You know the Sunday drill.....

[grahamg]

Penfolds 407 '96
Nice aged Cab fruit, but the tannins were a bit too firm and overpowering.

Wolf Blass Brown Label Cab 04
Good solid wine with hints of complex aromas hopefully they will come out more in a few years time, tar-y cab finish, savory, a bit of (oak?) sweetness but not too much thankfully.

Tyrells Vat 1 '99
Lemon, rich body , with a long finish. Impressed with very minimal cork staining, was it bottle d recently?

[Partagas]

Katnook 03 cab sav - ripe fruit good acid balance and medium to long finish. Delightful wine will age nicely.

Woodlands 2004 "Margret’s” reserve cab/sav merlot - Well balanced everything, hint of liquorice, blackcurrant and slight spice. Opened up as time went on but I believe needs time to develop. I would compare it to Vasse Felix style cabernet (slight spice) but with a bit more to it. Will wait and see (have quite a few in cellar) how this travels in few years, not quite yet a (JO) 97 IMO but with potential. I guess maybe that’s why he’s the expert, he can predict great development better than I can. I would give it about 93/100 and reassess in 5 years.

[Dave Dewhurst]

Phillips Pinot Noir, 2002

Quite viscous and glycerolly in the mouth, light red fruit, slightly sweet and confected. Metallic and green stalky finish to start with but did improve after decanting. Not overly convinced by this.

Paringa Peninsula Pinot Noir, 2004

Nose of dark fruit and mushroom, savoury black cherry in the mouth, less viscous and more enjoyable than the Phillips. Dry savoury finish.

Pikes Riesling, 2005

Lemony nose, lemon, lime and maybe a slight sherbety touch in the mouth, good acdity and nice dry finish. Quite minerally, talc/slaty.

Mount Trio Cabernet-Merlot, 2003

Plummy nose with some brambles and a touch of dark chocolate. Quite mouthfilling with blackcurranty fruit but again a slightly metallic finish, which did disappear with aeration. Wasn't too happy with this to start with, but it finished up OK as a quaffer.

Cheers

Dave

[Wayno]

Family engagement lunch (ours, at our place with the famil(ies)).

Pol Roger Vintage 1996
Verging on gold. Fantastic complex nose, bready and nutty with a whiff of gentle mustiness. Long and memorable.

Rockford Black Shiraz NV (pretty old)
Unsurprisingly cork half squeezed out of the bottle upon capsule removal but in fine condition anyway. Rich, dry and deep palate with lo-ong berry fruits and a soft yeasty after current. Nice stuff.

Moss Wood Chardonnay 1996
Strong yellowy colour, grilled nuts and RP7 undertones, quite textural. Refreshing but rounded. Lovely wine.

Orlando Steingarten Riesling
I am a big fan of this wine and it didn't disappoint. Still zingy and limey but with waves of secondary development, slightly honeyed notes, a complex mix of bits and pieces. Very balanced and coming into it's peak years soon with some good time to go.

Golding Pinot Noir 2002
Dense plum and spice, medium bodied, drinking very well. Adelaide Hills varietal definition, reminds me of the Ashton Hills stuff.

Penfolds Bin 407 1996
In great condition and with years ahead of it. Deep purple with tints of reddening - balanced, complete. Perhaps lacking in character but a classy wine that drank very well indeed. Fine tannin architecture and good, still youthful finish. I have nothing but praise for the Penfolds 1996ers (the 28, the 407 and the 389 at least).

Domaine Epis Pinot Noir 2004
Big, dense wine - a complex pot of ingredients still simmering away. Plum overwhelmed by definable French oak (just) and velvety spice (five spice or anise I think). Still with lots of life and change ahead. Shades of merlotness (merlosity!?!) and that's a compliment basically.

D'Arenberg Noble Semillon 1999
Deep dark orange - almost brown and port-like in colour. Tasted a bit like it too, not terribly focussed and very caramelly and rancio-like. Not at all like a botritys wine anymore. Not what we remembered from the Darenberg cellar door all those years ago and maybe we left it a bit long.

Gramps Botritys 2002
Light, simple but refreshing against the D'Arenberg. Pleasant.

