Weekly Drinking Reports commencing 27/1/2013

[dlo]

I am leaving Canberra later this morning to relocate my daughter to St.Ives in Sydney, so I've kicked off this week's report segment at an ungodly hour before I return to the Land of Nod.

With Rachel turning 21 earlier in the week, we opened some very nice bottles to celebrate her birthday, unfortunately a couple did not quite perform up to scratch -

Seppelt Drumborg Riesling 2004 - Stunning! The best dry Oz riesling I've opened for months. Exceptional bouquet and palate that screams pure class with an intensity that boggled the brain. Still amazingly fresh and youthful but with amazing reserves of florals, citrus and a deft minerality. Unrelenting persistence at the back end. 95

Tyrrell's HVD Semillon 2004 - festooned with trophies and medals, this is just a pup. Terrific infantile grassy/soapy/limey fruit with heaps of well integrated cutting mineral-tinged acidity and wonderful length. Huge potential and a very satisfying as a pre-dinner drink. My last bottle was softer and more developed. Weird as both were under screw cap. If all bottles were like this I'd leave it for at least 5 years. 91+ Expect a much higher score with time.

Trimbach Cuvee Frederic Emile 350th Anniversary Commemorative Riesling 2001 - advancing colour development compared to the last bottle but still a very good/excellent bottle but certainly not outstanding, let alone, great. Lovely "Trimbach" nose and a perplexing palate but just either a little closed down or not up to the lofty standards expected. That makes 2 in a row that have not performed up to the mark set by my first two bottles. 88

Georges Mugneret Ruchottes-Chambertin 1996 - Brooding and somewhat feral on the nose (possible minor brett spoilage) but with some attractive gamy/earthy/cherry fruit lurking underneath. The palate's better, all in all I was somewhat disappointed with where this is now with the oak a little heavy and overt vintage acidity poking out. Just good to very good and for this generally excellent producer and a grand cru label, a big fail from me - 82.

Wynn's Black Label Cabernet 2004 - an absolute cracker redolent with varietal blackcurrant, plum, black olive and classy regional red earth and mint with slowly emerging cigar box character later on. Well worth cellaring for another 10+ years. It's not a "big wine" but is beautifully balanced and so easy to drink. 92+

Domaine Duroche Charmes-Chambertin 2002 - Fail! Another very poor bottle from this producer. Like some variable bottles of their Chambertin of the same vintage, this was hardly up to village standard - dirty duckpond and lacklustre dilute palate. Avoid. 52 or 2 out of 50, if you want the complete handle on how I rate it.

Hope you've got something to report - even if it's just a list or a brief description to keep this thread alive and kicking.

Thanks if you can help.

Postscript - Tuesday morning - back home after two days of continual, solid rain in Sydney - not good weather for moving Rachel into her new home in Sydney which is perched on the side of a scenic but steep hill with many,many steps of pretty ordinary concrete construction. Drove home yesterday afternoon in torrential rain until we hit Canberra which is a little damp, but avoided the utter deluge that others further north have experienced, with only 14mm in our rain gauge since we left.

[Luke W]

Nothing from 1992?

[ticklenow1]

2005 Pondalowie Shiraz Viogner. Bendigo. Screwcap. Nice wine with the colour still bright and looking very youthful. Silky smooth tannins and lots of Blackcurrant and spice and while the Viogner component is hardly detectable on the nose, it has integrated well on the palate to leave a well balanced wine where the oak is in the background. I wouldn't let it sit too much longer if you have any. 3/5

2004 Zema Estate Cabernet. Coonawarra. Lovely medium bodied aged Coonawarra Cabernet. Cork was perfect and the colour is starting to show some age, though only just. Black fruits, tobacco and just a touch of oak. Really nice wine that surprised me quite a bit by how nice it was. All present really enjoyed it. Should hold for a couple more years at least. 3.5/5

2010 Rock Ferry Pinot Noir. Bendigo, Central Otago. 13.5%. Screwcap. Thought I'd buy a few different Pinots after enjoying a couple of Mornington Peninsula examples recently. Whilst this is no barnstormer, it was a pleasant drink. I'm no Pinot expert but I've enjoyed the softness they seem to exhibit. While I'd still prefer a nice Barossa Grenache or Shiraz, Pinot is a nice change for me and seems to be a little easier to drink in the hot weather. This was fruit forward and the oak is only minimal and has been well put together. A little rough around the edges (probably the tannins showing), but it did improve after a couple of hours in the glass and for what I paid, I'm not complaining at all. As with the other Pinots I've been drinking, I love the nose probably more than the palate. I would really like to try a nice Burgundy some day to see what all the fuss is about. 3/5

