Two highlights this weekas well as one . The top of the list was
Jacobs Creek 1996 Limited Blend - A very high quality wine, silky tannins, smooth as silk, blackberry, chocolate, mocha, coffee and a honey taste on the tail. Finished with very good persistence, ample weight. Outstanding!
To shrug of the cold weather and herald the arrival of spring, I opened my first Sparkling Shiraz of the season. The Buller N/V blend of 50% from 1972 and the balance from 1991 and 1992. Bloody fantastic and a very interesting blend that seems to have improved over the last year.
The disappointment of the week was Thomas Hardy 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon One sniff and this reeks of Coonawarra Cabernet with its touch of VA, integrated multiple berry aromas, herbaceous characters, cedar, coffee and vanillin oak and a multitude of other scents.
Intensely off-sweet on the uptake, there is a subtle under layer of ripe fruit to help balance the noticeable savoury nature and acid. Tannins have softened considerably but the wine is still a bit hard and will benefit from further bottle age; it is only just starting to come together. It was more enjoyable on release and has been a hole for years but looks like it is starting to emerge. Muscular in weight, the fruit is holding up well and there is no hurry to drink it. I doubt it will ever deliver what I had originally expected when I first tasted it, when I rated it as Outstanding, now its rated as Highly Recommended and the 94 Petaluma I had recently was more enjoyable and a better wine.
Deep ruby with the slightest suggestion of haziness, gradating to deep red and the first hint of amber in the very outer edge. Profound nose of cedar, blackcurrant, sweet earth, minerals and lead pencil buttressed by some quite superb savoury/mocha oak. If served blind, you wouldn't be out of step calling this from Bordeaux. Beautifully textured palate, rich and creamy with abundant secondary nuances - dusty blackcurrant, saddle leather, cedar and bitter chocolate wrapped in a shroud of well-judged oak aka the bouquet. What impresses greatly, is this wine's demeanour and delineation. Perfectly balanced and blessed with a wonderful firm but melting tannin structure it is impossible not to award this an Outstanding rating, especially considering the fantastic length and awesome presence it leaves in the mouth well after swallowing. Bravo! This should drink well for the rest of the decade, possibly longer.
After the delightful Cabernet just had to try the 1994 Plantagenet Shiraz for comparison.
This weighs in at a hefty 1.5 degrees more alcohol than the Cabernet (13%).
Solid dark garnet core with just a hint of amber in the outer edge. Viscous tears meandering down the inside of the Riedel reflect the high alcohol level. Touch of lift at first with spice, bloodplums, white pepper and substantial savoury/meaty/chocolatey oak filling out an impressive, integrated bouquet, though not quite in the same league as the Cabernet, IMHO. Rich spicy, plum and blackberry palate, medium/full-bodied with a similar profile and texture (round, chocolatey and almost sexy) to the Cabernet, delivering the complete package with significant but balanced French oak, finely-meshed soft powdery tannins and some decent acidity thrown in (and I don't mean added!) for good measure. I'm not a fan of particularly high A/V wines (fortifieds honorably excluded) but this beauty carries off the veritable high-wire balancing act with aplomb. The finish, once again, is of a very high standard hovering around for ages with hardly a shred of alcoholic heat apparent. Another Excellent/Outstanding effort from Plantagenet. Probably best drunk over the next 5 years, all things considered. I prefer the Cabernet by "that much".
Zema Estate 2001 Cabernet
Medium ruby with a flash of crimson in the edge. Opens with abundant blackcurrant, raspberry, licorice and cedary/savoury seasoned oak (that became more prominent after extended breathing). Tight, medium-bodied palate with well-judged acidity, a cherry/plum accent to the ripe berry fruit, plenty of chocolatey oak in support and furry fine-grained tannins kicking in nicely at the back. Excellent length. Drink 2006-2011. Extremely well-made, this Highly Recommended Coonawarra red just lacks some wow factor to push it up to an Excellent rating. This may come with some time in the cellar. Represents excellent value if selling for around $20. Weighs in at 13.0% A/V.
