The Auswine Forum

Mostly single bottles of the following:

Aldo Centerno Cicala Barolo 2001
Grosset Polish Hill 2007
Peter Lehmann Barossa Riesling 2005
Peter Lehmann Semillon 2005
Trapiche Malbec Vina Felipe Villafane La Consulta 2003 (2X)
Cullen DM 2004 (3X)

The Bin 389 04 goes for mainly between 3,000 to 4,000yen (about A$30 to 40) here, but I have seen it going at one shop for almost 5,000yen. I cannot understand the inconsistency in the pricing of Aussie wines here. For example, some wines like Cullen DM 04 go for around 5,500yen (A$55) and other ult...

Voted same volume same quality. If one producer gets too expensive, then find another one that makes similar wines that I like at a (slightly) lower price. This could be from a winemaker in a different country if there are exchange rate / tax issues. The AUD has gone up 12% this month and is back to...

Seems very fair. Stops the cherry pickers and how many bottles do you need of a given wine anyway? Breadth not depth is the key to a good cellar. all power to the cherry pickers. keep choice in the hands of the consumer. and whether breadth or depth is the key to your cellar is totally dependant on...

Single bottles of: Meerlust Rubicon 2001 Castello di Ama 2004 Nice choices. Thanks, Ian. After reading all the comments and TNs about the Meerlust Rubicon on the UK Wine Forum, I thought I'd get one and try it out in the future. I really like the Castello di Ama 2001, but they are all gone in Japan...

Single bottles of:

Meerlust Rubicon 2001

Castello di Ama 2004

Errazuriz Estate Merlot 2005 (14%, cork) Curico Valley, Chile 1,350yen Ruby. A fruity nose of dark cherries, cassis, and plums. A fruit-driven wine on the palate, too. Some sweet cassis then sour plums then the sweet cassis again before drying out a little on the finish. Not a lot in the way of tan...

Ditto all the above reasons about buying wines. Another reason I buy certain wines is because they are from places that I have been to on my travels, and I LIKE their wines. Drinking these wines helps to bring back pleasant travel memories.

Thanks for the TNs, Ian.

While I only have the Cullen DM 01 out of the list of wines you tasted, it is good to see how it's evolving.

Cheers,

Raymond

Thanks, Wayno. The Castello di Ama 2004 is the first Chianti that I have bought from this vintage as there are still plenty of very good 2001 Chiantis still being sold in Japan. Thanks for the tip about the Banfi, but 1999 Chiantis are quite hard to find in Japan except for the ultra-premium and meg...

Wayno wrote: We-re in Italia at the moment and after several days in Tuscany, went through 3 bottles of the 04 Castello di Ama. Interestingly, comes it at about the same price, comparatively over here. Lovely wine, very impressive. The Castello di Ama 04 has gone up a bit in price here. They go for...

Gravymaker, Two Italian wines that I have enjoyed a lot are the following two Tuscan wines from the excellent 2001 vintage. These are mostly based on Sangiovese. Both the wines went very well wtih pasta dishes in tomato-based sauces. The Castello di Ama also complimented some pizzas quite well. Font...

Bought the following this month: 3btls Chateau du Cleray 2005 2btls Cape Mentelle Shiraz 2004 2btls Cono Sur Vision Bio-Bio Riesling 2003 One bottle each of the following: Chereau Carre Cuvee des Dues 2005 William Fevre 1er Cru Fourchaume 2005 375ml Cono Sur Viognier 2006 Voyager Estate Cabernet Mer...

Moss Wood Ribbon Vale Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2001 (14.5%, cork) Cabernet Sauvignon 60% Merlot 30% Cabernet Franc 10% First night (15th August 2007) My first Moss Wood red. Bought this for around 3,000yen (A$35) a couple of years ago. Dark ruby but going slightly watery / clear at the ri...

I liked the Cape Mentelle SB/ Semillon 2005 when I had it last year. My VFM SB is actually a Frenchie one called Chateau Reynon. I have had about four of the 2004 over the last 12 months, and they go for 1,500yen (A$15) in Japan vs A$23 for a Cape Mentelle SB / Sem 2005 and A$30 for a Cloudy Bay 200...

