The Auswine Forum

Dinner last night at The Nepalese Kitchen in Surry Hills with Cam and Anjuli, Neval Blanc and Maree and plenty of spicy food! Thanks to all and to Neval for organising at short notice. I was disappointed with the food (decent enough) but an overall enjoyable night was had as we were, as usual, the last to leave the restaurant. I only decided to take impressions at last minute, but Cam was hard at it all night. Such a dedicated boy!

1994 Lakes Folly Chardonnay (Hunter Valley)
Almost OTH but still drinkable. Good nose showing some tropical fruit and butterscotch. Palate too acidified.
84 / 100

1984 Seppelt Eden Valley Maturation Release Riesling
A “supposed” Aussie legend but I have never had a bottle that has rocked my boat. Complex bouquet of kerosene, candle wax, gasoline, sweet pineapple. Palate is resiny, dilute and short. Past it.
84 / 100

2004 Sorrenberg Semillon (Beechworth)
Dry, slatey, minerally, chalky, creamy, buttery and malo-influenced. Very Chablis like. A worked style. I quite liked it!
86 / 100

NV Charles Melton Sparkling Red (Disgorged 1996)
Raspberry cordial, green stalks and baby poo (that blew off after 10 minutes). Disappointing.
85 / 100

1980 LindemanÂ’s St George Classic Release Cabernet Sauvignon
Among my many experiences with this wine, it is either green and under-ripe, or stunning. Tonight the latter – classic Bordeaux nose of ash, cedar, still sweet blackcurrant fruit mingles with herbs and touch of oak. Palale is elegant, beautifully balanced. Even Neville liked this, when at this stage of proceedings he is typically trashing everything! A lovely wine, the more I think about the better it gets. Jeremy Oliver: tasting note date: 01/04/2001 Simple, herbaceous, with soupy and straightforward asparagus-like mulberry and cassis fruit, sappy. (16.8, drink 1985-1988).
91 / 100

2000 Viking Grand Shiraz (Barossa Valley)
14%. Very polarising bouquet of iodine, band aids, intense cassis, spicy pastilles, boot polish and mulberry! Fine chalky tannins on palate. Very good wine, that headed in all sorts of space-time dimensions after 30 minutes. Neville was very vociferous in his distaste for this wine.
86 / 100

2001 Glendonbrook Hunter Valley Shiraz
No, I hadnÂ’t heard of it either! Jammy and quaffable and drinks well. Not bad for $15. Packs fruitful force with good QPR.
85 / 100

Baby Chickpea wrote:2004 Sorrenberg Semillon (Beechworth)
Dry, slatey, minerally, chalky, creamy, buttery and malo-influenced. Very Chablis like. A worked style. I quite liked it!
86 / 100


2000 Viking Grand Shiraz (Barossa Valley)
14%. Very polarising bouquet of iodine, band aids, intense cassis, spicy pastilles, boot polish and mulberry! Fine chalky tannins on palate. Very good wine, that headed in all sorts of space-time dimensions after 30 minutes. Neville was very vociferous in his distaste for this wine.
86 / 100

Was the Sorrenberg straight semillon or a sem sauv? I've only seen the sem sauv around. Agree with this Neville character on the Viking.

It was the Sauvignon/Semillon Handy. Pretty good options bastardry wine if you are into that kind of thing.

I quite liked the food, but I do have a bit of a leaning towards spice. Apart from having to shift to three different tables, upstairs table then into the cushion room and then having to carry opened bottles and glasses to a downstairs table and an attempt to overcharge by $100, it was a really good night.


1994 Lakes Folly Chardonnay (Hunter Valley)
Light golden colour with some hints of green at the core. Nose is alright at first, some butterscotch and grapefruit, but quickly starts to show wood and varnish. Fruit is gone from the palate. Short and some harshness on the finish. Drinkable if you were desperate 83/100


1984 Seppelt Eden Valley Maturation Release Riesling
The first thing I mentioned to Neville was how youthful this looks, knowing that he had brought a Riesling with "some age" on it. The nose was not showing much intensity, some kerosene and toast. Palate was watery and short.

I left some in the glass to warm up, and it didn't fall apart any more over the course on an hour but it remained mediocre. Thank you for bringing this Neville, it's something I have wanted to try for a long time, unfortunately it didn't live up to it on the night, but I appreciate it all the same. 85/100


2004 Sorrenberg Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon (Beechworth)
Interesting nose, grapefruit, lime, wet slate, some spice and florality, candy (which ended up reminding me of those faux banana shaped lollies after Neville started talking up the banana aromas) and just a hint of toffee oak. Palate was good as well, creamy and with some balanced acidity flowing across the palate and into the finish. I really liked it for its difference. (I also love a tough to guess options wine as long as I'm not the one trying to guess it!) 90/100


NV Charles Melton Sparkling Red (Disgorged 1996)
Some dirty horseosity initially which did blow off which a bit of time to reveal raspberries and some plum. Some sweetness and some background oak on the palate. An okay wine, but not really my thing. 86/100


1980 LindemanÂ’s St George Classic Release Cabernet Sauvignon (Released 1989)
Danny warned us that this would either be herbaceous and horribly under-ripe or would be very good.

If I didn't know the identity of the wine I would have thought Danny was joking if he'd said that it was from 1980 after looking at it. Youthful violet with not the slightest hint of fading or browning. Powerful, beautiful nose of tobacco, ash, tomato leaf, cedar, roast vegetables, blackberries. Palate is vibrant, yet elegant - with all facets having integrated and balanced perfectly - tannins, oak and fruit were all there but acting as one. The finish is amazingly persistent. After 45-60 minutes of breathing, it was just as good if not even better.

In one word, stunning - I could still taste this wine the next morning and couldn't think about anything else on the drive to work or for most of the morning at work. I initially said 92, then 94 after half an hour before coming to rest at 96 the next morning. Thank you Danny. 96/100


2000 Viking Grand Shiraz (Barossa Valley)
Danny, I can see why they took these grapes out of Grange Iodine, band-aids, sawdust and a chemical smell along the lines of what I imagine a mad scientistÂ’s laboratory would smell like. Some heat on the nose. Shockingly the palate actually wasn't too bad, young and showing some obvious tannins but the length was good and the finish was fine.

I have to wonder, might the decanter contributed to the nose? Neville's red glass was a one way ticket to mercaptain city at one stage. 84/100


2001 Glendonbrook Hunter Valley Shiraz
Bacon and a spirity liqueur character and well as a hint of violet and blackberry. Palate was smooth and easy to drink and matched up with the price point of the wine.

Apparently not a representative bottle based on the nose. Had been sitting in a car boot for a week. 84/100