brodie wrote:How did you rate the 1983? Just picked up couple of bottles.
JamieBahrain wrote:The 1983 looked great initially, a little more developed but it was encapsulated within a fine structure and overall balance. I rated it quite well with a note that it was more developed. On second pass, it had a palate impurity, many suspected TCA and hence it was rated last out of the 12 !
If corked then the rating and position doesn't really count. Brodie, 1983 was an excellent vintage and a good bottle should easily best an 1982.
dave vino wrote:Random spur of the moment purchase, bit of age on it for around $35, really enjoying it. Soft and supple with a bit of grip, classic iron filings, blood with dark plums and a dustiness on the back palate.
Great for a boring Telecon.
I know they had problems moving a lot of 2012 but $35 is an amazing price for SM. I grabbed a case of the 2010 and I seem to recall it costing close to $80/90 pb.
I know the 2002 is pretty well hyped, but I just had the 2001 Petaluma (Hanlin Hill) Riesling under screwcap and that was pretty good:
Screwcap
Colour was light golden, not quite fully gold with only a small amount of aging visible. The screwcap definitely assists in keeping out the oxygen. The screwcap version looks so much younger than the equivalent cork sealed bottle of this. Initial opening had a bit of kerosene on the nose that my wife noticed more than I did. I noticed more some honeyed citrus/honey lemon and a little bit of toastiness as well due to the age. Some noticeable alcohol is there too. There are also some white florals happening with some swirling. Taste had some more honey lemon but not sweet, with the acid still there. It definitely has both primary and secondary characteristics. Bottle age is obviously there but the screwcap keeping in the freshness of everything still. Finish was medium plus and this can still go in this format for years judging what state it's in currently. I'll enjoy watching it's slow evolution.
My last, treasured bottle of '97 Petaluma was a massive disappointment. Not corked, but not fresh either. I would say drink up based on my last experience.
George Krashos wrote:My last, treasured bottle of '97 Petaluma was a massive disappointment. Not corked, but not fresh either. I would say drink up based on my last experience.
-- George Krashos
Petaluma had screwcap options from either 2000 or 2001 onwards... that has definitely been a game changer...
brodie wrote:How did you rate the 1983? Just picked up couple of bottles.
JamieBahrain wrote:The 1983 looked great initially, a little more developed but it was encapsulated within a fine structure and overall balance. I rated it quite well with a note that it was more developed. On second pass, it had a palate impurity, many suspected TCA and hence it was rated last out of the 12 !
If corked then the rating and position doesn't really count. Brodie, 1983 was an excellent vintage and a good bottle should easily best an 1982.
Mahmoud.
I rated it 95pts.
Could have been other people's glassware, or just one other person's dominating opinion on the other table which happens in blind events. It also could have been warm storage showing development more so than the rest of the line-up : blind sauterne tastings especially dYquem, are very difficult to differentiate. And that all said, perhaps it was TCA masked by the sheer intensity of the style.
"Barolo is Barolo, you can't describe it, just as you can't describe Picasso"
brodie wrote:How did you rate the 1983? Just picked up couple of bottles.
JamieBahrain wrote:The 1983 looked great initially, a little more developed but it was encapsulated within a fine structure and overall balance. I rated it quite well with a note that it was more developed. On second pass, it had a palate impurity, many suspected TCA and hence it was rated last out of the 12 !
If corked then the rating and position doesn't really count. Brodie, 1983 was an excellent vintage and a good bottle should easily best an 1982.
Mahmoud.
Agree wholeheartedly. Good bottles of the 83 will kill the 82
I do one of these tasting dinners most weeks but don't have the time to write them up. This one may have pipped the interest of the forum by the looks but I always assume many won't.
I rated the 1983 fourth out of the twelve. The 1982 seventh. My scribbled note was not dissimilar to the wine scribes I have since googled.
It was very different to the rest of the line up and frankly, a d'Yquem vertical is always going to be tough differentiating close and relatively youthful vintages. That's where the 1983 was a standout in its development and fruit complexity on first pass.
"Barolo is Barolo, you can't describe it, just as you can't describe Picasso"
Or he's a wine trader, who maybe got a good price (i.e. not the current fantasy price) but figures he can sell it for a quick buck immediately, or sit on it to see if the market adjusts to the fantasy pricing.
That looks like 3 x 8 x 6, but maybe a 4th stack hidden as well. I'd be amazed if it's not a wine trader, in which case strike up a conversation if you see them there, as sometimes they'll get interesting stuff and likely to be happy to do a quick sale. If you ever see anything you really want, then it's useful to know the person's aim is to sell it, so you might get 1st dibs.
