Weekend Drinkies Dec 11-12

[Craig(NZ)]

What ya been drinking this weekend

For me 2005 Unison Selection which was the wrong choice on such a hot night in a stuffy restaurant. Just too much. Also a better pick 2009 Doctors Riesling. Noice!

[TiggerK]

Been taking it easy since a big NZ holiday... thought I better mention a few I had over there...

John Forrest Collection Chardonnay 2004 - bit more oaky than I remember from 6 months ago, but still a nice chardonnay. Good Good
Giribaldi Barolo 2001 - took quite a a while to open up, and even then wasn't stunning. Pretty good wine, not very barolo-like though. Just Good
Neudorf Moutere Chardonnay 2008 - Amazing. Refined and delicate but it's the balance that elevates it from good to great. Extremely Good.
Mount Riley Limited Release Sauvignon Blanc 2010 - Bro-in-law made this so I'm biased, but I normally reject Savvy and yet this was actually very enjoyable. Very Good.

Cloudy Bay Visit... their current wines are rather good across the board, esp the savvy 2010 (not that I'm a fan though), pinot 2008 and chardy 07. I said I miss the 07 as we're now seeing the (not as good) chardy 08 here in aus and she was amazed as they all thought it wasn't released anywhere yet....

Clos Henri Visit... Obviously french influenced biodynamic winery doing good things with Savvy and Pinot Noir made with a focus on the 'terroir'. Cellar door is a lovely old restored church slightly up on the hill. Even as a non Sav drinker, I still had a lot of respect for their wines, and their prices were very good for the quality. Pinots well worth a second look too.

Lunch at Pegasus Bay in Waipara - Sublime food and very good service. Wines were very good without being great. Highly Recommended, esp for the food and setting.

Pyramid Valley Visit.... Sorry, I wish I had time to write about this place all night, but I haven't. Pyramid Valley make some of the best wines in NZ, full stop. Have to ring in advance, about 15 mins well off the beaten Waipara track, but if you're in the area you should not miss it. Great people and a lovely slice of heaven. Talk about living the dream. So we tasted a few whites... their Marlborough Semillon was quite lovely but it's the Chardonnay's that are off the scale, 08's are weighty and elegant but not available in Aus as they were "made in the garage and we don't have export accreditation for them", their 09's are more immediate with superb upfront fruit and much complex interest. I preferred (and bought) the 'Lions Tooth' over the 'Field of Fire' and the prices at cellar door were excellent. Didn't move onto the Pinots (duh!) as we were low on time, I was driving (and not much good at spitting - must learn that), and I knew the Eaton and Calvert already. Wish I had tried their home labels though. Mum bought the Earth Smoke Pinot untasted because she liked the name and the interesting soil profile (displayed in depth tubes next to each displayed wine), and I wish I had bought some too having read some comments on it afterwards! Very memorable visit indeed, and I can't recommend this winery enough.

Villa Maria Reserve Syrah 2007 - got a few bottles stashed at Mum's in ChCh (never enough DF allocation to bring it all home, even though I double it, declare and still get off the duty), but having assumed they were way too young, haven't touched them. Saw it by the glass at the fantastic White House restaurant in Wellington and had to try... Wow, superb wine, one of my young wine highlights of the year. Seductive, juicy, perfectly ripe, decadent and wonderful. Drinking so well now, how good will this become?? Probably Out Of Control Good.
Lanson Gold Label Champagne 1998 - always a good value vintage champers, wasn't amazing, but it just needs time this one. Good Good.
Tarlant Brut Reserve Champagne 1998 - Incredibly good. Took to Logan Brown for their BYO night and all were very impressed, including the staff! Great texture, clean yet rich and full. Extremely Good.
Dry River Pinot Noir 2008 - Another amazing wine. Also took to LB, and this was another real winner. Dry River are another NZ winery who rarely let you down. Velvety, deep fruit and long finish. Extremely Good.

And today... Brokenwood ILR Reserve Semillon 2005. nice hot day lunch drink, but needs more time to bring out those secondary characters which most of us know and love. Good Good.

