Right, what are we/you drinking now .. tonight

[Ian S]

2012 Hauner Salina Rosso - a Nero d'Avola / Nerello Mascalese blend from the island of Salina, just off the coast of Sicily. Light to medium bodied, wonderfully silky, rhubarb and prune on the nose, savoury cherry with a twist of herb, a twinge of acid and grip hold things up. Nice wine for immediate consumption.

Keep an eye out for their inexpensive 'Hiera' red, a nicely spicy 'volcanic' red.

[phillisc]

2014 Chalkers Crossing C2 Hilltops Shiraz...can see why this wine cleaned up with 5 trophies at the recent Sydney show. Fruit, oak, acid and tannins all seamless...and yes its a very good wine if I might say a little clinical. Good fruit structure, quite cool on the palate with medium weight. Good VFM at around $25
Will have a look at another one next year
Cheers
Craig

PS. Michael thanks for the note on the Bondar Violet Hour Shiraz...seems we concur.

[rens]

2005 Voyager Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot: Classic dusty Margaret River nose. Juicy red fruit on the palate with cigar box, mocha and hints of vanilla bean. The tannins are still their supporting it all into a lengthy finish. My kind of Cabernet. Didn't need much convincing when my wife asked if it was OK to open on a school night. JO said to drink this one by about 2017, but I recon it will hold for another 5 under screw cap and if cellared carefully-After 4 hours it started to fade.

[rooman]

2005 Voyager Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot: Classic dusty Margaret River nose. Juicy red fruit on the palate with cigar box, mocha and hints of vanilla bean. The tannins are still their supporting it all into a lengthy finish. My kind of Cabernet. Didn't need much convincing when my wife asked if it was OK to open on a school night. JO said to drink this one by about 2017, but I recon it will hold for another 5 under screw cap and if cellared carefully-After 4 hours it started to fade.

It is interesting that JO has the window at 2017. Most of the other windows for this wine go out another decade and based on that I have experienced with the 98,99 and 01, there is no rush to open them. The first two are only just coming into their own.

[rens]

2005 Voyager Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot: Classic dusty Margaret River nose. Juicy red fruit on the palate with cigar box, mocha and hints of vanilla bean. The tannins are still their supporting it all into a lengthy finish. My kind of Cabernet. Didn't need much convincing when my wife asked if it was OK to open on a school night. JO said to drink this one by about 2017, but I recon it will hold for another 5 under screw cap and if cellared carefully-After 4 hours it started to fade.

It is interesting that JO has the window at 2017. Most of the other windows for this wine go out another decade and based on that I have experienced with the 98,99 and 01, there is no rush to open them. The first two are only just coming into their own.

Yes. Rated it 95 drink 2013-2017+.
At that 4 hour mark it started to loose its linearity, if you get what I'm saying and the acid fell over a bit.

The 2007 19-27
The 2008 28-38
The 2009 21-29

I think on the 05 he got it a little wrong(make of the '+' what you will), I think it can go to 2021 and be on the decline after that.

[rens]

Just went over to the Winefront and GW agrees with me

[rooman]

Just went over to the Winefront and GW agrees with me

Tens I didn't think you'd made a mistake on the JO drinking window, I was more surprised that JO thought it would only extend out to around 2017. I'd thought 2005 was good in MR so based on Voyager CMs I have tried they all seem to need close to 20.

Separately I found a Voyager Shiraz 1999 in a box the other day which I'd completely overlooked. I was expecting it to have faded. Instead I was stunned. The wine was superb in almost a Hermitage style, savoury and complex. One of my favourites of the year. Total left field surprise.

[JamieBahrain]

Ferraton Cote Rotie 2000- Limiations of the vintage as the wine is loaded with leathery notes amongst spiced, smoky dark fruits and a whole bunch/ viognier influence. Good quaffer.

88pts

[rooman]

Lakes Folly Cabernet 2003. Open for business, ultra soft tannins, red fruit and most enjoyable. I doubt however it will last much longer so if you have any and haven't tried it yet, time to begin.

