World-Class Syrah from Malta

I know I’ve mentioned wine awards before. Forgive me for bringing this up once more. Though, word has it that yet again a Maltese wine has been granted another noteworthy medal, or actually two to be precise.

Awards may not matter that much anymore. But, you see, it was not all that long ago that loving local wasn’t that cool. Maltese people were, in that way, really quite different from wine-appreciating neighbouring nations, unconditionally proud of their own vinous heritage whereas we in Malta needed proof.

But look around now. The propensity for all things local is here. It has arrived regardless of accolades perhaps but for the reason that the quality is there for all to taste. It’s no longer a question of blind faith but palatable fact.

A tidal wave of imported bottles may have swept across the Maltese Islands wooing inexperienced drinkers. But since then Maltese wine has transformed itself, and doubting Thomases that care to try will get convinced of what wine critics abroad have known for a while: it’s poised on the brink of success.

Previously, I’ve also written about Maltese Syrah, and I’ve praised in particular Delicata’s Gran Cavalier label.

Now, here’s the outstanding 2016 vintage of this great red. The result is official: the wine landed a silver medal at the Syrah du Monde, a single-class competition organised in France’s Rhône valley, the heartland of the Syrah grape variety. It also won a second medal, namely a bronze at the 2018 International Wine Challenge in London.

Does it matter? Well, believe it or not, but experts at the Syrah du Monde contest this year rated Delicata’s Gran Cavalier Syrah on par with wines from the renowned French appellations of Saint-Joseph, Crozes-Hermitage, Hermitage and Côte-Rôtie, where the grape is known to shine. It also beat some heavy hitters exported by the big names from Australia’s top regions McLaren Vale, Barossa and Hunter Valley.

If you aren’t all that au fait, you could google these place names in conjunction with the word Syrah, or Shiraz as the grape is called Down Under, to get an idea of the significance of the achievement.

But, better still, share in the thrill of tasting this ultra-local wine yourself. Taste it without preconception, possibly comparatively alongside some of the foreign medal winners, and you will see. The goodness is writ large.

To anyone coming nose-to-nose with the latest release of Delicata’s flagship red, the world-class quality of this Malta-grown Syrah is in plain sight, especially when heaps of soul and character jump right at you.

A healthy bunch of Malta-grom Syrah.

Take a bow, Matthew Delicata. He’s the fourth-generation winemaker who always pours his heart into this wine. Smart, plush and layered, with spicy cassis fruit, and lashings of elegance, the 2016 vintage equals if not surpasses the finest previous years.

This premium has received the VIP treatment: hand-picked quality fruit from selected vines planted to tal-Ħamri soils (our own terra rossa), a strict maceration regime and 11 months judicious barrel maturation in purposely procured American but predominantly French oak barriques.

This complex Maltese red smells of leather, old spice and smoke but it’s never heady. Weighing in at 13% alcohol, this superior wine seems rather delicate in nature. The palate possesses a depth of mouth-filling raspberry and blackcurrant fruit no other grape can touch. The juice is glossy; the tannins are supple, not stern; and in the end you’re left with a smacking good-bye kiss.

Already approachable now, Delicata’s 2016 Gran Cavalier Syrah doesn’t really need extra cellaring but will age gracefully – that is if you can resist uncorking it anytime soon.

This article by Georges Meekers was first published in the Times of Malta on 29/06/18.