Sami-Odi 2017 ?

[mychurch]

Just noticed 2 new wines on the Sami-Odi web site, but no mailer seen in my inbox. Doesn' t appear to be anything from Gavin either, so maybe they are not quite for sale yet..Anyone had an offer ?

Cameron

[Gavin Trott]

Just noticed 2 new wines on the Sami-Odi web site, but no mailer seen in my inbox. Doesn' t appear to be anything from Gavin either, so maybe they are not quite for sale yet..Anyone had an offer ?

Cameron

Not yet released, released later in January, I will have them, and be in touch then, for anyone interested.

At least, this is with me, and retail. May be released earlier directly with Fraser, his mailing list etc?

.

[Hunter]

Start of feb

[dave vino]

I got my mailer today, am also meeting up with Fraser on Monday so will be able to report back.

2 Offerings this year.

2015 Sami-Odi ‘Mahé & Ribo’ (Syrah)
A composition of our most poignant and superlative casks and a birth year
celebration of our cheeky and joyous twin boys Mahé & Ribo.
Procured from our two oldest sections within the Hoffmann families ‘Dallwitz’
vineyard. Both planted on their own roots in 1927 (0.435 Hectare) & the oldest vines
between 1888 & 1912 (0.775 Hectare).
These 15 Burgundian Pièces were carefully assembled and bottled amidst the spring of
2016 after enduring their 79 week elevage. Bottles were filled without filtration,
fining or sparging (the removal of naturally occurring oxygen & C02) and all
transfer’s were completed via gravity prior to bottling.
Yields were 26 & 28 hectolitres per hectare
4398 bottles were filled.


Sami-Odi ‘Little Wine’ #6 (Syrah)
An unvintaged ‘assemblage’ composed of casks from 2016 (47%), 2015 (44%), 2013 (5%)
& 2012 (4%). Exclusively sourced from our treasured plots within the Hoffmann’s
‘Dallwitz’ vineyard from vines planted in 1996, 1995, 1994, 1960 & the oldest vines
planted prior to 1912.
6155 bottles were filled.

[Croquet King]

I've never had any Sami-Odi before.

Any feedback on the style and the differences between the two wines?

Thanks

[Hacker]

Ordered 6 of the Mahe and Ribo. Sounds lovely.

[Hunter]

There big in structure, like most coming from adrians vinyards. Id sort of compare it to ben glaetzers Amon ra. Abit more refined and elegant. Earthy ..
Im not a big fan of the little wine blends.

[Hunter]

I got my mailer today, am also meeting up with Fraser on Monday so will be able to report back.

2 Offerings this year.

2015 Sami-Odi ‘Mahé & Ribo’ (Syrah)
A composition of our most poignant and superlative casks and a birth year
celebration of our cheeky and joyous twin boys Mahé & Ribo.
Procured from our two oldest sections within the Hoffmann families ‘Dallwitz’
vineyard. Both planted on their own roots in 1927 (0.435 Hectare) & the oldest vines
between 1888 & 1912 (0.775 Hectare).
These 15 Burgundian Pièces were carefully assembled and bottled amidst the spring of
2016 after enduring their 79 week elevage. Bottles were filled without filtration,
fining or sparging (the removal of naturally occurring oxygen & C02) and all
transfer’s were completed via gravity prior to bottling.
Yields were 26 & 28 hectolitres per hectare
4398 bottles were filled.


Sami-Odi ‘Little Wine’ #6 (Syrah)
An unvintaged ‘assemblage’ composed of casks from 2016 (47%), 2015 (44%), 2013 (5%)
& 2012 (4%). Exclusively sourced from our treasured plots within the Hoffmann’s
‘Dallwitz’ vineyard from vines planted in 1996, 1995, 1994, 1960 & the oldest vines
planted prior to 1912.
6155 bottles were filled.

Dave,
I have monday off work so i wont be at the restaurant if your still dropping in. Hope you have a great trip. And a safe one. You'l enjoy your time with fraser ..
Also monday there will be speed cameras everywhere in the Bro so take it ease.
Enjoy !

[mychurch]

The Little Wine is the more interesting wine for me. Don't know if it's unique, but it's definetly rare to have this Solera system for a table wine. Don't think its a wine to age, but I take that as a plus point now.

[dave vino]

Wow, what an amazing experience, spent over an hour with Fraser in his Cellar/Barrel Room. The man is a true gentleman, we tried ‘four’ of his wines (2 of the current release that had been open for about 5 days to see how they were travelling, and he opened new bottles of each). We also tried a Riesling made by a winemaker he knows from NZ as a starter.

