The Picardy Shiraz 2022 is a medium-bodied red from Pemberton in Western Australia, made in a cooler, more restrained style than the big, jammy Shiraz produced further north and east. Dark berry fruit and black pepper define this wine rather than raw power or sweetness.

On the nose there is blackberry and dark plum alongside cracked pepper, dried herbs and a faintly floral, violet-like lift. The palate follows through with dark fruit and a distinctly savoury, spicy edge, closer in character to a cool-climate Syrah than a warm-region Shiraz, and it keeps developing new detail glass to glass.

Tannins are fine-grained and the finish stays long and peppery rather than jammy or sweet, with good acid tension holding the whole wine together and giving it real freshness through the back palate.

This is a Shiraz for the table more than the barbecue alone — try it with peppered steak, braised lamb shoulder, a mushroom and thyme tart, or duck cooked with juniper.

It is drinking well now and should continue to develop further complexity over the next three to five years.