South Eastern Australia
I had the opportunity to enjoy this wine twice by the glass at a local restaurant before writing about it. The first time I was amongst friends and engaged in conversation so I didn’t pay close attention to the aromas and tastes yet I did recall it was very good. The second time was the other night when I really took note of this pleasant red blend of Cabernet and Merlot.
The restaurant is located in Orlando, FL and called Press 101. They somewhat follow a philosophy as I do in trying to simplify wine and help you enjoy it more. Their wine menu is great as they offer a nice by-the-glass selection, larger than most restaurants, although many are changing to provide a wider selection today.
With a name like “Hell Raiser” there must be a story behind the wine yet I’ve not found anything to date. My wine was served slightly chilled at what I’d call an appropriate temperature like 55°. The aromas weren’t very predominant although I found a mild woody/cedar scent followed by black fruit such as dark ripe plums. The tastes certainly matched the aromas with more plum and blackberry fruit up front. Some may call this wine “jammy” or “chewy” and either of these with some further tasting would probably be valid. I only had 1 glass.
Well rounded and balanced along with soft tannins classify this as very easy drinking and silky for my palate. The finish held on to flavors of cocoa and orange yet not too strong. I enjoyed it with a Filet & Portabella mushroom flatbread. I’d also give the wine a try with grilled steak, pork or lamb and maybe even pasta with marinara sauce. I’m on a hunt for purchasing by the bottle now. You can check here to see if it’s in your local area. Wine Searcher
Research on the web showed me it’s going for a reasonable price in the $10 to $12 range. Let me know if you find it and I hope you enjoy as I did.
Posts
I know it's late, but I found this while looking for information on getting this wine again after living in Japan for a while (where wine is hard to acquire unless you have money coming out the yin-yang). I used to buy it at Heights Chateau in Brooklyn NY, but I heard that Yarraman stopped making it.
ReplyDeleteI understand that the name Hellraiser was one of the four horses the wines were name for, forget the other 3 names. Apparently, someone found out that the wines were being discontinued here and came into a local liquor store and bought all of their Hellraiser a few years ago. I've called and looked everywhere except the Yarraman Estates in Australia.
Delete