[JamieBahrain]

I opted for a simple claret to watch the footy last night 1990 Duluc, St-Julien Beychevelle is the second wine of Branarie Ducru and though a simple affair, with high tone ribena like fruit with seemingly high acidity due little tannins left, it was very appropriate.

With a stunning victory I completed the night, unplanned, with a big glass of 1996 Domaine Esmonin G-V/Clos St Jacques which was super in victory and entering a perfect drinking window.

[Matt@5453]

I opted for a simple claret to watch the footy last night 1990 Duluc, St-Julien Beychevelle is the second wine of Branarie Ducru and though a simple affair, with high tone ribena like fruit with seemingly high acidity due little tannins left, it was very appropriate.

With a stunning victory I completed the night

A great win by the Bulldogs, you had every right to celebrate the win!

[WAwineguy]

1998 Vega-Sicilia Unico
1995 Chateau Latour

What a choice!

Two sublime wines, but so very different in their own way.

While it is difficult to go past the fabulous richness of the Latour, I will go out on a limb here and say that the Vega-Sicilia, with its pure silkiness, is quite definitely the best bottle of wine I have ever tasted!

[Hacker]

2005 Rockford BP. Rich, plummy, concentrated, hard to see it getting better than this. But very little acid to give it much structure. I notice this in many Barossa shiraz I drink, and am wondering if I am falling out of love with the region. Palate evolution perhaps?

[Hacker]

a big glass of 1996 Domaine Esmonin G-V/Clos St Jacques which was super in victory and entering a perfect drinking window.

Yum! Probably my favourite vineyard.

[dave vino]

I love that photo Hacker!!

[Matt@5453]

2016 Grosset Springvale Riesling, Clare Valley

Was nice to open a bottle and sip my way through it. Gorgeous wine, so approachable now. I might have to head back to the cellar door for a few more!

2009 Tim Adams Shiraz, Clare Valley

Popped and poured. Took some time to open up in the glass but showing a nice combination of mulberry, blackberry and blackcurrants fruits, with some spice and milk chocolate. The fruit is well supported by a good dose of American Oak. The palate is velvety with good tannin structure, overall the palate feels and tastes savoury. The finish is nice. no hurry on this one, well stored bottles should have another 5-10 years left in them. Very good wine. Great with braised beef cheeks.

[Redback]

2004 Voyager Estate Cabernet Merlot

Label states 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot with 2 years in French oak, 50% new and 50% 2 yrs old. 14.2% alcohol.

Twelves years later this is clearly in its drinking window. A balanced wine with bit of blackcurrant and mocha. A good example of a Margaret River Cab and certainly a good drink now. I am not sure if this will be improve with further time but I will probably crack open my last bottle from this vintage in say 3 years.

[deejay81]

2000 McWilliam's Mount Pleasant Wines Elizabeth
Bright, vibrant straw/hay colour, showing very little signs of aging. Cork broke in two, but still a decent condition cork. Bees wax, honey lemon on nose.
Acidity has mellowed but it still has citrus, ripe lemon and honey some waxiness and lanolin in this. Medium plus finish.
This was a very good bottle, and thoroughly enjoyed the wine. Peak drinking now. Last bottle unfortunately, but if I could find more in a similar condition, this would probably hold at its peak for another 3-5 years. 92pts

2007 Ridge Lytton Springs
Decanted for an hour to breathe and remove sediment. Cork was in pristine condition. Dark red/purple with no visible signs of age. Lots of red fruit on the nose with some earthiness and leather.
Taste is similar to the nose, with very well integrated oak, and a good amount of acidity putting everything together. If I drank this blind, I would have thought a ten year old Hunter Shiraz. Finish was long and kept my mouth watering for more. Vacuum sealed the bottle and left in the fridge for the next day and still delicious. I can't wait to open the next bottle and will look for more to purchase. 93pts

[Mike Hawkins]

Dinner at a mate's place..... He and I are the TCA kings when we get together, but this time the wines were fabulous

2004 Taittinger CdC... Absolutely superb. One of the best bottles so far, albeit an infant. Millions of peaches.... Nuts and citus nose as well. It had the trademark minerality with sweet fruit core. Not far off the 2002 and 1996 qualitatively

1990 Henschke Mt Edelstone... Even better than the Comtes. Probably the best bottle of this vintage I've ever had. Perfect combination of fragrant fruit, malty oak and acid. ever changing nose and palate that went on and on and on. It kept rocking baby. Hard to imagine it could get better though it will hold for years based on the history of the 82 and 86.