Cheers
TiggerK

[daz]

Forest Hill Vineyard Block One Riesling 2009. Nice and dry with mostly lemon citrus, a touch of lime and some slatey minerality. Lively, refreshing acidity throughout provides an extended finish. Excellent.

Wynns Coonawarra Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2006. First taste of this(chilled intially and drunk slowly in air-con at mid 20sC. A melange of black fruits on the bouquet with some cedary oak on the bouquet. Blackberry, mulberry, some plum and black cherries reflect the bouquet with noticeable oak that's reasonably integrated at this point also on the palate. There's some acid supporting the fruit but it's not intrusive and along with the great tannin structure, should pave the way to support cellaring for at least another 10 years. The finish is very satisfying, cassis supported by the acid, typical Coonawarra mintiness and drying tannins. Very, very good now, should be excellent in 4-5 years time.

Cheers

daz

Cheers

[cuttlefish]

Timbo, I am gonna chase up some of those Neudorf Chardies. I was sold on them when I tasted the ('08 ?) alongside the '08 Salo, and the ('08?) Moorooduc. All three single vineyard and all three wild yeast fermented. They're the bomb !

Thanks for the notes !

[monghead]

2008 rk Chardonnay- Peaches, almonds, and traces of struck match. Plump and buttery. Solid Good.
2008 Ata Rangi Pinot Noir- Perfumed bright cherries, rose petals, pancetta, hints of undergrowth. Exciting and captivating. Very Good.
2000 Roche Tallawanta Shiraz- Dark cherries, black pepper, asphalt. Earthy and savoury. Good Good.

Monghead.

[griff]

NV Scarpantoni Black Tempest Sparkling Shiraz
Just an impression. A nice enough drop. Rebecca and I differed on whether it is was better than the 2005 Majella. Very Good.

Lustau Almacenista Oloroso del Puerto 1/110
Dark brown with yellow rim. Muted nose of figs. Not much on the front palate other than high toned acid. Slightly disappointing initially but the back palate and the finish was superb. I wonder it this would have been better added to a solera. Very Good.

2007 Vinya Carles Crianza
Its from Priorat and it was 5 pounds. That is $8! I haven't seen a wine from Priorat for that price before and simply had to try it. All I can find out about it is that it is predominately Garnacha with some Cabernet. Nose of herby, savoury black and red fruit. Simple but classy. On the palate it was like a boysenberry ripple ice cream so less class but it was clean and a bit of fun. Tannin present on the finish. What a great BBQ wine. Very Good and cracking value!

2007 De Bortoli Yarra Valley Chardonnay
Well made i.e. lees stirring and some melon and some butter. Nothing wrong with it but some reason it felt soulless. A wine by the numbers. Good.

cheers

Carl

[Bick]

A few kiwi whites, in this hot waether. No icons, but ok wines nonetheless:
Brancott Estate 'Ormond' Gisborne Chardonnay 2008 - traditionally styled, oaky, buttery chard, which suits my palate. Not bad; decent weight.
Morton Estate Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2009 - pretty juicy and fruity, this one. Much better than a Te Mata woodthorpe savvy I had a few days prior.
Esk Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2010 - not a ripper (nor as good as the Morton black label), but quite drinkable.

[reschsmooth]

Grant Burge NV Blanc de Blancs - citrus, pear and honey on the palate. Quite enjoyable.
Moet et Chandon NV Imperial Brut - too busy getting lunch ready to sit down and enjoy it, but had nice complexity and minerality.
Benedictus Pinot Noir - 2004 - still deep red; forest notes on the nose; bitter chocolate and soft tannins. Very nice given the first one we had about a year or more ago was less than impressive.

[Michael R]

Following Tiggers NZ theme

2010 Felton Road Block 1 Riesling - not really my style, found it bit too blousy and sweet, like they took a good wine and added a table spoon of honey and a sugar cube.
Mind you, i didn’t much like the 09 either, and that seemed to get 100 points from everyone.

2010 Felton Road Dry Riesling – liked it, had a slight grapefruit feel, but not austere or overtly acidic. Good balance, with a cleansing gentle spritz on the finish.

Cheers
Michael

[Craig(NZ)]

2010 Felton Road Block 1 Riesling - not really my style, found it bit too blousy and sweet, like they took a good wine and added a table spoon of honey and a sugar cube.
Mind you, i didn’t much like the 09 either, and that seemed to get 100 points from everyone.

