Mas des Aveylans Syrah VDP du Gard 2003

[Thraz]

$14 at Total, 14% alcohol. Took a while and a lot of swirling to open up - I should have decanted it. Once open though it became very expressive. Very round and fruity. In fact, it tasted very much like a good Australian Shiraz. Not my style, but I could tell it was well made for the style. Maybe the summer of 2003 in the south of France helped blur the line between syrah and shiraz - at least in this particular bottle. I won't buy again but for fans of the style I recommend it.