Golden Rant....

Should be back in the saddle soon, but I've been knocked out by the flu. Can't taste a damn thing yet, never mind appreciate some fine nectar.
I'll tell you about a wine I tried last week - the Wolf Blass, Gold Label, Shiraz, 2002. I'm generally a fan of Wolf Blass' high end wines, but their "regular" bottlings have become almost undrinkable. So, it was with great surprise to learn that in Australia, the "Gold Label" line-up is not really considered premium wine - it can be bought for $19.99 as compared to the definitely upmarket "Grey Label" at $34.99. So, someone over here is making a lot of money as the gold label is marked up to 30 bucks (!?*$#!!) compared with an unchanged 35 for the grey label. Wierd.
Anyway, getting back to the wine - nice deep colour. Smoked meat and cherries on the nose. Very silky, smooth and balanced mouthfeel with nicely integrated oak. Nice black cherry fruit and a pretty long finish. The verdict: "wow", a winner in this vintage but the price gouging still pisses me off. I can just hear the marketing guys at the LCBO - "hey, it's not too far off the grey label...lets price it a little lower, sell tons and laugh all the way to the bank..."
Oh, I'm not making this up - a quick search reveals that US retail for gold/grey label shiraz is the same as in Oz - $20/$35...
Cheers!!