Alvear 1927 Pedro Ximenex Sherry
Beautiful, dark brown viscous liquid with chocolate, raisins and slight vegemite tones to burn. Delicious and earthy. Drained.

All in all, beautiful Adelaide spring-like weather and a good range of drinks and food. Now to start thinking about the wedding!

[platinum]

Domaine Epis Pinot Noir 2004
Big, dense wine - a complex pot of ingredients still simmering away. Plum overwhelmed by definable French oak (just) and velvety spice (five spice or anise I think). Still with lots of life and change ahead. Shades of merlotness (merlosity!?!) and that's a compliment basically.
!

A seriously great Pinot. Have had two bottles with no variation under Diam. Excellent

[Wayno]

Domaine Epis Pinot Noir 2004
Big, dense wine - a complex pot of ingredients still simmering away. Plum overwhelmed by definable French oak (just) and velvety spice (five spice or anise I think). Still with lots of life and change ahead. Shades of merlotness (merlosity!?!) and that's a compliment basically.
!

A seriously great Pinot. Have had two bottles with no variation under Diam. Excellent

Agreed. And there's six more of them little suckers waiting to be unearthed over the next few years! Very satisfying stuff.

[Wayno]

2002 Penfolds Cellar Reserve Grenache:[/b] Dark to inky crimson with a hint of purple on the rim. Beautiful, spicy, pure Grenache fruit on the nose, incredibly sweet blackberries, blueberries and raspberries with just a dash of pepper and aniseed. Likewise the palate was just as impressive, beautiful, creamy, sweet blueberry/black cherry fruit balanced with very fine tannins and again just a hint of black pepper and exotic spices, finishing with superb length. A much awarded, magnifcent expression of pure Grenache this was sourced from one of the Seppeltsfield vineyards, and unfortunately it's a casualty of the ongoing Fosters sell-off.

I can only but agree. Beautiful wine, sweet fruit, lovely muscular structure without being austere. I picked this up whenever I saw them for a while there and occasionally for a bargain but it's a bit rare these days now, unsurprisingly. Enjoyed one of these on Christmas day and it was a memorable wine, up against some stiff and expensive competition. Winner! A few left now and keen to enjoy them as they evolve. Hardly ever seems to get mentioned as a benchmark Grenache which I feel it is. Are they making any more of these? - I am sure I recall seeing an 03... I think?

[The Cork Dork]

bigkid

Wild Duck Creek 2003 Springflat Shiraz - bought at auction - no fruit to speak of, sour and acidic, I suspect poor storage, heat perhaps.


I had a bottle of the 03 Springflat and it was a sensational wine to say the least, dark brooding - black wine. The fruit on the nose was awesome, tannins not aggressive, and length to the wine - an excellent drop! Pity your bottle was not so good, I hope that you have more of this, because it is an excellent wine.

[Jordan]

2001 Voyager Estate Shiraz: not a bad everyday drinking shiraz in a rhone-style wth quite funky, leathery charcters. A little too metallic on he finish for me.

2003 Seppelt Benno Shiraz: This had settled down a bit since I last tried it 9 months ago. Fantastic depth of fruit with plum, a little sour cherry and dark berries. Finishes long and savoury, with tannins carrying right through to the finish. Still quite oaky and needs time.

2002 Castagna Genesis Syrah: Excellent expression of cool climate Australian shiraz. Super nose of spice, lifted violets/floral element (guess the influence of viognier), black fruits and a shake of pepper. The palate is of a medium body with great prisitne fruit flavours of plums and blackberry with complex spice, pepper, earth and a smokiness too. Oak is unobtrusive and the tannins are very fine. Great length, complexity and supple mouth feel - super food wine in the Northern Rhone mode.

[bacchaebabe]

Only really memorable wine I've had lately is the 98 Penfolds Koonunga Hill Many describe this as the last of the great Koonunga Hills. Well this was absolutely fantastic. Quite spicey with some chocolate as well, still dark and purple and lots of complexity. Every mouthful made me thankful that I cellar wine. At a $10 purchase price, this was just an out and out bargain. I think this was about the third of my case so I've still a few left. Drinking at absolute peak but plenty of time in front. Wonderful wine and excellent QPR.