I was disappointed in the 2010. Thought it was good for its style but no better than many at $10 less. The 2009 though I thought was an amazing wine.

[Pat]

Wife's family Christmas Party on Sunday at our house. A couple of beers and some wine was well received by all. Tasting notes are very basic due to the .... ahem .... condition of the taster at the time.

1999 Johns Blend Margarettes Shiraz - Good wine, red fruit flavours.
2008 Cambian Rock Shiraz - Nice wine. Still young.
2008 Bobbie Burns Shiraz - Nice wine however was a bit warm temperature wise when served. (had been sitting on table on west facing balcony)
2005 Godolphin - Great wine, well structured. Will be even better in 5 years

[Mandingo]

Wife's family Christmas Party on Sunday at our house. A couple of beers and some wine was well received by all. Tasting notes are very basic due to the .... ahem .... condition of the taster at the time.

1999 Johns Blend Margarettes Shiraz - Good wine, red fruit flavours.
2008 Cambian Rock Shiraz - Nice wine. Still young.
2008 Bobbie Burns Shiraz - Nice wine however was a bit warm temperature wise when served. (had been sitting on table on west facing balcony)
2005 Godolphin - Great wine, well structured. Will be even better in 5 years

Agree with the 05 Godolphin - had it the other night. A ripper.

[orpheus]

Been taking it easy since a big NZ holiday... thought I better mention a few I had over there...

John Forrest Collection Chardonnay 2004 - bit more oaky than I remember from 6 months ago, but still a nice chardonnay. Good Good
Giribaldi Barolo 2001 - took quite a a while to open up, and even then wasn't stunning. Pretty good wine, not very barolo-like though. Just Good
Neudorf Moutere Chardonnay 2008 - Amazing. Refined and delicate but it's the balance that elevates it from good to great. Extremely Good.
Mount Riley Limited Release Sauvignon Blanc 2010 - Bro-in-law made this so I'm biased, but I normally reject Savvy and yet this was actually very enjoyable. Very Good.

Cloudy Bay Visit... their current wines are rather good across the board, esp the savvy 2010 (not that I'm a fan though), pinot 2008 and chardy 07. I said I miss the 07 as we're now seeing the (not as good) chardy 08 here in aus and she was amazed as they all thought it wasn't released anywhere yet....

Clos Henri Visit... Obviously french influenced biodynamic winery doing good things with Savvy and Pinot Noir made with a focus on the 'terroir'. Cellar door is a lovely old restored church slightly up on the hill. Even as a non Sav drinker, I still had a lot of respect for their wines, and their prices were very good for the quality. Pinots well worth a second look too.

Lunch at Pegasus Bay in Waipara - Sublime food and very good service. Wines were very good without being great. Highly Recommended, esp for the food and setting.

Pyramid Valley Visit.... Sorry, I wish I had time to write about this place all night, but I haven't. Pyramid Valley make some of the best wines in NZ, full stop. Have to ring in advance, about 15 mins well off the beaten Waipara track, but if you're in the area you should not miss it. Great people and a lovely slice of heaven. Talk about living the dream. So we tasted a few whites... their Marlborough Semillon was quite lovely but it's the Chardonnay's that are off the scale, 08's are weighty and elegant but not available in Aus as they were "made in the garage and we don't have export accreditation for them", their 09's are more immediate with superb upfront fruit and much complex interest. I preferred (and bought) the 'Lions Tooth' over the 'Field of Fire' and the prices at cellar door were excellent. Didn't move onto the Pinots (duh!) as we were low on time, I was driving (and not much good at spitting - must learn that), and I knew the Eaton and Calvert already. Wish I had tried their home labels though. Mum bought the Earth Smoke Pinot untasted because she liked the name and the interesting soil profile (displayed in depth tubes next to each displayed wine), and I wish I had bought some too having read some comments on it afterwards! Very memorable visit indeed, and I can't recommend this winery enough.

