...what you have been drinking this week.
in my case, the best of the older wines was a Penfold 1996 St Henri Shiraz. In great vintages, like 1996, I try and keep my dirty little hands off this label until it is 10 years old but I couldn't wait so cracked a bottle now. Initially there was a touch of the VA but this blew off fairly quickly, as did the bottle stink to reveal a beautiful aroma of complex berries ranging from black to blue with a touch of spice and the start of some leathery characters. On the palate, this wine already has fantastic complexity and is starting to show excellent aged characteristics whilst still maintaining an excellent intensity of fruit. The palate retains bouquet integrity with the addition of subtle chocolate and a little leafy influence whilst retaining youthful acidity and powdery tannins that still need time to integrate and soften further so this wine should continue to improve for many years to come. Bloody enjoyable, it has just reached the Excellent level and now I have seen how good the wine is, I am certainly glad that I still have eleven left to enjoy.
Now what have you guys been drinking?
Sunday again, time to ley us all know.....
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JamieBahrain
- Posts: 3754
- Joined: Sat Aug 16, 2003 7:40 am
- Location: Fragrant Harbour.
I had the 1996 St Henri recently and concur with Torb's notes. I would just add it was from start to finish, as perfectly seamless and harmonious as shiraz can be.
I escaped the 8/8ths smog of Hong Kong for the week. Ventured to Kota Kinabalu to enjoy jungle fresh air ( when the Indon farmers aren't burning the rainforests ), great tropical seafood and a surprisingly good wine culture.
I enjoyed a few bottles of 1998 St Henri shiraz. I don't think it is ready nor as good as the 96. Raw shiraz iniitially, bounded by a good structual framwork, commands decanting. A good deal of air brings out the malty blackberry fruit, licorice and leather. Smooth textured palate with powerful ripe tannins building a long, persistant finish.
I had some truly amazing Australian Wagyu beef on mushroom risotto, with a bottle of 1999 Tatachilla Foundation shiraz. The Foundation paired beautifully! It had finesse and regionality that you went looking for- pristine blackberry and licorice shiraz fruit at pleasant levels of ripeness and although fleshy, the wine could be thrown around the mouth with comfortable ease. The oak usage was clever and the French/American combination was not overdone and enhanced complexity. The tannins are fine and long, approachable now but with good years ahead. Outstanding.
Followed up with a 2000 Tatachilla Foundation shiraz. Full bodied McClaren Vale in "your face shiraz". Masses of blackberry fruit coupled with more evident American Oak. Concentrated, jammy palate fruit flavours of blackfruits and blood plum. Ripe tannins in evidence with a big, warm bourbony finish.
I preferred the 1999 but company was in favour of the 2000.
I escaped the 8/8ths smog of Hong Kong for the week. Ventured to Kota Kinabalu to enjoy jungle fresh air ( when the Indon farmers aren't burning the rainforests ), great tropical seafood and a surprisingly good wine culture.
I enjoyed a few bottles of 1998 St Henri shiraz. I don't think it is ready nor as good as the 96. Raw shiraz iniitially, bounded by a good structual framwork, commands decanting. A good deal of air brings out the malty blackberry fruit, licorice and leather. Smooth textured palate with powerful ripe tannins building a long, persistant finish.
I had some truly amazing Australian Wagyu beef on mushroom risotto, with a bottle of 1999 Tatachilla Foundation shiraz. The Foundation paired beautifully! It had finesse and regionality that you went looking for- pristine blackberry and licorice shiraz fruit at pleasant levels of ripeness and although fleshy, the wine could be thrown around the mouth with comfortable ease. The oak usage was clever and the French/American combination was not overdone and enhanced complexity. The tannins are fine and long, approachable now but with good years ahead. Outstanding.
Followed up with a 2000 Tatachilla Foundation shiraz. Full bodied McClaren Vale in "your face shiraz". Masses of blackberry fruit coupled with more evident American Oak. Concentrated, jammy palate fruit flavours of blackfruits and blood plum. Ripe tannins in evidence with a big, warm bourbony finish.
I preferred the 1999 but company was in favour of the 2000.
Not much this week besides the (mostly) white wine tasting notes I've already posted throughout the week. However, I did open a 2001 Chateau Reynella Basket Pressed Shiraz on Friday night (the export label).
