The Auswine Forum

Hi Good People,

Not a good result last week, only about 10 responses but the forum was busy with lots of other talk which is good. Now that Gavin has paid his ISP bill , we are back to being able to post, so please let us know what you have been drinking. I have to rush off to work now to fix a tap in the fish tank system that split yesterday afternoon so will post mine when I get time later. (Steve you are up early lately.)

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Morning Ric,

If you have a look at my very amateur scribbles under the posting "little help please" theres what ive had this week

cheers - JB

Clonakilla Riesling 02- Very good riesling. Going strong the next day. My first experience with their style- very food friendly and with a foreign feel ( a Canberra thing maybe ).

Henschke Mt Edelstone 95- Hitting it's peak.

Henschke Mt Edelstone 92- Going great guns. Good dollop of American oak and mature black fruits. Not a traditional Mt Edesltone? More Barossan in style.

Tyrell's Rufus Stone Heathcote Shiraz 02- Lots of wank and hyperbole coming out of Heathcote. Though a touch young and raw, this is good Central Victorian shiraz that should be excellent in a few years. Good to see Tyrell's quietly going about their business in Heathcote.

98 Fox Creek Reserve Shiraz
Nice wine, not very complex, and not over oaked. Still lovely on the second day. Has a few years in it.

96 Peter Lehmann Stonewell Shiraz.
I know this wine is made for the long haul, and has lots of great fruit, but to may palate, there is a lot of vanilla oak. When a wine finishes with vanilla oak, I simply dont like it. Maybe in 10 years !

98 Haselgrove H Shiraz.
Holding up well, and a good drink.

98 Maxwell Reserve Shiraz.
Quite spicy for a McLaren Vale, but a very good wine. Everything in balance, and will hold for a few years.

98 Wirra Wirra RSW Shiraz.
Had 2 of these this week, as the first one was magnificent. Holding well.

98 Paxton McLaren Vale Shiraz.
Good wine, but I think its starting to go into a reductive phase, which I am finding with some 98 McLaren Vale Shiraz. It has me worried, but only time will tell if I am on the wrong track.

97 Reynell Cabernet.
One of those times where its a surprise to see the emtpy bottle in the morning. I actually thought I opened the Shiraz. Hmmmmm

98 Coriole Lloyd Reserve Shiraz.
Seems to be going down the same track as the Paxton. Not a long keeper, and needs to be drunk in the next 2 years.

96 Charlie Melton Cabernet.
A great wine. Aged beautifully, and a pleasure to drink.

98 Charles Cimicky Signature Shiraz.
Very good drink. Not overly complex, but rich fruit, and in balance.

91 Penfolds Kalimna.
Bloody aweful. Wasnt corked, but simply not right. Crook bottle I would say. I have one more, so will open that soon.

02 Greenock Creek Apricot Block Shiraz.
Far too young, but has all the makings of being terrific in a few years.

02 Meerea Park Terracotta Shiraz.
Not sure about this. For a $50 wine, its pretty average.

99 Tim Adams Semillon.
At it peak, and drinking well.

97 Tim Adams Semillon
Better than the 99, and has a couple more years in it. Both are a pleasant change to the unwooded Hunters I normally drink.

98 Kays Block 6 Shiraz.
Great wine, with years ahead of it. Not over oaked, good fruit.

92 Galah Sparkling Shiraz.
Made by Steven George, using Wendouree fruit. Has a good wallop of old vintage port. My last bottle. Very very nice drink.

94 McLaren Vale Rosemount Show Reserve Shiraz.
I have never liked this wine, but kept one bottle to try later. This was it, and it was crap.

96 Allandale Mudgee Cabernet.
Not very nice. Interesting fruit, but too old.

Last night I opened a Hardy 95 Tintara Shiraz. A lovely wine, it is full bodied and evry enjoyable but going through a change. It seems like the fresh fruit is starting to fade but the aged complexities have not started to develop yet. Some may find the wine a little simple, but it still has excellent complexity of flavour if you look hard. The one thing that really stands out is the abundant mint. Could be a Langhorne Creek or Clare wine with this much mint.

Torb

Did I read or misread elsewhere, that you tried the 94 HofG from your cellar?

