Went to Vin in Prahran, Melbourne last night, and as past of the Melb Food & Wine Festival, they are ofering a flight of Giacondas for $18. Here is the summary:
Nantua "Les Deux" '02.
Chardonnay/Rousanne blend. The rousanne is very obvious (from memory 45% Rousanne, 55% Chardonnay) as it fattens out the nose and the palate of what would normally be a very tight chardonnay. It's drinking very well now, and would be a crowd pleaser no matter how or when you drank it. Well made, balanced and a minerally finish with some complexity wraped around intense very good quality fruit. Lovely wine!
Chardonnay '02.
The current release of this icon wine, due for delivery next month.
What can I say about this wine that hasn't already been said. Typically Giaconda, searingly intense quality fruit with not a hair out of place, beautifully structured and opening up quite well for what is normally a very tight wine at this early age. Typical mineral notes, and if there is oak there, it is so well mananged, and of such quality it is hard to pick where it starts or finishes. Outstanding.
Warners Vineyard Shiraz '02.
A sneak preview of this unreleased wine and my first taste of a Giaconda Shiraz.
Once again, the sheer quality and intensity of the fruit is evident. The tannins seemed ripe and slightly chewy, and once again, tough to pick the oak imput! And it wasn't until someone reminded us that it was a 2002 that it hit home. No real acidity was evident.
Now, if good structure is there, as is the evident quality of the fruit, and ripe tannins, does this wine need evident acidity to age well? It was already drinking quite well for such a young wine!
But then again, it is so like a young good St Henri that maybe that's the direction it will go in the cellar. I found this a tough one to predict. But I liked it nontheless.
The service and the food at Vin was very good, the wine selection is worth taking time to look at.
Rory