The Auswine Forum

Hi Good Peoples,

Its that time of the week again, please let us know what you have been drinking, whats good, drinking windows etc. Lurkers welcome, all you have to do is list the wine and a brief impression, it wont hurt a bit.

Drinking well at the moment, a well rounded wine with flavours in the dark chocolate/plum end of the spectrum. Very good.

Howard Park Riesling 97- very good,maybe in a slightly in between phase at the moment but the quality is unmistakable. Will try again in 2-3 years, it may well grow into something special.

Foxey's Hangout Pinot Noir 2001- likeable,well priced Mornington Pinot. Nothing too complex,obvious Strawberry/Light cherry fruit with subtle tannins. Drinking well now,not too sure about the value of cellaring it.

Seppelt Chalambar Shiraz 98- Put this one in the same category as Jamiesons Run 2001; how variable are the bottles?? I remember when JH gave it 95 points on release,then dropped it to 89 on re-tasting,suggesting it wasn't the same wine. I've found the same thing from various cases,this one was very good though. Ripe but quite balanced,not showing any secondary characters yet and representing excellent VFM

Rockford Basket Press 93

Probably not the best example of BP I have drunk,but the mark of a great winemaker is being able to produce a good wine in uneven vintages,and this still fits the bill. Showing slight signs of age,still a way to go and drinking well now.


Cheers

Two reds last night, both 12.0% a/v, both from the 80's, both in fine form.

1987 Seppelts Show Sparkling shiraz, spicy raspberry and liquorice, hints of leather, distinctive and delightful.

1982 Penfolds Bin 820 Coonawarra cabernet Shiraz 1982 - the only bottle of this I've ever tried, given to me by a friend a few years ago. Would have picked this as a 90 or 91 on the colour and freshness, an elegant wine in all the good ways, seamless palate, just let down ever so slightly with a shortish finish.

During the week a bunch of 96 reds:
Brookland valley Cab-Merlot - Good varietal definition, good balance, mid-weight, drinking well now, will hold a few years.

Lake Breeze Langhorne Ck - bigger and richer than the BV, but less varietal definition, hints of trademark LC mint, very nice.

Mildara Coonawarra Cab (White Label), 2 bottles, one a bit subdued and tending to tartness, the other with vibrant fruit, lovely medium-bodied red, another 12.0% a/v wine.

Charles Melton Barossa cabernet - big, super-ripe, warm (15.0%), dark chocolate and dark berrys, all quite well balanced. Don't know how this one will develop from here, still plenty of backbone tannins and nicely judged oak, so may not fall apart too quickly.

Hi everyone,
after a month away good to drink some Aussie wines again.

01 D'Arenberg Cab Sauv 01: the last two vintages of this wine has really impressed. For the money a great wine. Great quality fruit (for the price) together with good balance and length.

01 D'Arenberg Laughing Magpie Shiraz 01: up against the other D'arenbergs this wine was so different it was amazing. Added layers of complexity and more floral (no doubt due to the viognier) it will be interesting to see where it will be in 10 years time. At the moment though it is a very good drink.

cheers
Anthony

Hi, just a lurker here

some wines opened during the week

1998 William Fevree Petit Chablis

Nice butter aromas , bit of bottle age real flintynes typical chabilis
middle weight steely palate nice drop and cheap too!

2003 Ferngrove Cossak

hmm this wine in my opinion definately does not live up to the 2002
2003 being a difficult vintage in frankland rain at harvest this wine diddnt have hte same power was just a bit limp. Will try another (maybe was affected by reducing character from stelvin). but not sure given vintage conditions


1998 Saltram No 1 shiraz

Wow what a wine , still a baby huge nose with great refinement lots of everything in the glass, palate followed suit. This wine was too young.

1992 Wendouree Malbec

This wine was lovely and fresh , showing ripe malbec fruitcake characters
and new oak on platate nice balace big weighty wine with elegence and balance at the same time.