Any notes? My last bottle was corked!

Glad you are paying attention in class Jamie. Brief impressions will be in this weeks feature article.

A Coriole 2002 Nebbiolo was just magnificent as a counterpoint to some nice Italian snags and salad. The Nebb was brown around the edges and very powerful without being heavy. The flavours were just great, with the typical rustic flavours coming through. The variety is supposed to take a while to develop. This one is already a great wine, I just wo=nder where else it could go. A Casellas Yendah Vale Sangiovese was also much appreciated. as a follow up

A couple of cold left over sausages and some other bits and pieces combined with fetta and spanokopita and salad made Sunday lunch. But the 2004 Crittendens Pinocchio Arneis was absolutely superb. The color is stupendous, extremely reminiscent of distilled water. The nose gives a hint of the tropical fruit salad flavours that explode on the palate. The finish is dry and crisp. The secret of Good Italian style wines is the mouthfeel (a fancy word for texture). This Arneis is up there with the best.

A very satisfying weekend's drinking.

Cheers

The other day I did the Wolf Blass Sea to Vines bike ride - bizarrely the last bit involved riding thru' the back of the Blass Winery which if I did not know better resembled an oil refinery - huge gleaming tanks etc etc - and to top it off at the very end when I went to have a much needed slash in the Loo I was confronted on entering by a Shrine including pictures of the Great Man himself - the like of which I last saw on TV docos about Dictatorships !

2002 Croser ( $ 26 ) : as expected as Minimal as ever , however I cannot help but keep buying and trying this bubbly a couple of times a year - its lack of any remarkable characteristics is quite impressive indeed.

2004 Buller Victoria Rose ( $ 9 ) : As good as most Barossa roses but half the price.

2002 Pierre Naigeon Beaujolais ( $ 10 ) : Good value and a wine that Prince Charles might respect as it is not trying to be something it is not. Was quite lovely chilled on a hot day in Adelaide. Nice strawberry nose although rather greenish on the palate.

2004 Woodstock Grenache Rose ( $ 12 ) : good lush fruit for a rose. My fridge is not set cold enough I have now noticed. In the unlikely event I get the lurgy this Summer I'll buy a case of this Summery cough syrup ............ seriously though quite a good easy summer wine.

HereÂ’s a few that IÂ’ve had over the past couple of weeks.

95 Leasingham Show Reserve Shiraz
Stunning wine. Gloriously perfumed nose, loved sniffin’ it. The colour belies its age, still deep ‘n’ dark, so far nothing to indicate this is 9 years old wine. Big, rich and full fruit on the palate, well integrated, nice balancing oak, great mouthfeel. All up, a ‘rippa’ wine. Will last for many more years.

97 Ingoldby Cabernet
Expected little, but this is actually pretty good. Still quite youthful, nice wine.

Wolf Blass Gold Label Riesling (either a 98 or 99?)
Pretty basic wine, all drunk before this one have without exception under-delivered. They just ain’t great wines – drank the bottle nonetheless!

2002 and 2003 Coldstream Hills Pinot
Love the 2002, bought heaps and have had a couple a week for a few months now, excellent Pinot at this price point. 2003 isnÂ’t bad, but not as good as the 2002. Glad theyÂ’ve gone to stelvin.

2000 Port Phillip Estate Reserve Pinot
One of my current drinking favourite Pinots, itÂ’s just awesome, a beautiful wine, kicking my self for buying so few. Recent vintages of this wine havenÂ’t come close to the 2000.

2000 De Bortoli YV Pinot
Liked this on release, but they havenÂ’t developed too well, lacking typical fragrant characters. Will leave the rest for a while in hope.

2001 LEAS Chardy
ItÂ’s all been said by others. Lovely wine, but, given the price difference, I much prefer drinking the Prelude, itÂ’s bargain priced quality chardy.

2000 Kays Hillside Shiraz
Had a couple of these over the past weeks, got ‘em at a very good price at auction, drinking so well now, these are simple wonderful to drink, love them. They will clearly cellar for many years, but mine probably won’t get the chance! So rich and choc a block full of flavour, give me more.

2000 Yarra Ridge Pinot
Another great value cheap Pinot which has consistently delivered. Had it with some BBQ grilled calamari and backed mussels, nice match.