Having not tried any Rockford yet (don't worry, it's next on the list), I think this was my first basket pressed wine, unless I'd tried something without knowing. Colour was black/opaque, with purple rims. A delightful nose, with a fair smack of blueberry and vanilla in a very elegant way, escorted by subtle liquorice, raspberries and 'strawberries and cream confectionery'. The wine is absolutely gorgeous in the mouth, like liquid velvet and definitely one of the best 'mouth feels' to date. Blueberry ice cream is probably the best way to describe it, with silky smooth tannins.
I came back to the last two glasses having had the wine open for 48 hours. Despite a small amount of oxidation, the nose was still there and the wine had mellowed out even more (if that was even possible) to make it exceptionally morish and hard to put down. I tried my best to take my time and savour every last drop. At $25 this wine is a bargain and I'll be purchasing several to put down for a few years.
Interesting to note that the cork had solid crystals of sediment stuck to the bottom. Further more, the first glass had a substantial amount of sediment - something you might expect from a ten year old wine - and if I'd known this, I would have decanted. Should certainly help speed up the process of secondary and complex characters, but I'm not sure whether it will become a detriment with significant bottle age...
Cheers for now,
Having not tried any Rockford yet (don't worry, it's next on the list), I think this was my first basket pressed wine, unless I'd tried something without knowing. Colour was black/opaque, with purple rims. A delightful nose, with a fair smack of blueberry and vanilla in a very elegant way, escorted by subtle liquorice, raspberries and 'strawberries and cream confectionery'. The wine is absolutely gorgeous in the mouth, like liquid velvet and definitely one of the best 'mouth feels' to date. Blueberry ice cream is probably the best way to describe it, with silky smooth tannins.
I came back to the last two glasses having had the wine open for 48 hours. Despite a small amount of oxidation, the nose was still there and the wine had mellowed out even more (if that was even possible) to make it exceptionally morish and hard to put down. I tried my best to take my time and savour every last drop. At $25 this wine is a bargain and I'll be purchasing several to put down for a few years.
Interesting to note that the cork had solid crystals of sediment stuck to the bottom. Further more, the first glass had a substantial amount of sediment - something you might expect from a ten year old wine - and if I'd known this, I would have decanted. Should certainly help speed up the process of secondary and complex characters, but I'm not sure whether it will become a detriment with significant bottle age...
Cheers for now,
Max
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Avant d’être bon, un vin doit être vrai
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Avant d’être bon, un vin doit être vrai
Thanks for the tip on the '96 St Henri Torb, I'm trying to keep my hands off mine as well untril at least 15 years old, so a bit more patience yet, but sounds like a beauty!!
Had a bottle of '02 Wiraa Wirra RSW and was very impressed. Very typical McLaren Vale, well handled vanillan oak and excellent fruit. Milky tannins and good acidity, it should age very well.
Rory
Had a bottle of '02 Wiraa Wirra RSW and was very impressed. Very typical McLaren Vale, well handled vanillan oak and excellent fruit. Milky tannins and good acidity, it should age very well.
Rory
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Guest
Went to see Bjorn Again at the Taronga Park Zoo twilight concert series - What a hoot! Picnic wines were naturally called for so I tried out the 99 Capel Vale Chardonnay I had recently purchased for this purpose. I got this quite cheap and got what I paid for I think. Fairly tired wine with no freshness or complexity. Not really even any distinguishing chardonnay characteristics. OK for picnics.
Moved on to the 04 Rockford Alicant Bouchet which I've been steadily been working through the case of. Sunshine in a bottle with lovely fresh crisp sweet fruit characteristcs.
Later that evening, at a friends place, I finally got to try the much talked about 02 Saltram Mamre Brook Cab Sav. Fantastic wine for the price. Lots of depth of fruit and flavour. Blueberries, blackberries and chocolate. I've got half a dozen of these but am thinking I should buy a few more, particularly at the current special prices around the traps. Great stuff.
Moved on to the 04 Rockford Alicant Bouchet which I've been steadily been working through the case of. Sunshine in a bottle with lovely fresh crisp sweet fruit characteristcs.
Later that evening, at a friends place, I finally got to try the much talked about 02 Saltram Mamre Brook Cab Sav. Fantastic wine for the price. Lots of depth of fruit and flavour. Blueberries, blackberries and chocolate. I've got half a dozen of these but am thinking I should buy a few more, particularly at the current special prices around the traps. Great stuff.
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bacchaebabe
- Posts: 1222
- Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2003 5:04 pm
- Location: Sydney
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Muscat Mike
- Posts: 425
- Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2003 10:05 pm
- Location: Sydney - North West.
