Right, what are we/you drinking now .. tonight

[michel]

2013 Oakridge lustatia pinot & Guerrin pinot
Perfumed great mouthfeel wine
Buy up before I drink them all

[mse]

Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon 1999:

Had 12 bottles over the last 12 years and observed the change, this thing have evolved from a very tannic, minty savory blackcurrant juice which smelled like paint thinner into a classic Cabernet more congruent to old world style (yet still retains some pristine fruit character).
After uncork, I noticed some tartrate cling on to bottom of cork, still closed and muted in the first 2 hours of decanting but starting to exhibit the cassis, cedar, mint, and plum aromas. After 5 hours, secondary characters like briar, eucalyptus, dark chocolate, charcoal and herbs started to come out of whiff.
Subtle and comfortable tannin, nuance of sweetness on the early palate, adequate acidity with a hint of sour cherry on mid palate and dark chocolate like astringency on mid-late palate, a round finish with a sour plum like aftertaste but wasn't too lingering.
Still have 11 more bottles available to taste the development over the next 10-15 years, I wish I could get my hands on the 2001 vintage when it was around $75/btl on release (got my 99's for $55/btl, couldn't complain, though buying Penfold's Bin707 98' was a better investment @ $85/btl on release) and get a taste of it to make a comparison. Seems like the only way to source the 01' Moss Woods for < $130/btl is via Langton's.

[michel]

Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon 1999:

Had 12 bottles over the last 12 years and observed the change, this thing have evolved from a very tannic, minty savory blackcurrant juice which smelled like paint thinner into a classic Cabernet more congruent to old world style (yet still retains some pristine fruit character).
After uncork, I noticed some tartrate cling on to bottom of cork, still closed and muted in the first 2 hours of decanting but starting to exhibit the cassis, cedar, mint, and plum aromas. After 5 hours, secondary characters like briar, eucalyptus, dark chocolate, charcoal and herbs started to come out of whiff.
Subtle and comfortable tannin, nuance of sweetness on the early palate, adequate acidity with a hint of sour cherry on mid palate and dark chocolate like astringency on mid-late palate, a round finish with a sour plum like aftertaste but wasn't too lingering.
Still have 11 more bottles available to taste the development over the next 10-15 years, I wish I could get my hands on the 2001 vintage when it was around $75/btl on release (got my 99's for $55/btl, couldn't complain, though buying Penfold's Bin707 98' was a better investment @ $85/btl on release) and get a taste of it to make a comparison. Seems like the only way to source the 01' Moss Woods for < $130/btl is via Langton's.

2001 is a birthyear wine for my daughter
i have 10 left and 2 magnums
i tried it early on and found it lumpy and clumsy and the 14.5% scares me
I must dig one out
michel

[mse]

Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon 1999:

Had 12 bottles over the last 12 years and observed the change, this thing have evolved from a very tannic, minty savory blackcurrant juice which smelled like paint thinner into a classic Cabernet more congruent to old world style (yet still retains some pristine fruit character).
After uncork, I noticed some tartrate cling on to bottom of cork, still closed and muted in the first 2 hours of decanting but starting to exhibit the cassis, cedar, mint, and plum aromas. After 5 hours, secondary characters like briar, eucalyptus, dark chocolate, charcoal and herbs started to come out of whiff.
Subtle and comfortable tannin, nuance of sweetness on the early palate, adequate acidity with a hint of sour cherry on mid palate and dark chocolate like astringency on mid-late palate, a round finish with a sour plum like aftertaste but wasn't too lingering.
Still have 11 more bottles available to taste the development over the next 10-15 years, I wish I could get my hands on the 2001 vintage when it was around $75/btl on release (got my 99's for $55/btl, couldn't complain, though buying Penfold's Bin707 98' was a better investment @ $85/btl on release) and get a taste of it to make a comparison. Seems like the only way to source the 01' Moss Woods for < $130/btl is via Langton's.

2001 is a birthyear wine for my daughter
i have 10 left and 2 magnums
i tried it early on and found it lumpy and clumsy and the 14.5% scares me
I must dig one out
michel

Hi Michel,
I haven't got the opportunity to try the 01', but according to what you mentioned I would expect most Moss Woods (like the 99') have the hard edge ultra chalky tannin at young age and whiffs of Artline textas, heat on the finish, etc. Having said that, the 09', 10' and 11' weren't as muted on the nose and harsh on the palate when young(I only tried 98', 99', 04', 09', 10', and 11', where the latter 4 from tastings only). Could it be Mr. Mugford's intent to make the wines more approachable in the first few years?
Maybe we should run a Moss Wood vertical Sydney offline to try things out!

[VINH NGUYEN]

2001 is a birthyear wine for my daughter
i have 10 left and 2 magnums
i tried it early on and found it lumpy and clumsy and the 14.5% scares me
I must dig one out
michel

sell them all to me please, 01 moss wood is god damn amazing.