Leo Buring Eden Valley Leonay Riesling 1991
A mighty wine. Still only pale lemon/gold with a glistening brightness and, thus, marvellous presence in the glass. A joy to behold. Brimming with pristine lime, toast and beguiling petrol and mineral nuances, the stunning bouquet mesmerises the olfactory senses. Retaining brilliant focus and freshness, yet endowed with awesome bottle-aged Riesling character, I can't remember an Aussie Riesling looking as good as this for some time (the last bottle of same had a similarly delerious effect, if my memory serves me well). Predictably, the palate follows at a similarly high level displaying wonderful extract (mainly lemons and limes) combined with a honeyed, toasty richness, fantastic depth and length and counterbalanced by a perfectly integrated steely-, mineral-laden, crisp acid cut that will aid many years of development and, no doubt, further great drinking. A Classic!
Penfold's Reserve Bin 00A Chardonnay 2000
This very credible Chardonnay performed quite brilliantly this afternoon. Not more than bright pale straw, today's bottle was decidedly fresher and held together in the glass far better than previous offerings. The bouquet offers up invigorating scents of freshly ground oatmeal, white peach, grilled cashews with hints of fig and honeydew melon and appealing spicy oak, very much in the background. There was little evidence of the powerful/volatile charry oak noted a few months ago. The palate delivers ripe stonefruit/melon/mealy flavours with nicely integrated oak and barrel ferment characters with the emphasis on the fruit and the secondary influences playing a supportive role only. Tightly structured and finely honed with a fine acid cut, this wine has very good length, finishing crisp and citrussy with only a modicum of oak evident once again. Rated as Excellent.
And some vibes on a few tasted but no notes taken:
Oakridge 1991 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon - garnishing a solid colour this powerful almost fully mature red displays Excellent aged varietal character on both nose and palate balanced with terrific supportive (softening) tannin structure and damn fine acidity. 5 years left in this at least.
Grosset 1999 Watervale Riesling - had the slightest onion-skin brownness, which generally suggests oxidation and imminent disappointment. However, in this case, the opposite applied. Probably the best bottle of this wine I've tried, the nose and palate displayed pristine varietal characters combined with a little toast and regional minerality and beautifully balanced with a long, crisp finish. Excellent.
Tyrrell's 1992 Vat 47 Chardonnay - I've waxed lyrical about this wine in the recent past and although rating this particular bottle about Excellent, I cannot believe the difference in colour between the three examples opened this year. Burnished deep gold in colour, the surprisingly fresh bouquet and palate harbour a Chablis-like tightness and minerality rarely found in local Chardonnay, especially, of this age.
LANSON NV Champagne-Coarse bubbles, not enough weight or length. An good Aussie sparkling would out do this $60 disappointment.
SEPPELT Chalambar Shiraz 1998- David Lole opened this a few weeks back, I thought I give it a go. Sweet fruit, medium body, more like a better pinot noir than a Shiraz. I enjoyed it to a certain extent but I don't know why Halliday is fascinated by this wine, awarding it high points. A $20 bottle, no more.
TALTARNI Cabernet Sauvignon 2001- The best out of the three, savoury, concentrated and focussed. It will be very good in 6 years time. $30
99 Greenock Creek Apricot Block Shiraz.
Very big wine, with lashings of dark fruit, and oak that is in balance.
I could not drink it the first night, but battled through it the second night.
Should be a good wine in a few years.
98 Edwards And Chaffey Cabernet
I like this wine, good fruit, and lots of oak, which I think is mainly French, but it seems to be in balance, and will hold for a few years.
96 Edwards and Chaffey Cabernet
An older version of the above, again in balance, and drinking well now, and will hold for another 3 or so years.
97 Rosemount Mountain Blue
Took about half an hour for the fruit to open up, and it is a rich soft wine that is drinking well now.
98 Rosemount Mountain Blue.
While on a roll! This wine is better than the 97 (it has more gold medals on the bottle!) and is from a better year. This could come from South Australia. It was a bit average the next day, so should be drunk in the next 4 or so years.
