TN: AFWAC - Rockford new releases 30/11/2009

[n4sir]

Last Monday night the Adelaide Fine Wine Appreciation Club (AFWAC) staged the last of their monthly meetings for the year, with the latest vintages of Rockford (and one museum SVS wine):


2007 Rockford Eden Valley Riesling (cork): Pale straw colour. Already showing some aged characters on the bouquet with some toast/kerosene characters with the pithy/waxy citrus fruit. The palate’s lemony with some spice and ginger/citrus peel already, very slatey with a very dry/grippy finish with a touch of honey on the end. There are already signs it will dry out soon.

2009 Rockford Vine Vale Riesling (cork): Pale green/straw. Very fruity/yeasty and sweet, with some lychees and bluegum honey, some sultana and a touch of fennel; the entry’s softer compared to the previous wine, followed by brighter acid and juicy citrus, finishing dry with some sweet marmalade characters.

2005 Rockford Local Growers Semillon (cork): Dark straw/light yellow, maybe a hint of green there. The nose is fairly reserved and shut down at first, some petrichor/wet limestone, becoming perfumed, grassy and slightly nutty, some lanolin with breathing. The palate opens with bright citrus/lemon marmalade leading to a mineraly/slatey mid-palate, finishing long, tingly and mineraly. If it’s not on the edge of a flat spot it’s racing towards it, but there’s some life on the horizon unlike the 2004 last year – why do they hold these back so long?

2009 Rockford White Frontignac (screwcap): Very bright, pale green that’s almost colourless. Sweet and grapey and there’s still traces of sulphur, but there’s also some lemon zest/sherbet that adds interest; the palate’s more zingy with sweet lemony fruit and very good length. While it doesn’t quite have the degree of lively acid on the palate compared to a couple of years ago, it still has excellent balance and some lovely, sweet apple characters on the finish – the pick of the whites for me tonight.

2009 Rockford Alicante Bouchet (screwcap): Medium rose red, actually a little darker than I was expecting. The bouquet has rather unexpected funky/mushroom and meaty characters to go with the usual sweet cherries/strawberries this time; the palate seems disjointed and short, sweet Turkish delight characters leading to a very dry/phenolic mid-palate and finish. For what is usually a reliable wine, this vintage is a major disappointment – then again, going back over my notes I thought the 2007 was disappointing too.

2008 Rockford Frugal Farmer - Grenache Mataro fermented on Alicante skins (screwcap): Light, bright red. Lifted, funky nose with jammy raspberries, sweet musk/Turkish delight, sandshoes and a hint of the old stokers apron; the lightweight palate’s also lifted, steely and meaty with some slightly buttery/metallic characters on the finish. I’m not sure if they were aiming at something between Beaujolais and a rosé, but that’s what this kinda resembles.

NV Rockford Sparkling Black Shiraz – disgorged September 2009 (cork): Medium/dark crimson with a very good mousse and fine bead. A perfectly aged bouquet of rich/leathery chocolate and hints of mint, briar, paprika, and nutmeg; the palate’s just as attractive, with sweet raspberries and a lick of chocolate and black olive on the long finish. I’m guessing the bulk of this disgorgement was from a strong, cooler vintage (either 2002 or 2004); it’s very fresh and young with attractive complex characters already, and has the goods to age – if you can trust the three-piece cork. I reckon this is the best Sparkling Black Shiraz I have tried to date, and my WOTN.

2004 Rockford Moppa Springs Grenache Mataro Shiraz (cork): Light to medium crimson/brick. Very chocolaty and smoky already, with fireplace char, leather and just a whiff of barnyard and raisin in the distance; the palate’s minty with those same smoky/charred characters, and a rather short, damp/corky finish. This was pretty bad, and I suspect it was oxidised.

2006 Rockford Rod & Spur Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz (cork): Dark to inky red/purple. The colour is much better than the previous wine, but it’s revolting for different reasons. The nose is very vegetal and mousy, and while the palate has traces of black cherry fruit it’s just as green/vegetal with a bitter, hot/peppery finish that’s downright nasty. It’s a disjointed mess of a wine, simply awful stuff.

2007 Rockford Rifle Range Cabernet Sauvignon (cork): Medium to dark crimson. Minty/leafy characters on the bouquet, and while there’s a touch of the vegetal it’s well and truly balanced out by sweet fruit, cedar/spic and buttery herbs. The palate’s just as attractive, with ripe plummy fruit and just a lick of orange peel leading to a long grippy finish with black olives. An excellent outcome for a tough vintage, and voted overall WOTN by the group.

