Thought I'd start up this thread to kick things off.
Apart from the usual cheapies I was very impressed with Evans & Tate 2005 Reserve Margaret River Chardonnay. Nutty with white flesh stone fruits, oak and acids well intergreated with bottle age just right this is what modern Australian Chardonnays are all about. Matched well with Chinese red cooked chicken and boc choy and rice on a hot Adelaide weekend.
So what have you been drinking this weekend?
January 21 Drinking
January 21 Drinking
Your worst game of golf is better than your best day at work
Re: January 21 Drinking
1998 Castello di Querceto Il Querciolaia
Medium red with little bricking. Nose of cherries and leather. Gamy palate that has herbs aplenty. Slightly rustic. Very Good.
2003 Lafon Rochet
Dark magenta. Lead pencil and black fruit. Rich palate yet mineral with that stern St Estephe style moderated by the vintage. Yet to gain complexity but approachable now. Very Good with potential.
cheers
Carl
Medium red with little bricking. Nose of cherries and leather. Gamy palate that has herbs aplenty. Slightly rustic. Very Good.
2003 Lafon Rochet
Dark magenta. Lead pencil and black fruit. Rich palate yet mineral with that stern St Estephe style moderated by the vintage. Yet to gain complexity but approachable now. Very Good with potential.
cheers
Carl
Bartenders are supposed to have people skills. Or was it people are supposed to have bartending skills?
Re: January 21 Drinking
Gonzalez Byass 1847 Solera Olorso Dulce
Started to leak a bit, so have to get into it. Pretty nutty on the nose with a palate of caramelised sugar, caramel and other forms of cooked sugar. Quite a long palate with a pleasant bouquet which certainly lingered on the beard.
Not sure if it was worth hauling back. But it is certainly getting the job done.
2008 Alkoomi Cab Sav
Have really been enjoying this recently. A nice deep translucent red colour with mauvey purple colour at the rim. Strong fresh nose of berries. Palate of very well balanced ripe fruit throughout with a nice finish from smooth tannins. The next day the fruit lessens with more chalky tannins appearing. But incredibly easy to drink and fantastic for fruit lovers like myself.
Am I doing it right?
Started to leak a bit, so have to get into it. Pretty nutty on the nose with a palate of caramelised sugar, caramel and other forms of cooked sugar. Quite a long palate with a pleasant bouquet which certainly lingered on the beard.
Not sure if it was worth hauling back. But it is certainly getting the job done.
2008 Alkoomi Cab Sav
Have really been enjoying this recently. A nice deep translucent red colour with mauvey purple colour at the rim. Strong fresh nose of berries. Palate of very well balanced ripe fruit throughout with a nice finish from smooth tannins. The next day the fruit lessens with more chalky tannins appearing. But incredibly easy to drink and fantastic for fruit lovers like myself.
Am I doing it right?
Re: January 21 Drinking
You sure are Chops! 
i should mention that after retasting the Italian today it has become harder, more bitter and a little metallic. Good at best. The Lafon on the other hand powered on.
cheers
Carl
i should mention that after retasting the Italian today it has become harder, more bitter and a little metallic. Good at best. The Lafon on the other hand powered on.
cheers
Carl
Bartenders are supposed to have people skills. Or was it people are supposed to have bartending skills?
Re: January 21 Drinking
Last weekend I tried some of the De Bortoli range at an instore and had these brief impressions – all bottled under screwcap:
2010 De Bortoli Deen Vat 7 Chardonnay, South Eastern Australia: Nice stonefruit and toasty/cashew oak on the nose, while the palate’s leaner and a little grassy, tight acid on the modest finish. Nothing special, but it is cheap.
2010 De Bortoli Gulf Station Pinot Noir, Yarra Valley: Really good gear for the low price this year, full of all the right pinot characters, strawberries/rhubarb, a touch of stalks and mushroom, a bit of heat/high acidity sticking out a little on the finish (13.0% alc).
2010 De Bortoli Estate Grown Pinot Noir, Yarra Valley: A bit more spice than the Gulf Station, but it doesn’t seem to have the same level of sweet fruit; the finish is smooth, but a little on the short side for my liking, especially for a premium wine.
