This estate’s most renowned offering is their old vine (90+ years) Shiraz called The Dead Arm. The unfined/unfiltered 2000 The Dead Arm Shiraz is one of South Australia’s finest wines of the vintage. A perfume of grilled steak intermixed with blackberries, new saddle leather, earth, pepper, and melted licorice rises from this awesome red. With great power, richness, and no hard edges, it is still young and primary, but should hit its peak in 3-7 years, and last for two decades or more. 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

Firm in texture, remarkably focused on flavor, offering solid blackberry and cherry flavors at the center and touches of licorice and mint around the edges, echoing on the slightly chewy but long finish. Drink now through 2007. 1,000 cases imported.??–HS??Region: Australia / McLaren Vale Select to Add

This wine gets its name from a vine fungus that kills off part of the vine. The vine gets pruned back, which leads to small berries and low yields; this concentrates the intense, fleshy blue-black fruit flavors. There is a rich, juicy feel to the wine, which has firm but well-integrated tannins. —C.S. ——C.S.(3/1/2003)—— 90