Hmmm...I wonder if that also applies to the St Henri. Will the 2004 be better / more complex / drinkable than the 2002 which got great raps from JO?

Grosset Watervale 2003 (13%, Stelvin) Straw turning ever slightly pale gold. A very enticing nose of sweetish tropical fruits. Still very fresh, crisp, and with all its primary fruits. Initial entry of limes and a hint of honeysuckle which then gives way to sour green apples and minerally finish. I...

No wines this week as I have terrible cold. I did have a bottle of Michel Gros Bourgogne Hautes Cote de Nuits 2002 and Castello di Ama 2001 last weekend. Castello di Ama Chianti Classico 2001 (13%alc, cork) 80% Sangiovese 8% Canaiolo 12% Malvasia Nera and Merlot Had this wine straight from the bottl...

Thanks. I'll try a bottle when I go home next month. On the Blue Poles website, it says that it is available at a certain wine retailer in Sydney. BTW, the Chateau Teyssier 2003 and 2004 cost around A$33 in Japan. It is one of the more affordable Bordeaux wines here. Some of the others can be ridicu...

Thanks for the notes, Adair. Sounds like a wine that I would like to try when I go home for holiday in February. BTW, have you had any of the Chateau Teyssier wines? They are made from the same combination of grapes in a similar ratio of Merlot / Cab F. (3:1). I loved the nose of the 2003 vintage, b...

Better late than never. The wines that I have really enjoyed and bought another bottle or more (if available) after having the first one in 2006 are: Grosset Polish Hill 2003 Schmelz Riesling Smaragd Steinriegl 2005 Nikolaihof Grunner Veltliner Vinothek 1991 Robert Ampeau et Fils Volnay-Santenots 19...

Attila wrote Since winemaker János Árvay won a wine challenge with his Tokaji in Japan, the market opened up. I reckon that's how the Dobogó ended up there. I believe that the wine was flabby and ordinary because unfortunately while these wines taste SENSATIONAL in barrel or steel, when th...

Serge, Thanks for the recommendation. Maybe, my palate and nose is not as sensitive to toasty oak as others. I found the wine to be quite a pleasant drink, but if you pay a visit to the UK Wine Forum, there is quite a negative review about the Lagrange 2003. I guess I will open another bottle someti...

Cape Mentelle Shiraz 2002 (14.5%, cork) Opened this last night. Dark purple. Toasty oak, cinnamon, and plum nose. Plum with a savoury finish, but seems to drop off fairly suddenly. Plenty of tannins left, but they have eased back a bit since my last bottle a year, but I remember the finish was bett...

The Chateau Lagrange 2003 is a pretty nice drink. I had a bottle around June and have two more in the cellars. Not sure how long it will cellar for though, so I am planning to drink my remaining bottles over the two to three years. It cost the same here in Japan, around USD35 , 4,200yen or AUD45 The...

Max, I thought I would start a new thread with this. If you love Rieslings, you might want to check out some of the Austrian Rieslings. I found the Austrian Rieslings to slot in somewhere between the sweeter German Rieslings backed up of lots of acid with an appley nose and the steely, minerally Aus...

Max,

I'm at work now, so I will PM you after dinner tonight with details about some of the Rieslings that I like and the winemakers' contact details. I need to dig up some TNs and TVs that I took.

Cheers,

Raymond

G'day Max, Thanks for the welcome back. Been very quiet for quite a while because of work and a 3-week holiday in Austria, Southern Germany and a couple of days in Strasbourg. I did post a few messages on the UK Wine Forum a couple of months ago. I got in a couple of days of visiting some cellar doo...

I had a bottle of Schubert Pinot Noir 2003 last night at a friend's birthday party. It had a slightly confected cherry nose. On the palate, it was velvety with soft tannins. This bottle tasted better than one that I had late last year when there were hints of bitter dark chocolate on the palate. Som...

Thanks for taking up the time to write this up. I have some of the 2004 Glaetzer wines in my cellar. I had a bottle of Bishop 2004 last weekend while I was watching the Tri-Nations match between the ABs and the Boks on TV. I found it a lovely drink with loads of fruit on the nose (dark berries and b...