We had a great chat, the story of how he came about getting access to the Hoffman vineyard. How he makes the wines, the decisions, plus a bunch of stories from all the various places he has worked at (Torbreck, Rockford among others). He is truly an end to end winemaker, viticulture, vinification, bottling, labels, boxing, everything.

Such a hugely positive guy, he has a good word about everyone and really loves the whole ‘community’ that is the Barossa with the old hands always eager to share tips and advice to any young ‘city slicker’ as he calls himself. You get the impression he has a really good rapport with all those around him Drew Noon, Dave Powell the Hoffmann family etc. He says Drew is his inspiration in terms of patience, attitude and humbleness and he tries to channel that with his own endeavour.

For the trainspotters, the bottles he uses are Calvados ones, by the same manufacturer that make DRC’s bottles. (they can supply the clearest glass bottles in the world), they had 15 types of Calvados bottles. He also said they test every single cork that they use, for taint – it costs more but gives him better peace of mind.

His two releases this year of the Little Wine and the Mahe and Ribo. The Little Wine for my tastes has a bit more structure to it, it’s not so Little anymore me thinks and is starting to become a more serious wine - the name may have become a misnomer imho . Would be fabulous with a nice steak off the bbq although it would be a disservice not to give it your full attention, to sit on it for a while and watch it develop in the glass, it really is that good. Lovely acid, dark fruited, white pepper, this is a really nice blend that tips the hat to the vintages the majority of its fruit comes from - great power structure and balance. Make no mistake this is still a Barossan Shiraz, still has chocolate, blackberry etc, etc i.e lots of fruit yet is never overblown. At $40 it’s a no brainer.

The Mahe is a bigger wine, when he pours it into the decanter it is almost blue purple in colour. The full bunch softness is prominent in the mouth along with the inherent velvety softness from basket pressing then a wave of tannins hits your mouth which has you licking at all corners. Dark Chocolate, black pepper, blackberry, with a really good length. The one that had been opened for a number of days had lost some of its acidity and brightness but the fruit was still going strong. This is something I’d squirrel away for 10 years. Great wine.

Experiences like this is what makes the world of wine such a wonderful thing. If you have been umming and ahhing about going on the mailing list…and you like Barossan Shiraz with a bit of finesse and flair, do yourself a favour….

[Hacker]

Thanks Dave, great report on an amazingly humble yet generous guy with great wines. I met Fraser a few years ago at Wine Culture in Roseville. He reminded me of how generous of spirit a bloke can be.

[dave vino]

Pics from dinner at Bistro 1918, great food (some really interesting flavour combinations). Except the wine was warm, for a restaurant in the Barossa a bit disappointing. I had to ask for ice cubes, he said he'd open another but that it was also sitting on the same shelf this had been. The wine was alcoholic and thick, couple of cubes got it down and transformed it (Schmidt Shiraz). Good range of local and aged stuff by the bottle. By the glass was a bit ordinary. Get some Gibson wines in by the glass or something (Peter Lehmann Portrait and Laughing Jack... meh )

[Hacker]

Dave is Bistro 1918 not open to Byo? Would go there if it was. We go to FermentAsian partly because of their great food and BYO. Next there in late April for the Rockford Black Magnum golf day with Mrs Hacker.

[Croquet King]

Great write up Dave.

I got on the list about a week ago and then got the mailer a few days later.
Have had a fantastic email exchange with Fraser and have ordered 6 of each. Looking forward to trying them at some stage. Might need to crack one early or get down to the barossa.

[Polymer]

Dave is Bistro 1918 not open to Byo? Would go there if it was. We go to FermentAsian partly because of their great food and BYO. Next there in late April for the Rockford Black Magnum golf day with Mrs Hacker.

Thought it used to be..

The food at 1918 is generally pretty good..although I had a bit of a steak problem there...it was pretty good otherwise.

[Hunter]

You cant get anymore down too earth than fraser, he usualy gets on his skateboard when i go up there.. Its still Byo.. Dave that sucks about your hot wine. I will pass that on to managmemt. Hi polymer what was the problem with your steak?
The grade of scotch has a large strip of sinue running through the fillet. If cooked rare or blue this doesn't have time too render down and left with a chunck of fat. Not verry nice. People often rave about the steaks tho.
Sorry to hear about your experience..

[Redback]

Nice write up Dave. The 2012 Baby Tui is a great wine and the Mahe & Ribo was on the list for this year. I was never a fan of the Little Wine in the past but looking at your notes, I will venture for a couple of bottles this time around.

