Various TN's:

[Gianna]

A few terrific wines over the last couple of weeks.

Firstly, over a long chinese banquet lunch:

2004 Godolphin
Now I know that this wine has been written about a fair bit, but I still don't quite appreciate it. Granted, a great nose, massive vapours filled the room full of plums and ripe cherries, but I think that's where it stops. I found the wine too hot, too high in alcohol that was overpowering.
Too "syrypy", too forward and in your face. I'm sure that is the intended style, but perhaps not for me. Will probably stand corrected in 5-7 years when it settles down, but I ain't buying it yet. 89 pts

1994 Petaluma Coonawarra Cabernet / Merlot 60/40
Now this was a beautiful wine. Decanted for 2 hrs, when it hit the glasses it just oozed class. Powerful nose of leather, forest floor, licorice, mild oak and dark stewed sweet cherries. The palate did not dissapoint. It glided down effortlessly. Smooth, silky and elegant. A very complex wine whose flavour evolved in the glass over the rest of the hour. Given the relatively cheap prices you can buy this wine for (less than $75) , to me this is the bargain of the year. I have a stack of 98 and 99 in the cellar and dearly hope they develop like the 94. Top stuff 94 pts

A 1962 Bas Armagnac finished off the lunch just perfectly before we convinced ourselves that a "clenza" was needed before we departed.

Chinese was the flavour of the last two weeks for me and the flower drum provided one of the best meals I have had for while. Life was tough when our guest ordered 707 and nothing else for the day.

1999 Penfolds 707
It definitely needed an hour to breath, but after it had, this wine really struted it's stuff. Long lingering flavours that developed beautifully over the day. Still displaying fruitty characteristics rather than earthy cabernet flavours. An underated vintage. 91pts but will improve

1991 Penfolds 707
I opened this the next night at home to see how the older 707 are developing and I was not disappointed in any way. This is a magnificent wine. Not a heralded vintage, but it still had many years left. A dark, dark ruby red with only slight bricking at the edges. The nose was restrained, but was predominantly cedar, tobacco and blackberrry. The palate was smooth. Integrated oak flavours that were slightly vanillan influenced. My WOTM. 94 pts

1998 Bannockburn Pinot Noir
I think this is the vintage that was collected from other vinyards with the bushfires destroying the bannockburn crop. The wine is on its last legs, but still holding ok for another year or so. Sweet jammy nose and a nice influence of strawberries and roses on the palate. Drink up if you have. 88 pts

1996 Kays Emery Block 6 Shiraz
A big, massive brooding shiraz. Years left in this wine. Was tasted blind and it reminded of a big barrossan shiraz. Vanillan oak, grippy tannins, but not a long aftertaste. Nevertheless, a high quality wine. Will develop into a classic by 2010 + 92pts

2000 Cullen Cab Merlot
Was drunk fairly quickly after being pulled from the cellar and was still a bit cold so it took a while for it to open and by that time, most of it was gone.
Deep cabernet earthy flavours that linger for ages and ages. Mulberries, cassis and tobacco nuiances. Great structure, this wine is not considered an outstanding vintage, but I think it will develop into a first rate Cullen. A classy wine. Drink 2012 + 92 pts

Seppelts DP 90 Rare Tawny
No deserts or cheeses to share this wine with. Was opened and drunk as meal in itself. This tawny lives up to all the hype, except for the exxy price of nearly $55, should be more like $40 and then it would be a steal.
The palate is dominated by the high alcohol that has not settles - 20% 90 pts

2002 Evasham Wood Cuvee J
A first class pinot. My second bottle and still a favourite. Qutie savoury, not a fruit driven pinot like bannockburn. Lush texture. 91 pts

Off to Paris and a few greek islands for the next month, so will try to log in and contribute if I come across any decent wines.

[MerlotWine]

Thank you very much for your wines description. It really made me enjoy them all!!

[Mike Hawkins]

Gianna,

Thanks for the notes. Some nice wines... Just one comment though about the 91 vintage. I think you'll find its one of THE most heralded vintages of the past 20 years. Granted, it didn't get the retail hype of the "1990-vintage of the century", but it was still highly lauded. My favourite vintage for SA since the 1986....