2009 De Bortoli Deen Vat 4 Petit Verdot, Riverina: The young deep purple colour is very impressive, droplets staining the white paper of the accompanying notes a deep indigo. The juicy find of the whole tasting, medium weight, sweet and slippery with coal, blueberries and black tea and jubes, fruity and soft with tannins well in the background. Lovely drinking now with a creamy or tomato based pasta.
2009 De Bortoli Deen Vat 1 Durif, South Eastern Australia: 86% Riverina, 13% King Valley. The colour is a touch redder than the Petit Verdot, but droplet’s stains are just as deeper shade of indigo. A touch rubbery at first, then earthy, sweet raspberries take over, no more weight than the PV but with slightly more obvious tannins – I prefer the PV.
2009 De Bortoli Deen Vat 9 Cabernet Sauvignon, Limestone Coast, South Australia: A little more stinky/rubbery than the Durif, slightly minty but overall quite ripe and sweet with blackcurrant/raspberry fruit and an earthy texture, medium weight but nothing special. I don’t know how this won a gong at the NZ International Wine Challenge.
2008 De Bortoli Vat 5 Deen Botrytis Semillon, Riverina (375ml): I found the little brother to Noble One slightly lacking today, while there’s still true quince and marmalade it seems lighter weight than I remember, and pulls up a bit short too. Still good value though.
2009 De Bortoli Noble One Botrytis Semillon, Riverina (500ml): Pale straw yellow, noticeably much paler than the 750ml 2008 & 2007 vintages which are already showing hints of amber. All the right things are here, characters of quince, mango and caramelised pineapple, and with significantly more palate weight than the Deen Vat 5; with breathing there’s a whiff of volatility in the background, and the sweetness on entry gives way to a very long, dry, puckery finish. It’s the best vintage I’ve tried in a few years, but the effective 33% increase in price (500ml for the same price as 750ml) is hard to wear.
NV De Bortoli Show Liqueur Muscat, Riverina (500ml): Barrel aged 8 years. Medium to dark tawny, full of fruitcake, aged soy and caramel, just a touch of tealeaves too; the concentration and length are great, and despite a similar size reduction/relative price hike to the Noble One is still good value.
Cheers,
Ian
2010 De Bortoli Deen Vat 7 Chardonnay, South Eastern Australia: Nice stonefruit and toasty/cashew oak on the nose, while the palate’s leaner and a little grassy, tight acid on the modest finish. Nothing special, but it is cheap.
2010 De Bortoli Gulf Station Pinot Noir, Yarra Valley: Really good gear for the low price this year, full of all the right pinot characters, strawberries/rhubarb, a touch of stalks and mushroom, a bit of heat/high acidity sticking out a little on the finish (13.0% alc).
2010 De Bortoli Estate Grown Pinot Noir, Yarra Valley: A bit more spice than the Gulf Station, but it doesn’t seem to have the same level of sweet fruit; the finish is smooth, but a little on the short side for my liking, especially for a premium wine.
2009 De Bortoli Deen Vat 4 Petit Verdot, Riverina: The young deep purple colour is very impressive, droplets staining the white paper of the accompanying notes a deep indigo. The juicy find of the whole tasting, medium weight, sweet and slippery with coal, blueberries and black tea and jubes, fruity and soft with tannins well in the background. Lovely drinking now with a creamy or tomato based pasta.
2009 De Bortoli Deen Vat 1 Durif, South Eastern Australia: 86% Riverina, 13% King Valley. The colour is a touch redder than the Petit Verdot, but droplet’s stains are just as deeper shade of indigo. A touch rubbery at first, then earthy, sweet raspberries take over, no more weight than the PV but with slightly more obvious tannins – I prefer the PV.
2009 De Bortoli Deen Vat 9 Cabernet Sauvignon, Limestone Coast, South Australia: A little more stinky/rubbery than the Durif, slightly minty but overall quite ripe and sweet with blackcurrant/raspberry fruit and an earthy texture, medium weight but nothing special. I don’t know how this won a gong at the NZ International Wine Challenge.
