The Auswine Forum

Great notes Ian. Clare 2009 is just sensational, as I said recently. Jim Barry Watervale at around $13 a bottle is just unbeatable, but I must admit I haven't seen any variation like you have. I'm a little disappointed you didn't taste the 2009 Kilikanoon Morts Reserve, IMHO it beats the Grosset rie...

Have tasted the Bins 28, 128, 389 and 407 of the new release, and can honestly say I won't be buying any this year, and may not buy until the 2009 vintages appear in the market. Of course this doesn't apply to the RWT, and 707.

Just couldn't resist these wines 2008 Yalumba Pewsey Vale Prima Riesling This is a delicate Alsace style riesling, 9.5% alcohol, faintest trace of sweetness, fabulous drinking now, but has the legs to go 20years in the cellar. 2008 Running With Bulls Tempranillo A rather lighter-than-usual Tempranil...

2009 Jim Barry Watervale Riesling Like a lot of the 2009 Clare Valley Rieslings, it was bloody good. 2008 Hoddles Creek Chardonnay Markedly improved since last tasted. A work of art (or very close IYKWIM) 2005 Wyndham Bin 555 sparkling shiraz Just the thing for our warmish weather. Great with bbq me...

2008 Wolf Blass Yellow Label Shiraz Viognier (multi-medalist at Adelaide, inc RWOS) - supernova quality! 2006 Brands Laira Blockers - perhaps not quite up to the stellar 2005, but still OK 2008 Yalumba The Scribbler - still a little green, but will be pretty good in 6-12 months, or just let it breat...

Hardy's 2008 Oomoo Sauvignon Blanc At around $10 per bottle this is just fine and satisfying. Adelaide Hills fruit, limes, some gooseberries, and just a bare hint of passionfruit. Dry and minerally finish to make it just right. 92/100 2009 Claymore's Joshua Tree Riesling (Clare region) Just superb,...

2008 De Bortoli Sacred Hill Chardonnay
At well under $10 a bottle, this is a real crowd pleaser.
Crisp, lean and well fruited, and even a little nutty complexity and butteriness. Just the thing for these warm Adelaide days, and balmy spring nights that I hope we get soon!

Leeuwin Estate, Cullen, Vasse Felix, Hay Shed Hill and Voyager Estate are "must-visits" imo.

Cheers
John

Just back from a lightning trip to the Clare Valley. The 2009 Rieslings are just sensational! Some highlights below... (cellar door prices) 2009 Grosset Polish Hill Awesome, exuberant and lifted floral notes, youthful and tangy, lemon and pure lime juice, minerally and slatey. Will age well, but wil...

Sorry for the delay, have been otherwise distracted by an invalid relative. Day 2 continued... Watershed Premium Wines (Corner of Bussell Highway & Darch Road Margaret River) A most scenic setting. A huge natural lake ("watershed") fed by its own natural aquifer. Beautiful Feng Shui, a...

Knee Deep is on Johnson Road Wilyabrup.

You can find it on Google Maps if you like, its about 20 mins North of MR, along the near-coastal road to Dunsborough. Google Maps says 28.3 km.

Cheers.

Voyager estatewinery (www.voyagerestate.com.au) Dutch influence Immaculate gardens and Dutch styled buildings. Comment of the day: "Even the toilets are heavily oaked" If you've been there, you will understand. 6 wines on tasting (hooray) I rate 4 only. 2008 Voyager Estate Chenin Blanc Vib...

dazza1968 wrote:Hello John Did you spend the whole day there LOL

Actually we went to 4 more wineries that day, Voyager, Watershed, Pierro and Moss Brothers, so there is still tasting notes for about 40 more wines coming (hence why I called it a torture test).....

Cheers

Leeuwin Estate (www.leeuwinestate.com.au) We learnt it is still a family owned and run winery, and we learnt of the famous concerts! The atmosphere, the setting, the smiley and helpful staff really made us feel welcome, and made the whole experience just that much better. Lots of wines available fo...

