February 2020 Tasting Notes

[sjw_11]

OK this includes some January as well but here are my recent wines including a few from the cellar when I was back in Adelaide last week...

• 2010 Massena Saperavi - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley (2/29/2020)
  Still dark red. Muscular, dense nose. Blood plum, animaux scents, leather, almost a touch of barnyard. A little bit of VA. Quite rustic. Big, blocky tannins dominate the palate. Some more sweet fruit emerges with air. An unusual variety in Aus but this is pretty decent. Ready to drink. (90 pts.)
• 2011 Pooley Pinot Noir Clarence House Vineyard - Australia, Tasmania, Coal River (2/28/2020)
  Mid red. Sappy cherry, bright red fruit. Very fresh. Perhaps a hint of undergrowth. You could take this for a much younger wine except for just a touch of mushroomy development on the back palate. Really decent. Not sure how this could go with a few more years, flip a coin I suggest! (93 pts.)
• 2012 Henschke Sémillon Noble Rot - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Eden Valley (2/28/2020)
  Mid gold. A little dark for the age but the nose is reassuringly fresh. Classic botrytis nose. Apricot, cumquat, marmalade. Sweet but not cloying. Just lovely. (93 pts.)
• 2010 Henschke Abbotts Prayer - Australia, South Australia, Mount Lofty Ranges, Lenswood (2/28/2020)
  68% merlot with the rest Cabernet. Mid red. Slightly tart nose. Red currant, a bit of plum. A touch green, but overall quite elegant. Balanced and medium bodied in the mouth. I would drink this sooner than later but as a slightly cooler expression of Aussie Cab/merlot this is pretty decent. (92 pts.)
• 2004 Rockford Shiraz Basket Press - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley (2/28/2020)
  Mid red. Brambly red fruit. Medium bodied and mellow. Classic Rockford house style. Not a wine you analyse in detail, but every piece is in its place. Drink and enjoy (though it will hold for a few years for sure). (90 pts.)
• 2008 Kay Brothers Shiraz Basket Pressed Amery Vineyards - Australia, South Australia, Fleurieu, McLaren Vale (2/28/2020)
  Mid red. Vibrant red berries. A bit of VA, maybe reductive. Quite hot. Fresh but it’s the kind of bottle that tugs at my prejudice and says “would cork be so bad”. Decent wine for the price. Drink up. (88 pts.)
• 2006 Wolf Blass Black Label - Australia, South Australia (2/27/2020)
  Just over 50% Cabernet (from Barossa and Langhorne Creek), 40% Shiraz from McLaren Vale and 9% Malbec from Langhorne Creek. Blood red. Fragrant red berries, coffee, and a slight herbal note on the nose. Tobacco leaf? I could almost have thought this has some Cab Franc in the blend. Some vanilla as well. The oak (20 months of new and seasoned French and American oak) is present but not overwhelming. Lovely intensity and length in the mouth. Rich and clearly new world but with great balance and persistence. Drinking well now but should live another decade with ease in a good cellar. (94 pts.)
• 2008 Philip Shaw No. 89 - Australia, New South Wales, Central Ranges, Orange (2/27/2020)
  Deep blood red. Intense nose. Blood plums, liqueur blackcurrant, graphite. A floral note from the Viognier. Still quite closed and dense in the mouth, revealing juicy fruit, but also almost monolithic with firm tannins but somehow not over done or too warm/heavy. A cellar door purchase fully vindicated. Give it another 5years at least to unwind fully. Terrific example for the region. (94 pts.)
• 2018 Petaluma Riesling Hanlin Hill - Australia, South Australia, Mount Lofty Ranges, Clare Valley (2/27/2020)
  Glowing yellow/green. Sharp lime juice, lime cordial and white flowers on the nose. Bracing acidity. Lime, mineral notes. Really well defined with a long, linear finish. Bone dry. Great young Riesling, love to see it again in 5-10yrs. Could score higher. (92 pts.)
