Sunday the 6th of December with St Nick

[griff]

Right we need to keep up tradition so here is the Sunday thread.

Yesterday was a party and among beer were these wines.

2008 Evans & Tate Moscato
Pink colour but this was lean and grassy and very underripe. Sauvignon Rose? Avoid as there are plenty better moscato's out there.

2008 Wynn's Chardonnay
Coonawarra chardonnay is one of the forgotten wines I suspect. Can actually be very good. This was very correct with a touch of meal and quite savoury. Good wine.

cheers

Carl

[monghead]

2008 Grosset Springvale Riesling- Starting to flesh out and broaden. I remembered this to be quite tight and focussed, but this bottle displayed more floral/sweet citrus fruits- lemons, some pomegranates and grapefruit. Gripping acidity a joy. Very Good.

2004 Killikanoon Covenant Shiraz- Sweet jammy fruit. Lashings of oak. Medium to full. Not a bad wine, but un-interesting. Sub Good.

Cheers,

Monghead.

[Wayno]

Primo Estate Angels Gully Shiraz 2001
Excellent, in stirring shape and transmitting essence of McV. My last of three - a great bargain at one time, from auction.

Port Philip Estate Chardonnay 2006
Solid - lemony pith, nectarines, a smidgeon of oak. A good drink.

[Mike Hawkins]

Been in Oz for the past week and a half, so a chance to raid the cellar of older and newer wines.

1996 Lanson Champagne – toasty and acidic. Seemed a little advanced compared to previous bottles.

1998 Lindemans Limestone Ridge – much better than I expected. Still quite youthful and long.

1996 Lindemans Limestone Ridge – in a nice spot right now. Good.

1996 Rockford Moorooroo SVS Shiraz - aside from a pronounced minty / mouthwash note on the palate, this also was much better than I expected, based on previous tastings. Looked like a pinot.

1998 Leasingham Classic Clare Sparkling Shiraz – lots of rich fruit. Good length, but a touch sweeter than I prefer.

1994 Penfolds Bin 389 – really nice wine in the making. Surprisingly, much better than the St Henri from the same year.

2000 McWilliams Riverina Botrytis Semillon (x3 – all tasted similar) – more gold medals than Michael Phelps. Good drop getting some toasty developed notes. Unctuous and long

2002 Nefertiti Shiraz – typical of the vintage for the Barossa. Nice wine, no rush to drink up. Unfortunately I paid the original retail, not the recent fire sale price.

1994 Wynns Coonawarra Cabernet – I was the only one who thought this was slightly corked.

1996 Vilmart Cuvee Creation – my first time with this vintage. Initially a tad stinky, it blew off to show a cracking champagne. Not quite up with the best of the vintage, but not too far behind.

1998 Petaluma Coonawarra – this was slightly TCA affected.

2004 St Halletts Old Block Shiraz – good, rich wine, but not annoyingly sweet.

2004 Charles Melton Nine Popes – didn’t float my boat. Seemed a tad rustic.

2007 Charles Melton Nine Popes – product of the vintage. Pass.

2004 Yalumba The Signature – restrained nose. Has the potential to be up with the best of this line in 15 years.

2005 Yalumba The Signature – more perfumed than its older sibling. Just a tad behind it from a qualitative standpoint.

1994 Grant Burge Meshach – not convinced this ages well. Oak sticks out too much.

1999 Taittinger Comtes des Champagne (x 3 – all bottles same) – possibly the best 1999 champagne I’ve yet tried. Right balance between fruit, acid and dosage. Long finish. Still very young.

2007 Rockford Basket Press Shiraz – reminds me a bit of the 2003. OK, but does not reach Rockford’s usual lofty heights.

2000 Moet et Chandon Champagne – Aussie bottles are much better than their US counterparts. Very lemony and decent length.

1986 Henschke Mt Edelstone – awesome wine. The last 8 bottles have all been outstanding. Complex, long and still has lots of life left.

