As my parents were in town from overseas we cracked a bottle open last night. Although I believe it still has a small amount of viognier in it, it was pretty different to what I was expecting and from my previous recollection of the SV. It was still fairly light, it's certainly no fruit bomb. But it was maybe a little less sweet/floral and more firm than the original SV. It actually went down very well, so much so we opened a second bottle.
Which do I prefer? I'd probably say the original, especially at the bargain price that it was. Maybe it's to do with the fact that I found the original SV was a bit more unusual from other reds I'd been drinking. The new offering is perhaps a more familiar taste and maybe not one that distinguishes from other shiraz in the way the SV IMO did. Having said this, I'm not disappointed and it wont be sent back.