So strange I was sure I posted this note but can't find it. Opened a Seppelts St PeterShiraz 2003 on Tuesday down at Brown Sugar. Cool climate shiraz with spicy dark berry fruit showing the beginning of secondary flavour development.
Decanted for three hours before dinner then rebottled to take with me, this wine just got better and better as the meal went on. It's really only just beginning to enter its drinking window and will go decades so no rush but definitely enjoyable now.
rooman wrote:So strange I was sure I posted this note but can't find it. Opened a Seppelts St PeterShiraz 2003 on Tuesday down at Brown Sugar. Cool climate shiraz with spicy dark berry fruit showing the beginning of secondary flavour development.
Decanted for three hours before dinner then rebottled to take with me, this wine just got better and better as the meal went on. It's really only just beginning to enter its drinking window and will go decades so no rush but definitely enjoyable now.
I opened a 2003 Seppelts St Peters at home on Tuesday night also. First vintage under screw cap I believe. Opened it, poured a glass and let it sit for about an hour and then drank it over the next two hours. Next time I’ll give it a lot more air.
Agree with your descriptors and just starting to drink well with at least a couple hours decant. Spice, pepper, dark berries and after a while it reminded me a bit of a freshly opened packet of rolling tobacco (maybe the oak).
deejay81 wrote:I know the 2002 is pretty well hyped, but I just had the 2001 Petaluma (Hanlin Hill) Riesling under screwcap and that was pretty good:
Screwcap
Colour was light golden, not quite fully gold with only a small amount of aging visible. The screwcap definitely assists in keeping out the oxygen. The screwcap version looks so much younger than the equivalent cork sealed bottle of this. Initial opening had a bit of kerosene on the nose that my wife noticed more than I did. I noticed more some honeyed citrus/honey lemon and a little bit of toastiness as well due to the age. Some noticeable alcohol is there too. There are also some white florals happening with some swirling. Taste had some more honey lemon but not sweet, with the acid still there. It definitely has both primary and secondary characteristics. Bottle age is obviously there but the screwcap keeping in the freshness of everything still. Finish was medium plus and this can still go in this format for years judging what state it's in currently. I'll enjoy watching it's slow evolution.
I just opened the 2001 under cork and it was oxidised to buggery. I have had a few of the 01's under screwcap and they were lovely, but still somewhat young given the age So I grabbed 2 bottles under cork hoping for some really nicely aged version Hope the other one surprises me down the track but will have backup ready to go
2006 Château La Tour-Martillac Blanc - France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan (3/17/2017) This is a Cru class blend of Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle from the Pessac-Léognan sub-region of Bordeaux. There are only nine wineries in the 1959 classification for white Graves. Around 11,000 cases of this wine are produced annually, if Wikipedia is to be believed.
Hugh Johnson, in his 1966 classic "Wine" described white Graves as "one of the most popular basic white wines in Britain" which shows how things have changed. He noted "at its best it is dry and full-flavoured and below, somehow not quite clean-cut, having something rather like a hint of vanilla at the end of its taste, the result of ageing in oak casks".
In the glass this is straw yellow, almost verging to a descriptor with the word "golden" in it. The nose is quite ripe and sweet, with a rich element of white peach, lemon pith, and just a touch of butter and honey. The influence of wood is still obvious in the back notes of vanillin. The palate opens quite cool, with a distinct grippy mouthfeel. The finish perhaps slightly short.
Drink now. (87 pts.)
2013 Frog's Leap Merlot Rutherford - USA, California, Napa Valley, Rutherford (3/10/2017) Frog's Leap was established in 1981 in Rutherford, Napa Valley. They are grateful enough to Sideway's to still mention it on their website vis a vis Merlot (yes, yes, we get it...). This is organic, sustainable, solar-powered wine-making. A review online notes "With regards to the tasting itself, the concierge will check you in for your seated tasting ($25)"... which tells you everything you need to know about why my heart remains true to the Barossa, and I have yet to visit the Napa.
I cannot find the winery notes for 2013, but the 2014 edition is 94% Merlot, 6% Cabernet, so assume this has some component blended in. Ageing is 20months in a mix of French and American oak.
As soon as I pour this and sniff the decanter there is no question we have "serious" wine here. I know some commenters who would be declaring the vanillin, glue-like oak on opening to be a big problem, but I am not as sensitive to the style. With more air, this reveals an intense but balanced nose of blackberry, cedar, graphite, blood, and a more traditional merlot-like element of green mulberry bush. The palate delivers the same, with well-defined juicy fruits underlaid by fine, furry tannins.