2008 De Bortoli Vat 5 Deen Botrytis Semillon, Riverina (375ml): I found the little brother to Noble One slightly lacking today, while there’s still true quince and marmalade it seems lighter weight than I remember, and pulls up a bit short too. Still good value though.
2009 De Bortoli Noble One Botrytis Semillon, Riverina (500ml): Pale straw yellow, noticeably much paler than the 750ml 2008 & 2007 vintages which are already showing hints of amber. All the right things are here, characters of quince, mango and caramelised pineapple, and with significantly more palate weight than the Deen Vat 5; with breathing there’s a whiff of volatility in the background, and the sweetness on entry gives way to a very long, dry, puckery finish. It’s the best vintage I’ve tried in a few years, but the effective 33% increase in price (500ml for the same price as 750ml) is hard to wear.
NV De Bortoli Show Liqueur Muscat, Riverina (500ml): Barrel aged 8 years. Medium to dark tawny, full of fruitcake, aged soy and caramel, just a touch of tealeaves too; the concentration and length are great, and despite a similar size reduction/relative price hike to the Noble One is still good value.
Cheers,
Ian
Forget about goodness and mercy, they're gone.
Re: January 21 Drinking
n4sir wrote:NV De Bortoli Show Liqueur Muscat, Riverina (500ml): Barrel aged 8 years. Medium to dark tawny, full of fruitcake, aged soy and caramel, just a touch of tealeaves too; the concentration and length are great, and despite a similar size reduction/relative price hike to the Noble One is still good value.
Cheers,
Ian
I was curious about the age of this. The bottle size reductions for this and the Noble One are disappointing but nit entirely surprising.
cheers
Carl
Bartenders are supposed to have people skills. Or was it people are supposed to have bartending skills?
Re: January 21 Drinking
JL Wolf Forster Jesuitengarten 2001 Spatlese Riesling (12.5% A/V) - developed colour, very sweet for a spatlese, slightly broad fruit structure, mostly peachy, strange acid balance (ie disjointed and clumsy) - slightly underwhelming - lucky to get 80 points from me.
Christophe Vaudoisey Volnay "Clos des Chenes" 2005 - gorgeous colour and aromatics, but like his 2002, harshly structured for a red burg with an overabundance of firm tannin and shrill acidity, albeit with solid underlying fruit. The 2002 was hugely better days 2 and 3 and this had tamed yesterday to something more approachable, but long term cellaring seems to be the style required at this domaine. 86 points (with considerable potential for a higher score down the road).
Petaluma Hanlin's Hill Riesling 2009 (en magnum) - a gloriously forward and beautifully structured wine I had a fleeting glance at. Disappeared in minutes! NR
Hoddles Creek 2005 Chardonnay - utterly brilliant and unfolds in the glass to even greater heights. 93 points on its ear! So oyuthful but huge class on show here.
Wynns John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon 1988 (en magnum) - excellent but in a more developed vein than the last few I've opened .... mostly tertiary character but still a lovely "old" Coonawarra yesterday with sweet earth and leather to the fore. Incredibly smooth and long, it must be said. 90 points. Not up to its usual lofty standard, but still a winner for the troops on the day.
Ch. Pichon Lalande 2002 - First bottle opened. Bought quite a few of these at very good prices some time back on the reco's of several trusted internet palate's - but this has now gone into ugly mode with the tannins swallowing up the fruit from mid-palate back. Has the potential to be outstanding but a decade or more will be required to find out if I'm right. 86 points from me on today's performance.
Ch. Coutet 1983 - Some "hit and miss" bottle variation with this vintage. Big hit yesterday - a fully resolved, but still fresh wine in an extremely good place. Elegant and poised, with a drop-dead gorgeous bouquet of not overripe white and yellow stone fruits, acacia, beautifully integrated fine French oak and hints of honey and coconut. The palate similarly endowed with a smooth, svelte moutfeel, excellent balancing acidty, just the right amount of oak astringency and a very long satisfying finish. 94 points and WOTD.
