13 wines: Unusual Wine Club Dinner - 16th July 2005
Originally there were 8 people to join this club night but after various emergencies, the attendance shrunk to five. We gathered in Vaucluse at László Kovács’ place for what turned out to be a very unusual club night with rather unique and “interesting†little wines for which I was unprepared. Luckily there were three excellent bottles that provided some sort of balance.
Left to right: Danny, László, Kieran, Robert and Attila
[b][u]2004 BURGÃ
"(Wine) information is only as valuable as its source" DB
Nice one Attila - I actually learnt more from this tasting than any other!
2004 BurganÂ’s Rias Baixas Albarino (Spain) Light yellow. Grapefruit and peach nose. Slight spritz. Sweet palate of tropical fruit punch. Coolabah-like. Gluggable. Clean. Creamy and ready to go 2 hours after bottling. Harmless cask wine.
85/100
2002 Geoff Weaver Adelaide Hills Pinot Noir (Australia) Mid red. Plums, spice, sweet cherries, good nose for youthful wine. As with 99% of Aussie pinots, palate doesn’t deliver anything but acid, dryness, mute fruit, no length. Obviously new world. I guessed Grosset. Bit worried about the ROTE – came straight off with little twisting!
84/100
2000 Peppertree Hunter Valley Reserve Malbec (Australia) Mid to deep red. Nose like shiraz – spicy, a lot of weight. Not very varietal. Palate is simple and 1-dimensional. Missing tannic structure. After 15 minutes, thin and diluted.
82/100
1982 Château Montrose (St.- Estèphe) Light to mid red with slight browns. Seamless nose of cedar, oak. Palate is balanced, ripe yet savoury, complex and typically St.- Estèphe rustic. Most thought early 90s. Drying finish with a lot of tannins remaining. Excellent wine but has shown better in the past.
89/100
1999 Pirramimma McLaren Vale Reserve Petit Verdot (Australia) Mid red. Rich and ripe nose. Young. Sweet. Packed with coconut and liquorice. 14% alcohol lift at end of nose and palate. Absolutely no acid or tannin structure. Elemental wine. Good though.
86/100
1997 Mount Pleasant Hunter Valley Old Paddock and Old Hill Shiraz (Australia) Grapes were hand picked from the Old Paddock (est.1880) and Old Hill (est.1920) vineyards. Light red. No brown. Good ripe nose: deep, spicy, plums. 13.5% A/V noticeable. Palate has very good length and matches bouquet. Very full and generous flavours. Needs time and will improve.
88/100
1986 Wynns Limited Release John Riddoch Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon (Australia) Dodgy cork that was glued to bottle. Corkscrew went straight through centre of cork – my 3rd bottle of 86 JR that has done this! Mid red. Deep blackcurrant overtones. Seamless palate with rich core of blackfruits, quality oak and excellent finish. Great tannin structure. Rare balance in Aussie wine. Still relatively young but entering its drinking window. Will last another 10 years with ease and likely to improve. Vies with the 1986 Mount Mary Yarra Valley Quintet as cabernet wine of the vintage and one of best Aussie cabernets ever. No joke, this is a bargain at current auction prices of A$70. Attila was adamant this was 1978 Margaux. Don’t laugh, having had the 78 Margaux earlier this year, he wasn’t far off! Very, very similar and its equal.
94+/100
2000 Gaia Estate Agiorgitiko (St. George) (Greece) Light red. Nothing nose only of 14% AV. No fruit definition. Barely drinkable. Gotta be ruthless with crap like this. Next.
63/100
2000 Happs Three Hills Shiraz (Margaret River) Mid to deep red. Nose and palate of sugary confection. No length, no finish, no structure. Totally non-descript. Just sweetness and 14.3% AV.
82/100
1999 Château Giscours (Margaux) Cooked nose of salami and asparagus. Muted palate. Tannic and bitter. Old fashioned style. Faulty.
Not Rated
2003 Mundrakoona Estate Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc (Mittagong, Australia) Sump oil nose. Petroleum. Sweet and very evolved. No structure. 10.2% alcohol.
81/100
1990 Disnoko Tokaji Aszu 5 Puttonyos (Hungary) Light gold with bronze tinges. Bouquet of coffee and toffee, with strong oxidative tangy flavours which open up with time. Curiously, sweet yet dry, with mild honey and marmalade. Like sweet lemons, plus a touch of hazelnuts and walnuts. Good length. I liked this and improved with time and will get better.
85/100
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
Re the 2000 Happs, sounds like a dodgie bottle, I was reasonably impressed when I tried it at the winery a couple of years ago; I bought some so must pull out a bottle to see whats going on.
Re the Mundrakoona - I will have you know that is regarded as one of the best wineries in the Southern Higlands! One thing, I am surprised they got it to ripe enough to get 10.2%
I must get Goofy to wonder through the vineyards of the Southern Highlands; it could only improve the flavour and if you got one that tasted like "wet dog" you would know the reason why.
One thing, I am surprised they got it to ripe enough to get 10.2% 
