four Pillars Bloody Shiraz Gin is is vividly purple and intensely flavoured.

What will those clever gin distillers think of next? A couple of delicious new spirits have wafted across my tasting bench this week, each a testament to the almost unlimited potential that could be unleashed by adding unexpected flavours to a drink already bursting with botanical goodness.

The first is Four Pillars Bloody Shiraz Gin ($85; fourpillarsgin.com.au). Inspired by the European tradition of steeping sloe “berries” in sweetened spirit to produce a deeply coloured, rich and heartwarming drink, the crew at Four Pillars distillery in Victoria’s Yarra Valley decided to do something similar with local, freshly harvested shiraz grapes. The result is a vivid purple, intensely flavoured, bramble and pepper-scented gin that is fabulous sipped on its own (perhaps with an ice cube or two) or used to pack extra grapey punch into a Negroni or Americano — or a cocktail of your own devilish devising.

The second is from the ever-imaginative crew at The West Winds in WA’s Margaret River. The Barrel Expedition #1: Maidenii Voyage ($110; thewestwindsgin.com) is a gin aged in barrels that previously contained Maidenii sweet vermouth and it’s just lovely, from its gentle coppery colour to its entrancing fragrance of wormwood and juniper and strawberry gum and its hint of candied sweetness. Again, beautiful sipped on its own in a chilled glass: think of it as a kind of ready-made, sweetish martini.

Henschke makes rare release

Henschke 2005-2006 Hill of Grace.

Normally, South Australia’s Henschke family would be releasing their top shiraz (and one of the country’s most revered wines) Hill of Grace about now, five years after vintage. Unfortunately, the 2011 growing season was so difficult (rain, mould, rot — you name it, they got it) the family took the difficult decision not to make any HoG that year. Fortunately, they have rustled around in the cellar and dug out a couple of older vintages — the 2005 and 2006 Hill of Grace — and released a few bottles of those instead.

Unfortunately for most of us, these museum releases are bum-clenchingly pricey: $925 and $870 respectively, or $1795 for a two-pack (one of each in a nice black collector’s gift box). Fortunately, being a jammy booze hack, I’ve been lucky enough to taste them and can report that they are indeed rather bloody good: the ’05 more sumptuous and richer and mouth-coating, the ’06 more refined, elegant, spicy and entrancing. Unfortunately, only a couple of hundred cases have been made available so even if you can afford a bottle or two, you might have trouble tracking them down (always worth asking direct: henschke.com.au).

Fortunately, as ever, there’s plenty of good drinking to be found among the many other, slightly more affordable and considerably more widely available newly released Henschke wines.

Because they’re so well known for top reds — the Cyril Henschke cabernet and Mount Edelstone shiraz as well as Hill of Grace — you can overlook the fact the Henschkes also make often stunning whites that can offer superb value. The 2015 Tilly’s Vineyard, for example, is a thirst-quenching, crunchy dry white blend (of mostly semillon and sav blanc) that sells for a mere $20 a bottle (as low as $15 if you shop around). And the 2015 Archer’s ($35) is a terrific addition to the ever-growing roll-call of top quality chardonnays from the Adelaide Hills: rich texture, complex, multi-layered but elegant and fine.

Among the Henschkes’ less rarefied red portfolio, I’ve long had a soft spot for Johann’s Garden, a blend of mostly grenache with some Mataro and a smidgen of shiraz. The latest vintage, 2015, is an absolute cracker: gorgeous shimmering spice, layers of translucent purple fruit, fine, endless powdery tannin. Its $56 price tag feels a bit high for nostalgic old soaks like me who remember the early days when the wine was only $25, but in the grand international scheme of things, it’s about what you’d expect to pay for a wine of this quality.