2009 Noon Twelve Bells. Grenache. McLaren Vale. 15.5%. Screwcap. I will say it again, this wine is my best VFM wine I have in the cellar. The high alcohol doesn't show at all, and shows that if the balance is right, the alcohol won't be an issue. A real fruit bomb with minimal oak and slightly chalky tannins that give the wine a real nice almost chewy texture. Quite long on the finish for a $10 wine it just delivers an uncomplicated, lovely wine. Probably the best Twelve bells since the '06 model. Went quite well with a slighty spicy Gnocchi Calebrese. 3.5/5

Cheers
Ian

[Panda 9D]

2007 Ovid (Napa Valley) - I think it's something like 45% Cab Sav, 35% Cab Franc and the rest in Merlot with a few percent Petit Verdot. One of those Michel Rolland wines that WA gives huge scores to. Nose had a range of purple fruits, violets and pen ink. The palate matched for the most part and had a long finish. A good wine, no two ways about it.. but just not very interesting to me.

2009 Dr. Heidemanns-Bergweiler Bernkasteler alte Badstube am Doctorberg Riesling Spatlese - Petrol and white flowers on the nose, sweet apple, stone fruit and a nice fizzy acidity on the palate. Long enough finish.. nice stuff. Better on the second day (petrol calmed down on the nose and introduced more fruit).

2009 Le Carillon du Chateau Rouget (Pomerol) - Dark fruits, violets and earth on the nose that, over time introduced a savory tomato soup smell that I like in wine. The palate had nice powerful fruit and minerality but started to fall down after 5 hours or so. By coincidence, Rolland consults for this wine too (he's everywhere).

2000 Clavelier et Fils (Vosne Romanee) - Nice mix of savoury and sweet fruity notes on the nose.. none of which I can remember (late in the night). It was a really nice wine though... I think it's only available in Japan anyway.. but the 2000s shouldn't always be avoided.

[Chuck]

Many good every day quaffers while on hoidays at Port Elliot.

McWilliams 1997 Eden valley Riesling. Never knew they were in EV. Amazingly fresh and almost chardonnay like.

Leabrook Estate 2008 Adelaide Hills Chardonnay. Not bad.

Mount Horrocks 2006 Clare Valley Cabernet. Very good drop that improved with breathing.

Pewsey Vale 2002 Eden Valley Riesling. Fresh and good juice.

Aldgate Ridge NV Adelaide Hill Sparkling PC. Good blush of Pinot with a touch of sweetness.

Aldgate Ridge 2006 Adelaide Hill Pinot Noir. A little rough on opening but quite pleasant after a few hours breathing. These guys are selling out all stock so jump in if you want some. Pinots back to 2004 available.

Leabrook Estate 2010 Pinot Gris. The first Gris I've liked.

One more day here and the liver will be given the holiday it deserves.

Carl

[monghead]

2012 Mesh Riesling
Crisp limes, and lemon pith, tight seering acidity. Good Good.

2009 Ata Rangi Crimson Pinot Noir
Perfumed, vibrant, perhaps even a little aggressive. Satisfying, but a little hot on the finish. Solid Good.

Cheers,

Monghead.

[Waiters Friend]

Stephen George Clare Valley Riesling 2007. A stunning riesling quite possibly at its peak. No kero or oiliness, but at the tipping point between young fruit and acid, and honeyed maturity.

[sjw_11]

Pooley Wines Pinot Gris 2012... Clean, pleasant wine without particular length or complexity. Perfectly fine summer drinking.

Hugh Hamilton "The Floozie" Rose 2011... Sangiovese based. Very dry, French style rose - only a light pink hue. The nose is very attractive a mix of red berries and musk sticks, but the palate I feel could do with just a hint more sweetness (not a criticism I often make of rose!)

Petaluma Hanlin Hill Riesling 2012... Terrific juice, like limes on acid, so crisp, clean and refreshing but with great line and length. Enjoyable now and clearly has the back bone to cellar well.

