The Auswine Forum

Now i must admit to not being a regular white drinker, but this moment finds me wallowing through a brisbane evening that is ALREADY a little to warm and humid for my liking, with the help of (shock! horror!) a lovely little sauv blanc from marlborough.

this 2007 ASTROLABE is really hitting the spot, and all of a sudden I think I may have stumbled across the reason marlborough s/b was such a popular little drinker in the first place... seriously refreshing stuff. pity about all the sh*te ones you have to wade through, though :S

so, after enjoying a similar thread recently, I would like to refresh the topic of what you're drinking and enjoying as you read this... surprising or not.

ciao!

tim

i'm drinking this:

http://www.winorama.com.au/tasting-note ... /#comments


De Bortoli Gulf Station Shiraz Viognier 2005

i find it a bit ... disgusting

nice dark red color when held to light. brightish red.

the nose is strange.. a bit floral, its different. not that pleasant. smells a bit like 4 day old wine. not vinegary, but that fruity estery smell. can't describe it

light body, the strange smell carries on to a strange taste. but finshes nice and smooth with a secondary burst of blackberry. finish is long, but falls off and doesn't linger. no spice, and left with a plum-ish aftertaste.

i dont like it. its not a harsh wine, but its not agreeable with my palate

83 points

As opposed to 82 points?

lordson wrote:i'm drinking this:

http://www.winorama.com.au/tasting-note ... /#comments


De Bortoli Gulf Station Shiraz Viognier 2005

i find it a bit ... disgusting

nice dark red color when held to light. brightish red.

the nose is strange.. a bit floral, its different. not that pleasant. smells a bit like 4 day old wine. not vinegary, but that fruity estery smell. can't describe it

light body, the strange smell carries on to a strange taste. but finshes nice and smooth with a secondary burst of blackberry. finish is long, but falls off and doesn't linger. no spice, and left with a plum-ish aftertaste.

i dont like it. its not a harsh wine, but its not agreeable with my palate

83 points

Sounds like a nice elegant wine?

I don't think I've had this vintage, but the 06 (if thats what I had) was very smart.

well it just didn't feel like a 82 pointer

what is that funny smell? bit of a carion sort of smell

and the wine has small bubbles on top at the sides of the glass that don't go away, like all the bubles in the other wines i've had

maybe because the body is light

anybody know what i'm talking about with the funny smell/taste?

edit: i'm just drinking some now, its been out for 1 night. and its even worse. the wine aftertaste is gone, and it just tastes a bit vinergary

i bought this at DM. could it have been badly stored? should i bring the bottle back and get one of them to try some? or is it just a crappy wine?

We missed you lordson.

lordson wrote:well it just didn't feel like a 82 pointer

Fantastic

Some of what you've described (floral, fruity estery) sounds like it could be the viognier component you're picking up, and perhaps you don't much like it.

I can't comment on circumference bubble endurance from a position of expertise I'm afraid...

lordson wrote:
what is that funny smell? bit of a carion sort of smell

I'm going to add this one to my digest of descriptors.

just sounds like it's not your style of wine - estery sounds like the apricoty/floral viogner component as Bick mentioned.

fair enough comment lordson - viogner is one of those styles that polarises people, and can be made really well, or really averagely.

Pirathon Shiraz 2005
This is certainly flavour packed and seems to have developed quite a bit since last I tried it last year from memory. Delicious nonetheless, pie spices, viscous fruity richness, Barossa for a bargain but I don't think a long haul wine... But for $20, no matter.

Edit: This is the business, over some time this has unfolded nicely. Delicious ++

Lordson,

Sounds like you got a bad bottle. There shouldn't be any effervescence in your glass, particularly if it continues. My guess is that the bubbles are from secondary fermentation and now that the bottle is open it will rapidly turn to vinegar.

Did you get a bit of spritz in the mouth when you first tasted it. Thats another sign.

Cheers...........Mahmoud

Wayno wrote:Pirathon Shiraz 2005
This is certainly flavour packed and seems to have developed quite a bit since last I tried it last year from memory. Delicious nonetheless, pie spices, viscous fruity richness, Barossa for a bargain but I don't think a long haul wine... But for $20, no matter.

