Sunday and its March already.....

[TORB]

Hi Good Peoples,

You all know the drill. Please let us all know what you have been drinking over the past week. Notes, vibes and impressions all welcome.

[dlo]

We started our somewhat casual dinner party on Friday night with a superb bottle of 2000 Mount Mary Chardonnay (93 points). Still only a light but very bright gold colour with a dazzling bouquet harbouring ground meal, grilled nuts, wood spice and bacon fat under lovely fig, melon and peach fruit. A refined and sophisticated palate reveals impressive substance with plenty of fruit as per the nose interwoven with a steely vein of minerality and perfectly-judged acid and subservient mealy oak providing wonderful support as this terrific white glides through the mouth. Hellishly long departure. Well-kept bottles could hold for another 3-5 years.

Next, we opened a super bottle of 1983 Chateau Leoville-Poyferre. Without a doubt, a wine biting at the heels of the wonderful Ch. Palmer and Ch. Margaux from the same vintage. Holding a deep ruby core with a garnet and amber-tinged perimeter, this top St. Julien opened with a fair swag of barnyard on the nose that dissipaated relatively quickly to reveal a gorgeous cornucopia of currants, dark plums, licorice, damp earth, Provencale herbs, tobacco leaf and spice box. In the mouth, this beauty reveals a plump, generous personality, copious quantities of fruit as mentioned in the bouquet with melting soft tannins, a deft touch of newish wood, low acidity and a long, soft cuddly finish. Definitely drinking at the peak of its powers but seeing it held so well in the glass for several hours, one must conclude this glorious wine should drink well for another five, possibly up to ten years. 93 points for this one, too.

Lastly, we decided to crack an old vintage port - Campbell's (of Rutherglen) 1976 Shiraz. Another cracker. Ancient mahagony brown colour but amazingly fresh and alive on both nose and palate. Full of blackberry licquer, licorice, boot polish, lantana and sweet earth, this fortified displayed the requisite balance between sweetness and astrigency with a little lift from the very fine, clean brandy spirit. Luscious and rounded with extraordinary length, this wonderful VP should hold for some time but don't expect further improvement. And yes, you guessed it, 93 points from me, once again!

Otherwise a veritable "alcohol free zone" here for the past several weeks. My doctors will be ohso happy!

[Bick]

Verve Clicquot Grande Dame '98 - Very nice. Fine citrous flavours, some bready character, quite fresh - went down very nicely with smoked salmon and cream cheese crackers.

[jeremy]

Pauletts Polish Hill Reisling 2008- lovely wine, not too austere to be really enjoyed now but suspect it could find a place in the cellar. Can see why its gotten some raves.

Leo Buring Eden Valley Reisling 1997- right up my alley. The faintest hint of kero, orange zest and honeyed characteristics (had all of these at Era, so notes just from memory). Could even go another two years.

Picardy Pinot Noir 2005- awesome wine even if you aren't considering bang for buck. Complex, structured, long. Will be drinking a lot more Picardy in the future.

Maritime Pinot Gris 2005 (MP)- a near 4 year old Gris, suprisingly reticent on the nose but certainly filled out in that time on the palate. If you don't like Gris, I doubt this one will change your mind. I enjoyed it for what it is. A slightly sweet simple pleasure.

Cheers everyone and happy drinking.

[ross67]

Noon winery: High Noon rose 2007- Wasn't what i expected....no sweetness at all/very dry and wow too much ABV 15% i think...it just seemed to hit you way too hard too quickly for that style of wine. Could not finish bottle. - 82 pts

Blackbilly Mclaren Vale 2006 Shiraz: Given this on Friday morning.Drank this last night at a steakhouse on the Gold Coast. Typical ripe blackfruits rich style of wine without being overdone....pretty good for around $18: -89 pts

ross

[jeremy]

ross67 says

Noon winery: High Noon rose 2007- Wasn't what i expected....no sweetness at all/very dry and wow too much ABV 15% i think...it just seemed to hit you way too hard too quickly for that style of wine. Could not finish bottle. - 82 pts

Wow, that is some hefty ABV for a rose. Agree not really appropriate for a rose IMHO. Still, I ain't the winemaker, so if that's what he was after...

[Wayno]

Pirramimma Grenache 2004
Good, slightly developed with overtones of char and tobacco, although still all strung up and pretty with red fruits and oak. No boiled lollies here.