D'arenberg "Laughing Magpie" Shiraz Viognier 2002... Cork. Better than the last bottle I had of this, the viognier now playing very much a supporting role in the back palate with any more youthful apricoty-ness having resolved itself. Complex and balanced wine with lovely depth. Drinking very well now but will clearly hold to allow drinking over the next couple of years.

[Michael R]

2010 Shadowfax Chardonnay Macedon...had a few of these, really like it, nutty, buttered toast, not huge oak influence but a nice drying balance to the finish.

2010 Savaterre Chardonnay Beechworth...big wine, monstered the Dog Point Chardonnay that we had afterwards. Liked it but unsure of the price point ($65)

02 Deutchske Oscar Semmler Shiraz Barossa...despite several challenges with 02 Barossa Shiraz, this is wine is a beauty. My second bottle in last 6 months (again in perfect condition..thanks Mark W) and its showing all the Barossa goodness you could want, without heat, without any element poking out its annoying head, just a balanced, smooth, lovely wine that had a little rustic tannin on the finish. Drinking superbly now, with a 2 hour decant. Easily one of the best Barossa wines i have ever had.

[jimbob47]

Rockfords Black Shiraz - Latest Release. Amazing! It was so vibrant with a wonderful lingering finish. I wish I had more.

Joseph d'Elena Pinot Grigio 2012- Apples and Pear- Lovely and crisp.. fantastic drinking on a hot day

2006 Groom Shiraz- A lovely example of a Barossa Shiraz. Big bold notes typical of the region with a bit of class on the palate.

[cuttlefish]

Di Giorgio Francesco Cab Sauv 2002
Had some real oyster shell aroma on opening. Fleshed out in the decanter with nice even chalky tannins and some cassis aromas. Drinking well.
Willespie SSB 2000
These can be hit and miss with some being oxidized (natural cork closure), but this was a good-un'
Full bodied palate (14% alc) and we polished this off pretty quickly.
Beckworth Pinot Noir 2010
12.5% alc from memory. This was a really pleasant surprise. Struck me as a little like some King Valley Pinot that I've tasted in the past. Cool climate characteristics, I guess. Mucho cherry. Nice wine. I thought at first it was more a "dry red" than a pinot, but it became very Pinot-like the more I went back to it. $20, apparently.
Sinclair of Scotsburn Pinot Noir 2008
Like the above wine, this is a Ballarat producer. This is looking good also. At $20 a bottle I think this is good value as well.

[cuttlefish]

I'm (obviously) feeling inspired:
Hugo Cab Sauv 2006
Looked a bit ho hum at first, but got all bitumeny. Very like bitumen in fact. Ok wine. Half left for looking at tomorrow.
D'Arenberg Derelict Vineyard Grenache 2003
Sweet sweet American oak here. Floral. Sweet dry earth. Maybe strawberry/raspberry-like fruit profile, but a nicely weighted palate. Overall a bit simple, but not a bad wine to blow out the cobwebs.

This winery must be a leader in McLaren Vale for Grenache based wines, and this ain't bad, for (virtually) their entry-level. The back label is inspiring. I would hope they hold true and deliver this wine from the same vineyard in vintages since and hence.
Cf.

[Matt]

Nannup Ridge Cab Sav 2011
Wow - amazing example of WA Cabernet. So approachable right now with mulberry, cassis and nice gravelley tannins. Oak is immediately noticeable however integrates well into a satisfying finish. Bruce Dukes take a bow!
I would love to see this in 8-10 years. Allan, being the greater WA advocate, you must try. Recommended.
Cheers

[damonpeyo]

Leeuwin Estate Art Series Margaret River Cabernet Sauvignon 2004

Decanted for hour in decanter, fantastic. Very refreshing and open red fruit bouquets. Seriously fine and lovely drop, second bottle opened out of 4 I have, plenty of years ahead.

Love this wine went great with aged vintage cheddar.

[monghead]

Wynn's Black Label Cabernet 2004 - an absolute cracker redolent with varietal blackcurrant, plum, black olive and classy regional red earth and mint with slowly emerging cigar box character later on. Well worth cellaring for another 10+ years. It's not a "big wine" but is beautifully balanced and so easy to drink. 92+

Great, just retrieved one of these from the cellar amongst other things. Looking forward to it.

Monghead.

