What makes wine quality? Some vintages taste better than others which means the fruit of the vine has concentrated select flavour compounds. There are dozens of these and in the best vintages they combine in ways we equate with a more concentrated and complex wine. Why this is so I do not know though observations suggest an ideal ripening pattern is one without extreme changes in the weather.
So it seems the good flavour compounds can be destroyed quickly by an onset of unfavourable weather which then shifts the flavours of that vintage from the ideal. There are many other factors, for example some wine makers pick earlier or later than others which then alters the final taste. Then we have different work practises in the winery to do with making the wine and how it is stored.
Returning to the role of nature we know the general geographical location of the wine region tells us much about the general taste of the wine irrespective of the vintage.
So irrespective of vintage the Barossa Valley has a reputation for full flavoured wines the result of the latitude, elevation and the way warmth is trapped. With Shiraz the results are often astonishing, and a richness with mid-palate weight is achieved that exceeds all other comparable regions. Vintage 2021 is close to 10/10.
