Nugan Estate Scruffy’s Shiraz Single Vineyard Riverina 2019

Nugan’s 2019 Single Vineyard Scruffy’s Shiraz is anything but scruffy, nor is it hard around the edges. Named for Nugan’s Shiraz vineyard manager, the 2019 Scruffy’s Shiraz offers dense black fruit flavors and a delightfully big mouthful of wine. This is a deep purple potion that offers spicy blackberry, cherry, and plum aromas infused with hints of violet flowers and chocolate. The wine’s beautiful olfactory carries through on the palate, where it offers a mélange of succulent blackberry and plum flavors, dried flowers, and subtle spice tones. Plush in the mouth but never flabby, this Shiraz exhibits just the right amount of ripe tannins to carry its lush fruit and spice flavors. The 2019 Scruffy’s Shiraz over-delivers in every respect, offering the class and style one normally associates with the more expensive Shiraz/Syrah offerings from Australia’s Barossa or France’s Rhône Valley. After a few minutes of aeration, enjoy Nugan’s handcrafted, small batch, single vineyard 2019 Scruffy’s Shiraz at cool room temperature (58°-64° F). Anticipated maturity: 2022-2026. Enjoy!

Nugan’s sustainably produced 2019 Single Vineyard Riverina Scruffy’s Shiraz provides the ideal companion to a wide variety of foods. The wine’s decadent fruit and well-integrated tannins lend themselves to pairing with beef, lamb, poultry, pork, Pho noodle soups, Thai curries, and more. Grilled chicken with a balsamic glaze, orzo, farro, zucchini, red peppers and grilled asparagus makes an especially fine companion. Beef medallions served over sour cream mashed potatoes with root vegetables also complements the well-endowed 2019 Scruffy’s Shiraz. Lamb kebobs, caramelized pork spareribs, and white meat chicken curry with coconut milk, onions, and bamboo shoots cooked in Thai yellow curry makes another splendid accompaniment. A spicy ratatouille and southern Italian specialties such as lasagna also make tasty complements to Nugan’s delicious 2019 Scruffy’s Shiraz.

Nugan Estate is a third generation family owned and run winery. It began as a humble fruit and vegetable business in 1940 under the guidance of the estate’s founder Alfredo Nugan, who had recently emigrated from Spain. Alfredo Nugan, however, had a clear vision for his family in Australia and quickly gained success and a reputation for outstanding quality, service, and innovation – qualities he passed along to his son Ken, Ken’s wife Michelle, and his grandchildren Matthew and Tiffany who now run the estate. With the next generation and Australia’s burgeoning wine industry, the leap from quality produce to fine wine was a natural one, which turns out to be the same path trodden by many of California’s leading wineries which began their ascent with fruits and vegetables.

Today, Nugan Estate is the 18th largest vineyard holder in Australia with more than 2,500 acres of vines and it remains entirely family owned – a rarity in Australia where large corporations dominate the wine industry. In addition to this month’s feature, the highly acclaimed 2019 Scruffy’s Shiraz, Nugan fashions exceptional Dried Grape Shiraz in the style of Italy’s Amarone and an award-winning Chardonnay in the estate’s Frasca Lane Chardonnay. Nugan’s vineyards are in prized areas of McLaren Vale, South Australia and Riverina, New South Wales. Each of Nugan’s estate and single vineyard wines are sustainably farmed, handcrafted, and fermented in small batches.