Kalleske Pirathon Shiraz 2006
Gloriously mouthcoating, rich, full of oak and soft tannin, chocolatey, blackcurrant, the whole Barossa shebang. Delicious but perhaps a one dimensional (but a great dimension!)

Yalumba Signature 2004
Excellent and provided a telling contrast with the Pirathon - a complete, well balanced wine - a classic Australian style; reminded me a little of the Bin 389 96 in it's approach and style although much younger obviously. Destined for good things.

[Bick]

Kalleske Pirathon Shiraz 2006
Gloriously mouthcoating, rich, full of oak and soft tannin, chocolatey, blackcurrant, the whole Barossa shebang. Delicious but perhaps a one dimensional (but a great dimension!)

I thought the 06 was nice but a bit too oaky and therefore less well balanced than the 05 - how would you compare the two?

[Wayno]

I agree the 05 is better - that is/was a bloody excellent wine and astounding value - I do think the 06 is a little more on the loud side but it's still within my tolerance and all things in context of course.

[Mike Hawkins]

Andrew and Rebecca Jordan were in town, so we pulled a few corks and also hit Eleven Madison Park, IMO the best restaurant in NYC.

1991 Katnook Cabernet - this was exactly what one would hope a Coonawarra cabernet from a good year would look like. Excellent.

2002 Kaesler Old Bastard Shiraz - still very primary, but not as 'in your face' as I expected.

1989 Leoville Barton - nose and palate of olive tapenade. Based on this showing I'd say drink up over the next 5 years.

2003 (disg) Rockford Black Shiraz - a little more earth and mushroom than the last bottle. Pretty good.

1996 Lanson Champagne - the fruit had left this bottle and it was an acid mouthwash sadly.

2001 Trimbach Frederic Emile Riesling - I love this wine. Must have gone through a dozen bottles in the past 6 months. Floral, citrussy and a long, dry finish. Plenty of life left.

1991 Penfolds Bin 707 - lots of developed characteristics including tobacco, cedar and a hint of olives. Long future in front of it.

2006 Penfolds Bin 389 - gone before I got a glass.

2005 Godolphin Amon Ra - I only got one glass and it was pretty cold, so the nose was muted. This wine has a lovely velvetty mouthfeel.

2002 Wolf Blass Black Label - nice wine, but yet to develop much complexity. Not as oaky as I had feared.

2001 Lindemans Limestone Ridge x 3 - while not the best vintage, this is a super wine for the giveaway prices on offer in NYC.

[Craig(NZ)]

07 Te Mata Estate Coleraine
07 Te Mata Estate Awatea
08 Te Mata Estate Cape Crest Sauvignon Blanc
08 Te Mata Estate Zara Viognier
07 Te Mata Estate Elston Chardonnay
08 Stonecroft Gewurztraminer
07 Stonecroft Syrah
07 Stonecroft Old Vine Chardonnay
06 Unison Selection
07 Unison Classic
06 Unison Syrah
07 Unison Syrah
06 Craggy Range Block 14 Syrah
07 Scared Hill Riflemans Chardonnay
06 Escarpment Voyager Pinot Noir
03 Carrick Pinot Noir

among others...you know where to go for the notes (Te Mata already posted, the rest this week)

[griff]

On Tuesday went with a friend and Rebecca to Bistro Felix in Subiaco for byo night. Great food and rare value in Perth.

2001 Beaucastel Chateauneuf du Pape blanc
Deep yellow gold colour. Intruiging nose that drifted in and out of focus. Oxidative honey and smoke. Waxy, viscous palate that was very pithy which finished slightly bitter. Very spicy and savoury. Came alive with food. Not sure how to rate this one. Not even sure if I enjoyed it (although the other two liked it) but was certainly very interesting and I need to try more to get a handle on the style.

2005 Vieux Telegraphe Chateauneuf du Pape rouge
Mark red of light intensity. Opened a little oxidised but freshened up in the decanter over a couple of hours. By the time we started drinking it it had a very young but elegant cherry nose and palate with firm tannin. Very impressive purity. Should develop into a table lifting wine in a decade or two.

A few other wines this week included a 2006 Upper Reach Shiraz You can take the wine out of Swan Valley but you can't take Swan valley out of the wine. Intense red and quite classy but has that strained Swan Valley character. Also a super-charged 2005 Wolf Blass Grey Label Shiraz which was intense and really quite good with Kangaroo steak sandwiches.

cheers

Carl

[steady]

Maglieri Shiraz 1998
This won a gold medal back in the day and I can see why. Distinctive aged red colouration. Leather and fruit cake on the nose. Smooth on the palate. Drinking perfectly now and I doubt will get any better.