Seppelt 1983 Vintage Para Port - this has been open a long time (although it's been in the fridge) - ridiculously rich and nutty with copious quantities of rancio, christmas cake and masses of astringency on the back end. NR (too late and way too tired to think about it that much!)
Christophe Vaudoisey Volnay "Clos des Chenes" 2005 - gorgeous colour and aromatics, but like his 2002, harshly structured for a red burg with an overabundance of firm tannin and shrill acidity, albeit with solid underlying fruit. The 2002 was hugely better days 2 and 3 and this had tamed yesterday to something more approachable, but long term cellaring seems to be the style required at this domaine. 86 points (with considerable potential for a higher score down the road).
Petaluma Hanlin's Hill Riesling 2009 (en magnum) - a gloriously forward and beautifully structured wine I had a fleeting glance at. Disappeared in minutes! NR
Hoddles Creek 2005 Chardonnay - utterly brilliant and unfolds in the glass to even greater heights. 93 points on its ear! So oyuthful but huge class on show here.
Wynns John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon 1988 (en magnum) - excellent but in a more developed vein than the last few I've opened .... mostly tertiary character but still a lovely "old" Coonawarra yesterday with sweet earth and leather to the fore. Incredibly smooth and long, it must be said. 90 points. Not up to its usual lofty standard, but still a winner for the troops on the day.
Ch. Pichon Lalande 2002 - First bottle opened. Bought quite a few of these at very good prices some time back on the reco's of several trusted internet palate's - but this has now gone into ugly mode with the tannins swallowing up the fruit from mid-palate back. Has the potential to be outstanding but a decade or more will be required to find out if I'm right. 86 points from me on today's performance.
Ch. Coutet 1983 - Some "hit and miss" bottle variation with this vintage. Big hit yesterday - a fully resolved, but still fresh wine in an extremely good place. Elegant and poised, with a drop-dead gorgeous bouquet of not overripe white and yellow stone fruits, acacia, beautifully integrated fine French oak and hints of honey and coconut. The palate similarly endowed with a smooth, svelte moutfeel, excellent balancing acidty, just the right amount of oak astringency and a very long satisfying finish. 94 points and WOTD.
Seppelt 1983 Vintage Para Port - this has been open a long time (although it's been in the fridge) - ridiculously rich and nutty with copious quantities of rancio, christmas cake and masses of astringency on the back end. NR (too late and way too tired to think about it that much!)
Cheers,
David
David
Re: January 21 Drinking
griff wrote:n4sir wrote:NV De Bortoli Show Liqueur Muscat, Riverina (500ml): Barrel aged 8 years. Medium to dark tawny, full of fruitcake, aged soy and caramel, just a touch of tealeaves too; the concentration and length are great, and despite a similar size reduction/relative price hike to the Noble One is still good value.
Cheers,
Ian
I was curious about the age of this. The bottle size reductions for this and the Noble One are disappointing but nit entirely surprising.
cheers
Carl
With the reduction in bottle size to 500ml the Show Muscat is still less than the Seppeltsfield Grand Muscat, so while it's not the bargain it used to be it's still more than decent value...
On the other hand, what's effectively the new pricing of Noble One puts it directly into Sauternes territory - okay not the top ones, but well within the firing line of Carmes de Rieussec, Filhot, Le Tertre Du Lys D'Or and Lamothe Guignard. With the strength of the Aussie dollar at the moment it seems a strange time to be trying such a big increase in one hit.
Cheers,
Ian
Forget about goodness and mercy, they're gone.
-
Mahmoud Ali
- Posts: 2954
- Joined: Fri Aug 25, 2006 9:00 pm
- Location: Edmonton, Canada
Re: January 21 Drinking
We were up at the Central Coast at a holiday home near the beach and the 2005 Margan Barbera, Hunter Valley was a delight with the barbequed chicken. The wine was purchased from cellar door some years ago and despite Sydney temperatures it help up very well. It was earthy and broad, very Italianate, and definitely a food wine.