Right now, as I type: St Hugo 1996 Cab Sauv. Black and red fruit, dark chocolate, some leafy notes and charred oak on the nose, powdery tannins, dark slightly sweet fruit, not too heavy to drink more than one glass of. V nice, not as fruity as when opened last night (decanted out then back into bottle to allow for vacuum sealing). Went well with BBQ sirloin.

Brief notes from last Tuesday: almost final class of wine appreciation course. I WILL get around to posting more notes, even if just edited highlights!

Frankland Estate Isolation Ridge Riesling 2003 N: floral, lime/lemon P: Austere, acidic, lemon, lime, some pithy bitterness, long mineral finish. Almost European style. 16.5
Brookland Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2003 N: Initially pungent sweaty feet and generic tropical fruit, blew off to passionfruit and green capsicum. P: Initially bitter acid, once slightly warmed, more like passionfruit and grapefruit, quite short. I didn't enjoy much (15.5), but lecturer liked a lot, described as zesty with a lot of character, 18.
Juniper Estate Semillon 2003 N: Peach, nectarine, some green notes, oak characters P: Citrus, oak, acid... like a cool climate chardonnay! 15.5 (I have enjoyed this a lot more at a previous tasting... not sure why not this time)
Killerby Chardonnay 2001 N: faint butterscotch, soap, lanolin. P: Toasty oak, citrus, acidic, not much fruit. 15.5.
Dromana Pinot Noir 2001 N: Meaty, beetroot, green leaf, forest floor P: Savoury, dark cherry, meaty, olive, very fine. 18.
Rymill Cabernet 1999 N: Black fruit, eucalyptus, mint, some ants P: Blackfruits, long grippy tannins, very nice. 18.5.
Picardy Shiraz 2001 Incredibly young purple colour - like mulberry juice. N: Fresh sweet fruit flavour, plum, black olive, soft and full, some green hints and acid, not particularly long. 17.5-18.
Woodside Estate " The Bissy" Merlot 2002 N: Warm spicy xmas cake, extra sultanas. P: Smooth powdery tannins, intense, plum, charry oak. Did not pick as a merlot. 18-18.5.

Despite the lowish Parker points, I think the 2000 Hillside & 2000 Block 6 are very under rated with both being superb drinks now but in no way about to fall over.

Make no mistake, Kay Bros have a great vineyard site, are excellent viticulturalists and really know how to make wine. This is one winery that doesn't suffer much downside in lesser vintages.

1998 Hardys Tintara McLaren Vale Reserve Shiraz: Massive amount of crusting over the whole bottle surface from the capsule to the base – as usual this was decanted through a breatheasy to give it a 2 hour kick-start and filter out the chunkiest bits. Incredible, glass-hugging, inky purple/red (almost black) with an intimidating glowing purple hue – more like a current premium release, not a 1998! A huge, complex mixture of ripe Shiraz and American oak on the nose that borders Grange-like intensity; coconut, cinnamon, plums, milk chocolate, blood and formic acid, with hints of beetroot, fireplace/charred bricks, espresso and perfumed violets. The palate is just as brawny and intimidating, with an attack of sweet fruit, huge gum-sucking tannins and VA on entry, lingering coconut and mud-chocolate on the finish, with hints of licorice, black olives, mocha and espresso. In a word – WOW.

2002 Leabrook Estate Reserve Adelaide Hills Pinot Noir: After the excellent 2001 a few weeks ago this was a big disappointnent. Complex yeasty nose with strawberry and bready notes. The palate has wonderful flavours of strawberry, yeast, nuts and smoke, but the price of getting these flavours from the cool year is the whopping 14.3% that ruins the mid-palate and finish. I can see the complexity Colin Best was trying to achieve, but the wine is hopelessly disjointed.

I haven't taken tasting notes (yet) but in the last few days I've tried the 2002 Grant Burge Filsell Shiraz a number of times, and been blown away by the QPR. This is a seriously good Barossa shiraz selling at a ridiculously low price at the moment (well under $30), and it shone again at the API wine club's Grand Finale'. The 20 year old port is seriously good too.