Villa Maria Reserve Syrah 2007 - got a few bottles stashed at Mum's in ChCh (never enough DF allocation to bring it all home, even though I double it, declare and still get off the duty), but having assumed they were way too young, haven't touched them. Saw it by the glass at the fantastic White House restaurant in Wellington and had to try... Wow, superb wine, one of my young wine highlights of the year. Seductive, juicy, perfectly ripe, decadent and wonderful. Drinking so well now, how good will this become?? Probably Out Of Control Good.
Lanson Gold Label Champagne 1998 - always a good value vintage champers, wasn't amazing, but it just needs time this one. Good Good.
Tarlant Brut Reserve Champagne 1998 - Incredibly good. Took to Logan Brown for their BYO night and all were very impressed, including the staff! Great texture, clean yet rich and full. Extremely Good.
Dry River Pinot Noir 2008 - Another amazing wine. Also took to LB, and this was another real winner. Dry River are another NZ winery who rarely let you down. Velvety, deep fruit and long finish. Extremely Good.

And today... Brokenwood ILR Reserve Semillon 2005. nice hot day lunch drink, but needs more time to bring out those secondary characters which most of us know and love. Good Good.

Cheers
TiggerK

Hi Tigger (and others), I am in NZ for a few weeks. I bought a bottle of the Villa Maria Reserve Syrah 2007. I didn't have the same reaction as you. Certainly I would not put it in the same league as the best syrah that I have had from NZ, and certainly not up with a good Cote-Rotie; I had a bottle the night before, a Cote-Rotie "Les Grands Places" 2005, which was all that a syrah should be, with a wonderful, complex nose with floral notes, dark berry, and spice, a palate to match, and a sense of structure and firm tannins that lifted it slightly above the best NZ Syrahs I have tasted (with the possible exception of an 8 year old Craggy Range "Le Sol" (2002); much as the 2007 is raved about, it is hard to imagine it ending up better than that).

I felt that I would reserve judgment for some years, as at this stage I would say that it has a dumb nose and is not giving a lot on the palate either; the palate was rather one-dimensional, showing basically liquorice a hint of plum, and a hint of tamarillo. I didn't know what to make of it. I did think that it was rather closed, and had more potential than it was showing.

On the other hand, a bottle of Passage Rock Reserve Syrah 2008 was very good indeed.

By contrast, a Wolf Blass grey label shiraz 2008, in the company of these wines, showed all of the limitations of a lot of Australian shiraz. There may have been a reasonable wine trying to get out, but the grapes had been ripened to within an inch of their life. It had no nose to speak of, a bit of sour cherry, a lot of chocolate, perhaps a hint of plum, and generally I didn't like it at all. Halliday gave it 95.

[TiggerK]

Ah well no accounting for taste is there orpheus I'll agree that it was a touch one dimensional, just a dimension that I really enjoyed! And I wonder what the price of the Cote-Rotie was? The Villa was $65NZ. Perhaps I got your expectations too high..... And of course I'm a newb taster....

Interesting to see the Oz comparison too, I do find the big Oz brutes challenging after the more refined styles of NZ and France.

Anyway, hope you're having a good trip!

Cheers
Tim

[orpheus]

Ah well no accounting for taste is there orpheus I'll agree that it was a touch one dimensional, just a dimension that I really enjoyed! And I wonder what the price of the Cote-Rotie was? The Villa was $65NZ. Perhaps I got your expectations too high..... And of course I'm a newb taster....

Interesting to see the Oz comparison too, I do find the big Oz brutes challenging after the more refined styles of NZ and France.

Anyway, hope you're having a good trip!

Cheers
Tim

I'm having a great time, thanks, Tim. I wouldn't describe you as a newb taster. I really would like to revisit this wine in a few years time. Certainly the best Hawkes Bay Syrahs take time to show their best, and I wonder whether you were more able to see what was underneath than I was.

The Cote Rotie was probably a couple of hundred NZ dollars. Cheaper closer to the source, I expect. A bit much for me, but happy to help out a friend who wanted to drink it with me!

[orpheus]

I've asked my friend about the Cote Rotie. About NZ135, which is pretty fair for what it is. Jean something Gerin is the maker. Terrific wine.

[Jay60A]

I've asked my friend about the Cote Rotie. About NZ135, which is pretty fair for what it is. Jean something Gerin is the maker. Terrific wine.