1996 Rockford Basket Press...... Really good but a schoolboy amongst men. Quite primary still - the youngest tasting bottle for a while - and seemed a tad one dimensional. Dont get me wrong, this is a very good wine. The other 2 were miles better...

[Rory]

2006 Main Ridge Half Acre Pinot Noir (Screwcap)

A great year for Pinot on the Peninsula.
The usual highish level of VA I find in the Half Acre is there, but far more subdued on the nose, giving beautifully elegant aromas. The palate does shoe a little of the VA on the end, but overall the wine is elegant and sexy with silky tannins and ample finish.
Drinking very well indeed, will hold for many years yet.

[Cloth Ears]

2009 Lethbridge Dr Nadeson Riesling
Very pale yellow, showing little age compared to when I first tasted. Very fruity nose again with little to no hint of 7 years in the bottle. Taste was a wonderful combination of fruit but with very little perceived sweetness and no particular acidity. Methinks this may go on to turn a very dark yellow colour prior to it reaching its peak. Tasted almost exactly the same after 24 hours in the door of the fridge.

2008 Anderson Cellar Block Petit Verdot
Very dark crimson(?) colour, almost impossible to really see unless with a very small pour. Lacked much in the way of an appreciable nose, even after a couple of hours in the decanter - delicate, perfumed, almost pinot-like. It did pick up later in the day, with lots of dark fruit on the nose, but still a little light compared to other grapes I have known. Taste was immediately on you, lots of fine tannin there, presaging a fine dark-fruit melange set to fight it's way through and a long, lingering after taste that meant the sips were well-spaced (oh, yum). Very little survived to be tasted the next day, and it was even better...

2010 Ducks in a Row Straight Up Mataro
Another dark wine this time, but with a more forward nose. Still perfumed but with lots of fruit (cherries and plums?) that seemed to have been sitting in the dirt somewhat. Taste was very tannic, but with lots of the same red, earthy fruits as indicated by the smell. Both this and the Petit Verdot were loved by all the family, but no consensus was reached - it depended which one you were currently tasting. Myself and Mrs CE really enjoyed what remained of this one the next day, with the tannin a little ameliorated, the fruit stood out even more...

1938 Kopke Colheita Port (believed bottled after 50 years)
Quite a dark, sherry-like colour and very clear. Quite a strong nose, with mixed peel, sultana, currant and some fresh citrus along with a little alcohol. At first the taste was redolent of an aged sherry or madeira, and was remarkably fresh. Lots of dried fruit and dried, candied citrus zest with some woody spices. Nicely balanced acidity and a very pleasant mouthfeel. Some toffee/caramel and maybe even a hint of chocolate towards the end. To be honest, after having tasted Seppeltsfield 100YO, I was not expecting this of a 50YO bottled tawny, but it was extremely nice. I'm going to have to visit my father a couple more times to assist him with this...

[maybs]

2010 Moorabool Estate Paradise IV Dardel Shiraz

Nose has a bit of dunk on opening, which blows off after maybe 20 minutes. It leaves behind purple fruit, purple flowers, a hint of graphite, some slight damp leafy undergrowth, brambles, meatiness. Page is ripe purple fruit, some blue fruit undertones. Medium weight palate, fine tannin, good acid keeping it clean and fresh. Maybe a smidge one dimensional on the palate being heavily fruit dominant, but might just be too primary. Quite enjoyable.

[Redback]

2013 Kay Brothers Basket Pressed Grenache -Bit of raspberry with a touch of sweetness on the finish. Not confectionary, just nice.

[Rory]

2001 Ten Minutes by Tractor Reserve Pinot Noir.
If I am correct, this is before they started breaking up the wins into seperate vineyards? (Judd, Wallis, etc.)
A mature Pinot drinking extremely well, beautifull sweet fruit/oak aromas and flavours wrapped around smooth tannins and excellent length. One of the best 15 year old Peninsula Pinot's I've had the pleasure to drink. Stunning.

