TN: 2002 Browns of Padthaway Sauvignon Blanc

[n4sir]

2002 Browns of Padthaway Sauvignon Blanc, Padthaway (screwcap) 12% alc. Deep gold colour. Attractive and toasty at first like a well developed semillon, becoming more lemony and grassy with breathing along with attractive sweeter scents of orange peel and lanolin. The palate’s just as juicy and lemony with a little picked capsicum and smoky vanilla on the finish, the acidity lip-smacking and asking for another glass or shellfish to match (fresh strawberries is surprisingly another good one - must be some RS here). After a couple of hours some bitter turpines start to kick in on the back palate, but this has been a blast while it lasted. From memory, I think this was made by David O’Leary and saw a little time in oak; 15 years later (13 and a half since my last bottle) the Simple Minds song 'Alive & Kicking' immediately comes to mind. Great fun and also a little shocking, although I am glad I had the thought to hang on to a bottle of this wild child for this long.



Cheers,
Ian

[Mahmoud Ali]

Thanks Ian, it's alway a joy for me to hear about these "little" wines apmply rewarding a good cellaring. I too have a penchant for squirreling away the odd unfancied wine just to see how they might do with some age under their belt. Fine looking colour for a 15 year-old sauvignon blanc and like many older wines I find that food is a necessary accompaniment.

We don't get any Brown Brothers wine here in Canada, not since they made a decision many years ago wthdraw from the north American market. I have one wine from the old days, a red made with Mondeuse in the blend.

Mahmoud.

[Ian S]

Hi Mahmoud
Confusingly Browns of Padthaway are a different outfit to Brown Brothers.

However the Brown Brothers wine you have should be a good 'un. I don't think it's been imported into UK for at least a couple of decades, not sure why, but figured there's not much of it.

[Mahmoud Ali]

Ooh, how silly of me not to pick up on the "of" Padthaway, assuming instead that the wine was from there. Thanks for the clarification.

Mahmoud.