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It was neck and neck for a while tasting this alongside the outstanding 2005 Yalumba FDW[7c] but given time the Penfolds showed a little more class and depth - as it should being triple the price. This sees 10 months in 85% new French oak and 100% malolactic fermentation.

Aromas of nectarine, fresh figs, grapefruit, smoke, almond and spice. Wild and funky on opening but more subdued after being given a little quiet time. On the palate a smooth and glossy wine with fine acidity and excellent texture. There are flavours of stonefruit, fig, citrus and ginger spice along with more nutty creamy characters. Finishes very long with spicy flavours and a light grippy phenolic exit. A very sophisticated chardonnay with great depth and finesse.

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Tasting two Adelaide Hills chardonnays tonight has been most interesting. Both the Penfolds 05A and the FDW[7c] involve lots of letters and numbers (a bit like a Winorama tasting note) and are complex sophisticated wines, but not ones made to a formula. This is a small make of 400 cases and uses the Bernard clones of chardonnay 76 and 95 which were selected from vineyards near Beaune and first propagated locally in the late eighties. The FDW (Fine Dry White) spends 14 months in French oak of which 57% is new.

Aromas of citrus, peach, apple crumble, almond nougat and spice. On the palate flavours of nectarine, grapefruit, almond meal and light toasty spicy oak. Excellent texture with a crisp acid attack balanced by light creaminess. Fresh with no heaviness. Very long flinty finish with an almond, spice and lemon aftertaste. Super wine. Great value.

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This is my second bottle of this wine. I think I might have consumed my previous bottle too quickly, so I gave this one a good decant. Though I must say that it is slightly disquietening opening a bottle of wine at 8 o’clock in the morning; at least there weren’t any brown paper bags in the vicinity.

A blend of 95% Sangiovese and 5% Canaiolo. Quite a savoury and persuasive nose, with dark cherries and undergrowth, some leather and dusted cherries, fine clean earth and spices like oregano and savoury. The palate is savoury too, with cherry fruits and blacker fruits too, dry spices, fine and dusty tannins, and a charming acid spine. A wine with some depth of flavour, perfectly suited to the winter climate in Brisbane, and really everyone should have a few bottles of this in the cellar.

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St Henri would be in my top ten favourite shiraz. I just noticed that the RRP is now $80. Depending on how you look at it you could argue that it’s either still too cheap or just a bit too expensive. The former position being relative to its quality compared to Grange and the latter in comparison to other top shiraz available in the market place. I will continue to buy in good vintage because I love both the wine and the style. I just wish there were more like it…

Dark and brooding with aromas of blackberry, raspberry, Old Jamaica chocolate, pepper, spice and burnt wood. On the palate thick and full bodied with blackberry, raspberry, charcoal, pepper, spice and dark chocolate flavours. Significantly dry and meaty but not without some freshness. The tannins are firm and again meaty and grippy. Finishes dry and spicy with a dark chocolate and charcoal aftertaste. I think this will soften and sweeten up with further bottle age. Not a great St Henri but a good wine from a tricky vintage.

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I got this in a 4 pack from Boccaccio Cellars: one each of the ‘99, ‘00, ‘01 and ‘02. I initially thought this was something that Anthony threw together but it would seem that it was actually from the winery, because it came in a lovely Roda box with a booklet outlining all things Rodaish. No, I haven’t read it, but I will one day.

Herbs, red cherry fruits, red currants and earth. A lighter palate than I expected, particularly after trying an ‘03 recently. Initially it showed red fruits, dried leather, dried herbs and a minerally dryness, but it opened up nicely to display more of a red liquorice character, with a leathery richness and livelier red fruits, like raspberries. A super wine… I wish I had more; drink over the next 3-5 years.

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When we stayed with my sister in law recently “The Ed” was her local so I went out to buy a wine for dinner. I knew most of the local and NZers on the shelf but had not tried this. I have been very impressed with the whites from 2004 in Burgundy.
This wine is brilliant in the glass. The nose is pretty classic for white Burgundy, a bit of butter, a bit of peach, a little resin like. The palate is soft and balanced and drinking very well now. The flavours are as indicated by the nose, a little peach, a soft oak, and a bit of pinot gris like honeysuckle.
The finish is shorter rather than long. I believe that this will greatly reward a couple of years in the cellar which will let the mid palate fill out. At the price it is in the ball park for lots of good Aussie Chardonnays but I am a believer in variety so try one and put a few away for two to five years. The alcohol is listed as 12.5% which from my experience with this sort of balance, will translate to good value cellaring.