94 Haselgrove H Shiraz.
This was an excellent wine a few years ago, was runner up the the best wine in McLaren Vale show in 96. I kept one bottle for prosperity, and decided to drink it, but alas, too late, and it went down the drain. There was always a lot of wood, and its taken over the fruit as its aged.
96 Glaetzer Malbec Cabernet.
This wine won a gold medal at the London Wione show last year.
It is around 60% Malbec (from memory) and is and has always been a great wine. Later vintages had more cabernet. Will hold for about 3 years.
94 Rockford Cabernet.
This wine is holding up really well, and it about at its peak, but will hold for a few more years.
95 DeBotoli Yarra Valley Cabernet.
This wine was raved about by the wine gurus when it was released. It has won a swag of medals, and has always been a fairly good wine. Its still holding well.
92 Leasingham Classic Clare Sparkling Burgundy.
Drinking beautifully at 12 years old, and will last for a good while yet.
Passing Clouds Shiraz 1996 Another of the winery cellared back vintages that are slowly being released to the retail trade. Nice core of deep red in the glass lightening at the rim. Unspectacular nose, sweet berries but not much else. Quite powerful in the mouth yet the fruit weight is not heavy. Again some berry fruits early but does give way to a little astringency and an almost high acid feel. Good length with some heat. Ok drop but the 1992's are a better bet.
Langanook Cabernet 2002 Deep dark plum red, looking very youthful. Trademark Langanook nose with lifted aromatic fruit - often a highlight of the reds. Beautifully defined nose, sweet blackberry, blueberry and herbal notes - very pretty. Big mouthfeel, much more powerful than what I have seen historically from the winery. The characters from the bouquet do replay but are a little overshadowed by some quiet overt berry fruits and some firmness from oak and slightly bitter tannins. Fairly large at 15% but carries the alcohol well. This wine does need some time for the fruit to settle. Should age well over the next 5 years.
1996 d'Arenberg The Twenty Eight Road Mouvedre : Strong wine. Earthy. Would easily last longer but perhaps at a peak now. More character than most McLaren Reds I reckon.
1987 Virgin Hills : a delicate old wine. Rather too sweet for a dry red but interesting nonetheless.
1994 Delatite RJ : impressively young cabernet' for a 10 year old wine but very Minty to the point of being simple really.
Last edited by Pelican on Sun Sep 26, 2004 8:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Some recollections of wines tasted on our recent unplanned trip to NZ for a family bereavement.
Mills Reef Elspeth Chardonnay 2002: Long, complex & good value at ~$35
Palliser Pinot 2002: A quick dash up from Wellington to Martinborough saw good standard of Pinot's, but this one edged the Martinborough Vineyard (for now at least).
Claddagh Sean's Rose: A decent use for young cab grapes, thankfully not loaded with sugar & made for an interesting rose.
Fencepost 2003? Merlot: Fair value at ~$20 for a more european style of wine.
Palliser Pencarrow Chardonnay 2003: This impressed more than the estate wine & at the price (~$20) was great value
Torbreck The Steading 2001: A wine that shouted "stewed". Drinkable, but hardly inspiring.
Other observations:
- Seeing Cloudy Bay SB 2003 at $24 in the local bottle shop is refreshing after all the profiteering in UK over this wine.
- Airport duty-free's are a real embarassment these days. Both Melbourne & Sydney were over-priced.
- Can recommend the Pinot Pioneers book about Central Otago - if only to count the number of people who found that Cabernet Sauvignon didn't ripen there
The briefest of TVs only, as I was busy barbequing for 40+ people at home (delayed housewarming/40th).
A 1994 Domaine de Chevalier (Pessac-Leognan) was dusty and a little tannic, but much less hard and hollow than the previous bottle.
1995 Xanadu Cabernet Sauvignon (Margaret River) In the warmer weather of Sunday the streak of unripeness I've always found in this wine is a lot less apparent. More overtly fruity than the Bordeaux, it's ready to drink now.