02 Tatachilla Partners Shiraz Cab? Nice quaffer. In the same price range as the KH but nowhere near the quality or depth of flavour. A good wine but just simple in comparison.

Far too many beers on Sunday - thank god for bank holidays!

[Langers]

For the next month, I have 50% off at the current Restaurant of the Year in Sydney.

So for dinner last night:

1998 le petit cheval st emilion grand cru saint-émilion

Very closed at first but began to show itself over the course of dinner. Correct glassware really did help. Very smooth and much different to the Aussie wines I am used to drinking.

Unfortunately I didn't take any detailed tasting notes and that is about all I can remember.

Next week will be Laurent Perrier Rose. Will have to have notes for that.

[Alex F]

Only really memorable wine I've had lately is the 98 Penfolds Koonunga Hill Many describe this as the last of the great Koonunga Hills. Well this was absolutely fantastic. Quite spicey with some chocolate as well, still dark and purple and lots of complexity. Every mouthful made me thankful that I cellar wine. At a $10 purchase price, this was just an out and out bargain. I think this was about the third of my case so I've still a few left. Drinking at absolute peak but plenty of time in front. Wonderful wine and excellent QPR.

I had another one too, sadly no where close to yours or my previous one. It still looked quite youthful, but there wasn't much complexity and a distinctive herby undertone. Ah well...

Also had the Meerea Park Alexander Munro Shiraz 1998 again after the last disappointing bottle, this time gave it a long decant. Quite firm tannins are still in the front, but the fruit came to the fore and made the wine much more mouthfilling, with much better length. Its not full bodied though. Much improved with steak. If it integrates it will be superb, with great acid balance. Very Good+.

Rothbury Estate Semillon 1993

And my cork was good too , staining 2/3s up, high level, a pity that it opened with VA somewhat suggesting its going down hill. Interesting straw like aromas, but its probably too late for this bottle, will see how the remains are tonight

McGuigans Personal Reserve Tawny
I got the other bottle replaced! So this is the much improved version (says average age is 15 yo on the back label), pale colour, contrary to any perceptions, this was a very very nice tawny with excellent cleansing acid, lovely texture and flvours. Perhaps just a tad less intense than the Seppelts 1983 (and more expensive but heck mine was free... sort of) ... Excellent nonetheless.

Tonight I am opening lots of wine that I don't think I want to drink because we are having a census party, hopefully I'll get a taste and report back and someone else will drink it all

[Wayno]

Only really memorable wine I've had lately is the 98 Penfolds Koonunga Hill Many describe this as the last of the great Koonunga Hills. Well this was absolutely fantastic. Quite spicey with some chocolate as well, still dark and purple and lots of complexity. Every mouthful made me thankful that I cellar wine. At a $10 purchase price, this was just an out and out bargain. I think this was about the third of my case so I've still a few left. Drinking at absolute peak but plenty of time in front. Wonderful wine and excellent QPR.

Can't say I have had quite the luck with this very wine although it is pleasing to hear that such an inexpensive wine can be so cellar-worthy - although very doubtful that any of the current ones will perform such miracles.

[Alex F]

Can't say I have had quite the luck with this very wine although it is pleasing to hear that such an inexpensive wine can be so cellar-worthy - although very doubtful that any of the current ones will perform such miracles.

I tried the 2004 last night... it is absolutely terrible.

[Hacker]

Only really memorable wine I've had lately is the 98 Penfolds Koonunga Hill Many describe this as the last of the great Koonunga Hills. Well this was absolutely fantastic. Quite spicey with some chocolate as well, still dark and purple and lots of complexity. Every mouthful made me thankful that I cellar wine. At a $10 purchase price, this was just an out and out bargain. I think this was about the third of my case so I've still a few left. Drinking at absolute peak but plenty of time in front. Wonderful wine and excellent QPR.

I had a couple of dozen of the 1998 and admittedly never expected much, and it lived up to its expectation! They drank like $10 bottles of red and now that they are losing their fruit component there is not much left.

