TN: Blacktongues Super Cabernets 26/10/05

[n4sir]

After overdosing on brawny Shiraz for the last few tastings, the Blacktongues finally turned their attention to the King of grapes. Steve picked ten of the best current Australian releases for us to judge with distant Traveler Paul Record who was provided a special guest chair.

All the following wines were tasted blind, and after about an hour all 18 participants voted for their most preferred, two next preferred and their least preferred drops. Not surprisingly the wines having just been opened were quite tight and very slow to open up – I arrived relatively late which didn’t help in this regard.


2003 Greenock Creek Cabernet Sauvignon $39: Inky red/purple colour. Breezy and yet very ripe, almost porty fruit open the proceedings, followed by some cedar, aniseed and green/ozone characters with breathing. The palate was an equally ripe mesh of simmering blackcurrant/blackberry fruit and creamy oak, with a distinct hint of raisin and alcohol heat (15.5%). In such a strong field this wasn’t a popular wine.

My ranking: 9th place
Panel ranking: 9th place

Votes: 0 most, 2 second & third, 1 least preferred



2001 Cape Mentelle Cabernet Sauvignon $60: Dark to inky red/purple. Green/herbaceous on opening, with hints of ozone and coconut, then turning quite green and chalky with breathing; at first I had this pinned down as Western Australian, but by voting time I was wondering if it was a Coonawarra instead. The palate opened with dry, chalky tannin followed by tight/angular fruit, finishing long and chalky and ever so slightly metallic. Highly regarded by the panel this snatched a minor vote from me, although I still maintain I prefer the 2003 Majella - why wasn’t it featured in this tasting Steve?

My ranking: 3rd place
Panel ranking: 2nd place

Votes: 3 most, 7 second & third, 0 least preferred



2001 Maxwell Lime Cave Reserve Cabernet $65: Inky purple/red. A classy nose from the beginning, opening with sweet, dusty cedar, followed perfumed cassis and a touch of dried herbs, then intoxicating freshly roasted coffee. Supercharged and yet well balanced palate featuring ripe fruit and dry tannins accented with aniseed and smoky oak, finishing long and dry with a tiny lick of formic acid in the background. While Cabernet is enjoying somewhat of a renaissance in the Barossa, it still seems slow to gain favour again in the Vales – wines like this show it’s not only the equal of Shiraz, sometimes it can be far superior.

My ranking: 1st place
Panel ranking: 5th place

Votes: 2 most, 2 second & third, 0 least preferred



2001 Parker Coonawarra Estate Terra Rossa $75: Inky purple/red. Like quite a few of the wines the fine French oak handling dominated the nose in the available time, featuring scents of creamy vanilla, some cedar and aniseed. I wouldn’t have picked the wine as a Coonawarra job because of the ripe/tangy fruit, but the chewy structure and fine persistence of the palate was very impressive.

My ranking: 4th place
Panel ranking: 8th place

Votes: 0 most, 4 second & third, 1 least preferred



2002 Penfolds Bin 707 Cabernet Sauvignon $130: Inky red/purple. Most of the panel picked this wine because of the extreme amount of very sweet vanilla/cedar oak that dominated the nose and never let up. Likewise the palate featured large-scale spicy/ripe fruit matched by equally spicy oak and ripe/course tannins, finishing with a hint of alcohol heat, VA and banana on the finish.

My ranking: 5th place
Panel ranking: =6th place

Votes: 0 most, 6 second & third, 1 least preferred



2002 Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon $90: Dark to inky red/purple. I quickly picked this as the second of the Western Australians from the floral/greens and dried herbs on the nose, but this also had substantial buttery oak under the surface, followed by chalky coal/char characters. I wasn’t as positive with the palate, dominated by the huge chalky structure without an equal balance of fruit, and unusually a fair amount of alcohol heat; there’s a good chance I didn’t have enough time with this wine, as the panel voted it the clear WOTN.

My ranking: 6th place
Panel ranking: 1st place

Votes: 5 most, 6 second & third, 0 least preferred



2001 Houghton The Gladstones Cabernet Sauvignon $50: Dark to inky red/purple. Again those dried herb characters identified this as the third Western Australian, but it was significantly riper with licorice characters and prominent sawn cedar/buttery oak. This opened impressively with lashings of ripe, rich fruit married to a big, chewy structure, spicy oak & hefty tannins, but by voting time really turned nasty with a volatile edge and overblown oak. This was the second most controversial of the flight, which predictably polarized opinions, and I could see both points of view.

My ranking: 7th place
Panel ranking: =6th place

Votes: 2 most, 3 second and third, 2 least preferred



2001 Zema Estate Family Selection Cabernet Sauvignon $40: Very inky purple with an intimidating glowing hue. Very unusual nose on this one opening with subtle, lifted ozone and greens, cedar/coconut oak, and then ripe oranges. The ripe, slushy fruit on the palate was soft and irresistible with creamy/sweet accents, finishing long and soft. Like the Parker I’d describe this as atypical for Coonawarra being a lot riper than the norm, but again the overall structure of the wine served it very well.

My ranking: 2nd place
Panel ranking: 4th place

Votes: 2 most, 3 second & third, 0 least preferred



2000 Murdock Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon $45: Inky red/purple. The most controversial wine throughout the tasting with some of the panel convinced it was corked, but the rest equally convinced that it was okay so it stayed in the lineup. No obvious TCA on the nose for most of the tasting (remember that I arrived late) opening with cedar/sawdust, some fresh cotton, aftershave and herbs, but with time every once in a while there was a faint hint of damp limestone and cardboard that would surface making me wonder. Likewise the palate opened with ripe but dry tannins matched to raspberry fruit with good weight and persistence, but always with a very dry edge. By voting time the palate had degenerated, losing most of its fruit and developing nasty volatility to go with that extreme dryness. This had all the signs of a great wine trying to show it’s best but being ultimately neutered by a dud cork - I think enough people voted it last to justify the calls to have the wine withdrawn.

My ranking: 10th place
Panel ranking: 10th place

Votes: 0 most, 0 second & third, 13 least preferred



2002 Langmeil Jackamans Cabernet Sauvignon $45: Inky purple/red. A very ripe Barossa style of Cabernet, opening with ripe, raisiny fruit with a hint of diesel stink/heavily toasted oak. The palate likewise opened with over-ripe stewed fruit with raisins, but then unexpectedly cleaned itself up with a good dash of sweet cassis fruit mid-palate, and finished quite clean and satisfying. Despite the good finish this was a bit too ripe for my liking, but predictably it gathered votes from members of the panel who enjoy this unusual style of Cabernet.

My ranking: 8th place
Panel ranking: 3rd place

Votes: 4 most, 2 second & third, 0 least preferred


Cheers
Ian

[Chow Chow]

Agreed. The fantastic Maxwell Reserve Cab is like a Super charged Cali-Cab.
Surprised the Gladstones didnt show well, another of my favourite. This wine need plenty of aeration. One for the long haul.

[bacchaebabe]

Anyone had the 98 Maxwell reserve cab sav or the 98 Maxwell lime cave lately. I've got both at home but have sort of forgotten about them and was wondering how they might be going.

I should probably open a bottle I s'pose.