2002 Yalumba The Reserve – another awesome wine, but quite exxy.

1999 Dom Perignon x 2 – first bottle was a little coarse, 2nd bottle was excellent. Needs 10+ years.

2006 Torbreck Run Rig – will be a super wine when it comes together.

1986 Wynns John Riddoch Cabernet – my favourite of this label, slightly in front of the 82. No rush to drink.

1994 Penfolds St Henri – a bit clunky. Good, but nothing special.

2009 Petaluma Hanlin Hill Riesling – really enjoyed this very young wine.

Cheers

Mike

[monghead]

1996 Rockford Moorooroo SVS Shiraz - aside from a pronounced minty / mouthwash note on the palate, this also was much better than I expected, based on previous tastings. Looked like a pinot.

[griff]

Drinking up my Constellation wines.

2006 Houghton Pemberton Sauvignon Blanc
I remember this on release as being searing battery acid in a nice kind of way. It has settled a little but still has laserbeam purity and intensity even after 3-4 years post vintage. Grapefruit and very primary with some texture making me think lees stirring employed. Lingering finish. Curious how this will develop. I wonder if it can do ten years. Very Good wine.

cheers

Carl

[rens]

searing battery acid in a nice kind of way.

That's an oxymoron is it not?

[griff]

searing battery acid in a nice kind of way.

That's an oxymoron is it not?

Not an oxymoron but obviously not clear either. I was trying to explain it was very inaccessible due to it only really showing acidity on release but one could see that there was merit to the wine

cheers

Carl

[rens]

searing battery acid in a nice kind of way.

That's an oxymoron is it not?

Not an oxymoron but obviously not clear either. I was trying to explain it was very inaccessible due to it only really showing acidity on release but one could see that there was merit to the wine

cheers

Carl

Ahh... Now I see.

[Rawshack]

Deakin Estate Moscato 2008. OK, laugh away, but for the money and style, this is a great little wine. Light in both body and ABV (weighing in at 4.5%), it's full of bright grapey flavours, and has a lovely balance. For $6, it's a nice way of giving my breast-feeding wife a glass of something cold during summer

Paringa Estate Peninsula Pinot 2008: If ever I've doubted Mornington pinots for being too simple, too fruit forward, then this is the wine to halt my dissent. Typical red fruit and dark cherries, but also a real depth to it as well. Great harmony in a pinot of this price and although I hate to use the word 'Burgundian', I'd be tempted to employ it here. Top value at $27 or so

[bacchaebabe]

All whites and all bubbly for me this weekend. None were drunk with any thought whatsoever so just a list:

08 Brown Brothers Moscato
NV Piper Heidseick Champagne
NV Veuve Clicquot Champagne
08 Grant Burge Moscato
NV Moet et Chandon Rose Champange

and a significant amount of beer

Must be summer, must be christmas.

[monghead]

Drinking up my Constellation wines.

2006 Houghton Pemberton Sauvignon Blanc
I remember this on release as being searing battery acid in a nice kind of way. It has settled a little but still has laserbeam purity and intensity even after 3-4 years post vintage. Grapefruit and very primary with some texture making me think lees stirring employed. Lingering finish. Curious how this will develop. I wonder if it can do ten years. Very Good wine.

cheers

Carl

Wow, that is old for an aussie SB. And you reckon it is still drinking well?

[monghead]

All whites and all bubbly for me this weekend. None were drunk with any thought whatsoever so just a list:


08 Grant Burge Moscato

and a significant amount of beer

Must be summer, must be christmas.

Nice one. I was thinking of having one of these tonight on our newly cleaned balcony watching the sun come down...

[griff]

Drinking up my Constellation wines.

2006 Houghton Pemberton Sauvignon Blanc
I remember this on release as being searing battery acid in a nice kind of way. It has settled a little but still has laserbeam purity and intensity even after 3-4 years post vintage. Grapefruit and very primary with some texture making me think lees stirring employed. Lingering finish. Curious how this will develop. I wonder if it can do ten years. Very Good wine.

cheers

Carl

Wow, that is old for an aussie SB. And you reckon it is still drinking well?