Cheers................Mahmoud
Cheers................Mahmoud
-
ticklenow1
- Posts: 1106
- Joined: Tue Aug 31, 2010 3:50 pm
- Location: Gold Coast
Re: January 21 Drinking
A bit of a big week with my 40th on the weekend, along with a big dinner at Avvia on the Gold Coast (excellent BYO, best on the southern end of the coast). I didn't take notes but here is what we drank with some brief descriptors.
2004 Seppelt Original Sparkling Shiraz. Victoria: At the height of it's powers. Value for money, this is the best Sparkling Shiraz out there. Not as good as Rockford's Black Shiraz,or a couple of others, but at a quarter of the price it is well worth a look. Still had lots of fizz left. Not overly sweet but enough there to make it really enjoyable. 4/5
2006 Rockford Local Growers Semillon. Barossa Valley: Not an overly complex wine but really nice drink for a hot summers day. Ideal wine for the party. 3/5
2005 Merum Chardonnay. Pemberton: Lovely Chardy that is drinking really well at the moment. Some nutty oak and creamy buttery flavours are starting to develop. 3.5/5
2006 Noon Twelve Bells. McClaren Vale: Incredible VFM. Drinking as good as this can drink. If you still have some, drink up. 3.5/5
2006 Fox Creek SGM. McClaren Vale: Has mellowed a bit in the few years this has had in the bottle. Only medium bodied at best. Has come together quite well after being a bit of a monster in it's younger days. Drink up if you have any. Enjoyable quaffer that was over shadowed by others on the night. 3/5
2005 Kalleske Old Vines Grenache. Barossa Valley: In a really good place now. Colour is starting to show a bit of bottle age. Balance was good and medium bodied. Super fine tannins and just enough fruit to make it interesting. Not as big a fruit bomb as I could remember. Not a typical Barossa Grenache at all. Has come together quite well and I'll drink my remaining bottles over the next 2 years. 4/5
2005 Greenock Creek Cornerstone Grenache. Barossa Valley: Definitely overshadowed the Kalleske. More fruit and maybe a little lighter than the Kalleske but the colour was a little darker. I love this wine and it is one of my favourites, so I'm a little biased. It's hanging on and I'll also drink my remaining few in the next 2 to 3 years. 4.5/5
2004 Noon Eclipse. McClaren Vale: The best Eclipse that I have had. Colour was still very bright and showing no sign of it's age. Medium to full bodied. It's starting to come together and was so much better than the last bottle I had about 3 years ago. Will last for several more years yet. Powerful for a Grenache dominated wine, but that is typical of Noon in my experience. High alcohol not a factor at all. 4.5/5
2003 Rockford Rifle Range Cabernet. Barossa Valley: Still hanging on nicely. I was surprised by the still youthful colour. Lovely wine from a difficult vintage. 4/5
2004 Glaetzer Shiraz. Barossa Valley: Wow! This will be hard to beat for wine of the year already. This wowed everyone at the table, and it was the last wine of the night. Smooth is an understatement. My notes would not do it justice. As my sister said, "If I could drink this forever, I'd be happy". Just so well balanced and is coming together better than many more expensive Barossa Shiraz's from the same vintage. 14.5% alcohol not showing at all and another reason why I take with a grain of salt the high alcohol doomsayers. If a wine is made well, I don't care how high the alcohol is. 5/5
And at the Party...
2004 Kay Brothers Amery Hillside Shiraz. McClaren Vale: This is a beautiful wine that is travelling oh so well. Was one of the wines I served up at my party and 6 bottles went very quickly. Was universally loved by all. 4.5/5
2004 Rockford Rod and Spur Shiraz Cabernet. Barossa Valley: A few bottles were drank but were slightly overshadowed by the Kay's. Still nice and I put a few glasses away. Only medium bodied and the colour is starting to show a few years in the bottle. I'm not really sure about the age worthiness of the Rod and Spur label, as they seem to drink quite well at about this age or perhaps only 5 or 6 years of age. 4/5
A few more bottles of 2006 Noon Twelve Bells and 2006 Rockford Semillon were emptied as well. A great night was had by all.
