Midweekers Mar 15th to 19th

[monghead]

For those not having AFDs, what you been sipping?

Cheers,

Monghead.

[Chad]

1988 Tahbilk Cabernet Sauvignon- Initially quite closed although had been decanted for about an hour. We thought we could smell the tiniest hint of fig and mulberry emerging after a while in the glass. Eventually it opened up to reveal a grand antiqueness that reflected it's 22 years. Smokey and hints of leather were mixed with soft tannins and a finish that held our attention long past our expectations.

2008 Mike Press Adelaide Hills Cabernet Sauvignon- WOW.... My wine of the year so far. I would gladly spend $40 for this bottle of wine, let alone the measley $10 I did spend. As soon as I had opened the bottle I knew I was in for a treat. Tar & black jubes, fig & dark fruits bounded out of the glass. Just the right amount of heat and a finish that went on & on..... I even found myself smelling the empty glass with a smile on my face.

2008 or 09 Robinsons Pinot Gris- Not quite sure of the vintage, but a really nice pineapple & pear taste spectrum. Went fantastically well with take-away thai.

2008 Fraser Gallop Cab Merlot- This wine will rock in about 2-3yrs. Took a while to show it's true colours, probably because I poured straight into the glass without a decant. Great structure and tannin profile. Just enough red fruits to keep my attention, but does need some time to flourish. And it surely will.

Chad

[griff]

Last night was a 2006 Hoddles Creek Chardonnay
Looking very smart. Starting to develop some tertiary influence on top of that nice, crisp structure. Shames other chardonnays at twice the price. Excellent wine. Chardonnay and homemade roast chicken is a match made in heaven

cheers

Carl

[jeremy]

Lucky enough to attend a lunch with Dan Buckle of Mt Langi-

2008 Mt Langi Riesling- Excellent example of why I like the Grampians for riesling. Floral with intense lime and some apple. Touch of chalk dust/bath salt texture on finish.

Served with kingfish sashimi, poached prawns, white asparagus, shitake mushrooms & white miso dressing: Excellent match. Very interesting for me to see how well the wine complimented the mushrooms and miso.

2008 Cliff Edge Pinot Gris Nashi pears and rose water, apples and spice. Palate weight and reach through the finish improved with time in the glass.

Served with ocean trout confit, cucumber balls. labna, mint & cumin. Least succesful match. Ocean trout was awesome but it's a lighter style of Gris and the wine was somewhat overpowered.

2006 Cliff Edge Shiraz- Regional, juicy and spicy. Great to hear that even more work will be put into this wine, which Dan sees as a baby Ghiran. Price is going to stay the same.

2006 Moyston Hills Shiraz- Lots of fruit weight balanced by earthiness and structure. Very good.

2006 Nowhere Creek Shiraz- the most depth of any of the wines in this bracket. Some wild brambly fruit, anise and superb length.

Served with assiete of lamb with buttered cos and peas. Awesome dish. Nowhere Creek worked best.

2007 Mt Langi Ghiran Shiraz- to be released on the 30th March. Massive potential, kept evolving in the glass. Was not able to spend enough time with it to describe it other than to say it looked excellent and had magnificent structure. One for the cellar.

Served with cheeses, which I left alone until I'd had a bit of a look at the wine. Red wine & cheese don't really work for me.

[orpheus]

Lucky enough to attend a lunch with Dan Buckle of Mt Langi-



2006 Cliff Edge Shiraz- Regional, juicy and spicy. Great to hear that even more work will be put into this wine, which Dan sees as a baby Ghiran. Price is going to stay the same.


Served with assiete of lamb with buttered cos and peas. Awesome dish. Nowhere Creek worked best.

Yes, as I said in a recent thread, the 2005 CLiff Edge shiraz was much better than I was expecting for a second label in a difficult vintage, and one could expect even more from the 2006, given the quality of the vintage.

[cuttlefish]

Lucky enough to attend a lunch with Dan Buckle of Mt Langi-



2007 Mt Langi Ghiran Shiraz- to be released on the 30th March. Massive potential, kept evolving in the glass. Was not able to spend enough time with it to describe it other than to say it looked excellent and had magnificent structure. One for the cellar.

I know other producers across Victoria got smashed by frost in 2007. Did Dan mention anything about it being a smaller than usual release ?

[pstarr]

Last night was a 2006 Hoddles Creek Chardonnay
Looking very smart. Starting to develop some tertiary influence on top of that nice, crisp structure. Shames other chardonnays at twice the price. Excellent wine. Chardonnay and homemade roast chicken is a match made in heaven

cheers

Carl

Yep, good match. Also like homemade fettuccine and pesto from the basil forest out the back as a match for a good chardonnay. Did that last week with a nice bottle of the 2005 Seppelt Jaluka. I've brought my first 2005 Savaterre chardonnay home from the vineyard store to have this week. Might be a moment for roast chook.

[Matt]

Missed a few weeks so will wrap it in one, albeit briefly...
A few quaffers here.