Yep. It has improved since release and it is right up there for a New World SB. May improve further still!

cheers

Carl

[wolf]

1990 Wendouree Shiraz: Nice wine, beautifully balanced, soft powdery tannins, long fruit. Certainly not as great as the name would suggest.

[rooman]

1996 Rockford Moorooroo SVS Shiraz - aside from a pronounced minty / mouthwash note on the palate, this also was much better than I expected, based on previous tastings. Looked like a pinot.

Heavens you sure no one was playing a trick on you and swapping labels. Last time someone shared one of these wine, we phoned the local arborist for a chainsaw.

[rooman]

Schloss Lieser Brauneberger Juffer Sonnenuhr Spätlese 2007 Slightly muted nose with a rich palate of flowers, green apples, white peaches and ripe pineapples. Starts sweet as one would expect but has a surprisingly dry mineral-like finish. Went extremely well with the dolci gorgonzola at the start of a long dinner.

Leo Buring Eden Riesling 2005. A friend had suggested this wine was starting to enter its drinking window. Not for my palate it is not. Still tightly coiled even after all this time. Ok it is starting to open up a little but I won’t bother opening another for 3-4 years. By then it should be an excellent Riesling on a warm summer’s night with seafood given the underlying acid structure.

CJ Pask Gimlett Graves Chardonnay 2007. The importer must have gone bust because these wines which cost mid $30s in NZ and are a very drinkable kiwi chardonnay are being moved along at $7-8 pb through one online site. Judicious and restrainted use of oak, with balanced fruit, it has quickly become the house quaffing wine. (thank you for the heads up Madam B)

d’Arenberg, The Coppermine Road 1998. 11 years on and this wine is still a robust pup. A friend brought it over to have with slow cooked lamb. Reasonably typical Australian style Cab Sav, robust dark blackberry fruit, still with strong tannins. This was the first bottle out of the case, the rest will easily last a decade without any concern.

Nicholson River Pinot Noir 1999. One of the great things about collecting wine is the unexpected bottle. The one you expect so little from and yet gives up so much. In redoing the cellar recently, I came across a half case of this. To be honest I had some fear that the wine would be poked after all this time. To the contrary it opened up in the glass to be a revelation. Sadly I have an appalling sense of smell and yet I spent a good five minutes just drinking in the bouquet of this wine before I even took my first sip. As it opened up over the evening it delivered roses and violets, earthy forest and bygone days of youth. On the palate, the wine was elegant and balance opening in a peacocks tails as it moved through the mouth. The velvet like tannins embraced the fruit and delivered up a wonderful depth and complexity from a wine I held such little hope for at the beginning of the evening.

[griff]

Nicholson River Pinot Noir 1999. One of the great things about collecting wine is the unexpected bottle. The one you expect so little from and yet gives up so much. In redoing the cellar recently, I came across a half case of this. To be honest I had some fear that the wine would be poked after all this time. To the contrary it opened up in the glass to be a revelation. Sadly I have an appalling sense of smell and yet I spent a good five minutes just drinking in the bouquet of this wine before I even took my first sip. As it opened up over the evening it delivered roses and violets, earthy forest and bygone days of youth. On the palate, the wine was elegant and balance opening in a peacocks tails as it moved through the mouth. The velvet like tannins embraced the fruit and delivered up a wonderful depth and complexity from a wine I held such little hope for at the beginning of the evening.

Now that is what wine is about. Love the pleasant surprises

cheers

Carl

[dlo]

Last week was a real blast with the week off work, a mountain of jazz including the 2009 Tom Low Memorial event last Friday, at which, my daughter, Rachel, did a one and a half hour set to kick off the afternoon. Nice work, Rach, and a huge thank you from the nine of us for performing at such a special occasion.

