26th to 30th Oct

[monghead]

Well for me, everyday is a weekend for a month, but I guess I will post here as I go.

What are you guys up to?

Monghead.

[griff]

Bon Voyage!

Looking forward to the tasting (and food) notes

Last night was a 2006 Graeme Miller Wines Dixons Creek Estate Chardonnay
Burnished yellow gold. Spicy french oak and lemon on the nose. Old school Meursault lookalike with salted butter and beurre bosc pears framed in fine wood. Finishes with some lingering lemon butter then tightens up nicely. In the wrong hands this style can be flabby but this wine walks the line admirably. Excellent wine. Can be drunk on its own but deserves food.

cheers

Carl

[Luke W]

A couple of interesting wines this week

1999 Lakes Folly Cabernets -beautiful, elegant, full of anise and berries, beautifully balanced
1998 Orlando St Hugo - lots of lovely fruit, beautiful aroma of berries and balanced nicely
1991 Tollana TR16 Hermitage - what a surprise - initially brick to brown colour with pretty poor nose but it had something that stopped me throwing it out (shame about the 1994 Thomas Hardy that went that way on Sunday) and then the strangest thing happened - the wine blossomed into a swan over about an hour. It had lost a bit of fruit but otherwise was solid with some nice features and balance.
2007 Thorn Clarke Merlot - quite nice, lots of fruit, easy to drink and leaves you wanting more.

cheers

Luke

[Steve]

2009 Petaluma Hanlin Hill Riesling.

Despite having monumental hay fever I can tell that this wine has a very intense citrus and floral nose. It's long in the mouth, with loads of lemon and lime and mouth puckering acidity that hangs around forever (and so does the fruit). It's a very young, very clean wine with good fruit and acid and no discernible residual sugar and very pleasant to drink. I like it a lot, and no doubt I'll like it more when I regain the ability to taste and smell properly!

[Nayan]

Dinner with a couple of friends last night. We got through:

Drappier Rose NV - dosage a bit high and fruit a bit ripe for me (as always with Drappier), but enjoyable drinking.
Some youngish white burg whose name escapes me at the moment - show hints of POX
1982 Pontet Canet - Elegant old Claret. A touch foresquare though.
2001 Charvin Chateauneuf du Pape - Very high toned on opening, but blossomed over the course of a couple of hours. Lovely
2004 Klein Constantia - Vin de Constance - Very, very good

[monghead]

2002 Tahon de Tobelos Riserva- Good.

I know, we are in France and a Spanish wine??? The restaurant was Spanish...

Cheers,

Monghead.

[bacchaebabe]

98 Torbreck The Steading Opened up a bit dull and I thought it may be past it. Oliver suggests drinking by 06 I think so I was a bit worried however it bloomed in the glass revealing mulberries, plums and a dash of spice. Might decant the next bottle but I'd suggest these are well and truly in their window and should be drunk soonish. 91

[monghead]

NV Taillevent Champagne- Very Good
1996 Domaine G Roumier Bonnes Mares- Out Of Control Good. TN to follow in monthly 96 thread.

Monghead.

[TiggerK]

Ah sounds like you enjoyed Taillevent then... Nice one monghead, it's an experience I will never forget..... And I suspect you too.

Cheers
TiggerK

[monghead]

Ah sounds like you enjoyed Taillevent then... Nice one monghead, it's an experience I will never forget..... And I suspect you too.

Cheers
TiggerK

Yes, Taillevent was sensational, but really not an out of this world experience. Sydney fine diners like Aria, Guillaume, Rockpool, Est, Pier, Marque, etc are comparable I think. Perhaps the service is certainly a notch up, however, the food is not all orgasmic.

We paid 750 Euro for that meal...

Makes me realise how lucky we are to live in a great foodie city like Sydney.

Monghead.

[monghead]

Humbler times tonight, with a couple of Aussies...

2007 Epis Pinot Noir- Super Sexy Good
2006 Pegasus Bay Pinot Noir- Solid Good

Monghead.

[seddo]

O'Leary Walker Clare/Mclaren vale Shiraz 06 deep red/purple colour on first taste - loganberrys and cinnamon - developed very nicely into a full bodied luscious red - highly recommended - if you can find some must try the 07


cheers
Seddo

[daz]

O'Leary Walker Clare/Mclaren vale Shiraz 06 deep red/purple colour on first taste - loganberrys and cinnamon - developed very nicely into a full bodied luscious red - highly recommended - if you can find some must try the 07


cheers
Seddo

I've had several bottles of this label, forget which vintage/s but it is a very good value wine, perhaps lives a bit in the shadow of Thorne-Clark Shotfire and Hardy Pepperjack but I reckon it's better than the latter at least - of course, of those I've tried.

Cheers

daz

[jeremy]

2007 Devil's Lair Chardonnay- Grapefruit, white peach, almond meal & toasty oak. Nice line, good length but a touch tinny on the finish. Enjoyable.