[rooman]

Pics from dinner at Bistro 1918, great food (some really interesting flavour combinations). Except the wine was warm, for a restaurant in the Barossa a bit disappointing. I had to ask for ice cubes, he said he'd open another but that it was also sitting on the same shelf this had been. The wine was alcoholic and thick, couple of cubes got it down and transformed it (Schmidt Shiraz). Good range of local and aged stuff by the bottle. By the glass was a bit ordinary. Get some Gibson wines in by the glass or something (Peter Lehmann Portrait and Laughing Jack... meh )

The question of warm reds is a real problem in Aus whether in a restaurant or at home. This year more than most I have take to putting the reds in the fridge to get them down to an acceptable temperature before drinking them. When I have had the problem in restaurants I usually try and ask for an ice bucket for the reds. It gets the odd strange stare from the waiters but it is better than putting ice into the wine IMO.

Cheers
Mark

[sjw_11]

The question of warm reds is a real problem in Aus whether in a restaurant or at home. ...

I usually try and ask for an ice bucket for the reds. It gets the odd strange stare from the waiters but it is better than putting ice into the wine IMO.

+1 ... Or I ask them to put it in their fridge for a few minutes. Again, provokes a weird response sometimes but if they can't keep their wine at the right temperature so be it.

[Polymer]

Hi polymer what was the problem with your steak?
The grade of scotch has a large strip of sinue running through the fillet. If cooked rare or blue this doesn't have time too render down and left with a chunck of fat. Not verry nice. People often rave about the steaks tho.
Sorry to hear about your experience..

It wasn't a Scotch Fillet (Ribeye), where I'm ok with it moving into Medium (Not Medium well) territory for the reason you mentioned..because it allows for all those bits of sinuw and fat to render down a bit more...

This was an Filet Mignon which was light pink in the middle and brown as it goes to the outside. Not a big deal when a place overcooks a steak, just redo it right? Not a big deal, it happens..people make mistakes...and if it is close enough *shrug*, whatever, that's ok too...but when it is overcooked and they come back saying "would you prefer a different cut of meat?" I ask why? I get the response "because the chef said there was pink in the middle"... Not really what I'm expecting from a place that has GRILL in their name.

[Hunter]

Ok.. sounds like the chef was a smart ass.

[Polymer]

Ok.. sounds like the chef was a smart ass.

I might say so if he was right except he wasn't...Maybe Medium Rare in SA is pink in the middle..

[dave vino]

Pics from dinner at Bistro 1918, great food (some really interesting flavour combinations). Except the wine was warm, for a restaurant in the Barossa a bit disappointing. I had to ask for ice cubes, he said he'd open another but that it was also sitting on the same shelf this had been. The wine was alcoholic and thick, couple of cubes got it down and transformed it (Schmidt Shiraz). Good range of local and aged stuff by the bottle. By the glass was a bit ordinary. Get some Gibson wines in by the glass or something (Peter Lehmann Portrait and Laughing Jack... meh )

The question of warm reds is a real problem in Aus whether in a restaurant or at home. This year more than most I have take to putting the reds in the fridge to get them down to an acceptable temperature before drinking them. When I have had the problem in restaurants I usually try and ask for an ice bucket for the reds. It gets the odd strange stare from the waiters but it is better than putting ice into the wine IMO.

Cheers
Mark

I can imagine the looks I would have got asking for an ice bucket for my by the glass red all good, I see it as constructive criticism and certainly wasn't narky or anything about it while there. I could have done byo but didn't have a whole bottle in me to drink before finishing the meal so it would have been a waste.

Am off to Royal Mail Dunkeld tomorrow, so am looking forward to that.

[rooman]

The question of warm reds is a real problem in Aus whether in a restaurant or at home. This year more than most I have take to putting the reds in the fridge to get them down to an acceptable temperature before drinking them. When I have had the problem in restaurants I usually try and ask for an ice bucket for the reds. It gets the odd strange stare from the waiters but it is better than putting ice into the wine IMO.

Cheers
Mark

I can imagine the looks I would have got asking for an ice bucket for my by the glass red all good, I see it as constructive criticism and certainly wasn't narky or anything about it while there. I could have done byo but didn't have a whole bottle in me to drink before finishing the meal so it would have been a waste.

Am off to Royal Mail Dunkeld tomorrow, so am looking forward to that.

I stopped into the Royal Mail two Xmas's ago on a road trip down to Bridgewater. Amazing wine list - sadly it was midday for us and we had three kids with us and 200 more kms to go before we got to Bridgewater.

