The Auswine Forum

All the following wines were tasted blind, and after about an hour all participants voted for their most preferred, two next preferred and their least preferred drops.

The tasting notes are my own impressions, and I’ve included the panel’s votes and final rankings (where 1st preferred votes count for double, 2nd and 3rd one vote, and least preferred minus one vote).

The group votes for the wines were very evenly spread reflecting just how close the group was, and this was also the case with my own preferences with a single point between second and sixth places in the final taste-off.


2002 Torbreck The Steading $37: Inky red colour with maybe a bare hint of purple. A very complex and slightly lifted nose of boot polish, raisins, beetroot and smoked meats open the proceedings. The spicy, mid-weight palate opens with pepper and rhubarb, milk chocolate, salted celery and bacon, finishing long and smooth. This was quite complex already but one of the lighter weighted wines of the group, and came from the middle of the pack to grab third on my scoresheet at the end of the voting.

My ranking: 3rd place
Panel ranking: 7th place

Votes: 0 most, 4 second & third, 1 least



2002 Richard Hamilton Burton’s Vineyard Grenache Shiraz $30: This was a pre-release sample. Dark (almost inky) glowing red/purple colour. A very ripe nose of concentrated blackberry and plum, cedar and a touch of VA, reflecting a good balance of powerful fruit and deftly matched oak. The palate is likewise slightly tart on entry with ripe blackberry, then spicy/peppery (not hot) fruit drive the powerful, balanced mid-palate, finishing magnificently long with smoky/mealy tannins and a bare hint of apricot. My favourite from the start of the tasting, and was never seriously threatened.

My ranking: 1st place
Panel ranking: =3rd place

Votes: 2 most preferred, 4 second & third, 2 least



2002 Cascabel Grenache et al $20: Dark to inky red, with maybe a hint of purple. The nose opens with lifted, perfumed florals, and hint of lanolin, then damp earth and some mushroom. The palate opens tangy with nectarine/raspberry fruit, before becoming quite smoky on the mid-palate, with some licorice, mint and eucalyptus with breathing, but compared to the Burton’s it’s lightlweight and short. I tried the wine at an instore three weeks ago, and likewise I wasn’t impressed again tonight in contrast to the panel; I don’t think it’s a bad wine, but frankly it’s not my style.

My ranking: 9th place
Panel ranking: 2nd place

Votes: 3 most, 3 second & third, 0 least



2003 John Duval Wines Plexus $36 (if you can find it): Impressive inky purple/red colour with a glowing purple hue. An extracted nose featuring stewed blackberry, some chocolate, and heavily toasted oak hint what a beast this is. The palate opens with stewed, blackberry fruit, a very hot spike of alcohol heat on the mid-palate (after the tasting I heard 15.75% ), and finishes with equally heavy doses of apricot, vanilla oak, and mealy/wheaty tannins. The colour, fruit extraction and tannin structure hint that (hopefully) this is a mere baby that just may come together in the distant future, but for now it’s simply too oaky, extracted and alcoholic for my liking.

My ranking: 10th place
Panel ranking: =3rd place

Votes: 3 most, 1 second & third, 1 least



2003 Penfolds Bin 138 Old Vine GSM $20: Inky purple/red colour with an impressive glowing purple rim. An unusual nose featuring delicate perfumed rose petals and sweet plums plus heavily toasted, then vanilla oak. The palate opens again with malty oak, building slowly with bright, raspberry fruit with just a touch of alcohol heat, finishing tangy with a touch of tobacco. This was pretty good for the price and in the mix for a top three spot, but it didn’t have the class or finish of the Steading.

My ranking: =4th place
Panel ranking: 9th place

Votes: 0 most, 1 second & third, 2 least



2002 Richard Hamilton Marion Vineyard Grenache Shiraz $30: Like the Burton’s this was another pre-release sample. Dark (almost inky) red with a hint of purple on the rim. A fairly closed, then delicately perfumed/earthy nose at first, then some sweet chocolate, and finally some band-aid/medicinal characters. The mid-weight palate opens with very sweet cherries, with good length and again some chocolate with breathing. For the Marion Vineyard label this is an extremely young and elemental vintage with a long cellaring life ahead.