2007 Rockford Basket Press Shiraz (cork): Medium to very dark crimson. Very open and lavish bouquet, full of sweet blackberry fruit, camphor and fireplace/charred oak, banana/coconut and chocolaty spices; the palate’s tarry and sweet with blackberry/black cherries and even just a hint of blueberry, leading to a grippy/chocolaty mid-palate, finishing with spicy fruitcake characters. Like the Rifle Range it’s a very good outcome for the vintage, although it doesn’t have the weight or potential of a top Basket Press vintage.

1996 Rockford SVS Moorooroo Shiraz (cork): Medium to dark red/brick. Fully mature Barossa bouquet of earthy/petroleum, choc/mint, camphor and leather, some eucalyptus and tomato leaf too; the palate’s medium-weight and velvety, leathery with sweet, cedary oak and lacy tannins, finishing very long and minty with some vanilla. Some people openly didn’t like this wine – while I don’t think there’s much potential for improvement it was my second favourite of the night, and I think in a good cellar it should hold a few more years.

2002 Rockford Shiraz VP (cork): Viscous, inky red/black. A very elegant style of VP, with lifted black cherries/kirsch, red and black liquorice; the palate’s medium-weight, equally elegant and slightly smoky, some black olive, cherry and mineral on the finish. Very reminiscent of the 1991 Adriano Ramos Pinto VP I tried last year.


The final votes to determine everyone’s most preferred red & white wines for the night were:

Whites:
1st – 13 votes: 2009 Vine Vale Riesling
2nd – 7 votes: 2005 Growers Semillon
3rd – 2 votes: 2009 Frontignac

Reds:
1st – 9 votes: 2007 Rifle Range Cabernet
2nd – 7 votes: 2007 Basket Press Shiraz
=3rd - 2 votes: NV Sparkling Black Shiraz
=3rd - 2 votes: 1996 SVS Moorooroo Shiraz
=3rd - 2 votes: 2002 VP


Cheers
Ian

[griff]

I recall a bottle of 2004 Moppa a few months ago that was very nice on opening but started to deteriorate over the course of an hour or two. I am curious whether the wines were decanted?

cheers

Carl

[Wayno]

Hmm, good notes Ian although hardly a glowing appraisal - they seem to pretty much align with my take on Rockford - the whites are a bit patchy, the mid-range reds are generally variable too and the top flight reds are on song (although in this case, hampered by a sub-par vintage).

[roughred]

Intersting comments.

Agree on the whites. Pretty broad and uninspiring as a collective.

I have been enjoying a few bottles of the 09 Alicante recently, though not putting a great deal of thought into it. There's a touch of phenolic grip that adds a bit of interest for me, and the trace of fruit sweetness sits nicely in the wine. Beautiful label too.

I was quite taken by the 06 Rod & Spur, but going on your notes there has to be some variation at play. For me it was quite lifted with cab dominant choc mint characters, and a nice chewy texture through the middle. Actully preferred it to the 06 Rifle Range and purchased a few. Found the Moppa Springs much the same as yourself....I know it's only five years out from vintage but age has not been kind to it.

[dave vino]

I've had about 3 bottles of 09 alicante to date and I've quite enjoyed them (chilled out of the fridge). I don't pretend to take them seriously as they are a casual wine for bbq's/picnics so I try not to over analyse them.

[rednut]

I've had about 3 bottles of 09 alicante to date and I've quite enjoyed them (chilled out of the fridge). I don't pretend to take them seriously as they are a casual wine for bbq's/picnics so I try not to over analyse them.

I'm with you Dave. I chill em, drink em and enjoy em.
Its my wifes favourite and I quite like it too.

I tried all the Rockfords recently an loved them all.
I thought the Frugal Farmer was like a Rose crossed with a Cab Sav. Chilled it would be quite nice.

[trentwine]

Given Ian's comments about the 06 Rod & Spur, I thought that I had better try one. Can't agree with the descriptors posted - we had good fruit with Cabernet prominent at this stage, good mouthfeel and length.
Any chance that yours was just a "crook" bottle?
Cheers

Trent

[n4sir]

Any chance that yours was just a "crook" bottle?
Cheers

Trent

I have to admit the thought had crossed my mind. There was just a slight dampness at first on the nose which made me suspicious, but it blew off quickly and there wasn't a trace of it on the palate - nobody else mentioned it, but the overly green/vegetal characters and alcohol heat were talked about by just about everyone there. Whatever, the bottle we tried was absolutely hideous.

Cheers,
Ian

[Fortune 3rd reg. attempt]

I just opened a newly arrived 06 Rod and Spur. The cork had the faintest pick tinge as if it was only bottled last week but the wine itself....well I'm not sure - I think I'd better have another glass...and then I'll probably still be unsure and need a further sample....