[mse]

2001 is a birthyear wine for my daughter
i have 10 left and 2 magnums
i tried it early on and found it lumpy and clumsy and the 14.5% scares me
I must dig one out
michel

sell them all to me please, 01 moss wood is god damn amazing.

+ 1 ! I am first poster RE Michel, so I get to have them first!

[Michael R]

Last night,
2012 Crawford river Riesling
2012 Wendouree cab malbec (thanks Mr Vino)

[Andrew Jordan]

2002 Bollinger Champagne La Grande Année - Drunk with a seafood medley of Queensland scallops, soft shell crab and King Prawns on a crisp, sunny Saturday afternoon in Sydney. Fine, plentiful bead. Cannot believe this is already 13 years old. Super expressive nose of brioche, bread, lemon and citrus. Rich, balanced palate of green apple, pear and lemon which finishes with laser like minerality and acidity. Long finish. Still a puppy so no rush but a pleasure to drink now.

[Hacker]

Last night,
2012 Wendouree cab malbec

Well, how was it?

[Hunter]

2004 m chapoutier les greffiuxe
Red Rose's, Rasberrys and funk.
Red fruits,mineral and smoke. Simple but complex.
medium finish..
Bargain buy for a lighter year

Its a highlight for me..

[Andrew Jordan]

2004 Stonyridge Vineyard Larose - Decanted for 1 hour. Deep crimson core with a strip of garnet at the rim, this has a very earthy nose, with maybe liquorice and vanilla in the background ... very old world in character. The palate is full flavoured, blue cheese and dark stone fruit dominating with spice and white pepper making up the rest of the choir. Finishes long with a crescendo of fine grained, savoury tannins. Overall a very good Larose release where well cellared bottles will still improve with a few more years bottle age. Matched with eye-fillet roast.

[Krusty]

A few days down the (rather bloody cold) coast.

Chapman Grove "Atticus" Chardonnay 2006 - something amiss here, had a great bottle of this couple of months ago that was still fresh, full of fruit and plenty of acid structure. This had none of that, oxidised, stinky, horrible, yuck
Franck Bonville 2006 Blanc de Blanc - cracking, lemony biscuit, cream, acid, next to a few dozen Greenwell Point oysters and some school prawn and mayo sandwiches on Berry sourdough - Boom.
Joseph Primo Sparkling Red 2011 disgorge - Not the best version of this wine, slightly muted bead, more a sigh than a pop from the cork, the wine itself full of tertiary profile flavours but the dosage level appears to jar with the base wine with a quite clunky hit of sweetness at the end. I am nitpicking though because I do love this label, it just seems not the best disgorgement. Nonethless excellent with a breakfast of bacon, ricotta hotcakes, strawberries, blueberries and roast banana.
A. Rodda Cuvee de Chez 2011 - A beautifully balanced Cab blend, very young but no indication of the supposedly troublesome vintage, particularly for Vic cab, fresh, vibrant, plum and raspberry, fine tannins - yum. Great match with a late one pot roast lunch of chicken, potato, olives, bacon and lemon
Leasingham Classic Clare Shiraz 1998 - Perfect. Everythng one could hope for from this wine, fully resolved but enough suggestions of the fruit that would have once been prominent, lovely to smell and great with some osso bucco and polenta
Penfolds Bin 389 2003 - served with cheese following above lunch, good but not knockout nose, a bit of pencil shavings more prominent than anything else. A bit of heat to taste and a tad disjointed, finishes very short although there is certainly some fruit there, but more in the roast, even stewed plum end of the spectrum. Questionable provenance, poor storage would be my bet, not bad, not good.
Luke Lambert Nebbiolo 2012 - 4 hour decant, amazing nose of roses, old school, heritage big smelling roses. Reminded me of my nan's garden. Beautiful tannin structure and great length, very obvious infanticide, will keep the rest for another 8-10 years but it is a very impressive, very elegant wine that I think is also awesome value. Received the Lambert email coincidently on the day of drinking and was quick to order the '13's.

[Mike Hawkins]

2006 Marguet Millesime - some bottles have seemed confected, but this was an enjoyable, pinot-dominant Champagne

1991 Guigal La Mouline - cracking wine. Amazing nose, amazing length. Is heavily oaked, but it doesn't overwhelm the wine. Hold for 10 years easily.

2004 Pewsey Vale Contours - perhaps the most enjoyable (as distinct from best) wine I've had this year. Drank perfectly with whiting fillets. Just starting to get the toasty notes I like, but still had lots of citrus notes and a nice acidic finish.

1996 Pichon Baron - this wine has really come in to its own in the past year or so. Not quite as good as the 89 and 90, but pretty good nonetheless. Worthy bearer of the '2nd growth' label.

