Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2009 Astralis presents a very fruity, floral nose with lifted notes of blueberries. The palate is concentrated with a slight prune character and has very crisp acidity. At this stage the phenolics are showing a little chewy before finishing long. Drink it now to 2027+. I am grateful to Roman Bratasiuk for presenting me with small verticals from his cellar of some of his greatest vineyard sources for this report, including the Merlot (as an indication that Merlot can do well in Australia!), the Old Vines/Romas Vineyard Grenache and a vertical of the Astralis vineyard Shiraz going back to 1991. Readers should note that the 2011 vintage Clarendon Hills wines are being released a little later than usual and therefore were not available for tasting in time for this report. However, I have been informed that they will be available for tasting very soon and will hopefully make the South Australia report. Importer: Wine Brokers Unlimited, Hayward, CA