Please Sir,
I would have posted my Rhone tasting notes, but they got lost in the "Great drunk girl falling over tasting table disaster of 2005"
. It was carnage.
From recollection
Two decent Cote du Rhone whites firmly at the savoury end of the scale - interesting how little nose both of these wines had.
The CNdP was excellent, with great length albeit quite a savoury twist to the finish.
The (de-classified Cote-Rotie I believe) Cote Ferree VDT I brought along as a wild gamble split the tasters down the middle, with the Francophiles thinking it was exceptional & right in their slot. Others thought it was disgusting & a true aberration of a wine! I really enjoy these moments, because it shows we're all being honest. The more I tasted (& the more it warmed up I suspect), the less I liked it, being too floral/sweet/oily on the nose. Not sure S&V blends are for me.
Ian
p.s. Maximus, many thanks for the note on the Chateau Reynella, as I have two bottles stashed away. Sounds like 2006 might be a good time to crack the first of them.
I would have posted my Rhone tasting notes, but they got lost in the "Great drunk girl falling over tasting table disaster of 2005"
. It was carnage.
From recollection
Two decent Cote du Rhone whites firmly at the savoury end of the scale - interesting how little nose both of these wines had.
The CNdP was excellent, with great length albeit quite a savoury twist to the finish.
The (de-classified Cote-Rotie I believe) Cote Ferree VDT I brought along as a wild gamble split the tasters down the middle, with the Francophiles thinking it was exceptional & right in their slot. Others thought it was disgusting & a true aberration of a wine! I really enjoy these moments, because it shows we're all being honest. The more I tasted (& the more it warmed up I suspect), the less I liked it, being too floral/sweet/oily on the nose. Not sure S&V blends are for me.
Ian
p.s. Maximus, many thanks for the note on the Chateau Reynella, as I have two bottles stashed away. Sounds like 2006 might be a good time to crack the first of them.
Jacobs Creek Limited Release Shiraz Cabernet 96: Highly Recommended. Good fruit, oak in just a supporting role. Probably has a while further to live.
Jenke Shiraz 99: After my previous Jenke (like drinking furniture) this was a pleasant surprise - great fruit, some (American) oak but not too much. A lovely drink - Highly recommended, and not overshadowed at all by the JC.
Coldstream Hills Chardonnay 2003 - Peach and Melon - too young and fruity for my palate but the crowd seemed to like it. Recommended.
Artemis Grand Crux Shiraz 2003 - Soft and subtle cool climate shiraz. Extremely pleasant drinking now, although it would hardly stand out in a big tasting. I don't know enough about the style to evaluate the cellaring potential. Made at Mundrakoona from Canberra district fruit.
Mount Majura Pinot Noir 2000 - Agreeable - nothing special about this.
Kieran
Jenke Shiraz 99: After my previous Jenke (like drinking furniture) this was a pleasant surprise - great fruit, some (American) oak but not too much. A lovely drink - Highly recommended, and not overshadowed at all by the JC.
Coldstream Hills Chardonnay 2003 - Peach and Melon - too young and fruity for my palate but the crowd seemed to like it. Recommended.
Artemis Grand Crux Shiraz 2003 - Soft and subtle cool climate shiraz. Extremely pleasant drinking now, although it would hardly stand out in a big tasting. I don't know enough about the style to evaluate the cellaring potential. Made at Mundrakoona from Canberra district fruit.
Mount Majura Pinot Noir 2000 - Agreeable - nothing special about this.
Kieran
Mazzi Fonteruntloi 1999 DOCG Chianti Classico typically dry chianti with good small berry flavours, rustic earthy nose with tobacco and subdued fruit, good acidity, an excellent food wine that cut through rich of several dishes.
MT Lagi Ghiran Shiraz 2000, decanted for an hour, advanced deveolpment in my view subtle quality fruit, great smokey earthy palate. An interesting wine and could drink a lot of itbut at $40 I think that this is one to add interest to cellar now and then rather than a staple.
Leasingham Bin 56 1998 Cab Malbec decanted for an hour, rich nose and palate, vibrant primary berry fruit, little secondary deveopment as yet or hidden by the fruit. Quite acidic so would suit the lamb shank roast. Excellent value purchased some time ago for <$10.
Warnburn cab merlot 2001,excellent primary berry fruits a very drinkable wine. Not sure where this will go but I will give it a couple of years and probably drink up.
Seppelt Chalambar Shiraz 2000 Rhonish smokey nose and palate, obvious quality fruit, absolutely delicious wine at bargain basement price. Harmonious at present. Love this wine, should I drink all the 2 doz now or wait? I might reserve a half doz. Too good now!