2001 Salomon-Undhof Grüner Veltliner (Kremstal) There's some stone-fruit / lanolin quality here I can't identify - perhaps even a slatey-mineral note. Not hugely acidic, and I suspect their base level GV. Pleasant to drink, if not quite the ultimate demonstration of GV.
1998 Petaluma Chardonnay (Adelaide Hills) Drink up now, this is very yellow and taking on distinctly oxidative notes, to go with the lashings of oak. Not buying this label ever again - a more over-rated Australian wine doesn't exist.
1998 Hardys Tintara Shiraz (McLaren Vale) Ripe squishy fruits, low in acid, tannin has softened out. A purist might deride it as structureless - it's got a big mouth presence initially, but fades away quickly. Drink over next few years - this is not a long ager.
2000 Seppelt Chalambar Shiraz (Victoria) Dark red still, plenty of oak on the nose, some ripe spearmint fruits showing. Clean and fairly tight on the palate, not hugely complex, pretty good generally.
And to follow the 40th theme, some wines just for fun:
1964 Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz Pale brick-red with orange tints. A bit of VA and varnish on the nose, the palate is a bit thin with gently decayed fruits, no tannin, finish fading away quickly. Certainly drinkable (level was vhs), not quite compelling, but past it's best. Fun.
Slightly better for me at least, was
1964 Wynns Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon This one glowed with a burnished amber colour, and showed quite some bottle stink. Ultimately, some ripe if faintly herbaceous cabernet fruit showed through. Structurally somewhat tighter than the Penfolds, although
no tannins were evident here either. Volatility starting to come up, but not intrusively so.
Both wines were past their best, certainly, but not undrinkable by any means, and I suspect lots of guests had never tried wines quite so old, as they were all keen to sample. Less enthusiasm was shown for an old 1964 Krug Private Cuvee (Champagne) which I knew to be spoilt since I acquired it cheaply some years ago, laid it down, and promptly found some seepage! When opened in Sunday the cork was a struggle to remove, but the level was still good. Sadly, the wine (predictably) smelt like a bad day at the urologists office. Dark yellow, no fizz naturally, and oxidised all to hell. Ah well!
There were anumber of other wines as well which I didn't taste, but some of these cheaper white blends really seem quite sugary, I have to say...
cheers,
Graeme
Last edited by GraemeG on Mon Sep 27, 2004 10:18 am, edited 1 time in total.
Pity about the 64 Krug - so sad to see such a great wine mistreated and abused!
Danny
The voyage of discovery lies not in finding new landscapes but in having new eyes. We must never be afraid to go too far, for success lies just beyond - Marcel Proust
2002 Clarault MR Cabernet Sauvignon: Almond, smokiness on a base of ripe Cabernet of good depth. Classy fruit. Fine tannin. The almond starts turning a bit bitter on the middle palate and then leads into a sour finish that inhibits some of the wineÂ’s pleasure. Despite the wineÂ’s finish, the wine is interesting and I still enjoy it. Recommended.
1995 Grand Puy Ducasse Again, excellent. Needs another 3-5 years. 95's are taking their time!!
Drink: 2008-2020+..................................90pts
1990 Penfolds Bin 90A Still a black, monolithic, brooding, tannic youngster. I'm tipping this will kill the 90 Latour in 30 yrs time. Unbelievable.
Drink: 2025-2050+..................................99pts
1990 Faiveley Chambertin Clos de Beze Just about ready, this has the lot. A perfect wine.
Drink: 2005-2020+.................................100pts
1995 Chateau Rayas The most exclusive of all the CNDP's, without a super-cuvee.
Also the last excellent wine from this producer.
Wonderful, a tribute to the old bloke.
Drink: 2006-2020+.................................97pts
1996 Pepper Tree Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Still needs another 5 years, but just getting better ad better. Trounced the 96 707 on Saturday night, the latter wine being all wood and alcohol.
Drink: 2008-2020+................................95pts
1995 Moss Wood Coming along nicely, but I find both the Cullens and the Devils Lair to be better wines from that vintage. Won't open another for five years.
