Massena visit - easter weekend (long)

[tpang]

Excerpts from my blog...

(Just a quick note, I did not scribble scores for all of the wines I tasted, in fact I’ve forgotten some of the wines I had (not because they were bad; there were no bad wines at all!). But I won’t include retrospective scores, and given that this is my first proper experience doing barrel tastings, take them for whatever you think they’d be worth.)

Schild Estate in a corner of Lyndock opens early, and that’s where we stopped first since Rockford and Glaetzer were closed (the latter is only because they’re completely sold out at the moment, is Ben even in town now?). Schild Estate has ample parking space, a trellised frontage and a modernesque cellar door with merchandise in a corner. The 2006 Frontignac was lean and stingy with its ripe pear and floral smells 89/100. The 2006 GMS was fragrant, with a nose of carpeted red berries trailing into a light and peppery aftertaste 89/100. The 2005 merlot was interesting with silky tannins and mulberries 91/100, but the 03 Cab Sauv was too herby for my liking with a distinct aroma of tomato and sweet capsicum 88/100. The 2005 Shiraz was too weak, maybe the weakest character of any 05 shirazes I’ve had so far 86/100, and the 2005 Ben Schild reserve had too much fruitiness to it, making it too sweet and forthcoming, hence masking any undertones or tannins that might have been there NR. Still, their range goes from $14 - $35, so I suppose for a casual drink

Needing an immediate, severe pick-me-up, I dialed up Dan Standish who promptly crushed my world by forgetting about our appointment. But Dan was nice enough to get us in touch with Jaysen Collins who is his partner in crime at Massena, so we were off down a bumpy dirt trail onto an ex-Torbreck facility (05 Factor barrels still on-site).

There aren’t any vineyards around the property, just brownish grass plains and the occasional wandering flock of sheep. Jaysen holds a great cheery smile under the what-was-once-white cap and he walked us through the open vats sitting next to their basket presses, which we peered into, and were excited to see actual grapes and not just a swarm of bees and flies. Jaysen pointed out that they pick on ripeness and not on baume, which essentially meant that their fruit were on vines for longer than the bigger companies which panicked and started harvest 3-4 weeks earlier. They’re developing the two-room stone building into a cellar door (I’m sure the only decent bit of furniture in the form of a round wood table will feature prominently) and certainly look forward to revisiting when it’s completed later this year. Jaysen and Dan muck their fingers in Massena and the lower-priced Epsilon line without too much handholding or double dipping since each is confident enough of the others’ unquestionable ability and sense of direction.

We had a pour of the 2007 Viognier from Adelaide Hills which was my first experience with fresh pressed juice. It had a cloudy, murky appearance, looking remarkably like that bottle of fresh apple juice that you forgot on the balcony after a week of hot sun. But this was fantastic stuff! The juice was really sweet (unadulterated grape juice), crisp, fresh and very aromatic. 92/100 We then tried some Greenock Viognier which had just gone through a chiller. Very nice too, and had a cleaner look since it had been given some extra time to settle down. We then had some 2007 shiraz out of the chillers which takes them to about 0ºC; pretty raw stuff (remember that milk glass that you didn’t wash?) but an undeniable structure and flavours were starting to build up.

On to the barrels for some of the 2006 fruit that would go into the Massena lines. The Kalleske Grenache was a beauty, firm structure to go along with solid tannins and acidity. Jaysen reached into a vat containing a very interesting durif/viognier blend - in my opinion, an experiment certainly worth giving a go. I think shiraz/viognier blends are being done to death, but durif is an alternative that imparts the big tannins and dryness so if you have a strong fruity viognier (or using a higher percentage in the blend), it could definitely work together. I’m definitely in it for some of this once it hits the shelves. (90-92)/100

Went back into the stone cottage for some Massena 2005 The Eleventh Hour and Epsilon 2006 Rose. The Massena 11th Hour had a blood red crimson hue and exuded notes of earthy raspberry. It had a silky texture with broad sweeping flavours, and the residue made me salivate as the secondary flavours of roasted chocolate started kicking in. 94-96/100

The Epsilon Rose is made in a bigger style than the usual summer roses. Lots of fruity flavours with a firm dry aftertaste, and the current winter sunshine would be the perfect backdrop for busting a bottle of this!

[Gavin Trott]

Massena make fantastic wines and have been an auswine favourite since the 2000 vintage!

These new 2005 wines should be available from us by about the end of the month, according to Dan and Jaysen, and I look forward to it!

[rwatkins]

We sell two Massenas here in Winnipeg, Canada, The 11th Hour and the Moonlight Run (GSM blend). Both 2004 vintages. Right now I think the Moonlight Run is drinking better but the 11th Hour should, in the long run be the better wine from the cellar. Thanks - Rick