The Auswine Forum

Best White - 2007 Leeuwin Estate Chardonnay Best Red - 1990 Bin 707 Best Budget White - 2008 Voyager Chenin Blanc Best Budget Red - 2007 Cape Mentelle Trinders Cab Merlot Best Latest Release - 2007 Cullen Diana Madeleine Best Cellared Wine - 1990 Bin 707 Best Tasting - Howard Park Most enjoyable win...

Ashton Hills Pinot Noir: Didn't catch the vintage. Not usually a pinot fan, but this was very good. 1997 Wendouree Cabernet Malbec: Initially thought it was corked, but it blew off after 10mins or so. So much intensity at only 13% alc. Very nice drink, with plenty of time ahead of it. 2007 Vasse Fel...

1990 Wendouree Shiraz: Nice wine, beautifully balanced, soft powdery tannins, long fruit. Certainly not as great as the name would suggest.

2001 Cullen Diana Madeleine. Power, amazing fruit intensity but wonderfully balanced. Had this with a rack of lamb .... perfect.

Close behind are 1996 Moss Wood Cabernet and 2002 Penfolds Cellar Reserve Grenache.

2007 Cape Mentelle Trinders Cab Merlot: Not many notes, but very nice. Juicy, fruit driven wine. Dusty tannins, slightly short finish.

2004 Vasse Felix Cabernet Sauvignon : Medium bodied black fruits with a good whack of oak. Hints of coffee and bayleaf, powdery tannins. Good long finish. Need to try to forget about the rest for a few years. 2007 Wynns Black Label Cabernet Sauvignon : Vibrant purple, blackcurrant with creamy vanil...

2005 Tim Adams Aberfeldy: Plums, chocolate and oak on the nose. Delicious pristine blackfruits, powdery tannins and creamy oak, very slippery Left overnight and improved the next day. Will try to leave my other bottles alone for 5-8 years.

2007 Majella Magician: Quite closed. One dimensional with harsh tannins on the finish. Didn't improve overnight. Not very good, even for a quaffer.

Had a bottle of the '86 Grange about 12 months ago. Still quite youthful, with just a hint of brick red at the rim. Was slightly surprised with its (lack of) intensity, but very elegant and the finish was very very long. An excellent wine and certainly just entering it's drinking window to me.

2006 Penfolds Koonunga Hill '76 Cabernet Shiraz: This one has settled down quite nicely after a year or so. Nose opened up, and the acidity and tannins have softened up a little. Perhaps just a touch of oak, but nicely balanced. Quite enjoyed it.

2002 Wolf Blass Grey Label Shiraz: Last couple of bottles a few years ago had a slight reductive character, but this one was much better. Good fruit intensity absorbed the oak, still a little tannic to me which caused it to finish short. Not bad 2006 Vasse Felix Cabernet: Deep red with purple highl...

Yep, can third that motion re: Bin 28. Very pleasant drink.

1999 Richmond Grove Watervale Riesling: Deep golden, even slightly brown appearance. Mellow toast and honey with some mango and lime notes. Perhaps lacking slightly in acidity at the finish, but very nice 2002 The Lane Cabernet Sauvignon: Red with slight purple around the rim. Highly fragrant with ...

04 Punters Corner Sovereign?

2002 Penfolds Bin 389: Intense dark fruits, cloves with a hint of oak. Tannins still fairly prominent. Good finish, but should soften over the next 3-5 yrs. Will try another in 2012. Very good.

2002 Punters Corner Cabernet Sauvignon: Coffee bean and blackcurrant nose. Dark fruits/mocha and creamy oak. Good intensity with a decent long finish. Very nice. 2005 Thorne-Clark Quartage: Slightly closed on opening. Quite concentrated fruit but slightly overt tannins. Not bad, hopefully will be b...

2006 Wolf Blass Grey Label Cabernet Sauvignon: Big bold cabernet, but quite disjointed and awkward. Overly tannic with obvious alcohol on the finish. Finished very short. Didn't improve after being left overnight.

Saltram Mamre Brook Cabernet Sauvignon 2004: A friend opened this one for us. Very intense blackcurrant and tabacco leaf flavours, with just a hint of oak. Perhaps a hint of mocha too. Wonderfully balanced and nice long finish. Very much enjoyed now, but will leave ours in the cellar for another 5-...

2003 Henshcke Mt Edelstone: Deep ruby colour. Slightly peppery nose. Dark fruits, smokey oak. Very nice long finish, firm tannins. Will try another one in 4-5 yrs.

2001 Cullen Diana Madeleine: Possibly my best wine experience to date. Impenetrable colour. Nose leapt out of the glass with dark fruits, tabacco leaf, hint of oak. Incredible palate weight that I can still taste. No wonder JO gave it 97. 2008 Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc: Very good, but not as good ...

Best Red: Tim Adams Aberfeldy Shiraz 02 or Rockford Basket Press 98 Best White: Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 07 Best value: El Coto Crianza 04 Honourable mentions: Henschke Tappa Pass Shiraz 03, John Riddoch 99 Biggest disappointments: Penfolds St Henri 01 Worst wine without a technical fault: Cape Ja...

2004 El Coto Rioja: Lighter style Tempranillo with good fruit, no obvious oak intruding. Nice long finish, slightly acidic. Great food wine, really enjoyed this with pizza.

Wynns 2001 Harold Vineyard Cabernet Very elegant, long, with firm tannins. Drinking beautifully now, with more to come in the next 5 years. 95 Henschke 2003 Tappa Pass Shiraz Powerful wine that manages to carry it's high alcohol. Very nice, but don't think this will last too long though. 92 Rockfor...

2006 Stevens Wines Vat 52 Shiraz Grenache Cabernet : Early drinking wine, but very nice with pizza or pasta. Good fruit up front, with a long spicy grenache finish. 2006 Balnaves Cabernet : Deep. dark fruit, with all the oak soaked up. Didn't quite carry the alcohol though, finished a bit short. 20...

Tried this wine about 9 months ago at cellar door. Very closed, needed a pretty good swirl of the glass. Palate was very tight, but with good fruit vibrancy. I got 3 bottles and I'm trying to forget about them for 10 yrs or so.

Hi greg,

can I ask where you saw the 05? Wynns BL is one of my cellar staples.

02 Punters Corner Cabernet: coffee bean nose, blackcurrant with a bit of oak but not too overpowering. Lovely texture and length. Will keep the rest for a while longer. 02 Wolf Blass Grey Label Shiraz: had this a while ago and it was good. This bottle had a definite sulphurous edge to it which kille...

We were recently in Coonawarra tasting, and the Majella is a great wine. Balnaves, Zema, Wynns and Punters Corner all made fantastic cabs in 04 too. To me, the Balnaves Cab (not the Tally, can't afford it) was the best of the lot, with Zema the best value. The only Marg River cab I have tried from 0...

Some Coonawarra this week 04 Zema Cabernet: deep red/purple, vibrant fruit on the nose, tannins a bit harsh at the moment but great length. will be excellent 03 Zema Cluny: much softer and rounder than the cabernet. very good to drink now 04 Balnaves The Blend: similar to the Cluny, but with more ta...

Yes, I've spoken to a few winemakers from Coonawarra in the last few days, and the rain doesn't seem to have been too bad. Most of them are expecting to crush only about 40% of normal though.