A toast to the pioneering founder of Wolf Blass

Rightly lauded as one of Australia’s – and, even, the world’s – best winery, Wolf Blass has garnered the highest praises for its fine wines, a testimony reflected in the more than 10,000 awards it has won in its more than half a century of existence. The Barossa Valley winemaker was founded in 1966 by Wolfgang Blass, a pioneer, according to its current Chief Winemaker Chris Hatcher, in the Australian wine industry. “We make modern, premium Australian wines that can compete with the best in the world,” Hatcher said during a recent visit to Kuala Lumpur. “We started with a production of 200 cases; now, we’re making four million cases a year.”

Wolf Blass ‘The Master’ Pasquin Vineyard Cabernet Shiraz

Hatcher was in town to introduce the limited edition luxury wine The Master, made in honour of the brand’s founder on his 80th birthday, and to celebrate his amazing winemaking story and influence on Australia’s winemaking history. Sourced from the Pasquin Vineyard in Langhorne Creek and owned by Wolf’s first winemaker, John Glaetzer, and Bill Potts, one of the first growers to supply fruit to Wolf Blass back in 1967, The Master is a Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz blend that spent 18 months maturation in new and seasoned French and American oak barrels. On the nose, the deep crimson wine is complex layers of fruit, warm spice, mocha and mineral notes, while on the palate, it is medium to full bodied, with a depth of flavour that encompasses dark fruit and savoury nuances – everything, you could say, that makes Wolf Blass such an iconic winemaker.

OTHER WOLF BLASS WINES WORTH PURSUING

GREY LABEL MCLAREN VALE SHIRAZ 2014
Deep crimson with purple hues. The fruit notes are balanced with liquorice and warm spice. On the palate, it is rich and opulent, with notes of dark chocolate.

BLASS BLACK CASSIS CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2015
Deep red in colour, the complex black cassis nose is complemented by regional notes of mulberry leaf, eucalypt and mint. Long and even finish with fine tannins.

BLACK LABEL CABERNET SHIRAZ MALBEC 2006
Sourced from the Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale and Langhorne Creek, this award-winning wine has complex notes of blackcurrent, coffee bean and rich chocolate. A deep and dense red in colour, it is rich and opulent and yet soft and very rounded.

Wolf Blass is distributed by Luen Heng F&B Sdn Bhd. Find out more at luenheng.com