[Craig(NZ)]

2004 Neudorf Moutere Chardonnay. In a great place, ready but by no means more than middle age. Lots of focused grapefruit and lemon citrus with nougat creaminess. Very stylish with a killer texture. Exceptionally stylish.

1998 Saltrams No 1 Shiraz. Another wine just drinking so well. Chocolate milk on the nose, creaming with deep black confectionary fruit. Palate is concentrated with lots of cascading black fruits and vanilla. Another really really good shiraz that continues a bit of a revival for me!

2005 Puriri Hills Reserve, I love this wine and have drunk this vintage many times but occasionally you get a bottle that is a bit off. Unfortunately this is one of them. The usually barely detectable levels of Brett were quite pronounced in this bottle, also showing a touch of tomato leaf. Lovely classy texture and structure, but the flavours in this bottle are a quite odd. Most people really loved it but I was a bit disappointed. The 2008 and 2010 vintages of this wine are a lot more pure

Edit. Day 2 left overs of the PH a lot better....you can never definitively critique a wine!!!

[rednut]

2005 Kilikanoon Prophecy Shiraz
Oh I love a foil top and a cork, this one's been in the wine fridge for quite some time. Had to make room for the Rockfords...hehe
Lovely wine, smooth even though touches in at 15% alc. Quite earthy fragrance and very deep red in colour.
Best one of these I've had for a while and I get them every year, not even climbing the cork yet. I love my fridge.

[Craig(NZ)]

Postscript - Tuesday morning - back home after two days of continual, solid rain in Sydney - not good weather for moving Rachel into her new home in Sydney which is perched on the side of a scenic but steep hill with many,many steps of pretty ordinary concrete construction. Drove home yesterday afternoon in torrential rain until we hit Canberra which is a little damp, but avoided the utter deluge that others further north have experienced, with only 14mm in our rain gauge since we left.

12mls of rain for the year so far in Auckland. Waiheke is no doubt even less. Crossing fingers for another 2010! Things are very very dry!

[Peter NZ]

Most impressive wines from the relatively small number I managed to get through at the public tasting at Pinot 2013 (event was far too crowded, & with limited ability to spit, to get through more than 10 – 15 or so of the 100 or so producers pouring their wines):

Bell Hill, 2009 & 2010: both incredibly complex & with long lives in front of them. (Marcel noted that he’d recently opened the ’04, & that it’s still pretty tight.)

Pyramid Valley, 2010 Angel Flower & Earth Smoke

Kusuda, 2010 & 2008

Martinborough, 2010 & Marie Zelie 2008 (latter particularly impressive, but $170 … )

Mt Difficulty 2010 & Long Gully 2010 & 2003

Fromm 2010 Brancott (weren’t pouring the Fromm or Clayvin, but if they’re a step-up from this they’ll be pretty special).

Rippon Tinkers Field 2009

Also tasted, but wouldn’t read anything into the wines not standing out on the day in the circumstances: Felton Road 2011 Block 3 & Block 5, Quartz Reef 2011 ‘regular’& Bendigo Estate, Ata Rangi 2011, Escarpment 2011 ‘regular’ & Kupe (latter had the most obviously drying tannins of anything on the day), Pegasus Bay 2010 & 2011, Cambridge Road, 2009 & 2010.

And just the one wine I’d positively not recommend: Dry River 2010 – just don’t get this – doesn’t taste anything like Pinot …

Other wines over the past week or 2:

Dry River Syrah 2009: disjointed & not at all impressive on 1st night, but had finally come together as a very good wine 3 nights later, so won’t return to this for a few years.

Villa Maria Cellar Selection Syrah 2009: in contrast, drinking very well on 1st night, but had really stepped up to be a top example of HB Syrah a week later (stored in refrigerator in between). Occasionally crops up at very sharp prices in the supermarket, so will be looking to pick some up for the cellar.

Telmo Rodriguez ‘El Transistor’ Verdejo 2009 (Rueda). On initial taste, not much to it – minerally, sour finish & short . But a totally different wine after pouring through an aerator – full bodied, full of tropical fruit & long. Impressive.

Dr Loosen Erdener Treppchen Kabinett 2010. Really enjoyed this – acid / sugar balance just right for me, with plenty of flavor & length.

Auburn Bendigo 2012. Noticeably sweeter than the Loosen – think spatlese rather than kabinett, & say Mosel ’11 rather than ’10 – but a heap of flavour, length & potential here.

Cheers
Peter