1998 Leasingham Bin 61 Shiraz - found a 6 pack that I had forgotten about. Nice, cheap shiraz that is an excellent place right now.

1991 Wynns John Riddoch - not as good as a recent bottle. Seemed a tad too austere

1996 Taittinger Comtes - I'm kicking myself for not having bought more of this at release. This is so stupendously good right now, but will get even better. A truly superb BdB champagne and probably the best wine I've had this year. Just starting to get some honey characters. Has an incredible mouthfeel and stunning length.

1998 Wynns Black Label - a bit of olives and cedar, otherwise, largely forgettable.

2002 Kalleske Greenock Shiraz - not as good as other bottles. Remained very closed over 2 hour drinking window.

1996 Wynns Michael (magnum) - this confirmed my belief Wynns stuffed this vintage up across the board. Very weak effort.

1996 Penfolds St Henri (x 2) - I've had this many times in the past year and these two were underwhelming. My strong suggestion - decant (which I didn't do)

1996 Rockford Basket Press Shiraz - as expected, an excellent wine. Right at its peak, though I suspect it will hold for another decade at least.

2004 Pierre Moncuit - a really nice BdB champagne that needed more time, unless you particularly enjoy lemon characters.

2001 Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnay - everything has come together well with this. Just starting to show its age... but I loved it nonetheless.

[Hacker]

2003 Fourrier 1er les Petits Vougeot Very heavy bottle and one I didn't realise I owned A win in itself! Heavy dense sweet small berry fruits probably reminiscent of the very hot year. More like a meaty Gevrey. Love it! Wonder how it will evolve over the night. If there is anything to report I will do so. Pity I have to share with three others

Softened and became more silky as the night progressed. had to fight for a second glass! Will be cycling past this vineyard in a months time!! Excited!!

[Phil H]

2005 Leconfield Cab Sav Medium bodied, colour showing some bricking, however still quiet youthful. Despite a lesser vintage (was going to open the 2004), very enjoyable, developing through the evening. Classic Coonawarra, still trying to work out how long you can leave your bread and butter Coonawarra cabs, however no hurry with this one.

[deejay81]

Instead of going to the gym last night. (its so damn cold these days )
Had
2 bottles of 2007 Mount Pleasant Elizabeth Semillon.
Delicious and easy drinking as always with zero bottle variation still.

Did a quick count and down to my last 15 bottles of this now...

[phillisc]

Instead of going to the gym last night. (its so damn cold these days )
Had
2 bottles of 2007 Mount Pleasant Elizabeth Semillon.
Delicious and easy drinking as always with zero bottle variation still.

Did a quick count and down to my last 15 bottles of this now...

Deejay81...love your work
Never had a second's inclination of going to a Gym...but think you are onto something with your fluid replacement plan.

Now I love 2007 Mt P. Lizzie Sem as much as the next bloke and got a couple of dozen myself...but two bottles down instead of sweating it on the treadmill...I think you won't have any trouble selling memberships to that club!

Cheers
Craig

[Hacker]

Cheeky half bottle of 2010 Teusner The Riebke Shiraz Full bodied rich and delicious. Lovin' this. An excellent example. A must almost every year, leave it alone for five years and enjoy!!

[ads_11]

A half bottle of Rockford Rifle Range 2012.. So good... My stash of halves are whittling down far too rapidly, but this is fantastic

[Rossco]

2012 Yalumba the signature cab/shiraz

Was lucky enough to attend a function with Jane Ferrari. To say the 2012
was the wine of the day is still selling it short. It was up against the reserve and
Other yalumba heavyweights....still the best.

Im happy I got two magnums for my daughters birth year. Now I just have to find a double magnum and larger now.

[Bobthebuilder]

1999 tyrrell's vat9 shiraz, 12.8%
Appears to have been stored very well, cork was in great condition
Almost Pinot like in appearance
classic hunter barnyard funk and leather saddle
The fruit is still there, somewhat faded but sitting nicely amongst everything else That's going on
I only had one bottle of this and I'm going to miss it, was a pleasure to drink

[Matt@5453]

2012 Yalumba the signature cab/shiraz

Was lucky enough to attend a function with Jane Ferrari. To say the 2012
was the wine of the day is still selling it short. It was up against the reserve and
Other yalumba heavyweights....still the best.

Agreed, a sensational wine with a long life ahead of it.

[Matt@5453]

2012 Longview Yakka Shiraz, Macclesfield, Adelaide Hills.

A full bodied, robust Adelaide Hills Shiraz with plenty of palate weight. Rich nose of dense plums, slight hints of mocha/espresso coffee. the palate is superbly rich , with ripe plum, deep fruit flavours, oak usage is well balanced. Don't spill this on your white or cream carpet. At a reported 14.4% Alc you would not notice it . With fine acidity and tannin balance, drinking well now will develop over the next 5 or so years. At this price point it delivers a rich drinking experience, I think good value for money at the $25 mark.

