TN: An Auswine Tasting in Taylors Lakes

[mychurch]

Theme for this one was Pinot.

1991 Classic Clare Sparkling Shiraz, Leasingham
Served blind. We knew this was a sparkling red. Lovely complex nose, dark colour, with no real sign of aging. Bubbles were very slight though, so perhaps it is old. Palate is gorgeous with plenty of sweet red fruit, cloves and there is a nice savoury edge to the finish. Yum. From the options game I guessed Clare Valley, 2004, which was not bad. Coming back to retaste after the Pinots, it has unfurled and it’s another league in terms of complexity. The bubbles are gone and a lovely mature Shiraz is left behind. Great. Wine of the Day. 4.5*

2005 Reserve Pinot Noir, Bream Creek, Tasmania
Light colour and fairly translucent, this is showing signs of aging. Lots of rhubarb initially, but it opens up really well with Xmas cake, violets and camphor. Quite a steely structure and the finish long. Cork capsule, so it could come from Europe, but the acidity was probably the giveaway as its from Tasmania. Good wine. I have bought the sparkler from this house, but the Pinot can be added to the list. 3.5*

2009 Corton Grand Cru Cuvee Charlotte Dumay, Hospice de Beaune, Burgundy
My contribution. I double decanted this before I left the house and it seemed tight and young then. A few hours later and the nose was all over the place, with alcohol, acetone and some vegetal components. Changed a lot as the day progressed, but I don’t think any of us got any fruit. That was surprising in the mouth it was not bad. There was more structure than the previous wine and there was definitely a hardness to the wine and bit of tannin, but there was also some lovely cherry fruit lurking in the background. Maybe it needed more time to come around and could have done without the decant. Bit weird. 3*

2010 Pinot Noir, Curley Flat, Macedon Ranges, Victoria
First Pinot to show a bit of sunshine. Lots of strawberry on the nose. It’s a bit 1 dimensional to begin with, with just strawberries and vanilla but it relaxes in the glass and opens up into a round wine with a touch of herbs and a warm mouth feel. Definitely the best wine to drink now, this seems to be a wine at its peak. I guessed Yarra 2010-2020, but no, its an older Curly. Tasted a few vintages of this, and this is the best of them. Yum 3.5*

2011 Charmes-Chambertin, Olivier Bernstein, Burgundy
First smell of this and I though Con had brought a Natural wine in as a ringer. The nose had some almond laced fruit, but sticking out a proverbial mile was the yeasty smell of Lambic Bier, which I presume came from reduction. Much younger and richer than the rest, this had a weight of ferrous tinged cherry fruit that was above the other Pinots, but to me the yeasty nose continued to dominate in the mouth. It was structured as well with rounded ripe tannin. First thought was to California, but really I had no idea where it came from. This will go a while yet and although the Curley Flat was the one we thought was drinking the best, this was the 2nd bottle that was drunk up after the Shiraz. Yum 4*

2021 White Pinot, Curley Flat
I brought this along as a curio. Although its called a white Pinot, its actually a very light pink and could have been called a Rose. Very young of course, but it freshened up the palate after the reds. Bubblegum texture, creamy. Not bad, but nothing like a good pinot. 2.5*

NV Premium Fine Muscat, Bullers
Michael had a desert wine planned, but his wife made a really good dark chocolate cake for us and so this was brought out instead. From a Solera, it’s a lighter style of Muscat that actually reminded me of the Elysium Black Muscat from California. All the usual flavours – toffee, dates, caramel, orange. It went well with the cake, but to be honest I was still distracted by the Pinots and as there was a lot left over 2.5*

2010 St Nicholas Commandaria, Olympus Wineries
Just a small glass to finish. This was from a bottle that had been opened for a while and while there was some oxidation, you could make out the structure. Very tawny in style, with a lovely saline component. Nice, but need to try a pristine older bottle without the influence of so much alcohol. 2.5*

Summary
It may have been a Pinot day, but it was the Sparkler that ended up as the wine of the day. After a 23 bottle – 9 Person blow out in Nov, this worked a lot better as there was no need to rush onto the next bottle and there was enough time to see the wines develop. The Bernstein was the best of the Pinots, but if you like that lighter, more food friendly style, then the Bream Creek was the one for you.

Thanks to Micheal and his lovely wife Andrea for hosting.

Next get together will be end May/Start June in Melbourne for a Petaluma Vertical.

[mychurch]

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[I Love Shiraz]

It was a lovely afternoon with some delicious wine and even better company. Thanks for the tasting notes My Church.

[JDSJDS]

Lots of fond memories of the Leasingham Sparkling Shiraz and the Classic Clare shiraz. It's good to hear the 1991 sparkling is still in good shape.

[Con J]

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, how good are old Aussie reds.

I’ve drunk wine from some of the best producers and regions and can get the same pleasure from these humble old Aussie’s.

Cheers Con

[I Love Shiraz]

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, how good are old Aussie reds.

I’ve drunk wine from some of the best producers and regions and can get the same pleasure from these humble old Aussie’s.

Cheers Con

Totally agree Con.