Edit: This is the business, over some time this has unfolded nicely. Delicious ++

I found these very closed (the 2006 as well). Drank better on day two. I admit to liking them more than the Kalleske shiraz but have yet to have them side by side.

cheers

Carl

I was impressed with the potency and complexity of the wine. If anything, a touch on the sweet/spice side but very drinkable regardless. It is, for mine, drinking much better than a year ago (and I thought it was no slouch then).

Keen to see how the other half of the bottle is tonight.

Yering Station 05 Shiraz Viognier

A leftover wedding wine from last year. Drinking quite finely indeed. The requisite apricot but not OTT.

lordson wrote:i'm drinking this:

http://www.winorama.com.au/tasting-note ... /#comments


De Bortoli Gulf Station Shiraz Viognier 2005

i find it a bit ... disgusting

nice dark red color when held to light. brightish red.

the nose is strange.. a bit floral, its different. not that pleasant. smells a bit like 4 day old wine. not vinegary, but that fruity estery smell. can't describe it

light body, the strange smell carries on to a strange taste. but finshes nice and smooth with a secondary burst of blackberry. finish is long, but falls off and doesn't linger. no spice, and left with a plum-ish aftertaste.

i dont like it. its not a harsh wine, but its not agreeable with my palate

83 points

I've had the same experience with this. I love the estate 05, but the gulf station is somewhat disagreeable. Nah.

Voyager Estate Chardonnay 2006
Very good wine, quite muscular and weighty with a good depth of fruit. Grapefruit, with some peachy aftertones and with tonnes of structure. I think, in a taste off with the Cape Mentelle 06 I slightly favour the CM, purely for it's purer style and more textural/viscous qualities but this is still a winner and will no doubt improve nicely for a while yet.

Debortoli Yarra Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1995
October 23rd, 2008 | Category: Cabernet Sauvignon, Yarra Valley

Still holds a good depth of colour to the edge - looks particularly youthful and attractive. Opens with some strong herbaceousness, autumnal leafiness and damp earth that triggered alarm bells of being a jolly green giant. Thankfully, everything, eventually, came into balance and, sip by sip, hour by hour this wondrous thing just gets better and better. A myriad of savoury sour and perplexing, integrated “sweet” fragrances emanate out of the Riedel. There’s traces of iodine, dill, nettle, weeds, dusty cedar, creosote and tar intermingling with deep-set blackcurrant fruit and a lick of licorice. In the mouth, this sweetly-fruited medium-bodied red displays marvellous mouthfeel, terrific line, seamless integration of components, admirable balance and structure including a gorgeous fluffy tannin regime, quenching acidity, more of that savoury oak counterbalance and a wonderfully long, elegant finish. Approaching its peak drinking window, a well-kept bottle of this wine will not fall over anytime soon. An absolutely brilliant wine for what it is - 92 points. (Before it come up in the glass I was flat out 85, not fussed and thinking of opening something else to accompany the fillet mignon) 13.5% A/V

P.S. I guarantee if you served this blind to people who knew their wines, it would have many thinking it’s a maturing, middle-ranked Bordeaux.

Footnote - the wine has fallen apart overnight in a most dramatic fashion - I’ll rehash my drinking window to “drink now with a decent 2 hour decant to rid the wine of its green streak”.

Wayno wrote:Voyager Estate Chardonnay 2006
Very good wine, quite muscular and weighty with a good depth of fruit. Grapefruit, with some peachy aftertones and with tonnes of structure. I think, in a taste off with the Cape Mentelle 06 I slightly favour the CM, purely for it's purer style and more textural/viscous qualities but this is still a winner and will no doubt improve nicely for a while yet.

I've tried two of these, Wayno, over the past month or so and neither were weighty or muscular. Got plenty of melon, grapefruit and pear, not much in the way of peach in the bouquet, just a bit on the palate. Quite linear and with a rather tight, steely structure, I thought. Very nice wine and will cellar for 4-6 years.

I agree about your comment about the Cape Mentelle being a tad superior. I'm thinking of buying some more of each.

dlo wrote:

Wayno wrote:Voyager Estate Chardonnay 2006
Very good wine, quite muscular and weighty with a good depth of fruit. Grapefruit, with some peachy aftertones and with tonnes of structure. I think, in a taste off with the Cape Mentelle 06 I slightly favour the CM, purely for it's purer style and more textural/viscous qualities but this is still a winner and will no doubt improve nicely for a while yet.

