1970 Clare Valley Brut ‘Champagne’ (sic): Flat as a tack and looking like the Yarra river on a bad day, this still had some nice ginger characters which combined with the dosage made it almost drinkable despite being completely oxidised. This was a real weird label – just a company/club (which I didn’t note down) and no real indicator of who actually made it, or what it was made from either.
1999 Lindemans Bin 9455 Hunter Valley Semillon: Light gold colour. Tight nose with pithy/slightly waxy fruit, and the palate doesn’t give up much either – this was better as it warmed up, but was always in the shadow of the Tyrrell’s Vat 1.
1998 Tyrrell’s Vat 1 Semillon: Bright straw colour. The wine was closed tight at first from being chilled, but gradually opened up enough to be much more complex and youthful than the Lindemans, grassy/pithy at first, then wonderfully nutty. The best of the whites, this is still a little between phases and needs more time to develop.
1996 Domaine Henri Clerc Grand Cru, Chevalier Montrachet: Dark gold colour. Glorious bouquet of sweet lemon/a little orange peel and very rich, hazelnut/vanilla cheesecake. Creamy/vanillin entry followed by tangy lemon and mouthwatering vanilla, dropping away mid-palate to leave some coffee grounds and a slender, lingering finish. Very good at first, but it deteriorated in the glass too quickly: I really expected a lot more from this Grand Cru Burgundy.
1978 Santa Margherita Pinot Nero, Dell Alto Adige: Pale to mid brick. Amazingly still vaguely resembling Pinot, lightweight with gamey/very tangy strawberry jam, coffee and also some smoky/metallic characters that mercifully didn’t go over the top. Very drinkable but only just hanging in there – looks like we tried this just in time.
1999 Hardy’s Tintara Reserve Grenache: Very dark red. Still very young and fresh with slurpy, sweet blueberry/black cherry fruit and lots of milled black pepper that intensifies with breathing. Surprisingly good, especially compared to the disappointing Reserve Shiraz from the same vintage.
1998 d’Arenberg Dead Arm Shiraz: Very inky crimson. Open, sweet and porty nose of black liquorice/star anise, black cherries then blackberries, boiled lollies, roast coffee/leather and milk chocolate. The palate’s only medium-weight and is very sweet like the nose, with loads of mint and pepper thrown in for good measure. This is drinking well and is consistent with a bottle a few months ago, although its distinct lack of palate weight/structure compared to Barossa equivalents was highlighted again.
2002 Elderton Barossa Shiraz: Dark, earthy, plummy fruit with hints of dark chocolate and petroleum surfacing with breathing; the palate’s weightier, darker and more savoury than the Dead Arm, with some tomato skin and a very long, chocolaty finish, although there’s also a little minty alcohol poking out on the end. While the Dead Arm is more complex, I was left with the impression there’s more grunt and more potential in this one.
1998 Primo Estate Moda Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot: Glorious, inky red. The merlot seems a little more prominent this time around; the wine’s soft, round, earthy and meaty with loads of dark chocolate and cloves, the big chewy tannins kicking in mid-palate leaving a stunningly long, chewy finish. Much better than my last bottle a few years ago, and still with massive potential; the first of a glorious trio of reds that blew everyone away.
1990 Wynns Coonawarra Estate John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon: Very inky crimson/purple. Very complex nose with all the right JR characters, yet like the colour it has a youthful zing that blatantly defies its eighteen years of age; cassis/black coal backed by creamy vanillin oak with touches of capsicum, peppermint, banana skin and petroleum. The full-weight palate’s just as exotic and sweet, thunderous black cherries/blackcurrants with some banana leaf and liquorice, leading to an extremely long, grippy finish. By the end of the night we were pretty evenly split between this and the following as WOTN – for me right now this was just edged out but has much more potential, probably twenty years worth on this form. Outstanding.
1990 Penfolds Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon: I bought this wine on release fifteen years ago and over that time I’ve heard/read different stories – in contrast to the Penfolds Rewards of Patience which continually called it a drink now/soon prospect, it also had a reputation as a giant-killer and forever youthful Peter Pan in some circles. In the last year I’ve tried the 1991 and 1994 vintages, so serving it blind as a head-to-head comparison with the John Riddoch was too good to resist; still a youthful, dark to inky crimson colour. At first the nose screams out the limestone coast with minty/menthol, capsicum, white pepper, a little ashtray and earthy/chalky and powerful blackcurrants; against the JR it’s warmer and incredibly complex, chocolaty and soupy with honeycomb, a little sour mash, jus and tobacco. The palate’s even more impressive, jubey/earthy blackcurrant fruit with hints of liquorice and menthol, medium-weight but the balance is absolutely stunning, the finish extremely long with thick, grainy tannins encased in sweet, dark fruit. Tonight the giant-killer tag is justified – a good deal better than the 1991 and 1994 vintages, and there’s absolutely no sign of it falling over in a hurry either.
2008 Winter Creek Vintage Port (barrel sample): Even right out of the barrel this has all the goodies of the previous vintages, thick, creamy fruit choc-full of liquorice and funky brandy spirit. While it won’t see the light of day for another three years and realising it’s gross infanticide, it’s still remarkable just how approachable this VP is – in light of recent events it mightn’t pay to publicly call it ‘ready-to-drink’ though!
Cheers
Ian
