The Auswine Forum

I've been freezing wines (mostly young quaffers) for about 5 years now. My freezer only works to about -4C and I'm able to store opened bottles without them quite freezing. The occasional one will actually solidify, which is only a problem in that it won't initially pour. So I have the option of lea...

The 'old' Houghtons MR Cab, part of the GI range, became the Houghtons 'Wisdom' label as from the 2004 vintage. Same quality and price. So, in this case, the 2008 MR Cab is not exactly a dumbed down wine, rather it's a new label, albeit with an ambiguous name. Koonunga Hill! Now there's a wine that'...

I wouldn't have Grange at a wedding. There's too much else going on and the wine experience is likely to be somewhat 'lost' amongst it. Sure, it has a certain cache and impact value but I would go with a Grange for a future anniversary. Then you can pair it with certainly something better than recep...

re St Hugo,

Thanks Michael.

What I meant to say was 'a little disappointing for a St Hugo (from a good vintage)'.
It wasn't given any air time.... opened and drunk at a BYO.

Yes, I'll try another soon with a decant this time.

cheers,

Mark

1999 Orlando “St Hugo” Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon. Cork. Great colour. Strong cassis and capsicum on the nose. Fabulous palate. Nicely integrated oak, long finish. Classic Coonawarra cab right in the zone (but with plenty left in the tank). Excellent. Michael, I had one of these 18 m...

.... most buyers tend to place a premium on magnums .....on the basis that they well cellar better than a 750ml. ... This would apply to cork sealed wines, but the screwcap is working its way up the premium ladder. eg Penfolds 389, Mt Langhi, Mt Edelstone. I wouldn't think there's any cellaring adv...

It may be a bit risky to go with an Islay as the (strong) seaweed/iodine characters are often a taste that needs to be acquired. I'd stick to something from the mainland.

MOST OUTSTANDING BOTTLE OF 2006: 1930 Seppelt Para Liqueur Port, closely followed by: 1988 Wynns John Riddoch 1990 Penfolds Bin 28 Shiraz 1989 Peter Lehmann Stonewell Shiraz magnum Had the Bin 28 Xmas day. Only ever stored in a passive cellar but still magnificent. I don't think we'll see any Foste...

Ordered 3 bottles of Miss Harry at a pizza restaurant (Topolino's in Melbourne) and fluked a mini vertical - 05, 03 and 04.
The 03 was surprisingly the best of the lot, but they were all good. One of the best drink now wines around.

I opened my first one out of curiousity 2 years ago, and I agree it needs another 10 years. This is a bit of a worry. Well, insofar as I'm looking to drink a '91 in the next few months. Just in the drinking window perhaps? Anyone had some recent experience with the '91 JR? thanks, Mark

The other factor could simply be that the 2001 wines are for more approachable for immediate drinking whereas the 2002 wines are still tight and need a few years to evolve. In many instances I think it is this simple. I really like 01's as a drink now proposition, especially McLaren Vale. I have no...

1991 Murray Robson Cabernet That rare beast - Hunter cabernet. Picked this up on a Hunter valley trip back in 1993. Has survived reasonable but imperfect cellaring the past 12 years. Very Hunter like. I suspect that in a blind tasting it could be mistaken for shiraz, if only for the fact that few H...