[GraemeG]

Can't say I have had quite the luck with this very wine although it is pleasing to hear that such an inexpensive wine can be so cellar-worthy - although very doubtful that any of the current ones will perform such miracles.

I tried the 2004 last night... it is absolutely terrible.

Will be interesting to see whether future editions of "Rewards..." drop the early vintages of these wines. Could look a bit embarassing if 70s and 80s versions of certain labels are still drinking well while more recent efforts fall into the 'Past' bracket! Lays bare the dumbing down of the range...!
cheers,
Graeme

[cellardweller]

2004 Woodlands Margaret River 'Margaret' Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon A blend of 68% cab sauv, 18% merlot and 14% malbec. Alcohol level 14.2% Matured in new and old French oak for 18 months.

Deep, dark cherry to purple in colour with a nose that contains blackberries, violets, earthy mocha. Also some savoury notes and a hint of MR mint.

The palate is medium rather than full bodied, silky and savoury, with a velvet but meaty texture and wonderful balance. There are, of course, the blackberries and that lick of MR mint. It has a beautiful fine and refined mouthfeel, assisted by some fine powdery tannins, and the finish is delicious and long.

Should probably be cellared for at least another five years.

[bacchaebabe]

Hacker, I'm quite surprised yours have been average. I think the first bottle I had form this dozen was average but that one and the one before have both been brilliant - especially for the money. Saying that, they've been properly cellared since purchase, only moving once, from professional storage to my home cellar and rarely seeing any light, with minimal temperature movement. This last bottle was really singing and while it didn't comparte to the Bass Phillip Premium Pinot or the 96 Basket Press I'd had lately, for a wine with pasta to watch telly with, the rewards of patience were tremendous.

I agree that all vintages post this one are just not in the same league.

[Langers]

That would seem to go against the whole "no point in cellaring cheap wine" maxim.

Getting awfully confused here

[Davo]

That would seem to go against the whole "no point in cellaring cheap wine" maxim.

Getting awfully confused here

Dunno where you got the maxim from, France maybe.

There are plenty of so-called cheap wines that not only hold well but actually often show improvement with time. And it all depends on what you call cheap.

5 years ago cheap was perhaps less than $15, now perhaps less than $20. There are quite a few wines, whites in particular for less than $20 that will age well, and there are certainly mobs of reds in the $15 to $25 range that will do likewise.

I am talking about Australian wines of course.

[Ian S]

Davo's right, but there's also some sense in those that say don't cellar cheap wine (even if they've made a misleading over-generalisation). Most cheap supermarket/bottle shop wine is made for drinking within a year or two. That we don't discuss them here means we tend to forget about them.

There's often a post here and on other boards saying something along the lines of "I've got a bottle of Queen Adelaide Regency Red from the 1980's - is it worth a lot now and what's it drinking like now?". There was (and still is at times) a mistaken belief by people who had only a passing interest in wine, that all wines improve with cellaring (and often with a naive belief of the longer the better and the cupboard above the cooker was a perfect place for it).

So the maxim really is: Only cellar wine that you're confident will improve (iro your palate) and if you do so, ensure it's cellared well (cool, dark etc.).

This is where the Aussie wine critics such as Halliday, Oliver, Hooke/Kyte-Powell and (forum member) Campbell Mattinson come to the fore, as they all publish suggested drinking windows, as do some of the more conscientious amateurs on this board. Other amateurs here often give a view on cellaring such as short-term (which I take to be up to about 5 years), medium-term (I take as up to about 10) and long-term (comfortably past 10). This (even for the pros) is still educated guesswork.

I hope this helps

Ian

[Jay60A]

A few left now and keen to enjoy them as they evolve. Hardly ever seems to get mentioned as a benchmark Grenache which I feel it is. Are they making any more of these? - I am sure I recall seeing an 03... I think?

Wayno. Agree totally, a very nice wine. Have bought and drunk my three. I think if you check Wine Searcher Pro you'll still find a little in Oz and NZ. Heard that the 2002 was from Dorrien Fruit (Seppelts???) so maybe you wont see much more. Never saw a 2003 but think Pennies released a 2003 Sangiovese. The CR Pinot seems to be ongoing though ... 2000-1-2-3-4.