Cheers
Ian
2004 Seppelt Original Sparkling Shiraz. Victoria: At the height of it's powers. Value for money, this is the best Sparkling Shiraz out there. Not as good as Rockford's Black Shiraz,or a couple of others, but at a quarter of the price it is well worth a look. Still had lots of fizz left. Not overly sweet but enough there to make it really enjoyable. 4/5
2006 Rockford Local Growers Semillon. Barossa Valley: Not an overly complex wine but really nice drink for a hot summers day. Ideal wine for the party. 3/5
2005 Merum Chardonnay. Pemberton: Lovely Chardy that is drinking really well at the moment. Some nutty oak and creamy buttery flavours are starting to develop. 3.5/5
2006 Noon Twelve Bells. McClaren Vale: Incredible VFM. Drinking as good as this can drink. If you still have some, drink up. 3.5/5
2006 Fox Creek SGM. McClaren Vale: Has mellowed a bit in the few years this has had in the bottle. Only medium bodied at best. Has come together quite well after being a bit of a monster in it's younger days. Drink up if you have any. Enjoyable quaffer that was over shadowed by others on the night. 3/5
2005 Kalleske Old Vines Grenache. Barossa Valley: In a really good place now. Colour is starting to show a bit of bottle age. Balance was good and medium bodied. Super fine tannins and just enough fruit to make it interesting. Not as big a fruit bomb as I could remember. Not a typical Barossa Grenache at all. Has come together quite well and I'll drink my remaining bottles over the next 2 years. 4/5
2005 Greenock Creek Cornerstone Grenache. Barossa Valley: Definitely overshadowed the Kalleske. More fruit and maybe a little lighter than the Kalleske but the colour was a little darker. I love this wine and it is one of my favourites, so I'm a little biased. It's hanging on and I'll also drink my remaining few in the next 2 to 3 years. 4.5/5
2004 Noon Eclipse. McClaren Vale: The best Eclipse that I have had. Colour was still very bright and showing no sign of it's age. Medium to full bodied. It's starting to come together and was so much better than the last bottle I had about 3 years ago. Will last for several more years yet. Powerful for a Grenache dominated wine, but that is typical of Noon in my experience. High alcohol not a factor at all. 4.5/5
2003 Rockford Rifle Range Cabernet. Barossa Valley: Still hanging on nicely. I was surprised by the still youthful colour. Lovely wine from a difficult vintage. 4/5
2004 Glaetzer Shiraz. Barossa Valley: Wow! This will be hard to beat for wine of the year already. This wowed everyone at the table, and it was the last wine of the night. Smooth is an understatement. My notes would not do it justice. As my sister said, "If I could drink this forever, I'd be happy". Just so well balanced and is coming together better than many more expensive Barossa Shiraz's from the same vintage. 14.5% alcohol not showing at all and another reason why I take with a grain of salt the high alcohol doomsayers. If a wine is made well, I don't care how high the alcohol is. 5/5
And at the Party...
2004 Kay Brothers Amery Hillside Shiraz. McClaren Vale: This is a beautiful wine that is travelling oh so well. Was one of the wines I served up at my party and 6 bottles went very quickly. Was universally loved by all. 4.5/5
2004 Rockford Rod and Spur Shiraz Cabernet. Barossa Valley: A few bottles were drank but were slightly overshadowed by the Kay's. Still nice and I put a few glasses away. Only medium bodied and the colour is starting to show a few years in the bottle. I'm not really sure about the age worthiness of the Rod and Spur label, as they seem to drink quite well at about this age or perhaps only 5 or 6 years of age. 4/5
A few more bottles of 2006 Noon Twelve Bells and 2006 Rockford Semillon were emptied as well. A great night was had by all.
Cheers
Ian
Last edited by ticklenow1 on Tue Jan 24, 2012 4:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
If you had to choose between drinking great wine or winning Lotto, which would you choose - Red or White?
Re: January 21 Drinking
Glad to see you celebrated your 40th in style. Congratulations Ian
cheers
Luke
cheers
Luke
If you can remember what a wine is like the next day you didn't drink enough of it
Peynaud
Peynaud
Re: January 21 Drinking
Very Nice list there Ian.