Winter trip, Day 2, Part 1, of the torture test (aka wine tour) Picked up at 10:00 after a pretty good breakfast. Only 6 of us in the tour group, so very roomy and relaxed. Optimal size for a tour group? First stop was Xanadu (www.xanaduwines.com) 8 wines on for tasting. Prior to tasting the senior ...

A quick winter trip to Margaret River (thankfully the weather Gods were smiling, we always knew the wine Gods would be smiling too). Day 1. An exhausting trip from Wembley to Margaret River, having arrived from Adelaide at 00:10 the same day, and crawled in and out of bet at 00:45 and 08:45. Tasting...

I thought the Leeuwin riesling was passable, but nothing to write home about. A long way behind Clare Valley and Barossa Valley rieslings.

I know this sounds very parochial, but it's not meant to be, just meant to be objective.

On our recent trip, we had a gorgeous lunch at Knee Deep winery in MR. They have this deal called "Trust the Chef", a 3 course meal decided on by the chef, you never know what is coming next! Voyager was very nice as well, I would recommend the "Voyager Plate" a mixture of duck, ...

We went there and tasted the whole range.

06 LEAS Chardy is almost a paradigm shift but still stunning.
04 LEAS Cabernet is arguably their best ever.
07 LEAS Shiraz is pleasingly full-bodied (unlike most other light-bodied MR shiraz) - IMO the best buy.

Nice to see GW agree with me.

2007 Houghton Pemberton Chardonnay
Has markedly improved with just a few months more in bottle.
Now quite an intense slatey / minerally taste, lovely pure white peach and nectarine fruits, and some toasty nuts.
A lot of wine for the money.

2005 Xanadu Margaret River Cabernet Sauvignon A pleasing offer from this excellent MR vintage, just a little too light to be called medium-bodied, but had all the nice Cab features, and was gone all too quickly. 2006 Jane Moss Pinot Noir (Moss Brothers) A tidy, well cherried, but dry-red style Pino...

2007 Yalumba The Scribbler Ever reliable, and very much a drink now wine. So good, I will be very lucky to keep any for posterity. 94/100 2006 O'leary Walker Cabernet Just beautiful. Good enough to make a grown Cabernet drinker cry for more. Do yourself a favour and get a case (or more) of this. 94...

Yalumba 2004 Galway Vintage Traditional Shiraz They say real estate is all about location... location... location... Well this wine is from a great location, and a great vintage, and it just may well be the worst house in the best street, or more correctly a lowly wine from a great vintage. Dense s...

2007 Thorn Clarke Shotfire Shiraz A gold medal winner, inexpensive, a lot of wine for the money, some early complexity, gorgeous purity of fruit and Barossa chocolate, exceptional balance, and luxurious length. exceptional wine. 2006 Shaw and Smith Shiraz A shiraz viognier mix that pulls it off ver...

I haven't tried the 2005 or 2006

2004 Coldstream Hills Reserve Pinot Noir Lovely aged Pinot. Bright, floral and feminine, with lifted red cherries, herbs and forest floor, minerally river bed, oak now very well integrated, the spicy finish is now much lessened, the tannins delightful and subdued. Gorgeous silky, rounded and volupt...

Great TN's.

Agree wholeheartedly on the 1991 Mt Edelstone, we had one for n4sirs 40th just 1 week ago.

No much wine yet, but managed to pick up a copy of The Big Red Wine Book 2009/10 at my local Myers, it was on sale at 35% off, and I picked it up for $16.20 - Now that's a bargain.

Sarah,
Susan and I cannot now come to this offline due to work commitments.

We're very sorry, I know you have put a lot of effort into the arrangements.

John

2006 Illuminati Riparosso (Montepulciano D'Abruzzo - Italia) Purpley-red, gleaming Nice nose of red cherries, musk, minerals and spicey oak. Very smooth, balanced wine with ripe fruit, with both red and dark cherries, and berries, some subdued chocolate, subdued but drying tannins, and nice acidity...