Actually that's a GREAT Cote Rotie. Grand Places in 2005 rocks and it is only made by three producers - Jean Michel Gerin, Clusel Roch and (I think) du Monteillet. Gerin is a moderniste (i.e modern, oaked). Clusel Roch very classic. Both great wines. Not tried du Monteillet but it's reputation is also top notch, just very unobtainable.

[orpheus]

I've asked my friend about the Cote Rotie. About NZ135, which is pretty fair for what it is. Jean something Gerin is the maker. Terrific wine.

Actually that's a GREAT Cote Rotie. Grand Places in 2005 rocks and it is only made by three producers - Jean Michel Gerin, Clusel Roch and (I think) du Monteillet. Gerin is a moderniste (i.e modern, oaked). Clusel Roch very classic. Both great wines. Not tried du Monteillet but it's reputation is also top notch, just very unobtainable.

Interesting. Living in Australia, and being subjected to many wines with noses of nothing but oak and berry, the use of oak in the Gerin is very restrained. But what a wonderfully pure and exuberant expression of syrah and soil!

[orpheus]

I've asked my friend about the Cote Rotie. About NZ135, which is pretty fair for what it is. Jean something Gerin is the maker. Terrific wine.

Actually that's a GREAT Cote Rotie. Grand Places in 2005 rocks and it is only made by three producers - Jean Michel Gerin, Clusel Roch and (I think) du Monteillet. Gerin is a moderniste (i.e modern, oaked). Clusel Roch very classic. Both great wines. Not tried du Monteillet but it's reputation is also top notch, just very unobtainable.

Having dinner with my friend, Adam, again tonight. This time he is bringing one of the other "grand places" wines from 2005 (I think; it could just be another 2005 Cote Rotie). Very excited; if it is anything like the last bottle, it will be memorable.

[orpheus]

Ah well no accounting for taste is there orpheus I'll agree that it was a touch one dimensional, just a dimension that I really enjoyed! And I wonder what the price of the Cote-Rotie was? The Villa was $65NZ. Perhaps I got your expectations too high..... And of course I'm a newb taster....

Interesting to see the Oz comparison too, I do find the big Oz brutes challenging after the more refined styles of NZ and France.

Anyway, hope you're having a good trip!

Cheers
Tim

Tim, I found a bottle of the Villa Maria Reserve Syrah 2006. This too was not quite the kaleidiscope of smells and flavours that the Cote-Rotie was, but it was very good indeed, and certainly drinking much better than the 2007, to my taste.

I think these Gimblett Gravels Syrahs need quite a bit of time to show their best; the tannins tend to obscure the quite complex palate underneath. For instance, the Craggy Range Le Sol 2007 is a wonderful wine, and very classy (you've had it, of course, at Fix St James, and it was not disgraced by the pretty formidable competition), but an 02, which I had a year earlier, and even an 05 (not considered a great year, I think) that I had at the same time, was much more complex, and almost up there with the COte-Rotie (but not quite).

[tpang]

Spinifex 2008 Lola
A lovely blend for the warm saturday, lots of ripe lemon aromas, crushed grass and minerality. Rich flavours with a waxy texture and a beautiful long finish. Had this with baked sea bass. Very enjoyable.

Cims de Porrera 1999 Classic, Priorat
The last of my bottles and I have not been disappointed at how this has developed over the years. Always an enjoyment to drink, and this was no different. Lots of blackberry and dark berry fruit stew flavours. Fully mature, plush texture with a long sappy finish. The fruit at the end seems to linger forever.

[ticklenow1]

2002 Rockford Rod and Spur Cabernet Shiraz: Really drinking well now. Lovely black fruit and not light on like some other vintages of this wine. Silky smooth tannins and oak taking a back seat but well intergrated. Not sure how much longer it will last. We really enjoyed this wine a lot. Highly recommended.

2002 Greenock Creek Cabernet: Wow, a really big wine and I can't remember it being this big when we tasted it at the cellar door. Will go for years. Took about 3 to 4 hours to start showing it's fruit, but when it did, there was an abundance of it. Blackcurrants, some nice chocolate and spice. I will not look at this again for at least 5 years.