[TiggerK]

Had a Bordeaux tasting at L'Etoile last night...

Wines on offer (in order of ascending price) were...

2008 Chateau De Fontenille Blanc - Aromatic and well balanced Sav/Sem/Muscadelle. Lots of stonefruit and good acid balance.
2008 Chateau Sainte Marie Vielles Vignes Blanc - Similar to Fontenille but a bit more intense, touch of spice/pepper on finish.
2006 Chateau Martinon Bordeaux Superior - 75% Merlot, round, decent fruit, OK value, but not great.
2005 Chateau Saint Christoly, Cru Bourgeois, Medoc - 55% Cab Sav. A touch hot, but nice rich fruit and easy to drink for a 2005.
2001 Chateau Tour du Haut Moulin, Cru Bourgeois, Haut Medoc - 50% Sab Sav. A great value quality Bordeaux with some nice aged character. Elegant.
2006 Chateau Du Covenant, Pomerol - 70% Merlot. Rounder style thanks to the Merlot, soft tannins, OK fruit, a bit pricey for a quaffer though!
2005 Chateau Patris, Grand Cru St Emillon - 90% Merlot. Solid wine, needs more time. Fine but strong tannins, lovely velvety fruit weight. Most enjoyable.
2005 Chateau Gaudin, Cru Bourgeois, Paulliac - 85% Cab Sav. OK wine from a little known producer. More of an early drinker, very good fruit.
2004 Chateau Grand-Puy Ducasse, 5th Growth, Paulliac - 60% Cab Sav. Nice nose, subtle tannins, mid weight overall with good mouthfeel. More time.
1998 Chateau Ferriere, 3rd Growth, Margaux - 80% Cab Sav. This is a tasty wine. Violet and perfumed nose, elegant, balanced and fine tannins. Medium body.
2000 Chateau Lagrange, 3rd Growth, St Julien - 66% Sab Sav. My WOTN. Coffee and rich berry nose, full bodied cassis/black fruit taste with long finish. Love to try in 10-20yrs.
1998 Chateau Grand Mayne, Grand Cru, St Emillon - 75% Merlot. Another excellent wine, complex palate and starting to show some age. Long finish.
1996 Domaine de Chevalier, Classed Growth, Pessac Leognan - Great aged characters, dark colour, but not ultra rich, more elegant and complete, with tannins still grippy but helping the lovely mouthfeel. Would love to try a bottle with a meal.

Plus a couple of Sauternes..
2007 Chateau Gravas Sauternes - 80% Sem. Still a pup, needing much time. Not the usual intensity I'm used to with Oz dessert wines, just more subtle.
1998 Chateau D’Arche Sauternes - 90% Sem. Again not the fruit bomb like a Noble 1, but a delicious elegant sweet wine with caramel and anise notes.

So as you can tell from my basic attempts at notes, I'm a true Bordeaux novice, so no scores! But it was a great introduction to some wines from the area, spanning prices from 30 to 230AU. Being introduced to wines via rich Aussie Shiraz, Chardonnay and also NZ Pinots, it's quite a marked difference going down the Bordeaux path. It's hard to see good value in most of the wines given our nasty import taxes, but when they're good, you certainly know it! I'm looking forward to trying something top shelf one day....

Enjoyed dinner at L'Etoile afterwards too.
Gosset Champagne Excellence Brut - Very good indeed, well balanced overall, needed a bigger glass...!
2007 Vouvray Pichot - Chenin Blanc from Loire Valley - too busy talking and eating (superb scallop boudin blanc), but was enjoyable.
2006 Ferraton Crozes-Hermitage - Rhone V Syrah - lighter style, good food wine, so different to an Oz Shiraz!

Met some great people too, good night out.

Cheers everyone.
TiggerK

[monghead]

1999 Pommery Louis Champagne- Solid Good
2002 Rousseau Mazy Chambertin- Uncontrollably Good

Guy Savoy Paris- OMG strap me down GOOD.

Monghead.

[Bick]

Your Bordeaux tasting sounds great TiggerK.

Over the past week or so, I've had a few fine wines:
Millton Opou Vineyard Chardonnay 05 - surprisingly developed (golden) but showing good tangy life nonetheless
Felton Road Riesling 07 - omg, this is always so good
Greenhough Hope Vineyard Riesling 06 - a decent wine, but looking a bit weak next to the Felton

and left to the last, as it stands out as one of the best wines I've had this year:-
Concha Y Toro Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon 05 - absolutely splendid; an exercise in understated concentration and balance. This retails for around $85, but its worth every penny. Enjoyed as an anniversary wine (married in 05)

[Craig(NZ)]

Felton Road Riesling 07 - omg, this is always so good

funny i nearly opened one of those tonight but settled on a 04 Peg Bay Riesling. Very concentrated will be long lived, tight green apple and white peach with hints of dark honey, malt and marmalade. good stuff.

