Brisbane Offline April 2021 Wine Notes

[Michael McNally]

Ten Brisbane offline regulars met at Vine. We celebrated being able to get together again by dragging along some special wines to share. My notes (brief as taken on the phone as I forgot my notepad):

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Sitting down - Calamari, Potato Soft Pure, Wasabi and Watercress
NV Louis Roederer Champagne (Michael)
Breads and yeast on the nose. Mussels and slate. Fine mousse, nice mouthfeel lemon acidity. Nice length for a NV. Good start.

Bracket 1 – Pan Fried Canadian Scallop, Creamed Tuscany Kale, Habanero Salame, Porcini
2008 Sepplet Drumborg Great Western Riesling (Ian)
Still quite pale. Nose is partially developed. Lime and slate. Lime juice and guava. Good length. Plenty in the tank. Excellent.
2012 Grosset Polish Hill Clare Valley Riesling (Gerry)
Shy nose lemon lime talc. Powerful palate of lime and grapefruit. Broad wine that has great length. Excellent.

Bracket 2 - Ravioli with Braised Beef Cheeks, Fermented Red Cabbage, jus with Tasmanian Rasin
2017 Cellers Scala Dei Heretege (Heretic), Priorat (Michael)
Fruit attack on the nose. Tar and cherry kirsch and minerals. Great fruit with very subtle tannin giving it a great mouthfeel. Not as long as the Pinot but pretty persistent. Excellent.
2017 Escarpment "Kupe" Pinot Noir, Martinborough (Nick)
Really interesting nose. Sous Bois mushroom and truffle. Light to medium bodied. Cherries and black berry fruits. Gorgeous tannins. Great length. Excellent.

Bracket 3 - Slow Cooked Lamb Sholder, Goat Cheese, Pak Choi and Pomme Croquettes
2005 Clos des Papes, Châteauneuf-du-Pape (Rens)
Complex nose of berries and cherry. Slightly distracting VA. Cherry and cocoa and truffle and cream. Good grip and length. VA got worse over time and the wine was deemed flawed. Pity.
2005 Vieux Télégraphe, Châteauneuf-du-Pape (Nick)
Nose of some cherries and black fruit. Floral notes. Grip. Juicy, multi-layered complex cherry, berry and mushroomy fruit. Grip. Length. Balance. Excellent/Brilliant.
2004 Charles Melton Nine Popes, Barossa Valley (Ian)
Youthful fruity nose. Black charred fruit. Not as fine or delicate as the frogs, but great in its style. Excellent.

Bracket 4 – Cheese Platters
2007 Albino Rocca "Duemilasette" Barberesco (Ian)
Smoke. Charred meat. Olives. Herbs. Complex nose. Restrained fruit. Sooooo grippy (in a good way). Do another 30 years in a canter. Fruit overshadowed by the tannin at this stage. Potential plus. Excellent
2002 Domaine de Chevalier Grand Cru Classe de Graves (Gerry)
Graphite raspberry and floral notes. Gorgeous. Mouth filling fruit. Black cherry and some graphite. Tannins to die for. Length. Brilliant.

Bracket 5 – Raspberry Sorbet, Rhubarb, Hibiscus tea and Lychee
2010 Chateau Filhot, Sauternes (Gerry)
Subtle apricot and danish nose and flavours. Delicate persistent flavours of poached apricots and peaches. Clean finish of some length. Excellent.
1954 Hardys Show Reserve Port Bin M177 (Rens)
Almost cognac nose with caramel and orange rind. Deep but lifted (contradictory I know) flavours of crème caramel, sandalwood, milk chocolate, spices, dried flowers, toffee, coffee hints and lengths to burn. Brilliant.

WWOTN
There were 4 votes each for the Champagne and the Drumborg Riesling with the Grosset getting 2 votes (including mine)

RWOTN
There were 2 votes each for the Escarpment Pinot, the Priorat and the Baraberesco, with one vote each for the Bordeaux, Nine Popes and the Vieux Télégraphe (mine)

WOTN
There were three votes each for the Champagne and the Port (my WOTN). There were 2 votes for the Priorat and one each for the Sauternes and the Drumborg.

As always with this group it was the sharing and the company that made it a great night. Thanks for making this one happen Gerry! Hopefully we can make these more regular as 2021 progresses.

Cheers

Michael

[gpk]

Thanks as always Michael for being chief reviewer for the wines. It has been a long time between offlines and as Michael says for us it is always about the catch up and opportunity to share wines with the group. Some really interesting wines and a bit different from what is normally brought along. I was bit torn which wines stood out on the night but really enjoyed the Cellers Scala Dei Heretege, Vieux Télégraphe, Châteauneuf-du-Pape & Nine popes. I was really looking forward to trying the Clos des Papes, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, but unfortunately it was stuffed and just came across as being oxidized. We weren't disappointed with Ren's port and this was quickly knocked of at the end of the night. The food was good, but not to the standard when Nicole and myself visited a couple of months ago. I thought the portions of a couple of dishes were a bit smaller and the desert came out very quickly at the end of the night as if we were being told it was time to go. Would still recommend the Vine Restaurant & Bar as a BYO for Brissy as it is still a good option for the limited BYO scene. Looking forward to the next one. cheers Gerry

[JamieBahrain]

That’s very ambitious longevity for the Barbaresco?

[Rednick]

Brilliant night thanks all, especially to Michael for taking notes and to Gerry for organising and getting us all out.

[rens]

Very enjoyable to catch up with everyone again.

[ticklenow1]

Yes it was great to see the gang again. An enjoyable night with many very fine wines.

I really enjoyed both the Rieslings, but on the night I thought the Drumborg edged the Polish Hill. I suspect it would be a different story in 5-10 years time.

Absolutely loved the Priorat. Those tannins were to die for. My RWOTN and WOTN. Not being a Pinot drinker I wasn't overly impressed with the Pinot. It was a bit mushroom/barnyard on the nose without it being brett. Having said that, I could understand why some loved it.

Sadly I couldn't get past the VA in the Clos des Papes. Such a shame and I was really looking forward to trying it. Really enjoyed the Nine Popes and having had it under screw cap and cork, this bottle (under screw cap) was excellent. The Vieux Telegraphe was also a fantastic wine. The CDP's are so different to our local GSM's and this was a great comparison.

I thought the Barberesco was decent without being great. Nice wine but I found it finished a little short. The Domaine de Chevalier was really good too, but as with the Barberesco, it finished just a tad short. Having said that, I would be more than happy to drink both these wines anytime.

The Chateau Filhot was a huge surprise for me. I've never been into desert wines, but this was incredible. I know most of the crew were gushing over the Hardy's Port, but I was looking for a second and third glass of the Sauternes. The length was amazing, the fruit purity was there and not overly sweet. Stunning.

The food and service were excellent, just the servings were on the very small size for my liking. I walked out still hungry. The Beef Cheek Ravioli the highlight for me.

Thanks to Gerry for organising and I look forward to our next get together.

Cheers
Ian