Top notch wine. Can surely only be better in 3-5yrs. (93 pts.)
Sam, I had to smirk when I read your post. A day's tasting in Napa at say 8 wineries will set you back close to AUD 250 in tasting fees alone. They certainly make some excellent wines, but the Aussie experience is infinitely superior from a cost standpoint.
2004 Peterson's McLaren Vale Shiraz - This was a big wine and I'm not sure what % it came in at however the bottle said 8.9 std drinks so I'm thinking it was up around the 16.5% somewhere.
Took a while to open up and then wasn't too bad, a little porty but some good fruit still there and some licorice. I think a little heavy handed with the oak as well.
Last night with crumbed lamb cutlets, mash and beans (possibly my favourite meal) we enjoyed:
Mike Press 2012 Adelaide Hills Shiraz. An amazingly good wine for the ridiculous price of around $12. surprisingly medium to full bodied for an Adelaide Hills shiraz with great mouthfeel and oak playing a supportive role allowing the fruit to strut its stuff. Should improve marginally before peaking for a solid 5 years +. Just goes to shows how great the 2012 vintage was. Leconfield 2008 Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon. These guys have really lifted their game after a period of thin wines with less than ripe grapes although the stinker of a hot year played its part in getting the fruit really ripe in a cooler region. It could easily have been mistaken for a McLaren Vale cab without the dark chocolate. And not much of Coonawarra mint and eucalyptus that I find distracting. Just hitting its straps it should go for another 10+ years.
Carl
Your worst game of golf is better than your best day at work
dave vino wrote:Random spur of the moment purchase, bit of age on it for around $35, really enjoying it. Soft and supple with a bit of grip, classic iron filings, blood with dark plums and a dustiness on the back palate.
Great for a boring Telecon.
I know they had problems moving a lot of 2012 but $35 is an amazing price for SM. I grabbed a case of the 2010 and I seem to recall it costing close to $80/90 pb.
Mark
Dave, buy more! I love this wine at 20years. A recent 96' was drinking in the slot.
Went to Rockford CD on Saturday...big crowd on arrival, but then like Moses parting...we were exclusively looked after by the delightful Kelly. Vine vale 2016 a really lovely delicate Riesling, 2015 EV was more acid driven but still very good. 2014 Semillon was excellent, lovely balance of oak and fruit. Fronti at 8% I could drink all day. Wife liked the Frugal Farmer, which is slowly improving, 7th vintage now, feels like yesterday and the Alicante, never been wowed by the style. 2014 moppa was excellent, as was Rod and Spur and the rifle range was also showing well. 2013 BP opens with lots of fruits, then a little savoury but really good on the palate, all integrated good mouth feel, will develop very nicely i think. 2016 Disgorged Black, richer than what i remember and got a couple. 2009 Cane Cut Botrytis Semi was great, not cloying at all, lovely fruit profile with a nice balance between sweetness and acidity. Marion Tawny was luscious as was the 09 VP. 2006 SVS Flaxmann and Hoffmann...last of these releases as it was Chris Ringland's last year at the winery. The flaxmann at 250 metres up in the EV tastes the fresher and perhaps more approachable of the two wines (fresh bottles opened for us). The Hoffmann was dominated by a warming and perhaps at this stage a chary smoky American oak profile, needs to settle and with both wines spending 3 years in oak the flaxmann is travelling a little better at present. Suspect the Hoffman at the 20 year mark will be a very different proposition. May get some of each being the last, but at $100 pb possibly a good buy for the number one marque ( at least compared to others).
phillisc wrote:Went to Rockford CD on Saturday...big crowd on arrival, but then like Moses parting...we were exclusively looked after by the delightful Kelly. Vine vale 2016 a really lovely delicate Riesling, 2015 EV was more acid driven but still very good. 2014 Semillon was excellent, lovely balance of oak and fruit. Fronti at 8% I could drink all day. Wife liked the Frugal Farmer, which is slowly improving, 7th vintage now, feels like yesterday and the Alicante, never been wowed by the style. 2014 moppa was excellent, as was Rod and Spur and the rifle range was also showing well. 2013 BP opens with lots of fruits, then a little savoury but really good on the palate, all integrated good mouth feel, will develop very nicely i think. 2016 Disgorged Black, richer than what i remember and got a couple. 2009 Cane Cut Botrytis Semi was great, not cloying at all, lovely fruit profile with a nice balance between sweetness and acidity. Marion Tawny was luscious as was the 09 VP. 2006 SVS Flaxmann and Hoffmann...last of these releases as it was Chris Ringland's last year at the winery. The flaxmann at 250 metres up in the EV tastes the fresher and perhaps more approachable of the two wines (fresh bottles opened for us). The Hoffmann was dominated by a warming and perhaps at this stage a chary smoky American oak profile, needs to settle and with both wines spending 3 years in oak the flaxmann is travelling a little better at present. Suspect the Hoffman at the 20 year mark will be a very different proposition. May get some of each being the last, but at $100 pb possibly a good buy for the number one marque ( at least compared to others).