[pcjm]

Printhie 2006 Pinot Noir Orange - Cherries and strawberries, a bit too much sweetness for me, easy drinking with home made pizza

[Wayno]

Penfolds Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon 2003
Of all the wines to discover in our cellar, of all the vintages to discover. What was I thinking? Was it a mini 02-03-04 vertical or something? Hardly an inspiring discovery but the wine wasn't all that bad really - a bit short and bitter but an abundance of creamy oak texture, quite fruit-lifted and some effective varietal leafiness. I doubt it will be roaring in the long haul but it was a fine enough barbeque accompaniment and exhuded enough class to warrant an overall tick.

[monghead]

Hi all,

2004 Grant Burge GSM- Not too bad at all, nice and savoury.
2008 Leeuwin Estate Siblings Sauvignon Blanc Semillon- Too grassy and herbaceous for me, good crisp citrus acidity though.
2006 Granite Hills Riesling- Excellent. Loved the strong presence of lime.

Cheers,

Monghead.

[jeremy]

Granite Hills is one to watch IMHO. Well spotted monghead.

[Bick]

08 Te Mata Estate Zara Viognier

Craig, has their viognier been "promoted" from being only in the woodthorpe range to full Te Mata range, then - and have they done anything different in the fruit selection / wine-making? I'm quite excited about the prospect of a new Te Mata wine...

[Sharkey]

This week was my father's 70th birthday, so we had a dinner on Saturday night.

2003 Oakvale Gold Rock Verdelho - This bottle had escaped my attention in the cellar and I was expecting it to be past it's best. Surpisingly it was sensational. One of the best whites I have had for a while. Very complex wine with great mouthfeel and a long finish. Sort of like drinking liquid marmalade with a bit of musk and rose-hip in the mix. Wish I had a couple more bottles of this.

1990 Orlando Lawsons Shiraz - Had a slightly musty smell when first opened but that blew after after half an hour. This was nowwhere near as good as I was expecting it to be so I suspect it was mild cork taint.

2002 Bullers Colliope Durif - Loads of tannin that covers the 16% alcohol. Not a bad wine but I suspect it is in an awkward stage of development.

2002 Peter Leahman Clancys blend - Clancy's is a regular in my cellar and every now and then I let a bottle or two age beyond the normal drinking time for them. This one at 7 years old was really good. A $10 bottle of wine that has been well cellared and it stood up to the previous, more fancied bottles.

1939 Seppelts Para Port - The highlight of the night. Smoooth and lingering with no sign of hitting the age limit. I have another bottle that I was going to open for my Dad's 75th but this will last a lot longer than that for sure. Sensational stuff.

[Craig(NZ)]

Craig, has their viognier been "promoted" from being only in the woodthorpe range to full Te Mata range, then - and have they done anything different in the fruit selection / wine-making? I'm quite excited about the prospect of a new Te Mata wine...

you know me, i fall asleep when it comes to the technical side. all i can say is it is a big step up on previous vintages. hell i even bought a couple - the first ever viognier i have bought - ever!!

[Partagas]

1991 Seppelt Great Western Shiraz – wow factor. This was extremely light just about see through in colour so I didn’t think it would have much bight. The nose immediately sent that idea packing. Great savoury liquorice with a hint of spice. The palette was magnificent, aged characters strangely hid behind a rich tannin acid mix (but not disjointed) that seemed to keep it a bit youthful before a very long finish. Outstanding.

1996 Penfolds 389 – this is the third bottle from different batches I have tried of this icon. This is the first that seemed to be “normal”. Rich yes, balanced yes, still travelling the journey yes, but is it wow? For me it was very good but not great. Granted though, it does need an extremely long time to open up and is not finished yet.

2005 Penfolds 389 – really enjoyed this a lot. Rich luscious cabernet came jumping out of the glass on the nose and palette. Fine Balance all round that had nothing unattractive about it. Agree with all good things said about this and I would guess this is going to be an absolute corker in years to come. Is already.

1996 Penfolds 407 – gone

2004 Penfolds 407 – another great wine that I immensely enjoyed. Very full bodied with great fruit weight and powdery tannins. Needs more time I believe to hit its mark properly but is outstanding all round. All the talk about 407’s price is interesting. If this is what they are consistently producing (granted though good year), then it deserves to be around the late 30’s rrp.

