Wine of the week: an opinionated shiraz from the Clare Valley

published 23 October 2020

2014 Tim Adams, Schaefer Shiraz, Clare Valley, South Australia

Tim Adams and his wife Pam set up their eponymous winery in the idyllic Clare Valley in 1987. This is the year I started working in the wine business and I remember selling (and loving) an Adams & Wray shiraz, from Tim’s previous wine venture. I have known “Bonecrusher Adams” (he has a mighty handshake) and his amazing wines for every day of my life in the wine trade. You might have come across Tim and Pam’s iconic and affordable wines in Tesco – they have been a mainstay on its shelves. Adams’s wine has been championed in the UK by mercurial wine agent Craig Smith, who has masterminded the fortunes of a good few Aussie wine heroes over the decades by placing them on all of the right wine lists.

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Last year Craig and Tim set up a UK arm to sell directly to his adoring British public and two amazing wines have just been launched on this website. Schaefer Shiraz is the personification of Tim’s irascible, magnetic and steadfast character, in vinous form. Inky, powerful and blessed with 12 months spent in new French oak, this is a focused and opinionated wine with the most affordable price tags I have ever seen for a wine of this build-quality.

In addition, 2018 Tim Adams Skilly Ridge Riesling (£16) will remind you of Tim’s magical touch with this sensational variety, too. Open, layered, violet and lime blossom scented and enchanting, this magnificent white is the perfect counterpoint to the heady, luxurious shiraz.

Matthew Jukes is a winner of the International Wine & Spirit Competition’s Communicator of the Year (matthewjukes.com)

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Matthew Jukes has worked in the UK wine business for well over three decades and during this time has written 14 wine books.

Matthew regularly lectures, judges, speaks at wine conferences and runs masterclass tastings for both corporate and private clients all over the world. Matthew is also the creator of his ground-breaking initiative, the One Day Wine School, an indulgent day of tasting and learning first performed in 2006.

He has been the MoneyWeek wine correspondent since 2006 and has written a weekly column for the Daily Mail’s Weekend Magazine since 1999. His four highly-acclaimed, annual wine reports – the Burgundy En Primeur Report, the Bordeaux En Primeur Report, the Piemonte Report and the 100 Best Australian Wines – are published on his website, www.matthewjukes.com.

Matthew is one of the world’s leading experts on Australian wine and, with Brisbane-based wine writer Tyson Stelzer, runs an annual competition in Australia to find ‘The Great Australian Red’. He was made Honorary Australian of the Year in the UK at the 2012 Australia Day Foundation Gala dinner.

Matthew is a winner of the International Wine and Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year Trophy. His thoughts, recommendations and tastings notes are followed very closely by the wine world at large.