[Michael R]

Hi Bick and Craig

your comments have got me craving an Otago riesling.
The Felton is awesome, normally prefer less residual sugar but its too damn tasty. Cant find it many places here (Oz), also struggling to find Carrick riesling (my favourite).
Thinking about having a crack at an 08 Muddy Waters Dry riesling tonight, not Otago obviously, however i've heard good reports.

[Nayan]

Hi Bick and Craig

your comments have got me craving an Otago riesling.
The Felton is awesome, normally prefer less residual sugar but its too damn tasty. Cant find it many places here (Oz), also struggling to find Carrick riesling (my favourite).
Thinking about having a crack at an 08 Muddy Waters Dry riesling tonight, not Otago obviously, however i've heard good reports.

Michael,

See if you can find the Prophet's Rock Rizza; the 06 was very impressive. On par with a Donhoff Kabinett, IMO (which I know is a very big call...)

[Wayno]

Steingarten 07- awesome - love this wine year after year.

[Bick]

Hi Bick and Craig.... your comments have got me craving an Otago riesling ....Thinking about having a crack at an 08 Muddy Waters Dry riesling tonight, not Otago obviously, however i've heard good reports.

Of course, Craig's Pegasus Bay ain't Otago either, Micheal, its just down the road from Muddy Waters in Waipara; its a good alternative. muddy waters have started to make some fine riesling - the view is growing that an average waipara ries is generally better than an average otago one, and I wouldn't disagree. Of course, Felton Road isn't average! I've had the following waipara rieslings and they have all been very good to excellent:
Muddy Water, Waipara Springs Premo, Peg Bay (standard and dry), Camshorn classic
And two I'd like to try: Muddy Water James Hardwick, Black Estate

Wayno - I've struggled to get in to Aussie rieslings - soooo dry and acidic to me. Perhaps I need to try harder

[jeremy]

Steingarten 07- awesome - love this wine year after year.

Totally agree. 2007 is fantastic. I hear they are really working hard on the wine & want to make it even better & more site specific. Good news in my books.

2007 Red Hill Chardonnay- at $16 this was a steal. Grapefruit, peach, spice etc. Well balanced. Not as integrated or well structured as the 2007 Devil's Lair but a hell of a lot cheaper.

[burgster]

Not sure where this idea came from that Waipara riesling is better than Central. I've been very impressed by CO rieslings.

In fact each NZ region is capable of producing great rieslings, with the possible exception of HB, which I don't think has a real standout, and probably Auckland.

As a (very) rough guide I would rate Carrick and Bald Hills from Central, Peg Bay from Waipara, Forrest and Riverby from Marlborough, Neudorf and Brightwater from Nelson, Palliser and Dry River from Martinborough and Milton from Gisborne. There are a few others of course.

[Wayno]

Steingarten 07- awesome - love this wine year after year.

Totally agree. 2007 is fantastic. I hear they are really working hard on the wine & want to make it even better & more site specific. Good news in my books.

I actually rate this wine on the same tier as Grosset (and similar) and it is interestingly quite a bit cheaper. The 02 and 05 are my recent favourites, the 05 especially a great, focussed wine.

[bacchaebabe]

07 Brookland Valley Verse 1 Cabernet Merlot. Specifically bought to try to see if I should get more. I really liked this. Very easy drinking style with good varietal definiton. Cedar, pencil shavings, blackerries with good depth and structure. Easy drinker now but will improve and gain further depth and complexity for five years easy. If you can get it cheap, it's certainly going to be one of those star quaffers in a few years. 92

[Aaron Lovett]

2009 WE2 Chardonnay- aka $1.99 Cleanskin. After the impressive effort from the previous vintage, the 2009 vintage is somewhat of a let down. A quick twist of the screwcap, and splash in the glass reveals a brillant medium straw hue, with hints of green. The palate is where this starts to go downhill. There is an initial burst of grapefruit and lemon, that leads to a ripe, sweet finish which is over the top. Perhaps it needs to settle in bottle for a little longer, or it may be a product of the microclimate of South East Australia. Drink it cold if you must.

[Michael R]

Thanks for the tips Guys

Never even heard of the Prophets Rock Rizza, sounds like a must try (if i can find it).
Maybe its the increasing sunshine, but all i want to drink these days is Riesling .
Btw; Was delighted to see i've managed to squeeze into the Felton Block mailing list this year, looking forward to giving them a crack, heard great things on the Chardonnay.

Also agree on the Steingarten goodness, only tried a couple of random bottles but would love more.
My favourite Aussie is the Henshke Julius from the Eden Valley.
Mike (Bick) if you're going to give one a go, try this. It is drier than Otago, but very consistent and beautifully balanced. Knocks my socks off every time.

Apologies to all for hijacking the thread to rant about Riesling!