[maybs]

2009 Brokenwood Shiraz

Well, last night obviously. 2 hour decant. Spicey nose with just a hint of herbs and a touch of black fruit coming through at the back. Palate is black fruit, but mostly earthy and dry leather, and a little lean, in a nice way. Lots of dry tannins. Good medium finish. Very solid and enjoyable medium weight hunter Shiraz. Wish I had a few more, will definitely take some age with style.

[Redav]

2010 Rockford Rifle Range Cabernet Sauvignon - we finally found time to crack this with roast lamb. I don't (read can't) do tasting notes but if anything, dusty. I've come to love this wine over the last few years and I'd been looking forward to revisiting it after loving the 2011. We only have two and I'll give the other one another 5 years to see what it does.

Peter Lehmann Rare Tawny - I think it's a typical tawny, it reminded me of Galway Pipe. Length could have been a bit longer but overall, it was better than I expected at $10 for a half bottle.

[Hunter]

2009 murray street vinyard shiraz purchased on a barossa tour w some friends
Sweet rasberrys, sage and earth, absolute steel ..

[Phil H]

2005 Barossa Valley Estate Ebenezer Shiraz Dark Inky Colour, medium verging on full bodied classic Barossa Shiraz. Everything in harmonious balance - acid and tannins subsided with age, melting into cedary oak, dark berry fruits, not overly complex, showing some elegance & finesse. Very enjoyable, great VFM, drink now.
Bought as a package deal with the black pepper Shiraz which I am looking forward to trying, not certain what has happened to the winery - some financial issues?

[Mike Hawkins]

2004 Taittinger Comtes de Champagne - made the mistake of popping, pouring and serving too cold. This wine is sensational when given air time and served closer to 10 degrees. Long, linear, lovely minerality offset by the dosage... A great release from arguably my favourite producer.

2008 Domaine A - never really understood the hype with this wine. Pretty good wine, but for me, it will never meet its lofty reputation...

2004 Guy Charlemagne Mesnillesime - big mistake opening this. It is way too young now - like gargling acid and razor blades... Should be good with time based on previous vintages.

1996 Tyrrells Vat 1 - this was the best Vat 1 I've had in many a year. Absolutely superb wine - much better than I expected given previous 96s. Even the Semillon haters acknowledged this killed the wines they brought.

2009 Vasse Felix Heytesbury Chardonnay - good wine, but another consumed too early. There are other WA chardonnays that I prefer, but I wouldn't knock back a glass of this.

1982 Henschke Mt Edelstone - this is why we cellar wine. Absolutely top shelf Aussie shiraz. Classy, elegant, long and complex. Probably near the end of the road, but I'll hang on to the last few bottles.

[sjw_11]

Some recent impressions:

Chateau Musar 2007 ... I have never tried this before but obviously aware of the reputation. Intriguing wine, a bit funky but not as much as I had perhaps expected. Pleasing complexity and depth of flavour. Enjoyable.

Terredora "Terre Degli Angeli" Greco di Tufo 2013 ... Apparently from Terredora's Vineyard Collection. The grape variety is Greco. "The must is settled and then fermented at cool temperatures using selected yeasts. The wine is aged on its lees in stainless steel but sees no oak." This is a really interesting wine, wonderful purity and depth of flavour, good complexity. £14 -25% from Waitrose - good value.

Oddero Barolo 2009... A Waitrose exclusive. Nice wine. Classic profile - tar and roses. Needs time to fully come together.

Veuve Clicquot Vintage 2004... Wonderful drinking. Clean, fresh, with a distinct mineral or saline character. Lovely depth of flavour from the Pinot dominant blend.

Chateau Petit Roubie Picpoul de Pinet 2013... Forgettable, bland white wine.

Poderi di Ghiaccioforte Rosso dei Poderi Sangiovese... Medium bodied, somewhat disjointed red. Disappointing.

Domaine Sainte Rose "Barrel Selection" Roussanne 2011... Interesting wine, developed with a full honey/lanolin palate character. An acquired taste, but nice enough drinking for one glass.

Muga Rioja 2009... Fabulous wine. Lashing of red and dark berries and a very long, persistent finish.

Southern Right Pinotage 2012... South African. Impressive wine - very rich and full bodied but with everything in its right place. Would be better on a cold winters day accompanies by a hunk of red meat.

[JamieBahrain]

Just a few nights ago now, a magnificent restaurant unknown to tourists in the hillside hideaways of Umbria. Half a litre of village wine at $4 Aussie served in the porcelain pot pictured! Completely satisfying. What potential for retirement. Village wines all week at no substantial cost and save the budget for weekends and drink high end. And in Umbria that rarely exceeds $30 Aussie and a new discovery- sagrantino !