The memorial wine's were as follows:

Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 2005 (93)
Tyrrell's Belford Reserve Semillon 1997 (93)
Stonier's Chardonnay 2007 (90)
Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay 2005 (93)
Moet and Chandon Dom Perignon 1995 (94)
J.J. Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese Riesling 1983 (85)
Frederic Esmonin Mazy-Chambertin 1990 (88)
Ch. Angelus 1994 (90)
Wynn's John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon 1990 (91)
Ch. Mouton Rothschild 1983 (91)
Penfolds Grange 1983 (RWOTD) (94)
Ch. Malescot-Margaux Saint-Expurey 1961 (50)
Ch. Canon 1982 (93)
S.A. Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr Beerenauslese LGK 1976 (WOTD) (96)
Ch. Coutet 1976 (92)
Graham's Vintage Port 1963 (87)

The overall standard of wine was, as usual, very high with only the '61 Malescot-Expurey totally shot, the J.J. Prum looking a little tired, the Esmonin only marred by some bitterness on the finish and the Graham's VP was just too alcoholic for my palate. The Grange was fully mature, incredibly opulent and long, the Champagne of such beauty and elegance in the mouth and the S.A. Prum LGK BA ... simply a work of art. The Canon was magnificent, the Grosset, Leeuwin and Tyrell's all in sparkling form and worthy of strong gold medals with the "cheapy" of the day, the Stonier's, no slouch in such distinguished company. The Mouton and John Riddoch were both outstanding on the day but just a notch or three below the best red's of the day. The Angelus has some tanninn to shed but is a fine wine, all the same. The Coutet was brilliant for its considerable age.

[griff]

That looks a lovely line-up indeed David.

Couple of questions please. You initially loved the 2005 LEAS Chardonnay then went right off it due to excess alcohol. Now you seem to be coming back to a positive view. Would this be right? I wonder where you see it going.

The other question is which vintage was the SA Prum?

Sounds like it was a great night!

cheers

Carl

[dlo]

That looks a lovely line-up indeed David.

Couple of questions please. You initially loved the 2005 LEAS Chardonnay then went right off it due to excess alcohol. Now you seem to be coming back to a positive view. Would this be right? I wonder where you see it going. - This bottle looked very youthful with fruit and oak now back in balance (my other previous criticism was the oak had obliterated the bulk of the fruit) and the harsh phenolic, alcoholic finish no longer obvious and offensive. As to where I see it going - I don't know but as long as these wines are coming out at 14.5 > 15.0% A/V, my gut tells me to give them a miss, but at least this bottle hit the spot with everyone around the table on the day.

The other question is which vintage was the SA Prum? - Fixed

Sounds like it was a great night! - it wasn't a night ... but an all day affair, finishing after the sun went down.

cheers

Carl

[Chuck]

Jacobs Creek 1999 Limited Release Shiraz Cabernet

A little awkward in its youth this has blossomed in the last 12 months. Stunning fruit and oak now finally integrated. Better than the '98 currently where the fruit has faded and oak dominates. One of the best wines recently and will stay a few more years.

Chuck

[griff]

That looks a lovely line-up indeed David.

Couple of questions please. You initially loved the 2005 LEAS Chardonnay then went right off it due to excess alcohol. Now you seem to be coming back to a positive view. Would this be right? I wonder where you see it going. - This bottle looked very youthful with fruit and oak now back in balance (my other previous criticism was the oak had obliterated the bulk of the fruit) and the harsh phenolic, alcoholic finish no longer obvious and offensive. As to where I see it going - I don't know but as long as these wines are coming out at 14.5 > 15.0% A/V, my gut tells me to give them a miss, but at least this bottle hit the spot with everyone around the table on the day.

The other question is which vintage was the SA Prum? - Fixed

Sounds like it was a great night! - it wasn't a night ... but an all day affair, finishing after the sun went down.

cheers

Carl

Thanks. All day affairs can be difficult the next day

cheers

Carl