On the topic of drinking warm reds in summer, its been a real focus more this year than any year in the past I can remember. I'm not sure if I am drinking more reds in summer given we are also BBQ'ing or just becoming more aware how much reds lose their structure in the heat.

[mjs]

Wow, what an amazing experience, spent over an hour with Fraser in his Cellar/Barrel Room. The man is a true gentleman, we tried ‘four’ of his wines (2 of the current release that had been open for about 5 days to see how they were travelling, and he opened new bottles of each). We also tried a Riesling made by a winemaker he knows from NZ as a starter.

We had a great chat, the story of how he came about getting access to the Hoffman vineyard. How he makes the wines, the decisions, plus a bunch of stories from all the various places he has worked at (Torbreck, Rockford among others). He is truly an end to end winemaker, viticulture, vinification, bottling, labels, boxing, everything.

Such a hugely positive guy, he has a good word about everyone and really loves the whole ‘community’ that is the Barossa with the old hands always eager to share tips and advice to any young ‘city slicker’ as he calls himself. You get the impression he has a really good rapport with all those around him Drew Noon, Dave Powell the Hoffmann family etc. He says Drew is his inspiration in terms of patience, attitude and humbleness and he tries to channel that with his own endeavour.

For the trainspotters, the bottles he uses are Calvados ones, by the same manufacturer that make DRC’s bottles. (they can supply the clearest glass bottles in the world), they had 15 types of Calvados bottles. He also said they test every single cork that they use, for taint – it costs more but gives him better peace of mind.

His two releases this year of the Little Wine and the Mahe and Ribo. The Little Wine for my tastes has a bit more structure to it, it’s not so Little anymore me thinks and is starting to become a more serious wine - the name may have become a misnomer imho . Would be fabulous with a nice steak off the bbq although it would be a disservice not to give it your full attention, to sit on it for a while and watch it develop in the glass, it really is that good. Lovely acid, dark fruited, white pepper, this is a really nice blend that tips the hat to the vintages the majority of its fruit comes from - great power structure and balance. Make no mistake this is still a Barossan Shiraz, still has chocolate, blackberry etc, etc i.e lots of fruit yet is never overblown. At $40 it’s a no brainer.

The Mahe is a bigger wine, when he pours it into the decanter it is almost blue purple in colour. The full bunch softness is prominent in the mouth along with the inherent velvety softness from basket pressing then a wave of tannins hits your mouth which has you licking at all corners. Dark Chocolate, black pepper, blackberry, with a really good length. The one that had been opened for a number of days had lost some of its acidity and brightness but the fruit was still going strong. This is something I’d squirrel away for 10 years. Great wine.

Experiences like this is what makes the world of wine such a wonderful thing. If you have been umming and ahhing about going on the mailing list…and you like Barossan Shiraz with a bit of finesse and flair, do yourself a favour….

Great write up Dave. Sounds very similar to when we spent a couple of hours with Fraser tasting a few things from from barrel and bottle, it was a great experience, he was very generous, maybe three years ago at the Standish Wine Co CD.
Hope you enjoy RM

[dave vino]

Royal Mail, Dunkeld

Great dinner, fantastic wines. Went with the 8 course and French Wine option ($420/head). From the time I arrived here (staying in one of their cottages across the road) until breakfast this morning (an amazing Eggs Benedict) it has been truly wonderful. The service is great, the food with ingredients from their own gardens is alive and fresh. The rooms are tastefully decorated and relaxing, everyone is friendly and cheerful.

Highlight on the wine side was the Somm walking up to my table with a big smile on his face and Coravin poised to show me a 1995 Chateau d’Yquem to finish off the night (sublime wine, magnificent balance, poise and power). Some decent producers throughout Dujac, Pichon, Fourrier, Hugel, some interesting left of field wines also, I also had a glass of the house champers (Roederer NV).

All wines were showing well, ones that weren’t were quickly changed (97 Hugel Pinot Gris I felt was a bit advanced, second example was much fresher - thanks cork).

Overall an excellent experience and definitely worth the detour.

[michel]

looks like a great night
Have been meaning to make it for dinner and read the winelist !!

[Hunter]

Good to see slimy mak on the menu as its not a popular table fish and regarded as bycatch/ bait.
Nice

[Matt@5453]

Pics from dinner at Bistro 1918, great food (some really interesting flavour combinations). Except the wine was warm, for a restaurant in the Barossa a bit disappointing.

we had the same experience in November. Asked for the bottle to put in a fridge.
Food was great though.