Happy to be corrected.

[Wayno]

Jay

I reckon you're right. It was the 03 Sang I saw.

Darn!

[winetastic]

Yering Station ED Pinot Noir Rose 2005

There was some conjecture as to wether this wine was “red salmon” or “clam meat” in colour, either way it is a light and translucent red/pink. Unsurprisingly this rose smells like a restrained Pinot Noir with strawberry and cherry aromas. Although the wine is light in body, the delicate red fruit flavours hang around for an extremely long time, finishing dry with a slightly savoury note and a hint of soft tannin.

Score: 7/10
Price: $17
Closure: Screwcap
Alcohol: 13%

[grahamg]

2004 Woodlands Margaret River 'Margaret' Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon
Tried this wine after reading some positive comments on this forum. Thanks for the tip off I really liked it, very fragrant and distinctive on the nose, luscious mouth feel. The finish was very long and I don't know if this is the right term for tannin structure but I found the long finish quite spicy or peppery. Young Cullun and Cape Mentelle I've had I thought were softer on the finish than this bottle. Perhaps this needs a bit of time.

[n4sir]

2002 Penfolds Cellar Reserve Grenache: Dark to inky crimson with a hint of purple on the rim. Beautiful, spicy, pure Grenache fruit on the nose, incredibly sweet blackberries, blueberries and raspberries with just a dash of pepper and aniseed. Likewise the palate was just as impressive, beautiful, creamy, sweet blueberry/black cherry fruit balanced with very fine tannins and again just a hint of black pepper and exotic spices, finishing with superb length. A much awarded, magnifcent expression of pure Grenache this was sourced from one of the Seppeltsfield vineyards, and unfortunately it's a casualty of the ongoing Fosters sell-off.

I can only but agree. Beautiful wine, sweet fruit, lovely muscular structure without being austere. I picked this up whenever I saw them for a while there and occasionally for a bargain but it's a bit rare these days now, unsurprisingly. Enjoyed one of these on Christmas day and it was a memorable wine, up against some stiff and expensive competition. Winner! A few left now and keen to enjoy them as they evolve. Hardly ever seems to get mentioned as a benchmark Grenache which I feel it is. Are they making any more of these? - I am sure I recall seeing an 03... I think?

There's still a bit at the Magill Estate Cellar Door - I'm going to pick up two bottles tomorrow (at a very considerable discount courtesy of a deal with API members who bought on the night).

The Cellar Reserve chops & changes a bit due to what's judged to be suitable and available. As mentioned a Sangiovese was made from the Kalimna Vineyard in 2004, and an Adelaide Hills Gewurztraminer in 2005.

You won't see a Grenache like the 2002 made under the Penfolds label again - the vineyard's going with the Seppeltsfield sale. Since the announcement of the sale of Seppeltsfield and the transfer of white wine operations to Wolf Blass I've heard it's been a mad scramble to secure resources up there, so there's a bit of question mark over anything with a Penfolds label that's white (apart from maybe Yattarna) or not sourced from their own vineyards/contracted growers. Watch this space.

Cheers,
Ian

[JamieBahrain]

and an Adelaide Hills Gewurztraminer in 2005.Cheers,Ian

It's from the Woodbury Vineyard in the Eden Valley. Not being picky, but I have it in front of me for tonight!

[n4sir]

and an Adelaide Hills Gewurztraminer in 2005.Cheers,Ian

It's from the Woodbury Vineyard in the Eden Valley. Not being picky, but I have it in front of me for tonight!

Correction warranted - no problem Jamie.

I hope you've got some spicy food there to enjoy with it...
... actually on second thought it's good enough to enjoy without the food.

This one's a little ripper too.

Cheers,
Ian

[Wayno]

Yes, well I have a couple of those Gewurzes left too, having bought some on the strength of every review I had seen of the wine. Beautiful, pure and balanced gewurz, quite different from some of the more caricatured, overblown Oz examples I've tried.

Never tried the Sangiovese but collected and drunk a few of the CR Pinots. The 02 massive and the 04 almost as much but the 03 was quite average and muddled and lost somewhere in dry red territory.

Anyway, hope the Gewurz satisfies!