Cheers Craig
Thanks for the report Craig. I'm heading up sunday to have a taste and see what grabs my fancy. Not a stonewaller so I'll be bashing and crashing with the regulars. All good as i don't mind getting amongst it. Then off to Hentley Farm for late lunch with the boss. 10th Wedding Ann.... DO i sneak some black shiraz in? Or go with the 2014 HF Blanc de Noir to mark the occasion?
There's a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot.
Turkey Flat Shiraz 2005 a superb bottle with dinner last night. Rich, voluptuous, silky tannins, long full tail and completely confusing. The bottle variation from this case has been just wild. Reading comments on the Wine Front I see I am not alone with this experience. Some bottles have been as flat as an kiwi cricket pitch and some like last night just superb.
Voyager Cab Sav 2001 MR cab sav - i have continued to be disappointed with these wines. There was so much hype with they first hit the market but I tend to find them flat and boring. No great secondary development or interest factor. Perhaps its still too young even at 16 years, I reckon I will just leave them alone for another few years. They definitely have the tannin structure to go another 10-20 years. Time will tell.
JamieBahrain wrote:The TF 2005 is under Screwcap ?
It was cork which probably explains the wild differences. Previous bottles I would have rated 89/90, this bottle was more like 94/95. Just a superb old SA shiraz which is interesting because it's been a long time since I had a SA shiraz which I really enjoyed as much as this bottle.
A couple of 2006 Heathcote Shiraz last night side by side
2006 Brown Brothers Limited Release - The more fruit dominant of the 2 but starting to get some complexity on it. Not going to get much better. This was lighter and brighter compared to the
2006 Seppelt Heathcote Shiraz - This was more brooding, more savoury wine. Would have liked to have drunk it with something other than a curry to get a better balance, but some spice and licorice coming through
A grape I used to struggle with, and the variation in styles can be quite significant, but one that I've enjoyed more in recent years. This one a little young for my tastes, but still very palatable:
2007 Giuseppe E Figlio Mascarello Barbera d'Alba Superiore Scudetto - Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Barbera d'Alba Superiore (30/03/2017) Still a very youthful purple colour with no evidence of age.
Savoury nose of black fruits and tar/creosote & chocolate, swirling revealing a little more fruit and some florality, but still a brooding nose.
The palate likewise reveals an imposing wine with good depth of the fruit/savoury notes on the nose, some bitterness and acidity that does very well to impose it's own mark. Even some faint tannins joining the acidity to provide grip.
Good, but a little imposing now, it would be tempting to try again in 8-10 years, as it feels like the wine could support this.
Also open, but turned down by the resident Kiwi (understandably considering the proliferation of this grape in NZ when she was growing up - one too many bottle of White Cloud I suspect!). A relative cheapie, apparently recently in discount supermarket Lidl for £7, which I reckon is a fair price.
2015 Eisacktaler Kellerei / Cantina Valle Isarco Müller-Thurgau Valle Isarco / Eisacktaler - Italy, Trentino-Alto Adige, Alto Adige, Valle Isarco / Eisacktaler (29/03/2017) Very pale straw coloured with a hint of yellow coming through. Quite bright looking.
Subtle but attractive lemon, lychee & floral nose. The palate is quite light / neutral, like going back a decade or two ;¬) with subtle grapefruit perhaps the leading flavour. Acidity is nice and fresh and there is a subtle prickle that suggests a little dissolved CO2. A decent food wine, though something of a blank canvas. I'd be tempted to try another bottle with 2-3 years age on it, but I'd not expect anything too remarkable to emerge.
It's no Feldmarschall, but it's also not like the sickly MT's of old. It perhaps has most in common with the food-friendly neutral whites that used to typify Italian white wine more than a decade ago.
1971 Leo Buring Chateau Leonay Red Hermitage Claret
Every now and then you get the chance to drink a bit of Australian wine history, and marvel at how well they have aged. This was no exception. Old but gracefull. Slightly porty, rich, slight sweetness, not dead by any stretch.
Who knows whats in it, as per the name "Red Hermitage Claret"?
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