Annies Lane 2007 Chardonnay - A real suprise. Drinking very well. Hints of buttered popcorn, its trying . Nicely balanced acidity. A little short on the finish but what can you expect for the price. Pity their recent cab merlot/shiraz offerings are not up to this standard.
Brookland Valley Chardonnay 2008 - OTT peach bomb! its almost overkill. imo they also need to tone down their use of oak in their verse 1 range. way too obvious and a little 'upfront'. QPR - V good though, and will keep everyone happy. has anyone else tried this one?
Wynns 2008 Shiraz - I read they hype and i believe the hype. My best QPR quaffer so far this yr. A densly concentrated punch of blackcurrent and spice. Will be drinking v well in 2014/2015 when the tannins settle down. Great find. Thanks for the tip!
Flametree Cab Merlot 2008 - Dont even think about opening until 2014. Needs time. Even after the third night the tannins were comparable to a braking frieght train with a 22 tonne load. Disappointing after their fine 2008 shiraz effort. Looking forward to seeing how it goes in 4 years time.

[monghead]

2008 Pepperjack Shiraz- Fruity, but short with a drying finish. Sub Good.

[jeremy]

Lucky enough to attend a lunch with Dan Buckle of Mt Langi-



2007 Mt Langi Ghiran Shiraz- to be released on the 30th March. Massive potential, kept evolving in the glass. Was not able to spend enough time with it to describe it other than to say it looked excellent and had magnificent structure. One for the cellar.

I know other producers across Victoria got smashed by frost in 2007. Did Dan mention anything about it being a smaller than usual release ?

No mention of that, just that he was extremely happy with it. Mind you there was a fair number at the lunch and I had so many questions I didn't get to ask, frost and 07 vintage got left out.

[jeremy]

Lucky enough to attend a lunch with Dan Buckle of Mt Langi-



2006 Cliff Edge Shiraz- Regional, juicy and spicy. Great to hear that even more work will be put into this wine, which Dan sees as a baby Ghiran. Price is going to stay the same.


Served with assiete of lamb with buttered cos and peas. Awesome dish. Nowhere Creek worked best.

Yes, as I said in a recent thread, the 2005 CLiff Edge shiraz was much better than I was expecting for a second label in a difficult vintage, and one could expect even more from the 2006, given the quality of the vintage.

Yep, really enjoyed the 05 at the price but the 06 is much better IMO.

[Sean O'Sullivan]

deleted

[drunkenbum]

Had a D'arenberg GSM with my counter meal tonight, not too bad for a 10 buck bottle of wine, would be a great bbq quaffer! Full of nice spicy, cherry notes with a solid but not overpowering alcohol content (14%) and light enough to enjoy without being hardwork, suited my beef and reef pretty well! (Or maybe I just needed a drink badly!)

[via collins]

Mader pinot gris 2008 golden straw colour, honey and floral notes, heavy, oily body and late harvest pear and fig back-bone. Simply delicious.

La Chapelle de Calon 2005 Very dry and dusty initially, tons of olde world library tones. Good length, but little fruit shown until 90 minutes in. Then rich cranberries, baked plums and a mouthfeel that got richer with time. A tad disappointing overall, but I suspect it's way too early.

[Sean O'Sullivan]

deleted

[AaronL]

Continuing the 2007 Yarra Valley Chardonnay Theme

2007 Oakridge 'Over the Shoulder' Chardonnay - I'd say it was pretty similar to the Yering Station above, with a bit of lees work thrown in for good measure, and not much mineraliness (if that is a word). I've been very happily drinking my way through a case of this. Excellent mid week drinking.

NV Sandalford Sandalera - Interesting pricing on this. Sells for $95 at cellar door, although can be bought for much less elsewhere. A blend of PX and muscadelle, this is a great drink. There is a kaleidoscope of flavours rising and subsiding, with sweet date, chocolate and honey sweeping through, before subsiding and letting the nutty, toasty popcorn takover. Some cleansing acid at the end just makes you want to take another sip. Excellent

[monghead]

To finish off the week,

2004 Cullen Mangan Malbec Petit Verdot- Quite fragrant dark cherries, violets, and crushed ants. Meaty. Good.

[Jay60A]

Crawford River Riesling 2005
Granny apples, drilled lime and a touch of grtapefruit. Young, acidic, long and tasty. Notwithstanding Grosset which I love, and Leonay which is unsourceable in the UK, CR rocks my boat year-in-year out. Crystaline structure, more full bodied, marches to it's own beat abeit I have not drunk Seppelts Drumborg since the simply great 2005. Every year I know there may be a couple better but huge consistency here, classic gear. Long may the riesling revival be deferred!

[Chad]

2007 Tyrrel's Single Vineyard Steven's Shiraz- Velvety, masculine and very dense fruit. Vanilla bean and a touch of red dirt. Kept getting better as the bottle went on. Glad I still have some left for another day. However I won't open the next one for at least 5-7yrs. Definately my WOTY so far.

Chad

[rooman]

2007 Willi Schaefer Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Kabinett Lovely refreshing crisp length with touch of lemon sherbert, off dry. An excellent kabinett though the primary fruit seems to be fading just a little from this time last year as it gets ready to go to sleep for a while.