Australia Day Drinking

[sjw_11]

Did anyone knock off anything decent over the weekend in honour of Aussie day?

I decided a few good Australian wines were the order of the day here in Singapore to celebrate Aus Day in absentia:

Vasse Felix "Heytsbury" Chardonnay 2010... Terrific wine. Creamy melon, some French oak character, good acidity, line and length, very powerful and focussed wine. Still quite green tinged despite a little bottle age. Will age very well over the next 3-5yrs I am certain. Wish I had some in the cellar.

Irvine "Grand" Merlot 2004... Deep cherry red. Intense nose of plums, with a hint of sugar/sweetness. The palatre carries that theme through, powerful and intense but just a fraction sugary. I am not convinced this will improve with much further age, with a distinct risk of it turning "porty".

Grosset "Polish Hill" Riesling 2013... Extremely intense and pure, crystalline lime fruit, wonderful acid backbone and finishing super crisp and refreshing. Delicious wine, very approachable as a young wine but I am sure this will age well as the structure is impeccable.

Elderton "Command" Shiraz 2002... Still deep red coloured, this has a classic Barossa nose in a slightly old-school fashion, with fair lashings of American oak, vanilla, cola characters, as well as deep plummy notes. The palate is intense, with relatively firm, gritty tannins. Very enjoyable wine. Probably unnecessary last night, but you only live once.

[Gavin Trott]

Well, a few, with friends, of course

French Bubbles:

· H.Lanvin & Fils Brut Epernay France 12.5 % alc

· Billicart-Salmon Brut Blanc de Blanc Mareuil-Suray France12 % alc

Aussie Bubbles:

· 2011 Luke Lambert Sparkling Chardonnay Yarra Valley Vic 12.5 % alc


The Sparkling Reds:

· August 2011 Disgorgement Rockford Black Shiraz BV 14.0 % alc

· 2010 disgorgement Flaxman NV sparkling Barossa Shiraz BV 14.5 % alc

· 1998 Seppelt Original Sparkling Shiraz 14 % alc Great Western Vic (possibly corked)

· 2005 Majella Sparkling Shiraz Coonawarra 14.0 % alc



The Whites:

· 2005 Pauletts Antonina Polish Hill River Riesling 12.5 % alc

· 2006 Heggies Chardonnay Eden Valley 13.5 % alc

· 2004 Peter Lehman Margaret Barossa Semillon 11.5 % alc BV



The Pinots:

· 2009 Argyle Willamette Valley Pinot Noir Oregon USA 14.0 % alc

· 2012 Super Nanny Central Otago Pinot Noir NZ 14.2 % alc


The other Reds:

· 2008 Clonakilla Shiraz Viognier Murrumbateman NSW 14 % alc

· 1980 Mildara Coonawarra Cabernet Shiraz Malbec 12.5 % alc

· 2006 Charles Melton Nine Popes Grenache Shiraz BV 14.5 % alc

· 2006 MAGNUM Pennys Hill McLaren Vale Shiraz 14.5 % Alc

· 2006 Langmeil Orphan Bank Shiraz BV 15.5 % Alc

· 2004 Ebenezer BV Shiraz (BVE) 14.5 % Alc

· 2004 Turkey Flat BV Shiraz 15.0 % Alc

· 2007 Hewitson Old Garden BV Mouve’dre 14.5 % Alc

· 2008 Spinifex Papillon BV Grenache, Cinsault, Mataro, Shiraz 13.8 % Alc

cleansing ale or two, the day was done, duly celbrated!

.

[Andrew Jordan]

Well, a few, with friends, of course

The Sparkling Reds:

· 1998 Seppelt Original Sparkling Shiraz 14 % alc Great Western Vic (possibly corked)

Gavin,

Pity about this bottle as would have loved to know your thoughts on drinking windows, etc. as I still have a few of these in the cellar.