• 2012 Hoddles Creek Pinot Noir 1er - Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley (2/27/2020)
  Pale red. Bright cherry on the nose. A touch of sous-bois as well, and a hint of spice. The palate is quite fresh, with vibrant acidity and a gentle, brambly finish. Overall good pinosity, not specifically “Aussie” to me. Pretty decent and on this form no rush to drink. (91 pts.)
• 2016 Rockford Riesling Vine Vale Barossa Valley - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley (2/27/2020)
  Pale yellow. Clean nose of broad citrus, white flowers, and lemon peel. Crisp and juicy on the palate. Very fresh, hardly showing any developed characters. Should only get better over at least 5 more years. (90 pts.)
• 2014 Rockford Riesling Hand Picked Eden Valley - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Eden Valley (2/27/2020)
  Mid yellow. Lime, lime cordial, a hint of kero. Still quite crisp and clean, with just a touch of toasty development. The finish is just a touch short. I am not sure there is anything more to come from this with further time, I would probably drink up although with the screw cap there is no need to rush. (89 pts.)
• 2010 Eden Road Shiraz The Long Road - Australia, New South Wales, Southern New South Wales, Canberra District (2/27/2020)
  Mid red. Plum, spice. Clearly cooler climate. A bit closed at first but not too much more emerges with air. Nice easy drinking red, no rush with the screw cap but I would look to drink sooner than later. (87 pts.)
• 2018 Ashton Hills Chardonnay Piccadilly Valley - Australia, South Australia, Mount Lofty Ranges, Adelaide Hills (2/23/2020)
  Pale yellow flecked with green. Sharp and fresh on the nose- citrus, grapefruit. A touch of stone fruit underneath. The same carries through on the palate. A bit angular, the acid juts out just a shade. I’d like to see this again in a couple of years- it needs some time to settle down I think. (90 pts.)
• NV Honorio Rubio Rioja Añadas Edición Limitada - Spain, La Rioja, Rioja (2/10/2020)
  Bottled in June 2019 after maturation for 10-years, but no vintage is explicitly stated. Mid yellow. Youthful colour. Intriguing nose. Waxy lemon, lanolin, honey suckle. Still very fresh in the mouth. Lingering finish. Nice juice and very distinctive. (92 pts.)
• 2018 Stéphane Ogier Vin de Pays des Collines Rhodaniennes Le Blanc d'Ogier - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Vin de Pays des Collines Rhodaniennes (2/9/2020)
  Pleasantly balanced stone fruit, quite clean and crisp. Just a bit of phenolic grip on the close. (87 pts.)
• 2017 Alvaro Palacios Priorat Les Terrasses Velles Vinyes - Spain, Catalunya, Priorat (2/8/2020)
  Apparently the 2017 is Grenache dominant (55/44) and comes from 80 different vineyards. Sligtly backwards on the nose, verging more to dried fruit and spiced plum, although with air there is a hint of Grenache perfume as well. Quite dense in the mouth. Firm tannins overriding the slightly cooked fruit that falls away surprisingly quickly. I think this needs some more time to come together. (87 pts.)
• 2014 Oddero Barbera d'Asti Superiore - Italy, Piedmont, Asti, Barbera d'Asti Superiore (2/4/2020)
  Blood red, just a hint of brown at the edge. The nose has immediate appeal with brambly red fruit, spice, with a hint of varnish and of undergrowth (in a positive way). Juicy red fruits on the palate. Nice acid balance. Great value. No rush to drink, but I suspect this is close to its best. (89 pts.)
• 2016 Ca'N Verdura Mantonegro Binissalem-Mallorca SuperNova - Spain, Balearic Islands, Binissalem-Mallorca (2/3/2020)
  Purpely mid red. Sweet red cherries and raspberry on the nose. Nice purity and depth. Juicy and fleshy on the palate. Gathers depth over a couple of days open. Really nice juice. (91 pts.)