Congratulations.
Congratulations.
never underestimate the predictability of stupidity
Re: January 21 Drinking
Posted rather more extensive notes than those below & then somehow lost it all ...
2004 Bell Hill Pinot Noir Somewhat disappointing -- 1st bottle opened after drinking 3 of the 2nd label Weka Pass over the past couple of years, but pretty restrained. Nothing to suggest it's past it -- good fruit & structure -- so will leave my last bottle for a couple of years to see what happens.
2001 La Fleur-Petrus Only Jan, but certain this'll be the bargain of the year -- NZD 85 off a restaurant list. Condition suggested cellaring conditions weren't too impressive -- significant bricking & fully resolved -- but very nice drinking -- medium weight, fine grained tannin structure & still a little fruit /spice.
2007 Neudorf Moutere Riesling Drinking well but will go for quite a while yet.
2005 Framingham Select Riesling Better (more) acid / sugar balance than the Neudorf to my taste, & a pretty good wine.
2001 Penfolds Bin 28 1st 2 out of a dozen, & wishing I hadn't bought as much. Will leave it for a couple of years in the hope that it mellows, but for now the oak & fruit are far too obvious.
Cheers
Peter
2004 Bell Hill Pinot Noir Somewhat disappointing -- 1st bottle opened after drinking 3 of the 2nd label Weka Pass over the past couple of years, but pretty restrained. Nothing to suggest it's past it -- good fruit & structure -- so will leave my last bottle for a couple of years to see what happens.
2001 La Fleur-Petrus Only Jan, but certain this'll be the bargain of the year -- NZD 85 off a restaurant list. Condition suggested cellaring conditions weren't too impressive -- significant bricking & fully resolved -- but very nice drinking -- medium weight, fine grained tannin structure & still a little fruit /spice.
2007 Neudorf Moutere Riesling Drinking well but will go for quite a while yet.
2005 Framingham Select Riesling Better (more) acid / sugar balance than the Neudorf to my taste, & a pretty good wine.
2001 Penfolds Bin 28 1st 2 out of a dozen, & wishing I hadn't bought as much. Will leave it for a couple of years in the hope that it mellows, but for now the oak & fruit are far too obvious.
Cheers
Peter
Re: January 21 Drinking
Mazza 2007 Tempranillo
A winery renowned for its spanish varietals. And this particular wine does show elements of why, although it isn't one of their accolade winning wines.
Not strong on the nose. Might be slightly floral. A very nice colour though. A dark ruby red which is very similar to tempranillo's in Spain - unlike most in Australia. Quite strong in the front palate, with berries on opening. The mid and end palate lose the berries and get out battled by the spice and tannins from the slovenian oak. Which to me indicates it's too young to drink. It needs times to settle to get the fruit throughout the palate. But it is good and full of flavour which makes a difference to most Australian Tempranillos that taste like nothing, have poor colour, don't experiment with oak and show no understanding of how it should taste. Most wineries "don't get it" when it comes to tempranillo.
But it is the best representation of a tempranillo I've had since being in Spain. And these guys are close to the mark. I just need to try their others now.
My journey towards the tempranillo that I like, continues in earnest.
A winery renowned for its spanish varietals. And this particular wine does show elements of why, although it isn't one of their accolade winning wines.
Not strong on the nose. Might be slightly floral. A very nice colour though. A dark ruby red which is very similar to tempranillo's in Spain - unlike most in Australia. Quite strong in the front palate, with berries on opening. The mid and end palate lose the berries and get out battled by the spice and tannins from the slovenian oak. Which to me indicates it's too young to drink. It needs times to settle to get the fruit throughout the palate. But it is good and full of flavour which makes a difference to most Australian Tempranillos that taste like nothing, have poor colour, don't experiment with oak and show no understanding of how it should taste. Most wineries "don't get it" when it comes to tempranillo.
But it is the best representation of a tempranillo I've had since being in Spain. And these guys are close to the mark. I just need to try their others now.
My journey towards the tempranillo that I like, continues in earnest.