November 12, 2013Conrad (The Wine Wankers)

Sparkling Shiraz – The perfect pizza wine!

seppelt original sparkling shiraz and dominos pizza wine blog great nice best wine online wine wankersI still clearly remember the first time I actually enjoyed sparkling shiraz.  It’s one of those moments etched into the crevices of my mind.  I probably remember it so well not only because of the enjoyment I had but also because I was humbled.  My approach to the subject of sparkling shiraz had been both arrogant and ignorant and I got pounded by the experience.

A few years ago now I was invited to a pizza and wine party.  Of course my plan was to show off with an awesome red wine and to gloat about it like a good wine wanker does.  So when a lovely lady turned up with a sparkling shiraz I giggled to myself…  “lol, so what’s that, some fizzy red cordial I see”.

seppelt original sparkling shiraz and dominos pizza wine blog great nice best wine online wine wankers 2011Sparkling red wine had gained a reputation in Australia as cheap, sweet and icky, but as I was to discover through my wine journeys, this was not always the case.  Up until the 1970s sparkling shiraz was known as a beautifully crafted mostly dry-style bubbly wine.  It was enjoyed so much it was copied and sweetened up for the trendy mass market who were sucking back gallons of overly sweet Rieslings.

Sparkling shiraz died in the arse until just a few years before I had my memorable introduction to the joys it can provide.  It is now being made at its best once again!  And the world is much better for it, a crazy little Aussie quirk indeed.

Here’s an interesting article by James Halliday about sparkling shiraz, a must read for the more enthusiastic wine lovers amongst you.

seppelt original sparkling shiraz and pizza wine blog great nice best wine online wine wankersSo, at the pizza party, the lovely lady with the bottle of red bubbles said to me “Are you sure you don’t want to try this, it’s the perfect pizza wine?”. My response “Ummm, that stuff can’t be any good now can it?”.  She could tell my ears were pricked and said with a smile “You’ve never tried it now have you?  Go on, you know you want to!”.

And with that I took a sniff, it smelt great with cherry and blackcurrant popping in my nose, and then I took a sip, while some pizza remained in my mouth, and BAMMM!

She was so right, and I was so humbled.  Something about the wine just cut through the fat of the pizza and created an extremely interesting array of flavours in my mouth.  That was it, I was hooked!

Late last year I came across a few bottles of 1972 Seppelt Show Reserve Sparkling Burgundy at auction and I just had to get me some! (It’s actually not Burgundy but shiraz.  I touched on this wine labelling issue in my post “From failure to success!”.) Although the bubbles had mostly dropped away to a light fizz the two bottles I have had were both sensational.  Still packing loads of berry fruits flavours!  I can’t wait to have my last remaining bottle, but I’m holding out because once it’s gone I’m unlikely to ever find this wine again!

???????????????????????????????Serious wine buffs should read the story of the Seppelt Show Reserve Sparkling Shiraz by clicking here.  It’s a fascinating story confirming the death of sparkling shiraz and it’s re-emergence in the late 90s.

It’s really starting to heat up here in Aus and a sparkling shiraz is the perfect way to enjoy a red wine when it is warm.  So I bought a bottle of 2011 Seppelt Original Sparkling Shiraz to down along with a tasty pizza.  Beautiful!  As usual the bubbles cut through the fat in the pizza and that tiny bit of residual sugar combined with the array of raspberry, blackberry and blackcurrant flavours just combined so well with the savouryness of the pizza.  Just make sure it’s slightly chilled but not cold!

And the pizza was a Domino’s Chef’s Best chicken and camembert (with rasher bacon).  Like sparkling shiraz, you may have the same misgiven thoughts on this too!  🙂

So how can a wine tasting of delicious bubbly red berries go with a savoury and spicy pizza?  Dunno!  Life is a mystery, even if it’s a strange wine and food combo that has a wine wanker like me stumped.

Give it a go!

Author: Conrad

151 comments

  1. You know it’s funny, sparkling shiaz is the only red that I will generally drink apart from Grenache. You’re definitely on to something, I guess i’m having pizza for dinner tomorrow night.

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  6. Yes, we ran across a bottle of it once (I think it was Paringa) and were amazed. Paringa has some interesting serving suggestions: “Great with your favorite chocolate dessert or with bacon and eggs in the morning.” I would choose barbecue or as you say, pizza. And not in the morning. By the way, that pizza looks like a winner!

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  9. Its an age old combo from Emilia-Romagna. Lambrusco di Sobara with pizza. Although pizza is Neapolitan in origin, it goes really well with northern Italian Lambrusco. As always, hearty simple food is best with straightforward, honest wine – fresh out of the traps with a bit of spritz. First time I ever had sparkling shiraz was at Rockford with bacon and eggs – never looked back!