1989 Chateau Citran Bordeaux

Not a big wine nice balance, still had some fruit lovely and soft nice fine tannins with a hint of new oak

had fun last night too bit posted on tasting notes page see Sat Night Tasting

ok ...

craiglee shiraz 1999 - lovely 'elegant' wine, i'd give it another 2-3 years but it's lovely now, very moorish
craiglee cab sav 1999 - good, well made wine, but not special
pipers brook vineyard riesling 1998 - great, my last bottle, showing a nice light golding, drunk far too soon
ferycinet riesling 2000 - needs time, could be very special
freycinet pinot noir 2001 - top shelf, but a $25 price rise in one year is over the top.
tyrrels vat 6 pinot noir 1996 - a nice dry red, but pinot typicite, you're joking
taylors cab sav 1996 - i liked this for a clare cab
leconfield cab sav 2000 - acceptable
rosemount traditional 2001 - good well made, got a bit of a life, but nothing awe inspiring
zilsie (?) shiraz 2001 - boring, but clean and well made
leconfield chardonnay 2001 - fat
croser (forget the year) - excellent
yalumba d - sweeter style with much less acid than the croser, not in the same class
henschke riesling 2002 (i forget which one) - very dissapointing - lacking depth and length

also a totally unmemorable 1999 chardonnay, i can't even remember where it was from it was so forgettable



JWR

Hooked into a 94 Eileen Hardy tonight. Still incredibly dark for a 9 yr old wine. I think this wine is yet to peak, very concentrated and youthful, with the tannins still yet to fully integrate and soften. It has great fruit, rich and powerful, we loved it. The only downside is the relative ‘shortish’ finish, it doesn’t linger. Look forward to the next one in about 2007. In fact, we had a 93 earlier in the year which was better than this one, basically because it’s pretty much at its peak, glorious.

Codral cold tablets and a Benadryl chaser.

Pronounced cherry flavours, the long aftertaste is very comforting.

Warrenmang Shiraz 1988 - a ripper, bought at auction recently for all of $20, richly complex, fully developed, solid tannic structure, great with red meat, no question of the bottle lasting out the night.
Yarra Burn cabernet 1986 - another auction item ($14), another winner - intensely flavoured Yarra Valley aged cabernet from a great year, all secondary/tertiary flavour profile now.
Chateau Lepine (loupiac) 1997 - a sauternes look-alike - the nose is nothing like I've ever smelt on an Oz dessert wine, transports you straight to rural France; relatively cheap, $27 for 750 ml, pronounced botrytis with that essential counter-balancing acidity.
Cleanskin shiraz, 2002 Rutherglen, $15, from one of the mushrooming cleanskin speciality stores in Melb. Someone's got to have blundered here - no way that this huge (16%), ripe rich intensely varietal fruit bomb was destined for anonymity! Plenty of wineries I know would be proud to promote a wine like this & peddle it for $35+. Hope they have more!
Also, a corked 1994 Diamond Valley Estate Pinot.

tasted a couple of cheapies for the wine list:

'01 Sticks Yarra Valley Pinot:
[/b]Varietal nose and colour, palate shows some nice sweet forest floor characters, and a nice finish. Shows a little too much heat though. Overall, quite good for the price.
'01 Mitchelton Black wood Park Cab:
Nice enough fruit, not too oaky, moderate finish. As with many wines this age and price, opened up well after a few hours breathing.
Rory

Hi all, a interesting week of wines for me with some highlight from the Hunter Valley Wine Show:

1991 Bests Bin No. 0 Pinot Mienier- Drinking well and for another 5 years
1995 Henscke Mt. Edelstone - Good wine for a off year, finely structured
2001 Yalumba Viogner - 14.5% alc. showed this a bit but still a good wine
1996 Jasper Hill Georgia Shiraz - Superb wine, looking great now but has a huge amount of time under it's belt.
1999 Felton Road Block 3 Pinot Noir - Loverly wine, some time yet, now I know why most go off about this wine.
2003 Tyrrells Verdelho - Nice light approachable wine, good quaffer.