1996 Reynella Basket Press Cabernet Sauvignon. Wow. Power & elegance in one. Opened big and bold, settled with air time into long elegance. Many years left in the tank.

[Chuck]

When in the USA we like to try Argentinian Malbacs that are plentiful here. We tried the 2013 BODEGA RUCA MALEN MALBEC a few nights ago and it was very approachable and delicious. Plenty of black fruits that I just love and agreeable tannins and modest oak. Medium bodied and will improve modestly over the next 2-3 years. At around USD18 it was great value so we enjoyed a couple more over the next few nights. A great pop and pour wine. Those Argentinians and their Malbecs are a force to be reckoned with in the sub A$25 bracket. Tried some cheap (US$20-US$35) Bordeaux (Merlot predominantly) in-store (thin and insipid) and they weren't a patch on the Malbecs.

Carl

[Matt@5453]

A bit of a catch up on a few wines:

2014 Bondar Wines, Violet Hour Shiraz, McLaren Vale
Confirming a couple of previous notes on here; a very good medium bodied shiraz, delivering style and elegance. The use of older oak is a feature of this wine, it is very well balanced with the fruit. Very good wine. Glad I tried it.

2013 Wynns, V&A Lane, Shiraz, Coonawarra
This divided my wife and I. She really enjoyed it, but I felt it was very ‘thin’ and lacking any substance. This is the first time I have tried it, I don’t think this will ever amount to anything, avoid in my view. I would say the white label is on par with this wine.

2013 Ngeringa, Nebbiolo, Adelaide Hills
From memory, there is only a barrel or two produced of this wine if the fruit sets well. 2013 was a good but not great vintage from where the fruit was sourced. After decanting for about 2 hours it really opened up. A lovely perfumed nose showing rose, tar, spice and a touch of earth. The palate whilst enjoyable was lacking a bit of length, there was a hint of dusty tannin on the finish. Overall, an enjoyable, well rounded out wine but won’t ever be a block buster.

2015 Rieslingfreak No. 3, Clare Valley
The fruit for this wine is sourced just north of Clare. This wine is drinking magnificently at the moment, a great balance of slight acidity, but a limely citrus blend with florals and perhaps a light blush of pineapple. A long lingering finish. Don’t serve too cold, just lovely. Well played.

2014 Taylors Wines, Jaraman, Chardonnay, Clare Valley + Adelaide Hills
Drinking superbly, a fine chardonnay blending the best of the Clare Valley and Adelaide Hills. A complex and multilayered wine showing white peach, stonefruits, minerals and fine grained French oak. No oak monster here, it is well balanced. A crowd pleaser. Again don’t serve too cold.

[deejay81]

2013 Taylors Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Parcel, Clare Valley

Clear, Dark purple, unevolved colour. Dark fruits with some tobacco and mushroom on the nose. Similar taste profile, but with the fruit very primary and a little bit of oak. Seemed like a pretty simple, but not too crappy wine. Finish was medium minus at best. 85pts

[Redback]

2006 Yalumba The Signature
An excellent wine that at 10 years, stills shows plenty of fruit but with some complexity. Oak has integrated with the wine, and tasting a lot better than a 2006 I had a couple of years back. Cork was in a excellent condition, so no rush needed for those lucky enough to have any bottles from this vintage. Unfortunately this was my last bottle and will have to wait a few years before approaching my '12's.

[Mike Hawkins]

[quote="sch5252]
2015 Rieslingfreak No. 3, Clare Valley
The fruit for this wine is sourced just north of Clare. This wine is drinking magnificently at the moment, a great balance of slight acidity, but a limely citrus blend with florals and perhaps a light blush of pineapple. A long lingering finish. Don’t serve too cold, just lovely. Well played..[/quote]

I had this yesterday for the first time...absolutely loved it, especially at the price.

[JamieBahrain]

Cos was on song again ( though I'm never moved by BDX ) though the Sass wasn't- classic Sass aromatics though a little too tertiary on the palate and I've seen a fresher bottle recently!

Haunting vintage of Rivesaltes in a historical context.