The Auswine Forum

I post pic's because I'm visual and many foreign names I don't remember or recognise. Hence, my notes I use here for reference, mainly Italians, I post snaps of.

Certainly a massive thread drift coming about from comments on a defunct wine forum where you'd occasionally smell bullshit. Not at all suggesting photos required here.

Most of the time I would have thought, and if I had to vote the bullshit is far far less on where I currently are, and as an aside the level of rigor and debate is healthier.
Getting back on thread, in the midst of the cellar move I opened a couple of cases of current release on the advice that the wrong bottles may be in the wrong boxes...should not of worried, all in good order, but a pill trying to get that big brass staple and sticky brown tape back in original position, so think I may open a 16 of something soon.

Cheers craig

ah Wendouree.... the 'La Tache' of Australian Shiraz.... I wish I had more of it, but I've only got a single bottle....

I had a 99 Wendouree Shiraz Malbec which had a complex aroma of violets, lavender and medicinals. The wine was popped and poured and with time in the glass the fruit deepened and the aromatics meshed with distinct Aussie bush nuances. The palate was smooth, with a simple flavour profile of extracted violet- dark fruits with tannins resolved in a long flowing carry of mellow acidity. This is the blend that often can struggle- though here at maturity it delivers and interesting, though inherently undemanding , dry red wine of Australia. 92pts

Galah 2002 shiraz too. Poor man's Wendouree? The Wendouree winemaker makes this wine from Wendouree grapes? Somebody knows the story here? Anyways, past its prime surprisingly, simple wine now ( if ever any different ) with a fierce blow of acidity the structural remains. 82pts

JamieBahrain wrote: Galah 2002 shiraz too. Poor man's Wendouree? The Wendouree winemaker makes this wine from Wendouree grapes? Somebody knows the story here? Anyways, past its prime surprisingly, simple wine now ( if ever any different ) with a fierce blow of acidity the structural remains. 82pts

Hi Jamie,I believe Stephen George mage the Galah range. He was consultant wine maker at Wendouree for many years, partnering with Tony and Lita Brady. George made the wines via Ashton Hills, the best IMHO being a sparkling shiraz. He also did a shiraz and Cab malbec. The grapes were de classified Wendouree fruit. I believe the Galah range ceased in the mid 2000's but not certain.

I have opened a 1996 Wendouree Shiraz and a 1998 Wendouree Cab Malbec for a family dinner tonight. Both have a ton of sediment, so they have been decanted. I will report in later. Both corks perfect.

Any thoughts on ideal temperature to serve these? Too hot to be left out then drunk in the 23 degree Sydney climate. I am thinking of putting them in the fridge for 30 min prior to serving.

Yes. Bring them up to euro room temp ≈ 18 and if you have a wine fridge juggle them a bit.

Normal fridge requires a lot of juggling.

I opened a bottle of the Galah 2002 Cabernet-Malbec at a Sydney offline earlier this year and it showed pretty well side by side a Wendouree Cab Malbec of similar age (2001). Neither had perfect provenance. IIRC both wines were well received.

1996 Wendouree Shiraz: Lovely bottle. Medium weight and taking on secondary characteristics, perhaps the hint of white pepper and forest floor, but in a good way. Slightly sweet as opposed to savoury, eucalypt notes (you just can't escape these in any Wendouree) well weighted tannins and acid. Great length.Very happy with this, but so so different in evolution to any other Australian shiraz I have tried. Much better than:
1998 Wendouree Cab Malbec: Darker than the shiraz, more noticable tannins and acid, almost distracting. Much tighter palate than I would have expected. Dark fruit still evident and more primary in structure than the shiraz. Eucalypt -of course- and medium length. Nice but not great.
Shiraz wins in this tasting. On balance, if I was to drop a winery from my 'must buy' list, Wendouree is close to being in that position.

Found a forgotten 2013 Malbec on Sunday and opened it on Xmas eve. Drunk over 2 nights it didn’t show well. Some liquorice, vanilla and voluptuous texture on night 2, but this was one of these wines that you knew was being opened at the wrong time. Not the worst showing from a big name wine, but it’s closed and not giving any love. Come back later.