Cheers
Ian

Well the wife had her Vet office Xmas party last night and so I opened up 5 wines. None of the folks attending are real serious about wine but I thought I’d run a little experiment and see if anyone could tell good wine from not so good. There are a few wines in the cellar that I know have seen better days and need to be pulled and consumed - or not!. One of the reds was a 1997 Zin that was well over the hill and far away. Another was a 2000 cabernet from Chile that had nice developed cab bouquet but was just past its prime. The good bottle was one of America’s favorites Marquis Phillips Sarah's Blend 2003. Very open, rich, and ripe just the way they like ‘em over here. I guess they knew as no one, NO ONE, touched a single drop except me! The only thing I found interesting was that it was not real hard to tell which wine is made by the same folks that also make the Henry’s Drive 2002 Shiraz that I’ve been sampling over the last few days.

Mike

2002 Mamre Brook Shiraz
Tried this without any decanting. Not my prefered style at all. Really ripe fruit and a huge rasberry flavour profile that didn't do anything for me. Tannins were silky and palate weight good. Tried next night and could see it may lead somewhere nice but I don't like the overly ripe and rasberry flavours. Perhaps with time ??

2002 Peter Lehmann the Barossa CabSav
Yum, excellent cabernet. Long, persistent and very flavoursome. Went out and bought a dozen to throw in the cellar.

2001 Classic McLaren La Testa
Wonderful savoury, spicy flavours and smooth, velvet like tannins and a great finish. Very nice.

2002 Greenock Creek Alice Shiraz
Jeez, I have been through a half dozen of these already. A very good wine with excellent fruit intensity and great palate weight. Was a bit odd after the LaTesta but eventually, with about 20 mins air time opened up magnifinectly.

Mark, agree with the Mamre Shiraz, good QPR but IMO the Cabernet is another class ahead again and even better QPR.

2002 Alices is great drinking, a very worthy follow on from the 2001 that was my "house red" for several months last year.

707 wrote:Mark, agree with the Mamre Shiraz, good QPR but IMO the Cabernet is another class ahead again and even better QPR.

2002 Alices is great drinking, a very worthy follow on from the 2001 that was my "house red" for several months last year.

I grabbed the 2002 Mamre Brook cabernet to try sometime over the next few days, thanks...

Ian (guest)

Do you think the 95 Leasingham is fair value at $60? My local shop has some.

$60 Justin, they cost me $28 earlier this year, so $60 seems a bit rich. It's a lovely wine, but I wouldn't pay $60 for it, sounds like your local may be capitalising on the fact that the wine is 9 years old, even though it was only released this year.

The single biggest attraction of buying the 95 now is that it does have the benefit of a few years maturation, it is very drinkable, although it will improve marginally with further cellaring. I tend to buy most of my wines at release and am prepared to ‘let em sit’. The attraction with this particular Leasingham was the quality for the price, at the time. Not sure if I've helped you?

Ian

ALKOOMI Jarrah Shiraz 1999Lovely drop, drinking well, no decanting but gave it a good vortex in the glass. Probably won't take me away from the preferred SA shiraz' but was impressed.[/b]

Some brief impressions from the week that was:-


Laurent Perrier NV

Glass full of wet yeasty dough with a fine persistent bead and lovely mousse.
Not a bad drop of Frog bubbles.

Tyrrells Moon Mountain Chardonnay 1995

Deep gold, melon and peach nose, palate still quite fresh with honetydew melon and straw. Persistent acid backbone.

Ferngrove "Cossack" Reisling 2004

Crystal clear colourless fluid with a delicate floral nose and just a touch of kero. Very dry palate with flavours similar to the nose. Needs time to fill out a bit methinks.

Tyrrells "Belford" Semillon 1997

Classic Hunter sem showing secondary toast and honey characters to go with the lemon grass acidity. Very nice drop.

Houghton "Pemberton" Chardonnay 2002

Very bloody nice and went very well with a smoked salmon and avocado salad. Honeydew melon, starfruit and white peach nose, similar palate with plenty of crisp drying acidity. The winemaker had a delicate hand with the ML ferment and US oak. If all chardy was like this I could become a convert.