Hunter Valley Wine Show
2001 Meerea Park Shiraz (Alexander Munro) - Excellent wine, years to go but drinking well now.
1998 McGuigans Personal Reserve Shiraz - Good example of Hunter Shiraz with a bit of age.
2000 Mcwilliams Rosehill Shiraz - V. Good wine, still abit young to drink, should develop well with time.
1991 Draytons William Shiraz - Superb example of aged Hunter Shiraz, drink soon.
1997 Tyrrells Futures Semillon - Excellent, starting to show some development, great wine from a very ordinary year.
1998 Tyrrell's Vat 47 - Exceptional wine, would give most of the other icon Aussie Chard a run for their money.
McWilliams Madiera - V. Good, apparently no Rutherglan content.
1986 Lindemans Bin 7200 Shiraz - V. Good, probably at it's best but unfortunately one of the last of it's examples of Lindies Shiraz.
1994 Brokenwood ILV Semillon - Excellent wine, another 5-10 years at least drinking, true Hunter Aged Semillon.
1989 Tyrrell's Vat 1 - excellent wine, probably a couple of years from drinking at it's best.
2002 Tyrrell's Stevens Semillon - Excellent, look out for this wine when it is released

jezza

Quiet week-end

1984 Saltrams Mamre Brook Cabernet(80%) Shiraz (20%) Good friend who's not a wine geek opened his last one while visiting - much appreciated. Has lived a gypsy life in about 7 homes - none with a cellar - but must have at least been cellared on its side as the fill level was excellent. Very wet and gooey under the lead capsule and pulling the cork out was a nightmare - super soft and saturated - broke in two. Wasn't expecting much - you know only great bottles not wines at 20 years.

Turned out to be a stunner - no mustiness, straight into licorice, chocolate and leather. 80% cab , you.ve got to be kidding - a bit like what a lot of Hunters do with age where the terroir totally overrides the variety. On the palete soft and cuddly , mid to full bodied with a lovely long and velvet finish. A very honest and maybe a bit old fashioned ozzie red. A privlige to drink - just goes to show you don't have to have a cellar at 15C and 65% humidity to gurantee a good drink.

2001 Leasingham Bastion Shiraz Cabernet. As a $9 quaffer I was most impressed. Good rich colour and nose - the oak doesn't stick out. Nice soft but good weighted palate , decent finish and not sweet!! Worth buying.

1999 Cleanskin Cabernet Merlot This is the one off the Hillstowe vineyard available ata national retail outlet. Red with some bricking , indistinct nose slightly earthy and rustic not bad though. Soft midweight palate with good but uncomplicated friut - again not overoaked but didn't really sing - seemed to be in transition from a fruit to a savory structured palate. Not bad but for drinking now would take the Bastion. $9.99 by the dozen

Paul

Shane Warne Collection – 2002 Cabernet, Merlot & Petit Verdot

I would never have bought this wine except that I got talked into it by a friend while tasting the Cabernets (TN which have been posted by Ged already.)

Incidentally, I thought the Moss Wood was stunning and the Petaluma a bit closed even though the bottle had been open for some time when I got there. I tasted the Petaluma at the Great Red Night last Wednesday and felt the same then. I hope the Moss Wood is open again at the WA Wine roadshow this week in Brisbane

The Shane Warne is a great quaffer at a quaffer price. Plenty of body, good fruity nose, a soft/velvet palate and a reasonably long finish. Excellent value when the rellies come around.

Blueberry Hill Hunter Valley 1999 Shiraz

I only bought three of these about January 2002 and this was the last. We were recommended to visit the winery by a friend to try their bubbles. Not being all that fond of bubble except if they are red and around xmas with some turkey I did try and was impressed. I think it was a Blanc de Noir..