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I came across this wine by virtue of a clearing sale at a local property. The owner was, to be polite, rather older than I and after a minor stroke was selling everything, including some of his wine. I have lost interest in Cabs but a rather nice right bank style from the Margaret River got me enthused to try this. It has a rather attractive nose showing dusty oak, a bit of cassis, a bit of green pepper and a cinnamon like spice. The palate was a bit more complex showing some dried herbs along with the green pepper and on the finish some currants. Reasonably long finish but still shows the cool climate aspect of its vineyard which is in a quite a warm part of the Mornington Peninsula, from a warm year.

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Bloke walked into my office yesterday and said ‘Bloody shiraz! It is always bloody shiraz! Where is the cabernet?’ Wise fellow even if he looks astoundingly gormless. Anyway, I really like Taylors. The Estate and St Andrews are great but I seem to struggle with this Jaraman range. The difficult middle child perhaps? Or maybe it is just me because this wine just won a ‘great gold medal’ at the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles and a swag of other wine show awards.

Aromas of cassis, berry, mint, dark chocolate, licorice and toasty spicy oak. On the palate full bodied with dark berry, plum, pepper, tobacco and toasty spicy oak. Firm slightly astringent tannins. OK but really just too dry and charry for my tastes.

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I have always really liked the Tri-Centenary vines. I missed tasting the last couple of vintages so I decided to touch Yalumba up for a bottle. Turns out that this is the second last vintage to be released and the wine will be no more. I didn’t ask why but it seems such a shame.

Aromas of plum, cherry, leather, spice and dark chocolate. Some florals but no confection. On the palate medium to full bodied with cherry, dark chocolate, leather and spicy flavours. Firm grippy tannins and a little warmth but no heat. Dry spicy leathery finish. Drinking very well now. It’s an excellent grenache.

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Tim Kirk and Bryan Martin. Both from the Canberra region. Both make shiraz viognier and both have surnames that work equally well as first names. Very suspicious. This wine opened up amazingly perfumed, so much so that it smelt like a dessert wine, but given a day of airing it settled right down and turned into something really good.

Perfumed aromas of dark fruit, cherry, licorice, spice, jasmine and creamy vanilla oak. Initially plenty of apricot and florals but given time the flamboyant viogner influence retreats discreetly into the background. On the palate medium bodied with a mix of red and black fruits, spice, vanilla cream and some meaty savoury flavours. Beautiful smooth fine grained tannins. It feels lively and well balanced with a supple texture. Long spicy stonefruit finish. Lots of charm and complexity.

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I love this wine but it is pushing the style envelope so far that it needs an international stamp! It is unusual for an Australian shiraz to include about 40% whole bunches but it works well here and I think it adds authority to the wine. Respect my Authorita!

Aromas of blackcurrant, raspberry, dark cherry, spice, pepper, game, a hint of capsicum, stalks and pencilly oak. A riot of smells. On the palate just a fraction over medium bodied with blackcurrant, cherry, meat, spice and vanilla flavours. Firm lightly sappy tannins with a fine emery board texture and refreshing balanced acidity. Finishes very long with a slight (but attractive) stalky character. It even gained weight and complexity after being open for a day. It’s a wine that pushes local boundaries and all the right buttons. Controversial perhaps? I find it engaging and ultra-stylish.

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My friend George did a really risky thing, he let our other friend Lindsay loose to choose a bottle from his cellar. This was the result and as usual it was presented blind. I worked out that it was a beautiful Barossa Shiraz but its relative youth totally fooled me with respect to its age. It has quite a deep garnet red colour in the glass. The aromas that seem to ooze out of the glass are of rich red fruits, a bit of leather and a hint of fennel. The palate is long and powerful showing fruit flavours complimented by secondary flavours that combine to give a very nice package. I have no idea of the oak used but it seemed to show a little of the classic “A P John” style and a bit of gunpowder/sulfide in back that sit perfectly with the fruit. I would love to see this in another 10 to 15 years.

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I don’t suppose many people ever called him the space cowboy, nor the gangster of love, but they did call him Maurice and much later named a wine in his honour. I often wonder whether he would have approved of the style considering the prodigious amount of new oak they throw at it.

