Mike Bennie Presents: Old Vine Tasting

[winetastic]

Last night I went along to a tasting hosted by Mike Bennie with an eclectic lineup of wines which shared only old vine age in common.

Takbilk 1927 Vines Marsanne 2010
What a great way to start, a rich and lemony nose with a hint of petroleum, the palate was also rich and quite broad, showing in equal parts a zesty acidity and a soft watery (in a good way) balance. An outstanding bottle which has to be in the conversation for the best value for money wine in the country.

Tyrrell's HVD '1908 Old Vines' Chardonnay 2015
Bit oaky for my tastes, viscous and textural palate, flavours were perhaps a touch linear, shows some nice minerality, grassy notes and has excellent length. Everyone else at the tasting loved it and Tamara bought some, so personal oak aversion probably at play here.

Martinscancho Verdejo 2013
I have never tried a Verdejo, Mike said like Marsanne it is often considered a second class grape... Tropical fruits and some grassyness on the nose, plenty of tasty pineapple on the palate. The real standout was the length, which just as you think it is about to end, a lovely fine tannin texture reveals itself. A very interesting and understated wine, would go gangbusters by the glass in a trendy wine bar.

Guilhem & J-Hughes Goisot Irancy Les Mazelots 2014
Powerful and textured, I would have never guessed this was a Pinot blind. It was all over the shop with rich fruits and smoke which transitioned beautifully into a savoury and mineral finish. An intellectual wine to be explored in a big glass.

Casa de Si Jesus Angel Vino Tinto 2015
High altitude old vine Grenache from Spain, this has all the fruit power you would expect from Grenache, however finishes with that wonderful European freshness and balance. The nose is weird, to the point of almost being unpleasant, however the flavour was outstanding. Wine of the tasting.

Hewitson Old Garden Mourvedre 2013
Sweet vanilla / coffee /lashings of new oak drown any possible sense of place. All fruit power and no balance.

Eperosa Stonegarden 1858 Grenache 2015
All alcohol heat on the nose, too rich, a wall of flavour with few redeeming qualities. Parker would love it.

All in all, some great wines, some poor wines, but an excellent tasting that was a lot of fun.

[Ian S]

A lovely post for highlighting why I am incredibly wary of Grenache, but when they preserve the acidity and hence grip, I actually rather like it. 'Bigger' is very much 'not better' for me as far as Grenache goes.

I think I need to hunt down some more of the 1927 vines Marsanne - just a single bottle to my name.

[Mahmoud Ali]

Which vintage of the Tahbillk Marsanne was it?

Ian. I'm hard pressed to understand how the post would make a person wary of Grenache as there were only two of them, with one being the "wine of the tasting". I wouldn't dismiss either Grenache, or Mouvedre for that matter, on the basis of a few over-extracted wines just as I wouldn't dismiss Shiraz based on some overblown examples. The problem with some Australian grenache may be that some winemakers don't approach it the right way, using their shiraz and cabernet template, both in the vineyard and the winery, to make grenache. This is not an original idea but one that Jeremy Oliver opined when talking about Australian merlot some years ago and I wonder if it's the same with grenache.

Mahmoud.

[winetastic]

Sorry the Tahbilk Marsanne was the 2010, will update post.

[michel]

A lovely post for highlighting why I am incredibly wary of Grenache, but when they preserve the acidity and hence grip, I actually rather like it. 'Bigger' is very much 'not better' for me as far as Grenache goes.

I think I need to hunt down some more of the 1927 vines Marsanne - just a single bottle to my name.

couldnt agree more
i like fruit tannin grip in grenache
michel

[Ian S]

Which vintage of the Tahbillk Marsanne was it?

Ian. I'm hard pressed to understand how the post would make a person wary of Grenache as there were only two of them, with one being the "wine of the tasting". I wouldn't dismiss either Grenache, or Mouvedre for that matter, on the basis of a few over-extracted wines just as I wouldn't dismiss Shiraz based on some overblown examples. The problem with some Australian grenache may be that some winemakers don't approach it the right way, using their shiraz and cabernet template, both in the vineyard and the winery, to make grenache. This is not an original idea but one that Jeremy Oliver opined when talking about Australian merlot some years ago and I wonder if it's the same with grenache.

Mahmoud.

Hi Mahmoud
The tasting didn't make me wary, that is already well-established. However the post does illustrate two Grenache wines at somewhat opposite ends of the spectrum, and the rich, ripe, dense version is a style I have never enjoyed. Had it not been for Gigondas, I might have dismissed the grape completely, yet here is a wine with significant Grenache, yet not syrupy or heady with alcohol.

I am wary because when I encounter a new wine, or one from a region I don't know much about, I've no idea what I'm getting. It's not a guarantee I'll enjoy versions at the less ripe / more restrained end of the spectrum, but I've yet to find one palatable at the other end of the spectrum. So will I take a punt on an unknown Grenache / Grenache led wine? Not without a taste first, or enough confidence in available tasting notes (and almost certainly alc% on the lower end of the spectrum). Even then I'm not rushing to buy it - Gigondas might be a bottle a year choice for us.

Then only Aussie wines I can think of that (I believe) have significant Grenache in them, and that I've liked, are D'Arenberg D'Arrys Original & Charles Melton Rose of Virginia. Neither would I rush out to buy now, but I would not turn down a glass.

regards
Ian