Not as spectacular line up for us but with my Mum down from Brisbane managed to get through a few bottles:

Sparkling Reds
2009 Peter Lehmann Shiraz Black Queen
2011 Seppelt Shiraz Original Sparkling Great Western

Rose
2013 Noon Grenache High Noon

Whites
2013 Tahbilk Marsanne

Reds
2012 Noon Twelve Bells
2003 Howard Park Cabernet Sauvignon Leston
2007 Schubert Estate Shiraz Goose-yard Block
NV Sami-Odi Syrah Little Wine #2
2004 Wynns Coonawarra Estate Cabernet Sauvignon
2009 Seppelt Shiraz Chalambar

[via collins]

2012 Yabby Lake Single Block pinot noir - luxurious, deep dark-fruited pinot noir with length to sit back and marvel at really. Something earthy and wise going on here - vines reaching a happy middle age? Delicious, cut above.

2012 Fighting Gully Road "Aquila" - chardonnay/viognier/petit manseng blend - acidic and tangy, nice balance across the grapes, generous grapefruit and struck match from the chardonnay, and a blend to savour. At $25, tremendous value I reckon. Another Beechworth gem.

2012 Quilty Running Thread cabernet sauvignon - hazelnuts and dark chocolate, a slightly savoury exit, and lots of balanced stewed plum and dark fruits, I enjoyed this one a whole lot. It tasted a lot older than it's youthful age, and opened up another part of the Australian wine map to me - Cudgegong Valley on the edge of Mudgee.

2012 Crittenden Estate 'salud de txarkoli' - salty, tangy, fizzy and dry - exuberant wine for exuberant times, and a lot of fun to pour from great heights into wide-rimmed glasses that attempt to replicate a basque bar experience!

So yeah Sam, lots of terrific Australian wines for the celebratory weekend, I hadn't intended to wave the vinous flag for Oz, but very glad that I did!

Salut.

[Michael R]

Some recent bottles.
2011 Picardy Chardonnay (Pemberton..i think)
2011 Woodlands Chloe Chardonnay (Marg River)
2011 Luke Lambert Chardonnay (Yarra)

Very brief comments:
The Picardy being the pick of the 3. Smooth. Obviously very different to the Luke Lambert which was more acid driven (in a good way).
The Woodlands was frankly a bit disappointing, particularly for the price. Perhaps its in an awkward youthful phase, but didn’t show me enough to suggest I should buy more and wait. Very competitive in this price range ($50-$70), i'd buy Kumeu River every time.
Also showed a darker yellow/gold colour than expected, but no noticeable faults.

Cheers!

[phillisc]

Wynns 2001 Red Stripe (CSM) bit of a suprise here, still a lot of primary fruit, deep colour.
Palate well balanced and then comes through with a somewhat appealing dry metallic taste.
Gentle tannin and a sweet finish

Tollana 2000 Eden Valley Riesling. Goldern yellow, no kero, sweet and lemony.
little bit of acid, so easy to drink. Great for $7

Cheers
Craig.

[monghead]

Some recent bottles.
2011 Picardy Chardonnay (Pemberton..i think)
2011 Woodlands Chloe Chardonnay (Marg River)
2011 Luke Lambert Chardonnay (Yarra)

Very brief comments:
The Picardy being the pick of the 3. Smooth. Obviously very different to the Luke Lambert which was more acid driven (in a good way).
The Woodlands was frankly a bit disappointing, particularly for the price. Perhaps its in an awkward youthful phase, but didn’t show me enough to suggest I should buy more and wait. Very competitive in this price range ($50-$70), i'd buy Kumeu River every time.
Also showed a darker yellow/gold colour than expected, but no noticeable faults.

Cheers!

Sorry to hear about the Chloe mate...
Will have to make up for this tomorrow night...

[monghead]

2010 Pegasus Bay Pinot Noir

This is nowhere near as good as their Primadonna... Less stalky, less depth, falling off quite precipitously on the mid palate, and even though listed at a lower alcohol level, had more perceptible alcohol on the finish.

Just Good.