MT Lagi Ghiran Shiraz 2000, decanted for an hour, advanced deveolpment in my view subtle quality fruit, great smokey earthy palate. An interesting wine and could drink a lot of itbut at $40 I think that this is one to add interest to cellar now and then rather than a staple.
Leasingham Bin 56 1998 Cab Malbec decanted for an hour, rich nose and palate, vibrant primary berry fruit, little secondary deveopment as yet or hidden by the fruit. Quite acidic so would suit the lamb shank roast. Excellent value purchased some time ago for <$10.
Warnburn cab merlot 2001,excellent primary berry fruits a very drinkable wine. Not sure where this will go but I will give it a couple of years and probably drink up.
Seppelt Chalambar Shiraz 2000 Rhonish smokey nose and palate, obvious quality fruit, absolutely delicious wine at bargain basement price. Harmonious at present. Love this wine, should I drink all the 2 doz now or wait? I might reserve a half doz. Too good now!
2000 Glaetzer Shiraz Prune juice. Over-ripe, under appealing. Presented a challenge to finish my 2nd glass. Failed the "Do I want more ?" acid test badly. Avoid.
1998 Seppelt St Peters 2nd failure for this one for me, not sure whether there has been undetectable levels of TCA in both, but fruit seems muted, contrary to all other reports I've read. Pleasant drinking all the same. Have more, will try again another year.
1998 Seppelt St Peters 2nd failure for this one for me, not sure whether there has been undetectable levels of TCA in both, but fruit seems muted, contrary to all other reports I've read. Pleasant drinking all the same. Have more, will try again another year.
Thanks for the 1996 St Henri notes Ric & Jamie. It's great timing as I'm going to take a bottle to a dinner next week.
Better late than never: Steve (707) asked about this Max Schubert Trophy winner a few weeks ago, and my last recollection was that it was getting more oaky with bottle age. We never caught up at the Cos dinner, so I cracked open my second-last from my six pack last weekend.
Rothbury Estate Hunter Valley Brokenback Shiraz: Inky red colour and light crusting. When I flushed this through the decanter and breatheasy, there was a mass of coffee, coconut, violets, and cassis aromas wafting from the funnel. From the first glass the big American oak injection is again obvious; smoky chocolate with hints of vegemite, coconut, varnish and cut timber. With breathing this does soften to show some developed leather, coffee/toffee, and mint characters, with hints of licorice and pepper. The mid-weight palate features ripe, jammy cherry/blackberry fruit matched to that powerful oak and grainy tannins, finishing with a slightly herbal/minty edge that becomes rather smoky (BBQ style) with breathing. While it’s still a fair wine, I get the feeling this is getting more disjointed with bottle age, and there’s better 1998s around now.
Cheers
Ian
Better late than never: Steve (707) asked about this Max Schubert Trophy winner a few weeks ago, and my last recollection was that it was getting more oaky with bottle age. We never caught up at the Cos dinner, so I cracked open my second-last from my six pack last weekend.
Rothbury Estate Hunter Valley Brokenback Shiraz: Inky red colour and light crusting. When I flushed this through the decanter and breatheasy, there was a mass of coffee, coconut, violets, and cassis aromas wafting from the funnel. From the first glass the big American oak injection is again obvious; smoky chocolate with hints of vegemite, coconut, varnish and cut timber. With breathing this does soften to show some developed leather, coffee/toffee, and mint characters, with hints of licorice and pepper. The mid-weight palate features ripe, jammy cherry/blackberry fruit matched to that powerful oak and grainy tannins, finishing with a slightly herbal/minty edge that becomes rather smoky (BBQ style) with breathing. While it’s still a fair wine, I get the feeling this is getting more disjointed with bottle age, and there’s better 1998s around now.
Cheers
Ian
Forget about goodness and mercy, they're gone.
FatBoy wrote:2000 Glaetzer Shiraz Prune juice. Over-ripe, under appealing. Presented a challenge to finish my 2nd glass. Failed the "Do I want more ?" acid test badly. Avoid.
1998 Seppelt St Peters 2nd failure for this one for me, not sure whether there has been undetectable levels of TCA in both, but fruit seems muted, contrary to all other reports I've read. Pleasant drinking all the same. Have more, will try again another year.
Had two of the st peters 98s last year that were both badly corked as well , very nicely got a replacement of a few pennies reds from southcorp in the uk