The delightful Sue and I were in Denmark a couple of weekends ago (for four days), and I thought I should tell you how it went.
Fabulous!
On the way down, Plantagenet cellar door is worth a stop. They were offering 2004 riesling in addition to the standard line-up (2008 riesling amongst them) as well as a serviceable muscat. A piece of WA history that I am glad to have seen, and we spend a few dollars.....
Tinglewood winery has been bought out by a couple from Perth who have made the tree-change. Amanda is a lovely lady who will talk to you for ages, and it is possible we were the first visitors to this 125 acre farm (1 hectare under vine in 1976?) for a few days. Certainly the bottle of 2000 Yellow Tingle (riesling) was past it, and Amanda opene a fresh one, saying that the previous bottle was a few days old....not a good start.
It got better. Believe it or not, this winery offers 2005 riesling as its current vintage and also has 2000, and 2001 on offer. Both of the older vintages are superb, but don't believe the website when it comes to prices. BTW, Tinglewood was the first vineyard planted in Denmark, but the original owner now suffers Alzheimers and his wife couldn't keep it going, hence the sale and the erratic vintages.
Forest Hill is the best winery to visit for lunch in Denmark (despite the vineyard being located in Mt Barker). Superb cuisine, and the cellar door is one level down in a very similar fashion to Vasse Felix MR. The Block Series wines are the best, but at $38 for riesling and chardonnay, and $50 for reds, not really VFM. As it turns out, I was drinking the last of the red by the glass before they realised they couldn't sell me any, so I bought botrytis riesling instead. Also, the lady behind the cellar door thought I should be a wine writer - maybe I should speak less in public.
We had two goes at visiting Somerset Hill. Maybe next time they might be open. Likewise Harewood Estate.
The highlight was Old Kent River. When we first arrived, Mark Noack (owner) met us, and we struck up a conversation. Having tried and purchased lots of riesling (which they don't make - "it's too easy") we were looking for pinot - and we found it. Old Kent River makes entry level wines (chardonnay, shiraz, pinot) that we didn't try, then you get to the middle level. In this case a 2003 're-release' chardonnay $26, a 2005 pinot $26, and a 'Burls' reserve pinot $50.
I had been advised by the excellent 'six triple three' restaurant (6333 is the postcode for Denmark) that this was the place to go for pinot, but 'he probably won't show you the Burls'. Wrong! The 2006 Burls was recently opened on the table in front of us, and it needs another 3-5 years, although I can understand the difference between his 'standard' and 'reserve' wines. In fact, we spent most of an hour discussing cool years, warm years, reserve years, and for Mark, the ripening of the last 16 days largely determines 'reserve' or 'non reserve' status (the 'Burls' is not made every year).
Mark reckons 10 years for the Burls is a starting point - normally, for Aussie pinot I would be saying 10 years is decaying - but I can see some parallels with Burgundy in terms of ageing, if not in style.
Mark was also telling me about his best wine ever - the 2002 Burls, which he has not released yet. Apparently John Hanley (chairman of judges at the Perth Royal Show for decades) advised him to not release this wine for a decade, nor for less than $75 a bottle. This is definitely delusion, or absolute faith in the product.
I was supposedly on a budget for this trip, so I went to purchase 5 wines - 2 x 2003 Chardonnay, 2 x 2005 'standard' pinot, and a Burls 2006. Mark proceeded to place these in a six-pack box, then said 'go down to the back of the room - you'll see a wine rack in the far corner - grab a bottle off the top shelf, and I'll give this to you to make up the 6-pack'.
It was a bottle of the 2002 Burls.
I felt priveleged that he thought enough of the conversation that we had, to trust me with a bottle of his best wine ever. A high point for the trip.
On the way back to Perth, and on the delightful Sue's birthday, we stopped at Gilberts in Kendenup for lunch and their riesling. They have a cellar door that overlooks the Stirling Ranges in the distance (and it brought back memories of a 15 y.o. me working on a farm overlooking the same view) and a serviceable reserve shiraz as well as their riesling.
I finally declared bankruptcy on the way back to Perth
However, a great 4 days. We agreed that you need at least 2 weeks to see what Denmark has to offer, and we'd love to return.
Cheers
Allan