Mike

[seddo]

Thanks Gianna
especially in regards to the block 6 - wish I had kept my grubby mits off mine - although have the 02,03 and 04 to look forward too.

regards

[mphatic]

Gianna,

How warm was the Godolphin served? When I tasted this at 'proper' room temperature a couple of weeks ago I didn't notice the alcohol at all. Didn't seem syrupy to me either. Definitely concentrated though.

Re: DP90; recall that this was A LOT more expensive a few years ago. So at $55 is pretty good value considering quality and age.

[Davo]

1996 Kays Emery Block 6 Shiraz

Didn't you find it a bit gritty

Nice notes, thanks

[rednut]

1996 Kays Emery Block 6 Shiraz

Didn't you find it a bit gritty

Nice notes, thanks

or sharp for that matter....

[Daryl Douglas]

2000 Cullen Cab Merlot
Was drunk fairly quickly after being pulled from the cellar and was still a bit cold so it took a while for it to open and by that time, most of it was gone.
Deep cabernet earthy flavours that linger for ages and ages. Mulberries, cassis and tobacco nuiances. Great structure, this wine is not considered an outstanding vintage, but I think it will develop into a first rate Cullen. A classy wine. Drink 2012 + 92 pts

Had a bottle of this at New Year and I've not had a better wine since, though a magnum of Tahbilk 1860s 1995 was close. All I can add to your notes is that the tannins were much softer than I've experienced in the Cullen 1999 CM and 2001 CM Diana. But I will back up your comment on the length of the finish. It does just linger......and linger.

Cheers

daz

[Attila]

Gianna,
I hope you didn't drink the Godolphin first before any other reds because as it is a joyfully rich and complete overdrive it's hard to move on to anything after.
The Godolphin is a great wine and must be drunk on it's own otherwise it will become an overblown fruit monster which it actually isn't.
Interesting that you've found the alcohol standing out, last time I tasted it I praised it (and Huon too) for it's balance despite the sweetness, oak and alcohol.
Anyway, I drunk it quite long ago. Still, your note this time was better than the one you wrote back in February:

"2004 Godolphin

Sorry forumites, I don't know what all the fuss was about.
At $35, just quaffable! at $75 which is what it is selling for now, A JOKE
This wine reminded me of a big, green 2 yr old horse that runs all over the racetrack. Too many flavours, too ripe, too much oak.
Maybe it is just not my style.
Perhaps in 5 yrs I could see this wine coming together a bit like the 02 Dead Arm, but I am not paying the ridiculous price being asked now.
87 pts"

Cheers,
Attila

[Gianna]

Attila Wrote:

Gianna,
I hope you didn't drink the Godolphin first before any other reds because as it is a joyfully rich and complete overdrive it's hard to move on to anything after.
The Godolphin is a great wine and must be drunk on it's own otherwise it will become an overblown fruit monster which it actually isn't.
Interesting that you've found the alcohol standing out, last time I tasted it I praised it (and Huon too) for it's balance despite the sweetness, oak and alcohol.
Anyway, I drunk it quite long ago. Still, your note this time was better than the one you wrote back in February:

Attila,
Having the Godolphin after the 94 Petaluma was probably a mistake. Such contrasting wines that this definitely affected my taste buds.
Alas, given the strong support from so many, I vow to have one more bottle, on its own, ( and with no friends whilst I sit in a corner.... )

Daz Wrote:

Had a bottle of this at New Year and I've not had a better wine since, though a magnum of Tahbilk 1860s 1995 was close. All I can add to your notes is that the tannins were much softer than I've experienced in the Cullen 1999 CM and 2001 CM Diana. But I will back up your comment on the length of the finish. It does just linger......and linger.

Daz,
I'm sure this is the vintage that made wine of the year for JO a few years back or at least a finalist. I haven't tried too many older vintages of Cullen to really attest to their staying power, but most seem to agree they have got what it takes. As for the 2000, this wine will humm in another few years as it developes secondary characters and more complexity. Oh, but to keep my hands off my stash for 5 years !!!!!

Mphatic Wrote:

Re: DP90; recall that this was A LOT more expensive a few years ago. So at $55 is pretty good value considering quality and age.

Tried this again last night and I think I was a bit harsh in my earlier post. I agree with you Mphatic, this is genuienly good quality tawny and I really did enjoy it. Glad I have a few more.