But the Shiraz

This wine started well when we first tasted it and then got better. Wish I had gotten more.

Its nose is of sweet fruit with a hint of oak. The flavours reminded me of Hunter Shiraz of years ago with 8 – 10 years on it. Well integrated with some spice. If I remember correctly, the wine is made by the Petersons winemaker for the owners and this can only be a plus.

Brands Cabernet 2000

Lovely magenta colour with a minty chocolate nose. A rich fruit driven wine with good complexity and velvety fine tannin.

Drinking beautifully now and would love to be drinking this in five years from now

Blass 1998 Shiraz

Bright purple colour with a still young nose. Good feel in the mouth. Fine tannins with still plenty of fruit. Long finishÂ…Â…. I liked this one a lot.

Salitage's 2nd label Treehouse.

Their shiraz has the Pemberton white pepper but balancing dark cherry fruit. Too many WA shiraz from the area don't agree with me because of white pepper dominance.

Some Argentinian malbec which was quite good. A food wine though! Puckering tannin.

Salitage's 2nd label Treehouse.

Their shiraz has the Pemberton white pepper but balancing dark cherry fruit. Too many WA shiraz from the area don't agree with me because of white pepper dominance.

Some Argentinian malbec which was quite good. A food wine though! Puckering tannin.

At dinner the other night

Kumeu River Maté's Chardonnay 1998
First bottle - corked
Second bottle - - pristine, a silky-textured, rich, creamy wine with dominating citrus and pear on a toasty nutty backbone. Elegance-plus.
This particular wine has a notorious history of corkiness - which was heartbreaking for the winery and therefore one of the reasons Michael Brajkovich has become so passionate about screwcaps. It is also the reason I took two bottles to dinner. If the latter had been opened first it would be back and festering away in my cellar. Now it has gone back to the winery and is being replaced with the even more superb 2002 Kumeu River Maté's Chardonnay - in screwcap.

Stonyridge Larose 1996 - A superb blend of the 5 Bordeaux varieties, this is dominated by 66% Cabernet. Sweet solid oak, superb fruit concentration and quite gripping tannins still, the perfect accompaniment to the Italian restaurant fare of beautifully cooked rare steak topped with porcini mushrooms.

The Ojai Vineyard Santa Barbara Syrah 1996 - Immensely dense leathery wine, still so closed and dominated by iodine and leather I couldn’t enjoy it at the restaurant as we hadn’t taken our own glasses and the piddly little restaurant glasses did not allow the wine to open up at all. The only hope was to skull the water and tip the wine back and forth between water and wine glass which helped it a bit. But it was a one-glass wine for me on the night.
Two days later and what a glorious transformation. Still a touch of iodine and leather but overall a densely textured wine with plush deep crushed velvet tannins, opulent blueberry and plum fruit, winter herbs and savoury cedary oak with a slightly salty finish and a faint marmite-like connotation, or was it baked rosemary. A big meaty wine that was quite delicious. Would I have picked it as Syrah in a blind tasting. I don't know. I guess there was a bit of a peppery bite there as well and the overall lingering savoury flavour had a spicy fruit overtone. A treat to try.

Cheers,
Sue

Hi Sue,

How long do you think the Stonyridge wines rake to come around? I still have a few of the 00 in the cellar, which based on last tasting won't be ready for some 10 years or so! FWIW it did seem to have the fruit weight to back up the tannins- more so than say the 98 Coleraine.

Have a couple of bottles of the '97 Ojai Henry Daniels in the cellar which will also wait a little longer based on your notes. If you ever have a chance to try the Sean Thackrey Orion please also give it a shot and let me know what you think.

Cheers,

Simon

1983 Moet & Chandon Cuvee Dom Perignon

Delicious Mature Champagne but perhaps still a little young for my taste, didn't quite have the richness I prefer. I think the second bottle will wait another 5 years. Perfect mid gold in colour with a generous soft mousse. Long finish.