• 2017 Cantina Terlan Pinot Bianco Terlano Riserva Vorberg - Italy, Trentino-Alto Adige, Alto Adige, Terlano (2/2/2020)
  From vines 450 to 950 metres above sea level, this is fermented in large oak and then sees 12 months ageing in oak and on the lees. Full yellow colour. Rich nose of apricot, peach and vanilla. This carries through on the palate. It finishes reasonably long with just a touch of tart acidity poking out. (88 pts.)
• 2018 Domaine Duseigneur Côtes du Rhône Villages Odyssée - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône Villages (2/1/2020)
  Purple red. Lots of sweet Grenache fruit. Touch simple. Not the best value at €17. (87 pts.)
• 2015 Château Signac Côtes du Rhône Villages Chusclan Cuvée Combe D'enfer - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône Villages Chusclan (1/30/2020)
  GSM blend. Mid red, intensely fragrant nose of crushed red berries and spice. Really good depth to the nose. In the mouth this is balanced and juicy, finishing just a shade simple with surprisingly fuzzy tannins. Very drinkable. Good value. (88 pts.)
• 2016 Michel Gassier Costières-de-Nîmes Nostre Païs - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Costières-de-Nîmes (1/27/2020)
  This is a blend of 55pc Grenache, 25pc Syrah, 10pc Mourvèdre and the rest a mix of Carignan and cinsault. The producer says 2016 was the “best vintage” they have ever seen. Organic farming, old vines, manual harvesting, and 50pc aged in 2-3yr old oak for 12 months. It’s all a lot of technique for a pretty modest price, but the quality here belies the price tag (€15). Spicy raspberry and bright cherry on the nose. A touch of red skin lolly but not overly confected. Juicy red fruits on the palate but with a bit of structure as well, closing with gentle fuzzy tannins. Super drinkable, and I suspect may develop interesting complexity over 2-3 more years. (91 pts.)
• 2018 Bodegas Honorio Rubio Rioja Macerado - Spain, La Rioja, Rioja (1/27/2020)
  100pc Viura which undergoes roughly 7 months of skin contact before bottling. 1,590 bottles produced. Yellowish in the glass but with an almost pink or orange hue. Intriguing and unusual nose. Some nashi pear notes, hard to pin down. Similar in the mouth, finishing quite tart. The producer says wild sour apple and I think that works. Perhaps more “interesting” than anything else but not in the way of some natural style wines (ie this is not actually faulty). (87 pts.)
• 2011 Giovanni Chiappini Bolgheri Superiore Guado de' Gemoli - Italy, Tuscany, Bolgheri, Bolgheri Superiore (1/26/2020)
  This is a blend of 80pc Cabernet with mostly merlot and a touch of cab franc. Blood red, touch of browning. Intense and elegant nose, with cedar, a touch of varnish, and some red cherry notes. Dense plum and still very firm tannin in the mouth. Lingering finish. I suspect this will still improve from here and drink well for at least another 10 years. (93 pts.)
• 2017 Bodegas Alejandro Fernández Ribera del Duero Tinto Pesquera Crianza - Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero (1/26/2020)
  Just a brief impression. Sweet purple fruits. Plush mouthfeel. Decent if not particularly memorable. (88 pts.)
• 2017 François Villard St. Péray Version - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, St. Péray (1/26/2020)
  Honey suckle and lemon on the nose. The palate is quite broad and a touch coarse. Not really impressive for the price (mid €20s). (86 pts.)
• 2018 Paco y Lola Albariño Rías Baixas - Spain, Galicia, Rías Baixas (1/25/2020)
  This winery is a cooperative founded in 2005. Harvest is done manually and fermentation is in stainless steel. Mid yellow colour. Nectarine and grapefruit on the nose. Crisp acidity and citrus in the mouth, finishing rounded and full. Reasonable value. (87 pts.)
• 2018 Bodegas Forjas del Salnes Rías Baixas Leirana Finca Genoveva - Spain, Galicia, Rías Baixas (1/22/2020)
  Natural production but not certified organic. Apparently 40year old vines. Mid yellow colour. Fresh citrus, apricot and a whiff of honey. Quite rich on the palate, but finishing with good acidity. Good value. (87 pts.)

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