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    • Bacon and eggs would have the perfect grease combo to pair with a sparkling shiraz! I’ve never tried it though because b&e is usually in the morning, but I suppose I shouldn’t let that hold me back. Now which one to shift the timeslot of? 😉

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  10. Hey Conrad,
    Great post. I don’t think I’ll find a bottle here in Vancouver without some crazy scouring of the shops. I’m in one of the best-stocked stores and I know there’s none. Quite a bit of Lambrusco, though, oddly. (so why not Sparkling Shiraz? I think it’s still suffering from residual bad rep, even way over here! You’re right; everybody snorts upon hearing the name.)
    FYI it was included in the trio of blind tasting on the last Diploma Sparkling exam here. I called it Lambrusco (since it was dry), whoops (thank God I still passed!).
    Poor maligned, disparaged Sparkling Shiraz! Take up its cause!
    PS I love your auction stories.
    Cheers
    Zelda

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  14. Many years ago I was at a tasting at a winery that specialized in sparkling wines, and the shiraz was one of them. I was shocked that it was so enjoyable, and your post brings back those wonderful memories. Thank you!

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  16. Hmmm, I never really thought of pizza with wine before. Here, we mostly just do pizza with beer. Or soda, you know. Anyway, the way you’ve described it really makes it sound intriguing, and I’d be up for trying it. That fruity taste with those fizzy bubbles sounds delicious. By the way, we got a dusting of SNOW overnight, so enjoy your warm weather!

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  17. Hey Conrad!

    Great read! The closest thing I have had in kosher, would be the sparkling Bonardo that I enjoyed some months back. Otherwise, classic pairings for Pizza (other than some Belgian Beer or a killer IPA), would be Chianti or Sangiovese or Barbera.

    Best wishes and great article!

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  19. That sounds really lovely actually. I can only stand two fizzy drinks, and that’s veered and sparkling wine. Soda is too much for me, but a red mimosa would be a pretty fun experiment!

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  20. As someone who consumes ‘gourmet’ pizza every week, this sparkling Shiraz sounds like a fantastic idea. Thanks for the suggestion! Will have to see what I can find in HK, but with the wine obsession here, I’m not too worried

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  24. Glad you’re here to teach us other ignoramuses about such a treat–sounds fabulous, both as a wine itself and (definitely) with pizza! I’ll keep my eyes peeled for this good stuff now.

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  29. Hey Conrad
    Funnily enough I wrote an article recently about wine and how people enjoy wine and can sometimes take it just too seriously (http://theblenderswine.wordpress.com/2013/11/05/the-complexity-of-wine/). As an example I used a bottle of sparkling Shiraz as the ol’ cheapie and asked the girl in person to guess what it was and the price, she got it horribly wrong. Listen, the stuff is not grounbreaking in terms of quality but I think it has a place in wine drinking culture (although being a 20-something most wine does for me 😉 ). It is a great drink to smash a couple of in the summer months with lots of mates around!
    Cheers,
    Mark

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  33. I loved when you said, “And with that I took a sniff, it smelt great with cherry and blackcurrant popping in my nose, and then I took a sip, while some pizza remained in my mouth, and BAMMM!”

    Clearly, a defining moment.

    I really enjoy Lambrusco as well. We don’t have a lot in our market in British Columbia, but we do have Casolari that dominates. Tried that?

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  37. Real men don’t eat quiche! Or pizza that looks ike a quiche! Am i spelling quiche right? Real men don’t spellcheck! 😉

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  38. I fell in love with sparkling reds after a trip to California wine country. It IS the perfect pizza wine, and one of my very favorite meals. Many of the local wine/liquor stores around here look at me like I am crazy when I ask for sparkling shiraz and lead me to the sickly sweet sparkling pink (yuck!).

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  39. Conrad – I tried a sparkling Syrah for the first time with a friend about a year ago. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the crisp, earthy sparkling wine. It is an interesting detour from the traditional light red often served with pizza or some cheeses – and a complimentary one. Thank you for sharing! Best, Shanna

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  40. I clearly don’t have your expertise in fine wines, but I’m not without other talents. From your description, I can say with authority that pizza was a superb choice. 🙂

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  43. OMG! I’ve never tasted – heck, I’ve never seen a sparkling Shiraz. I’ve had plenty of Shiraz with pizza, though. I agree that the two are a good match. Will have to search my local stores to see if any of the bubbly Shiraz is available in my area. Thanks for the suggestion.

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      • Many thanks for letting me know and for checking that out! I’ll test some on the mouse, first. If he falls over, I’ll pour it out…;)

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      • Hey there Conrad! Didn’t tell you about the “Cedar Creme” from Cedar Creek that we also picked up down there in January 2005. I sent an email to that place and they said they’d never seen a bottle that old before but they ‘thought’ it could be alright…well I tried a little last evening..holy mouse doody! Is it possible for something like that to become STRONGER over time??? My God it’s practically ALCOHOL damnit! Waiting around for that perfect ‘special’ occasion really ain’t the way to go…nope nope nope! Afraid to find what’s in those 2 bottles I asked you about…poor Mousie could kick the bucket…

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  50. What’s the old story? If it’s brown, smells funny and looks like sh… then it must be sh…

    In this case, if it’s red, slightly chilled and bubbly then it must be GOOD!! I think I must go looking… wonder if they sell it here in Ireland?? 😉

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