2014 Cabernet Malbec

Roasted up a nice piece of lamb, thought it would be nice to give this a try (glad I did).

Nice aromatic nose - blackberries, blackcurrants and french oak notes. Visually its medium bodied. Whilst very young, its immediately approachable. Blackcurrants, touch of blackberry, red currants, raspberries, red cherries, violets, some gum leaf and earthy/graphite notes; a lot going on. The raspberry notes give the wine a slight tartness, but the palate is long and beautiful. There are fine tannins that provide some grip on the finish. Overall the wine is very balanced. Consumed over 2 nights, it drank superbly. Should age gracefully, but enjoyment to had now (just give it plenty of decanter/air time).

Matt@5453 wrote:2014 Cabernet Malbec

Roasted up a nice piece of lamb, thought it would be nice to give this a try (glad I did).

Nice aromatic nose - blackberries, blackcurrants and french oak notes. Visually its medium bodied. Whilst very young, its immediately approachable. Blackcurrants, touch of blackberry, red currants, raspberries, red cherries, violets, some gum leaf and earthy/graphite notes; a lot going on. The raspberry notes give the wine a slight tartness, but the palate is long and beautiful. There are fine tannins that provide some grip on the finish. Overall the wine is very balanced. Consumed over 2 nights, it drank superbly. Should age gracefully, but enjoyment to had now (just give it plenty of decanter/air time).

Mystery wine?

And what does "visually it's medium bodied" mean? I don't associate colour with body (except in older wines where a certain level of brown suggests to me that the wine might be thinning out).

Just curious what you mean - not offensive!

Cheers

Michael

Michael McNally wrote:Mystery wine?

Oops, missed the thread name - Wendouree!

Cheers

Michael

Michael McNally wrote:

Matt@5453 wrote:2014 Cabernet Malbec

Roasted up a nice piece of lamb, thought it would be nice to give this a try (glad I did).

Nice aromatic nose - blackberries, blackcurrants and french oak notes. Visually its medium bodied. Whilst very young, its immediately approachable. Blackcurrants, touch of blackberry, red currants, raspberries, red cherries, violets, some gum leaf and earthy/graphite notes; a lot going on. The raspberry notes give the wine a slight tartness, but the palate is long and beautiful. There are fine tannins that provide some grip on the finish. Overall the wine is very balanced. Consumed over 2 nights, it drank superbly. Should age gracefully, but enjoyment to had now (just give it plenty of decanter/air time).

Mystery wine?

And what does "visually it's medium bodied" mean? I don't associate colour with body (except in older wines where a certain level of brown suggests to me that the wine might be thinning out).

Just curious what you mean - not offensive!

Cheers

Michael

I am really badly colour blind, so I found it very hard to describe the colour of wines. what i mean by medium bodied, it has some clarity to it, i.e. its not dark and impenetrable, or really light akin to a some pinot noir.
i had another Clare Valley shiraz last week, that was really full bodied, it was very dark and inkly, not only visually, but it was ripe, thick, whacked with tannin and vanilla oak.

You can get a sense of viscosity by how it moves in the glass, how much sticks to the glass...color is generally a good indicator although not always...These are just cues though...

Opened a bottle of the 2012 Shiraz Mataro. Double decanted and let it sit for a couple of hours.
Really surprised how earthy and almost tertiary it was for such a young wine.
Got a bit of Vegemite on the palate with well structured tannins. A really well balanced wine that will continue well into the future.

2006 Cabernet
An absolute pristine bottle opened by a friend who I forgot I gave the bottle to.
Great cork, inky black in colour, beautiful dark fruits, oak all absorbed. Power with restraint on the palate, plush, rich and juicy, tannins just fading away. This could be drunk now or in 20 years...glad I have a few left, stunning.
Cheers Craig

Newbie question ...... How do I go about buying Wendouree wine?

I've seen a few bottles going for ~$150 in the Langtons section at Dan Murhpys and also in the secondary market. I'd prefer to by from the winery if possible.

I've read a bit about this mailing list of theirs ..... how do I get myself on it?

tuxy85 wrote:Newbie question ...... How do I go about buying Wendouree wine?