2000 Katnook cab sav – this was only just alright for me. Lots of aged characters merged but nothing really special about it. In fact if anything it was slightly overcooked. Drink em yesterday.

[bacchaebabe]

Didn't think we'd had too much wine lately but have just realised we have got through a few bottles. Just back from a holiday in Hawaii so cocktails have been featuring more prominently lately.

05 Cloudy Bay Savignon Blanc Obviously this should have been drunk about four years ago however it has actually aged nicely. The big hit of passionfruit up front is no longer evident but it has been replaced with a more luscious honeyed texture and a passionfruit guava background. Quite enjoyable.

05 Rockford Alicante Bouchet So I'm finding all these leftovers from dozens I had bought a few years ago and didn't finish in the summer of purchase. Another one that had mellowed nicely with the big slap in the face of primary fruit freshness gone leaving a deeper richer flavour behind. In this case more in the strawberry spectrum with a hint of orange and cherries. I really enjoyed it but my dining companions weren't so impressed. Horses for courses I guess.

NV Moet & Chandon Brut Quite a nice fresh and lively example. Clean honey notes and fine bead made for easy drinking. Went surprisingly well with fresh mexican dips and corn chips.

98 Dalwhinnie Shiraz Fine mature example of this shiraz. The first of my six pack. No mad hurry to drink this but it's certainly in the window. I enjoyed this rather than worrying about notes but there was a deep seated blackberry core to this. Well rounded and finished with smooth well resolved tannins. Elegant wine. Also went surprisingly well with a mild mexican burrito.

01 Gramps Cabernet Savignon Another nicely matured wine. Didn't pay too much attention to this other than being surprised at how good it was for a relative cheapie. Very mellow and easy to drink.

[Roscoe]

Two inexpensive Cab Merlots:
Brookland Valley Verse 1 2007
Started off somewhat green and mean. After a couple of days the blackcurrants started to come through to balance the herbaceous characters. I think it will come around in a couple of years, and drink well at least for a couple after that. My other half was quite keen on it on its fourth day:!:
Good drinking at around $11-12.
Smith & Hooper Wrattonbully 2006
Riper and with less obvious varietal characters than the BV. Reasonable depth and balance. OK, but somewhat uninteresting.

[jeremy]

Thanks for the TNs on BVV 2007 Cab Merlot Roscoe. I've almost bought a bottle a number of times. At the price and with a bit more info now, I reckon I will grab a bottle.

Cheers

[Daryl Douglas]

2002 Peter Leahman Clancys blend - Clancy's is a regular in my cellar and every now and then I let a bottle or two age beyond the normal drinking time for them. This one at 7 years old was really good. A $10 bottle of wine that has been well cellared and it stood up to the previous, more fancied bottles.

I had a number of bottles when it was on the barn's shelves, thought it very good, it had a distinct chocolate character but may have diminished with age.

Cheers

daz

[Mahmoud Ali]

At a Saturday dinner party:

2005 Chateau Montelena, Napa Valley Chardonnay,
1998 Barwang, Hilltops Chardonnay,
2001 Chanson, Bourgogne Passtoutegrain
1975 CVNE, Rioja, Vina Real Grande Reserva
2003 Perrin et Fils, Chateauneuf du Pape 'les Sinard'
1999 Kendal Jackson, Great Estates, Alexander Valley Cabernet
1999 Zenato, Valpollicella 'Ripassa'
1971 Jacob Filcher Erben, Rheingau, Kiedriecher Sandgrub Riesling Auslese,
1986 Warre's Late Bottled Vintage Port

The Montelena was Chablis-like, dry, and austere in the finish. The Barwang was showing its age, golden-yellow in colour, rich and buttery with a long complex finish--very much alive and perfect with the seafood soup.

The Burgundy was a bit light, somewhat dried-out and tired. The '75 Rioja was a delight, a wonderful example of an old grand reserva, mature, warm, sweet oak, and a silky finish, quite a match with roasted duck.

The Chateauneuf was still young, closed and tight while the Kendall Jackson was a bit of puzzle for me. Despite others at the table liking it I felt it was disjointed, fruity and intense yet hot. I don't know how it will develop with time.

