It's still Monday in Houston
but here's a few recent notes, some of which are from airport lounges and planes, so maybe not ideal conditions for showing well. Some real exceptions though to that rule, especially the Cullen SSB below!
Hubert Lamy Chassagne-Montrachet La Goujonne, 1999, Lovely deep crimson centre with quite a meaty nose. Initially a redcurrant and red cherry fruit spectrum, guided by soft smooth tannins, crisp duck-fat cutting acidity and a long long savoury silky red and black cherry finish, ending with slightly dusty cheeks and dried teeth. Improved throughout the night, the fruit depth gaining in intensity and the silkiness really coming out. A real understated power here! Not cheap but probably the best red burg I have had to date, although to be fair, in this context it’s a copiously large-sized shark in a rather small puddle.
Picardy Shiraz, 2005, Didn’t really give this on the concentration it deserved. Just a gorgeous savoury fruit forward wine that coats the mouth forever in rich dark brambly fruit with a long long finish. Just exquisite and an absolute bargain at $20.
Grosset Rockwood Vineyard Riesling, 2006, restrained nose, gentle lemon flavours, with soft rounded acidity. A quaffable drink now proposition but not as acidic and full bodied as I like my Aussie riesling. This is an airline specific wine I think.
Moet and Chandon Brut Imperial NV, bready, yeasty nose; soft lemon and lots of warm bread in the mouth but with a strange watery hole in the mid-palate. Comes back with a moderately short lemon finish. Nicely textured mousse but this and the nose are all that are really of interest in this wine. A tad disappointing.
Heemskirk Chardonnay, 2006, very pale yellow, almost young Oz riesling-esque in some ways. Again a restrained nose with just a touch of vanilla and flint. Tropical fruit palate, peaches and guava maybe along with vanillary roundness. Pineapple to finish, soft rounded and on the low acid side.
Storton Vineyards Eden Valley Riesling, 2006, Shy lemony nose with a touch of honey. Soft, mild sour lemony fruit. Seemingly a little flat. Not much in the way of acidity here, quite rounded in fact for a dry Oz riesling. Maybe this had been open a while?
Di Fabio Bush Vine Shiraz, 2003, Again not much on the nose, perhaps I am having a bad nose day! Palate here is in a very oaky place right now. Decent blackberry and plummy fruit with good depth but overprinted by creamy, vanillary oak. There’s a slight alcohol burn on the finish too, but it was served too warm.
Sexton Tarraford Vineyard Chardonnay, 2004, Pale yellow with a touch of gold. Creamy oak and vanilla nose. Rockmelon, guava and passionfruit with creamy vanilla and soft, rounded acidity. Quite long, clean and well made, but just not my style.
Charles Hiedsieck Brut Reserve NV, good breadiness with excellent mousse and mouthfeel; reasonable length. Way better than the Moet above but not close to a recent 03 Mise en Cave from the same producer (shorter and less fruit depth).
Cullen Mangan Semillon Sauvignon Blanc, 2006, Just a stunner! I am no fan of many Margs SSB or SBS, finding them way too tropical fruity and lacking in acidity, but this is in another class altogether. Gorgeous palate, crisp initially with lemon, herbs and grass, lovely acidity slightly rounded. Full bodied fruit palate without being plump, great length with just a touch of honey on the finish. I have been very impressed with the few MR whites I have had from the 06 vintage and some of these others were SSB/SBS too!
Stonier’s Pinot Noir, 2005, Pinot pale pinky red colour with a slightly herby nose. Palate of tinned strawberries and bright savoury red cherries, but the finish is unfortunately a tad cough linctus like, which kinda spoilt this for me.
Henschke Johann’s Garden, GSM, 2005, full of plummy goodness, definitely dominated by grenache. Not at all sweet, the fruit is quite savoury in fact. Soft tannins. A real herbal streak running through this but in a very pleasant way. Again though, not really my style, just lacking summat which I can’t quite put my finger on. Very slight alcohol burn on the finish.
Bouchard Beaune Clos Saint Landry, 1999, golden yellow colour. Shy nose, perhaps with a touch of butter and honey. Rounded tropical fruit, melon and peach integrated well with butter and a real shot of nuttiness. Lovely rounded creamy palate finish with moderate length. Can’t see this getting any better – drink up, but yummy! Great with hot plate chicken cooked over an open wood fire. Good for a bin end at US$20.
Drouhin Saint Veran, 2005, much tighter than the above wine and paler, although still a decent yellow but not golden. Distinct thyme and lemon nose. Lemon and a touch of honey in the mouth, with reasonable acidity and length and a slightly dry mouthgrip finish; again a good food wine. Might develop a bit more over the next couple of years but very pleasant right now and a comparative bargain at US$13.
Cheers
Dave