Drink: 2008-2020+.................................91pts
Lots of other mediocre stuff.........plenty of well-made Oz super-shiraz, all blood-and-guts and no brains types of wines. Ho Hum, I think the world will start waking up to these wines very soon.
Haven't posted for ages and have had quite a few wines under the belt in that time. Can't go back that far so just for the weekend which was a combined 30th and 40th for my sisters (my dad was also 60 - it's been an expensive week!)
Went to Alio in Redfern and had some truly great food, the only disappointment being the tarte tartin. Still not bad but made with a puff pastry which I wasn't expecting and most certainly don't prefer. The rest was sublime and the service great. No idea why they have lost their hat.
Anyhoo, opened proceedings with a 1992 Dom Perignon. Lovely champers with honey and brioche overtones. Maybe a little musty on opening but it all blew away and got better and better with every sip.
Followed up with a 1996 Lake's Folly chardonnay. Had one of these about a month ago which was to die for. This one was a little more developed and a little more tired. Still a lovely drink but not as fresh as the last and not as elegant and refined. Based on this bottle, I'd say drink up, based on the other bottle I'd also say drink up but only because they were at their absolute peak. Both bottles from same box and stored exactly the same.
Followed that on with a 1997 Mount Mary Quintet. Wasn't sure if it was too early to drink this one but as it was a lesser year and I have a few, I thought I'd give it a go. Drinking beautifully. Very elegant with blackcurrent on the palate. Nice long length and really a very lovely drink. It was only decanted at the table and that was about right. I think it's still got plenty of life in front of it but you can drink these with confidence right now.
Too full and drunk to get to the stickies unfortunately!
Cheers,
Kris
There's a fine wine between pleasure and pain
(Stolen from the graffiti in the ladies loos at Pegasus Bay winery)
Seriously though, one day I would like to be able to have a week of tasting like your notes this week. My collection will have a few decent bottles ready to go in a couple of years, and by then I hope to be able to write decent tasting notes to do the wines justice!
Mount Edward Reisling 2002 A truely classic. Plently of fruit, acidity and Kero. Lovely drinks and will develop into a classic reisling.
Bass Phillips Premium Chardonnay 1998 WOTN
Wow.. a lovely chardonnay, one of the best I have tasted. Lively fruit, good use of oak and everything comes together very nicely. A big wine.
Reg Drayton Semillon 1999 Light golden colour just showinmg the sign of aging. The nose is honey, honey dew and wild flower. The palate is consistent with the nose with honey showing. A lovely drink to enjoy at the moment or cellar it for a few more yeasr to come
Penfolds Yattarna 1998 Vibrant glowing yellow in colour. The nose is fragrant with tropical fruit and melon. The palate is refreshing with good acidity, fruit and up lifting alcohol. It is not hot, but exists with harmony. A youthful wine still, but has a very presistant length.
Cheers
Rob
"The red liquid circulating in my body is actually red wine, not blood."
Agree with the sentiments about the Bin 90a. Had it a few months ago, and the only two Aussie wines I've had that I thought were better or on par were the 71 and 86 Grange. I still can't work out why the 90 Grange sells for more than double the price of Bin 90a at auction.
As for my wines:-
1999 Wakefield (Taylors) St Andrews Shiraz - brooding, intense peppery notes, lovely ripe fruit, great length. 18.5
2003 Grosset Polish Hill - lime and slate, great length, but not yet a classic. 18
1996 Perrier Joet Belle Epoque - disappointing. Lacked any excitment factor. 16
1996 Charles Heidsick Mis En Cave - a ripper. All that you could hope for in a mid priced champagne. 18.5
1988 Rockford Basket Press Shiraz - not the best bottle I've had. Far more earthy and leathery and lacked the fruit sweetness of others recently consumed. 17.
Muscat Mike wrote:Surely TORB, that is Cousin It. MM.
Mike,
Cranky looks like Cousin It, Adair's new photo is a shot of a NZ icon. And I am still waiting to see his response. Come on Adair, let it rip and this time hit the submit button.
. The top of the list was
And I am still waiting to see his response.