The Zenato was a last minute substitution. I had been planning to open a '93 Maurice O'Shea but found the '99 Ripassa while rummaging through the cellar and decided to give it a go as it was one of my partner's favourite. It was good, had lots of fruit and ripe tannic structure but still quite backwards with many years ahead of it.

Both desert wines were excellent, examples of the magic of cellaring. The '71 Riesling was fully mature, golden, ripe, rich and intense. The 86 Warre's was rich and intense, full of fruit and tannins. Despite being an LBV this wine could still stand some more cellaring.

An excellent evening of food and wine.

Oh yes, we finished off with a sampling of 1992 Glen Scotia 16 year old and Laphroig Quarter Cask.

Cheers.....................Mahmoud.

[ufo]

This week was my father's 70th birthday, so we had a dinner on Saturday night.

2003 Oakvale Gold Rock Verdelho - This bottle had escaped my attention in the cellar and I was expecting it to be past it's best. Surpisingly it was sensational. One of the best whites I have had for a while. Very complex wine with great mouthfeel and a long finish. Sort of like drinking liquid marmalade with a bit of musk and rose-hip in the mix. Wish I had a couple more bottles of this.

1990 Orlando Lawsons Shiraz - Had a slightly musty smell when first opened but that blew after after half an hour. This was nowwhere near as good as I was expecting it to be so I suspect it was mild cork taint.

2002 Bullers Colliope Durif - Loads of tannin that covers the 16% alcohol. Not a bad wine but I suspect it is in an awkward stage of development.

2002 Peter Leahman Clancys blend - Clancy's is a regular in my cellar and every now and then I let a bottle or two age beyond the normal drinking time for them. This one at 7 years old was really good. A $10 bottle of wine that has been well cellared and it stood up to the previous, more fancied bottles.

1939 Seppelts Para Port - The highlight of the night. Smoooth and lingering with no sign of hitting the age limit. I have another bottle that I was going to open for my Dad's 75th but this will last a lot longer than that for sure. Sensational stuff.

What do you think the drinking window for Bullers Durif is ?

[rooman]

Normally I would only touch a SSB if it was the middle of the day, the temp was over 30C and I had freshly steamed prawns and oysters in front of me. However when HH wrote up the Cape Mentelle Wallcliffe 2006 last month, I thought it might be time to give one a go.

From my limited experience of the stuff, this appears to be the only really serious attempt at producing a top flight SSB in Australia. Notes from the back label: indigenous yeast, partial malolactic fermentation, maturation in new and 1 year French oak. For a start, I have never heard of anyone doing that to a lcoal SSB (not that I have been looking). As to the wine, a pale lemon hue with a green apple minerality on the nose. For a 3 year SSB, I was totally unprepared for what was to come on the palate. Tightly coiled it has piercing length giving off quince, honeysuckle and lemon/citrus flavours over a mineral/slate like base. If I had more, I doubt I would open the next bottle for another 3-4 years and then would expect it to continue to develop for another 5 on top of it. Surely must be the best local example of a SSB currently produced in Australia. 93/100.

[griff]

Normally I would only touch a SSB if it was the middle of the day, the temp was over 30C and I had freshly steamed prawns and oysters in front of me. However when HH wrote up the Cape Mentelle Wallcliffe 2006 last month, I thought it might be time to give one a go.

From my limited experience of the stuff, this appears to be the only really serious attempt at producing a top flight SSB in Australia. Notes from the back label: indigenous yeast, partial malolactic fermentation, maturation in new and 1 year French oak. For a start, I have never heard of anyone doing that to a lcoal SSB (not that I have been looking). As to the wine, a pale lemon hue with a green apple minerality on the nose. For a 3 year SSB, I was totally unprepared for what was to come on the palate. Tightly coiled it has piercing length giving off quince, honeysuckle and lemon/citrus flavours over a mineral/slate like base. If I had more, I doubt I would open the next bottle for another 3-4 years and then would expect it to continue to develop for another 5 on top of it. Surely must be the best local example of a SSB currently produced in Australia. 93/100.

It is very good isn't it? I think the 2005 even better actually but only by a nose.

Check out Alkoomi Wandoo as another one of these worked styles.

Cullen's aren't too shabby either but the range is a little confusing for me and not quite as worked as those above.

cheers

Carl

[bacchaebabe]

I tried a Wallcliffe maybe two years ago. Can't remember the vintage but I do remember being quite impressed but was put off by the price which seemed excessive for a SSB at the time. I guess the treatment you've described justifies that price.