Howard Park Cab Merlot 1991

This is one ripper of a wine. Still vibrant colour, blackcurrent, tobacco, cedary spice and a hint of capsicum on the nose were well reflected in the mouth. A long sweet finish. Wish I had more of this, a lot more.

Kavaklidere Selection 1996

A Turkish wine with an unpronouncable name, made from unpronouncable grape varieties. "Interesting" is being kind. Supposedly one of the best out of Turkey. if it is I ain't interested in tasting the rest.

Grant Burge "Filsell" 2000

Classic Barossan shiraz that should be able to be picked at 40 paces. Chocolate vanillan American oak and some blackberry Mocca. Good quaffer that is becoming overpriced.

Picardy Merlot Cabernet 2001

Colour was great but then the pig must have fallen into my glass. A good one for the Brett lovers. Slimy Ham, Slimy Ham, you get the picture.

Heritage Shiraz 2000.

Again, if you could not pick the variety and region for this you are brain dead. This is a style that follows the too much is not enough philosophy, yet it still all comes together in a very enjoyable, albeit full on, drink. If you have them, leave them for a few more years, say around 2008 - 2010.

Warrabilla Reserve Muscat

Shhhh, don't tell anyone but this must be one of the best value LM going around at $32 a 750 ml bottle.

Chateau Reynella Vintage Port 1975

This is a full on VP in the old style, made from old vine fruit, still amazingly youthful with tons of tannins and chocolate fruit cake essence.

Stanton & Killeen Vintage Port 1990

Completely different style but no less enjoyable. Still very young but the tannins have gone leaving soft, sweet fruit. I might leave my last bottle another 5 or so years.

Hi Davo,

"Picardy Merlot Cabernet 2001 -Colour was great but then the pig must have fallen into my glass. A good one for the Brett lovers. Slimy Ham, Slimy Ham, you get the picture."

Surprised to hear this for a couple of reasons. Firstly, by 2001 they had nuked the winery and got rid of all the old barrels. By 2001 every single barrel was was new and the place was as clean as an operating theature. Secondly, I tried the wine and Plonk Oz and loved it, no sign of Brett at all in the sample I had.

Ric,

I can only play em how I taste em. It was not a pleasant experience as I am not a lover of this "funky" style.

I actually have most of a case of their 98 still waiting to be consumed. I have not bought any since.

Grant Burge "Filsell" 2000

Classic Barossan shiraz that should be able to be picked at 40 paces. Chocolate vanillan American oak and some blackberry Mocca. Good quaffer that is becoming overpriced.

The 2002 is an absolute stunner Davo, and if you look around it's far from overpriced - The $35 price tag of the 2001 has dropped officially to under $30, and last week in an Adelaide promotion it was available for less than $23; needless to say it was walking out the door.

Cheers
Ian

Davo wrote:Howard Park Cab Merlot 1991

This is one ripper of a wine. Still vibrant colour, blackcurrent, tobacco, cedary spice and a hint of capsicum on the nose were well reflected in the mouth. A long sweet finish. Wish I had more of this, a lot more.

Davo, agree totally, had this masked at a dinner a couple of weeks back, gorgeous wine in the prime of its life. So well developed, smooth and fully integrated, loved it. I must be one of the few who also likes the 95. Been a couple of years since I opened one, but all liked it at the time, must try another soon.

Ian

Ian,

It is a great $15 a bottle wine, a good $20 a bottle wine, and a low end $25 a bottle wine. It is way overpriced anywhere above this. Just my opinion of course.

Anonymous wrote:

Davo wrote:Howard Park Cab Merlot 1991

This is one ripper of a wine. Still vibrant colour, blackcurrent, tobacco, cedary spice and a hint of capsicum on the nose were well reflected in the mouth. A long sweet finish. Wish I had more of this, a lot more.

Davo, agree totally, had this masked at a dinner a couple of weeks back, gorgeous wine in the prime of its life. So well developed, smooth and fully integrated, loved it. I must be one of the few who also likes the 95. Been a couple of years since I opened one, but all liked it at the time, must try another soon.

Ian

absolutely nothing wrong with the 95 Howard Park, still maybe 2-3 years from its plateau, it is a wonderful, complex cabernet every bit as good as its peers from the 95 vintage in WA. Yet another terrible assesment from Jeremy Oliver.