Served with Pinot Poached Salmon over mash of Yam:
1998 Brick House ‘Les Dijonnais’ Pinot Noir
I was impressed with the colour and primary nose of this wine, at 6 years I was expecting some secondary nuances of funk or earth and this was definitely not the case here. The core was fairly dark, the palate was heavier for Pinot filled with black cherries and dark candy. Fairly masculine, yet not overt and rich, there was some friendly Oregon acid. Very good with lot's of life left in it.
Served with Wild Boar and duck Ravioli in burnt butter and chive:
2000 Vino Con Brio Matzin Old Vines Zinfandel- Lodi
Earthy nose, funky decay, sweet cherry and a bit of VA sour on the palate, as Dig suggested there was some latex or plasticine on the finish. Soft and quite a bit thin, this was not very pleasing with the spritz and sour, almost like a bottle re-fermenting, but not quite.
1997 Turley Old Vines Zinfandel
Lighter in colour like Pinot, medium bodied and soft on the palate with sweet strawberry-raspberry, this aged Zinfandel had become almost Grenache-like. Edgy with alcohol, and a nice food wine, it should've been paired at the beginning with the Pinot Noir in the first course.
Served with chorizio and mushroom risotto:
2002 Neyers Hudson Vineyard Syrah - Napa Valley
This was huge and black with rich viscosity. Nose of tobacco and cigarette ash, black plum, it was a classic Napa Syrah on the nose, but then the freaky palate......After complaining at length about the Parker-palate influence in Australian Shiraz, we suddenly meet the Californian equivalent. My first thoughts were that this wine was mixed up with the Aussie Greenoch Creek, but that was not the case. It was sweet like candy floss, quite the juxtaposition from the nose to the palate, and not very appealing for me. The tannins were soft, if not almost Zinfandel in style, big and sweet this wine reminded me of the Kaesler Stonehorse Shiraz '02. Not my cup of tea.
1999 Greenock Creek Seven Acre Shiraz - Barossa
Beautiful deep fruit of blackberry and cocoa. Long and silky on the palate, sexy fruit and sturdy tannic structure, this wine is a classic ager. Excellent wine !!
Served with Bison rib:
2002 Syncline Reserve Syrah (Columbia Valley)
After my initial TN impression of their entry level Syrah of oak and coconut on Monday night, Ann was concerned this 'reserve' may be a bit of a disappointment, but this was not the case at all. I'm quite happy she brought this along as this Syrah was the opposite of the regular bottling. A classic Washington Syrah, better then the California, although a slight bit of sour on the finish, still very full with ripeness of black fruits and raspberry. Definitely a great purchase at 44$, I'm buying this for my cellar !!
2002 Noon Reserve Shiraz (McLaren Vale)
OOHHHHhhh, I loved this wine !! Tar, black cherries, silky palate, sexy nutty oak, washed cement and a hint of wet earth. This wine has tons of stuffing of ripe black fruits and some interesting 'leady' tannins. Stunning wine, I think I drank everyone's left-overs on the table My WOTN.
Served with a beautiful arrangement of French and Canadian cheeses:
1986 Jim Barry ‘Madeira’
Very cool and an interesting selection from Australia. Sweet strawberries mixed with caramel and nut, the palate reminds me of red licorice nibs covered in toffee. Delicious and scrumptious !!
It was absolutely great fun to meet Ginger and Dig, and sharing from both our hemispheres the different and varying styles of Syrah and Shiraz, and of course we got along quite brilliantly.
My personal thoughts throughout the evening:
Ginger sounds like an Aussie, I eventually leaned over to Tony(Plusvini) and asked him "Is it just me, or does she sound more like an Aussie then a Canadian"? He remarked "More and more as the night goes on"
She claims she had to adapt or constantly have to repeat herself
Ginger is a real trooper, sick and on steroids for her immune system, she hung through to the bitter end, and I'm glad she did .
I should've brought my first choice for the evening, The Edmunds St. John Syrah. The Neyers Hudson was not a wine I would buy, nor put in this line-up, but served blind I would've pegged it for one of those Parkerized Oz Shiraz's. Something very strange is going on in our wine-world with Parker around.
The beer T-Shirt Dig brought for me will fit my dog better, but I'll wear it anyways
I had many more questions for our Australian guests that I forgot to ask or didn't have time to get into, so much talking going around the table one must be aggressive in getting a word in edgewise. Good thing aggression is not frowned upon in our group.
Thanks to Ginger and Dig, it was great fun and a delicious experience !!!
Pictures to follow in a couple of days when my host server get's back from travel.....
Cheers,
Mishy
Syrah vs Shiraz with Aussies going Yankee in Canada
Syrah vs Shiraz with Aussies going Yankee in Canada
Well behaved women rarely make history
Sounds like you had a great time, I always wish I was at these dinners once I read about them.
The 1999 Greenock Creek wines have been sleepers. The two I've had recently, Apricot Block and Creek Block still need alot more time but still drink well now.
It seems to me there's alot of Parker fuelled hysteria against Greenock Creek at present in Australia, too much alcohol, won't last etc.
I'd like to try these wines again in five to ten years time with all those anti GC'ers and see what they think.
My money is on the GC wines looking better and better with age.
Noon is just great wine, pity it's so hard to get in cellarable quantities.
The 1999 Greenock Creek wines have been sleepers. The two I've had recently, Apricot Block and Creek Block still need alot more time but still drink well now.
It seems to me there's alot of Parker fuelled hysteria against Greenock Creek at present in Australia, too much alcohol, won't last etc.
I'd like to try these wines again in five to ten years time with all those anti GC'ers and see what they think.
My money is on the GC wines looking better and better with age.
Noon is just great wine, pity it's so hard to get in cellarable quantities.
Cheers - Steve
If you can see through it, it's not worth drinking!
If you can see through it, it's not worth drinking!
Quoted by 707:
[/b]It seems to me there's alot of Parker fuelled hysteria against Greenock Creek at present in Australia, too much alcohol, won't last etc.
Rather funny coming from a bunch of Turley 'single vineyard' whores who'll pay 100$USD+ for a 17% Zinfandel
Please..........
Although they don't seem to age them.....
A rather good question as far as I'm concerned. We really haven't dealt with high alc. dry wines in the past with aging, but I've always thought of alcohol as a preservative
Cheers,
Mishy
Well behaved women rarely make history
Agree that the jury is out on the high alcohol wines re ageing. IMO if they have everything in balance including the high alcohol then they probably will age well but they need the fruit weight as well.
Let's not forget that several of the legendary Three Rivers vintages are whopping alcohol and seem to be travelling nicely at 10 yrs +.
Love your signature, just had to send it to a few naughty ladies I know!!
Let's not forget that several of the legendary Three Rivers vintages are whopping alcohol and seem to be travelling nicely at 10 yrs +.
Love your signature, just had to send it to a few naughty ladies I know!!
Cheers - Steve
If you can see through it, it's not worth drinking!
If you can see through it, it's not worth drinking!