Aromas of cherry, raspberry, pepper, earth and plenty of coffee toffee oak. On the palate medium bodied with plum, prune, earth and sweet spicy toasty oak. Firm slightly hard grainy tannins and a little warm alcohol. Finishes with stewed fruit and vanilla flavours. Interesting flavour profile. Might blossom if the oak integrates further but I’m not optimistic.

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Blackwell is named for St Hallett winemaker Stuart Blackwell who must have had ancestors that lived near a black well once upon a time. I wonder whether it was just the outside of the well that was black and mucky or whether it was the water inside that was a bit nasty as well…

Aromas of blackberry, plum, pepper, meat and lots of charred coconut and coffee oak. On the palate medium to full bodied with blackberry, plum, pepper, meat and toasty coffee oak flavours. Quite savoury with good fine grained tannins and a dry coffee oak finish. It is a good wine but you have to enjoy a fairly savoury oak driven flavour profile to enjoy it.

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I received this wine a little ago, and it was accompanied by its little brother, a straight Cotes du Rhone. I should have sampled them next to each other to compare and contrast, but as it has worked out over 3 weeks has elapsed. I will have to rely on my rather dodgy memory, but for me this was probably a little weaker, but admittedly only costs a few more bucks. A gravelly nose, with cherry and plum fruits, kirsch and dried herbs. The palate needed some time to blossom, and though it will never been a rose garden, it was appealing with some savoury minerality and restrainted richness, sour cherries and leather and dry herbs. The finish is drying too. A pleasant wine with nice weight and pleasing tannins. Drink over the next 4 or 5 years.

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Enough of all these current releases - here is one from the cellar. I bought this in 2003 when I visited the Barossa and as it happened stayed in a small cottage run by Christa Dean (nee Binder), located more in the Eden Valley than the Barossa. Still a dark red. A floral nose, nutty and creamy with spiced red plums. On the palate it showed red cherries and a good deal of confection like caramel allsorts and marzipan, soft and rounded and really quite cuddly. Not quite my style of wine anymore - I’d like to see a bit more definition. Drink now.

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My my this is ambitiously priced for any Australian chardonnay, let alone one from the Hunter Valley, let alone one with no pedigree. It comes from 30 year old vines and crops at 1.5 tonnes per acre though. Cork closure an unusual choice.

Aromas of green melon, peach, oatmeal, spice and honey nougat with a good strike of flinty complexity. On the palate dry and flinty with citrus, peach and banana backed with some nutty nougat flavours and fine spicy oak. Good balance along the length of the palate with a dry finish and some grippy phenolics on exit. Nice wine but feels just a bit too stale for higher points.

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Coonawarra is not known for producing excellent chardonnay but this one is right on the money.

Aromas of peach, banana, matchstick and almond with some spicy lightly varnishy oak. On the palate medium bodied with peach, nougat, spice and some yeasty savoury flavours. It has a smooth creamy texture with attractive oak and warmish alcohol providing additional body and sweetness. Good long spicy creamy finish. An excellent crowd pleasing commercial chardonnay delivering plenty of satisfaction and value.

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I served this blind tonight and more than one taster thought it had an Italian feel about it. It does too but I think the Hunter terroir comes through most strongly.

Aromas of cherry, raspberry, earth, tar, dried herbs and smoke. On the palate medium bodied with earthy cherry and blackcurrant flavours. A little lacking in depth and vinosity with slightly tangy acid and smooth tannins. Falls away a little on the finish but overall a good drink with plenty of interest.

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I have just heard that Rutherglen winemaker Chris Killeen died last Tuesday, June 19, 52 years young. He was one of our best makers of fortified wine. I first met Chris at Charles Sturt in 1980 when a group of us were doing a short update on winemaking. Chris was a great tennis player so he and I used to volunteer to carry the likes of John Ellis in games of tennis at the end of the day. He was a most engaging person with great compassion. I still remember him taking me through the different spirits available for fortifying and being amazed at the subtle variations of this firewater and how the choice would influence the finished wine and its aging prospects. Several years later he spent a morning showing Wendy and I across his reserve muscats in a special family barrel collection, an experience Wendy still talks about with great reverence. In recent years we have enjoyed some lovely Shiraz from “Jacks Block”. He is survived by wife Ann, daughter Natasha and son Simon. Simon is in his first year of studying to be a winemaker and knowing Chris, I am sure Simon will already be a great sportsman and ready to continue the tradition. Wendy and I will toast the memory of Chris with friends, using a fine Stanton and Killeen Rutherglen muscat of course.

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