I've tried two of these, Wayno, over the past month or so and neither were weighty or muscular. Got plenty of melon, grapefruit and pear, not much in the way of peach in the bouquet, just a bit on the palate. Quite linear and with a rather tight, steely structure, I thought. Very nice wine and will cellar for 4-6 years.

I agree about your comment about the Cape Mentelle being a tad superior. I'm thinking of buying some more of each.

Weighty and muscular might be a bit of poetic license in my case.

Cullen SSB 2007
Like the last bottle, quite highly strung - sort of like a posy of flowers immersed in a tub of handcream and sprinkled with lemon rind. Happens quite a lot I imagine. With some time, this has opened a bit and is well on it's way to deliciousness. A fine wine.

Wayno wrote:Cullen SSB 2007
Like the last bottle, quite highly strung - sort of like a posy of flowers immersed in a tub of handcream and sprinkled with lemon rind. Happens quite a lot I imagine. With some time, this has opened a bit and is well on it's way to deliciousness. A fine wine.

Doesn't sound so much "highly strung" as truly disgusting, based on that description

orpheus wrote:

Wayno wrote:Cullen SSB 2007
Like the last bottle, quite highly strung - sort of like a posy of flowers immersed in a tub of handcream and sprinkled with lemon rind. Happens quite a lot I imagine. With some time, this has opened a bit and is well on it's way to deliciousness. A fine wine.

Doesn't sound so much "highly strung" as truly disgusting, based on that description

Don't knock it, you should try it sometime.

Josef Chromy Pepik Pinot Noir 2007
This wine is serious business and a bargain for $15 on special. Serious chewy palate, with lifted plummy earthy aromatics and some spices evident. Terrific, very easy drinking stuff - not sure if it's going to be around in ten years but who cares.

Wayno wrote:

orpheus wrote:

Wayno wrote:Cullen SSB 2007
Like the last bottle, quite highly strung - sort of like a posy of flowers immersed in a tub of handcream and sprinkled with lemon rind. Happens quite a lot I imagine. With some time, this has opened a bit and is well on it's way to deliciousness. A fine wine.

Doesn't sound so much "highly strung" as truly disgusting, based on that description

Don't knock it, you should try it sometime.

Agreed Wayno. I think some of its appeal is the fullness and texture, as much as the aromas and flavours. Still not sure about the handcream as a descriptor, however

Waiters Friend wrote:

Wayno wrote:

orpheus wrote:

Wayno wrote:Cullen SSB 2007
Like the last bottle, quite highly strung - sort of like a posy of flowers immersed in a tub of handcream and sprinkled with lemon rind. Happens quite a lot I imagine. With some time, this has opened a bit and is well on it's way to deliciousness. A fine wine.

Doesn't sound so much "highly strung" as truly disgusting, based on that description

Don't knock it, you should try it sometime.

Agreed Wayno. I think some of its appeal is the fullness and texture, as much as the aromas and flavours. Still not sure about the handcream as a descriptor, however

Lanolin would have been a more accurate description.

Wayno wrote:Josef Chromy Pepik Pinot Noir 2007
This wine is serious business and a bargain for $15 on special. Serious chewy palate, with lifted plummy earthy aromatics and some spices evident. Terrific, very easy drinking stuff - not sure if it's going to be around in ten years but who cares.

Where did you get it ?

A Vintage Cellars cheapie special- 2 for $30 a few weeks back now. Had to snap up the remaining two bottles there.

Wayno wrote:A Vintage Cellars cheapie special- 2 for $30 a few weeks back now. Had to snap up the remaining two bottles there.

Thanks, you say it won't last too long but any time frame for drinking window? I might get some from the winery direct.

I'd suggest it'll stick around for a few years and let's face it - 10 years is pushing it for a lot of Aussie Pinot. Probably a better way of putting it would be that it's drinking so nicely as it is, I can't really imagine time doing too much for it other than reducing the pucker a bit, but it's the grippy pucker that makes it so good, in my opinion. I think this RRPs for $20 - not sure if Gavin sells it, would be worth checking.