1993 Rongopai Boytrytis Selection

Had in the same along with a copious amount of German beer so the notes on this are a bit lacking. Perhaps slightly too old but still a lovely drink. Or perhaps it was the company.

I always thought that this chardonay wa s good for 5 yrs only. I'll have to start holding on to them a bit longer!
Cheers
Andrew

doing a 3month stint at battlestar galactica at the moment - place never changes

kenzo wrote:Hi Sue,

How long do you think the Stonyridge wines rake to come around? I still have a few of the 00 in the cellar, which based on last tasting won't be ready for some 10 years or so! FWIW it did seem to have the fruit weight to back up the tannins- more so than say the 98 Coleraine.

Have a couple of bottles of the '97 Ojai Henry Daniels in the cellar which will also wait a little longer based on your notes. If you ever have a chance to try the Sean Thackrey Orion please also give it a shot and let me know what you think.

Cheers,

Simon

Gidday Simon,

Stonyridge Larose 2000 is one of the greats. It's the big powerful leathery tannins that make it a slow developer. The 1996 showed pretty big tannins but the right food made all the difference on the night and the fruit was so gorgeous as well. So keeping this in mind, and it now being 2003, you are looking at 2007 for the 2000 vintage I reckon - but the 2000 is such a gorgeous opulent wine with delicious fruit weight and with the influence of the softer Merlot and sexy Malbec, you might be OK to broach the cork a couple of years earlier - but then again I think you will get more enjoyment out of the wine by waiting until 2007 at least.
1994 is drinking well now and Stephen rates that his best vintage ahead of the 00, (not taking into account the '02, which I haven't tasted yet). FWIW, I'll think I'll wait a couple of years before pulling the cork out of another '00 - that will take it to 9 years on from vintage.

If I ever get to taste the Sean Thackeray, I'll let you know, but to this date I have never even seen a bottle of it.

97 Ojai - yes a good idea to wait.

Cheers,
Sue

Just back from a fishing trip to the sunny and warm Monte Bello Islands. A quiet week was had by all with only about 80 bottles consumed by the 6 of us. Mostly reds of course.

Westfield Cab Sauv 1997. One of the few Swan Valley origin red table wines that I can say I have truly liked. Improving now and with years to go.

Ingoldby 2001 Shiraz. Excellent quaffing at the price.

Saltram 2001 Shiraz. A bit below the Ingoldby for mine, but still a good quaffer.

Wolf Blass Green Label Shiraz 2001. Just OK

Baileys 20's Block Shiraz 1993. Still drinking well but heading for the downslope for my palate, heaps of fruit, tannins have smoothed considerably. Drink now.

Bests Bin 0 Shiraz 1993. Drinking very well, still very "young". Years to go.

Vasse Felix Shiraz 2000. Bloody good. Enjoy it every time I drink it.

Rosemount Orange Vineyard Shiraz 2001? OK quaffer for mine.

Cape Mentelle Zinfandel 1996. Sen bloody sational. But drink em now.

Wynns Red Stripe 1991 Hanging in there, lasts about 20 minutes in the glass before fading. Nice wine while it lasts. Drink now.

Chestnut Grove Verdelho 1998. Sensational drinking at normal retail but outstanding at the CD sale price of $4.73 a bottle delivered. Definitely my best buy for the year, and the bedroom er cellar is now chockers.

Tahbilk 2000 Shiraz. Lovely but needs a couple more years for me.

Goundry Shiraz 2001. Excellent wine for the money. Nice regional/varietal features.

Houghton Frankland River 2000 Shiraz. Bloody good yet again.

Paul Conti Bulk Shiraz 2001? Home bottling. Bloody good quaffing wine at about $5 a bottle cost including transport (to NW WA) bottles and corks.

There were a pile more but I was enjoying myself and took no notes.

Oh, and we caught and ate heaps of fish, mud crabs and painted crays, the latter 2 cooked Malaysian chilli style by our resident Malaysian chef.