I've seen a few bottles going for ~$150 in the Langtons section at Dan Murhpys and also in the secondary market. I'd prefer to by from the winery if possible.

I've read a bit about this mailing list of theirs ..... how do I get myself on it?

Tuxy a good old fashioned letter:
their address

AP Birks Wendouree Cellars
PO Box 27
Clare SA 5457.

Bear in mind the annual mailer is due in a few weeks so might take them a while to respond.
Once on buy a mix and be patient.

there is an annual thread here, usually gets a 100 posts and a few thousand reads...you will get some good info here.

Cheers Craig

If you phone them up they might add you to this years mailer and you could pick up something that they have left over. Phone number is hard to find but might be on one of the Wendouree threads on this forum.

Thanks Craig and Dave. I'll set a reminder to send them a letter later in the year.

As we have recently transitioned from being a dual income/no kids family to a 1.5 incomes 1 kid family - the wine budget is at its limit. I'll factor in a Wendouree six pack for next year's budget.

DaveS wrote:If you phone them up they might add you to this years mailer and you could pick up something that they have left over. Phone number is hard to find but might be on one of the Wendouree threads on this forum.

(08) 8842 2896...on the front of every Wendouree envelope.
Cheers craig

tuxy85 wrote:I've seen a few bottles going for ~$150 in the Langtons section at Dan Murhpys and also in the secondary market. I'd prefer to by from the winery if possible.

Tuxy

You probably won't get the shiraz straight off.

I'd suggest you consider the secondary market where Wendouree can be little more than current release price for the blends- with a decade or so under the belt! $360- $400 should get you a six pack. Granted the concerns of the secondary market in Australia and provenance which is why I choose Wickmans who do their best validating cellaring history ( yes there's the odd scoundrel who bullshits )

JamieBahrain wrote:

tuxy85 wrote:I've seen a few bottles going for ~$150 in the Langtons section at Dan Murhpys and also in the secondary market. I'd prefer to by from the winery if possible.

Tuxy

You probably won't get the shiraz straight off.

I'd suggest you consider the secondary market where Wendouree can be little more than current release price for the blends- with a decade or so under the belt! $360- $400 should get you a six pack. Granted the concerns of the secondary market in Australia and provenance which is why I choose Wickmans who do their best validating cellaring history ( yes there's the odd scoundrel who bullshits )

What is your insight to the 2017 vintage Jamie?

Hi Matt.

I have no insight at all.

Any Clare scuttlebutt ?

JamieBahrain wrote:Hi Matt.

I have no insight at all.

Any Clare scuttlebutt ?

Weren't they sold...at least that's the rumour I heard a while back
Cheers
Craig

2013 Wendouree Shiraz Malbec, Clare Valley

Decanted 3 hours prior to service and it was showing very well from the first taste. Medium bodied with red fruits, plums, raspberries, and a slight ferrous note running through a very well structured and balanced palate which coats the mouth. The Malbec proportion adds a hint of 'juiciness'. A hint of spice from the oak with ripe persistent tannins and a good level of acidity completes the wine. Lovely stuff. Plenty of time on its side.

2010 Wendouree Shiraz Mataro.
Decanted for 2-3 hours.
Somewhat closed straight up on the nose but a few hours in the flask definitely helped.
Getting blackberries/dark cherries and a touch of menthol straight away.
In the background hints of liquorice, eucalyptus and a dried herb element floating around.
A lovely minerality and slate like note too which seems to hold the whole package together.
Some of those machine shed/asphalt notes too but very subtle in the ultimate spectrum compared to the cabs and cab blends.

Having a taste the tannins are very focused and nowhere near the face ripping young Wendouree tannins we often expect.
Oak is in the background here and it's the fruit from those gnarly Shiraz vines shining thru beautifully.

I've possibly opened this a tad young but honestly it's ready for business. Wouldn't rush at it but at the same time
I'd consider opening one if you've got 3-6 bottles to experiment with the age on it.

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The 99 Wendouree shiraz is my ring-in in a Jim Barry Armagh vertical tomorrow night.

Anyone know the connection ?

Both Clare?