My ranking: 6th place
Panel ranking: 5th place

Votes: 1 most, 4 second and third, 1 least



2002 Charles Melton Nine Popes $40: Inky red/purple colour. A complex nose with some old book paper, lanolin, concentrated blackberry and dried herbs, before turning quite metallic (Harry described this as enamel). The palate features a smoky entry, and a good balance of rich fruit flavours supported by a mighty tannin structure, but all that was offset by very hot alcohol throughout the length. The panel as a whole were disappointed and thought it was a bad bottle.

My ranking: 7th place
Panel ranking: 6th place

Votes: 1 most, 3 second & third, 1 least



2003 Torbreck The Juveniles $25: Dark red colour. A very complex, ripe and floral mess of a nose that reminded me more of an Aussie Zinfandel than GSM; sultanas, raisins, mint, greens, apricots and tobacco feature heavily. The mid-weight palate is just as ripe, stewed and sweet, again with sultana/raisins, apricot, smoky tannins and good length with a hint of greens and tobacco on the finish. This looked really out of place in this group, although it still scored a couple of good votes from the other panelists.

My ranking: 8th place
Panel ranking: 10th place

Votes: 1 most, 1 second & third, 5 least



2003 Noons Eclipse $50: Superb inky purple/black colour with a glowing hue, the best of the group. A youthful, perfumed and clean nose of freshly crushed plums/blackberries, some apricots and a hint of cedar reflect the powerful fruit perfectly. The palate opens with concentrated blackberry fruit that powers through the mid-palate, finishing with chalky tannins and some sweet cherry on the aftertaste. The alcohol was noticeable but within acceptable levels this time, and the wine was much more enjoyable than six months ago at the Sauce dinner – it didn’t have to follow a Roenfeldt Road Shiraz this time around!

My ranking: =4th place
Panel ranking: 8th place

Votes: 2 most, 1 second & third, 3 least



2002 Kilikanoon The Medley GSM $18: Dark to inky red/purple colour. The nose features a good balance of charred/toasted oak and simmering blackberry fruit, with elements of tar, coal and chocolate throughout the tasting. The palate opens with dark chocolate and spice, before a huge mesh of ripe fruit, big tannins and some alcohol heat stage a massive barney on the mid-palate. The wine finishes with smoky tannins and great length, with those rebellious elements mid-palate integrating and smoothing out with breathing. This just got better as the tasting went, and was voted best overall wine by the panel – definitely the bargain of the group.

My ranking: 2nd place
Panel ranking: 1st place

Votes: 2 most, 8 second & third, 0 least


Cheers
Ian

Ian,

Thanks for that - great notes.

Just out of curiosity, what sort of air time do the wines get prior to tasting? Much at all? It would be interesting to retaste and compare some of the 'heavyweights' once they'd had the chance to blossom or perhaps integrate a little.

I've tried the '03 Eclipse and '02 Steading over the last couple of months on different occasions, the Eclipse given a good couple of hours in the decanter and the Steading a few hours in an open bottle. I was very impressed with the Eclipse and thought it blew away the Steading in every way. Interestingly, I thought the heat of the Eclipse was very well masked and I had a lot of trouble picking up any to be honest. They're definitely two very different wines and it's great that there can be so much variation within a blend group.

Cheers,

Maximus wrote:Ian,

Thanks for that - great notes.

Just out of curiosity, what sort of air time do the wines get prior to tasting? Much at all? It would be interesting to retaste and compare some of the 'heavyweights' once they'd had the chance to blossom or perhaps integrate a little.

I've tried the '03 Eclipse and '02 Steading over the last couple of months on different occasions, the Eclipse given a good couple of hours in the decanter and the Steading a few hours in an open bottle. I was very impressed with the Eclipse and thought it blew away the Steading in every way. Interestingly, I thought the heat of the Eclipse was very well masked and I had a lot of trouble picking up any to be honest. They're definitely two very different wines and it's great that there can be so much variation within a blend group.

Cheers,

Hi Max,

In regard to breathing time, I suspect not much - normally I roll up and the bottles are masked and ready for pouring, so Steve (707) would have to answer that question.

I tried the 2003 Eclipse just once before - six months ago at the Sauce dinner, immediately after a 1999 Roenfeldt Road which did the wine no justice at all:

http://www.auswine.com.au/forum/viewtop ... ght=#15418

This time around it was very enjoyable, and was in a group of 5 wines that was in the last-second scramble for my second or third preferences. In a very close vote it only just missed out on my top three, and I thought it had the best cellaring potential of the lot - the heat very was minor and as I said pretty acceptable, but in a close vote every little thing counts!

With the exception of the top two wines (Kilikanoon & Cascabel) the group voting was also exceptionally tight, just showing how even the group was and how everyone's individual preferences came into play.

I've found the 2002 Steading has been consistently complex and appealing, but without the real oomph of the top wines. In the last-second voting its complexity and class won out this time; this is where the additional breathing you gave the Eclipse could be a major factor in the differences you noted.

I'm glad you enjoyed the notes!

Cheers
Ian

n4sir wrote:

Maximus wrote:Ian,

Thanks for that - great notes.

Just out of curiosity, what sort of air time do the wines get prior to tasting? Much at all? It would be interesting to retaste and compare some of the 'heavyweights' once they'd had the chance to blossom or perhaps integrate a little.

I've tried the '03 Eclipse and '02 Steading over the last couple of months on different occasions, the Eclipse given a good couple of hours in the decanter and the Steading a few hours in an open bottle. I was very impressed with the Eclipse and thought it blew away the Steading in every way. Interestingly, I thought the heat of the Eclipse was very well masked and I had a lot of trouble picking up any to be honest. They're definitely two very different wines and it's great that there can be so much variation within a blend group.

Cheers,

Hi Max,

In regard to breathing time, I suspect not much - normally I roll up and the bottles are masked and ready for pouring, so Steve (707) would have to answer that question.

I tried the 2003 Eclipse just once before - six months ago at the Sauce dinner, immediately after a 1999 Roenfeldt Road which did the wine no justice at all:

http://www.auswine.com.au/forum/viewtop ... ght=#15418

This time around it was very enjoyable, and was in a group of 5 wines that was in the last-second scramble for my second or third preferences. In a very close vote it only just missed out on my top three, and I thought it had the best cellaring potential of the lot - the heat very was minor and as I said pretty acceptable, but in a close vote every little thing counts!

With the exception of the top two wines (Kilikanoon & Cascabel) the group voting was also exceptionally tight, just showing how even the group was and how everyone's individual preferences came into play.

I've found the 2002 Steading has been consistently complex and appealing, but without the real oomph of the top wines. In the last-second voting its complexity and class won out this time; this is where the additional breathing you gave the Eclipse could be a major factor in the differences you noted.

I'm glad you enjoyed the notes!

Cheers
Ian

Ian

Gavin here.

I'm sure at the Sauce we had the 2003 Noons Reserve Shiraz, not the Eclipse??

At least from my memory.

Gavin Trott wrote:Gavin here.

I'm sure at the Sauce we had the 2003 Noons Reserve Shiraz, not the Eclipse??

At least from my memory.

WHOOPS!!!

I should read my notes more carefully - right you are Gavin, that was the Reserve Shiraz we tried.

Max (and everyone else) please disregard the first bit of the reply about trying it at the Sauce - last weeks Blacktongues was the first time.

Thanks for the correction (it won't be the last)
Ian