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Interesting wine this one. It comes from the D.O. of Jumilla and I’d say it makes for a pleasant change of pace if you are looking for a robust weekday sort of wine.

Strong dark colour it smells of cherry jam, boysenberry, pepper, baked earth and dried herbs. On the palate medium to full bodied with a mix of sweet jammy fruit and more spicy earthy flavours with a certain bitter dried herb edge adding interest (at least for me). It has some warmth from alcohol, fairly gritty rustic tannins and a sweet and slightly bitter finish. It’s the sort of wine to drink you could happily quaff from a tumbler whilst tucking into a bit of roast pork. Thigh slapping and bawdy conversation is optional.

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This comes off a single vineyard planted in 1853 and tasting it next to the ‘Baby Bush’ of the same vintage (a young vine version with cuttings taken from the Old Garden) really highlighted the intensity and concentration of flavour these old vines produce. The grapes from this vineyard are some of the last to be picked in the Barossa coming in this vintage in late May. This sees 100% new French oak and by any standard (worldwide) it’s a remarkable wine. If it were a Shiraz of the same pedigree then the price would most likely be (at least) double. Mourvèdre is a most noble and under-valued grape.

Deep and brooding with dark fruit, liquorice, roast nuts. plenty of spicy mocha oak and smelling of the warm earth in which it was grown. On the palate rich and full bodied with black fruit, nuts, leather, dark chocolate and spice flavours - all distinctly adult and savoury although there is no shortage of ripe sweet fruit so it’s not without a softer side. The tannins are ripe and plentiful but not intrusive and the finish is gloriously long. It’s a complete wine - magnificent and distinctive.

Other vintages : 2005, 2004

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Such beautiful packaging and it would be even better with a DIAM or screwcap. Anyway, it has been a busy time for us this week welcoming our first born Charles (who is an absolute beauty!) into the world on Tuesday, but I still have my old baby to feed and poor old Winorama is feeling a little neglected. I’ll still aim to give him a bottle or two a day over the coming weeks if I can manage it. Burp!

An attractive perfume wafts over dark cherry, red berry, leather, dark chocolate and spice. On the palate full bodied with black cherry and red fruit, spice, leather, dried herb and dark chocolate flavours. It has plush ripe fruit but essentially tastes dark and savoury. Fine open weave lightly grainy tannins provide a supple mouthfeel and the finish is long with dark cherry, spice and leather to close. A brilliant example of rich old vine Barossa goodness.

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This comes from the Alicante DO and I tasted it alongside a 2005 Syrah from the same producer. I am not very big on the Syrah (and we do that well enough locally anyway), but do fancy this Monastrell (Mourvedre) quite a bit. It is a much better wine and has has interest and personality to boot. Imported by Ce Soir Wine Importers.

Aromas of dark cherry, blood plum, Provençal herbs, earth, spice and ashtray. A little wild but quite engaging. On the palate medium bodied with blood plum and cherry, dried herb, spice and meaty slightly rubbery flavours. It has dry slightly coarse tannins married to attractive well rounded fruit. It feels rustic but has good balance and plenty of charm. I like drinking this and at the price it makes for a champion BBQ wine with a bit of interest.

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I don’t often have a straight Mourvedre but I may have more after trying this last night. Gary reviewed this in April last year and I can see that it has changed in that time. Very rich and unctuous on the nose and the palate. Aromas of plum, licorice and a bit of pepper like spice. The palate seems to have oak, fruit and a bit of alcohol warmth at the back of the palate. The flavours are quite powerful, the red berry/sweet fruit style with a bit of licorice and cracked pepper. Rather nice actually.

Other vintages : 2004

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I wanted to taste this alongside the 2005 vintage but never managed to make it to the bat cave (off site, at a hidden location) to retrieve one. Anyway, to make up for this, I tasted two bottles of this vintage. This is the second bottle and it is really coming together even after only a couple of months, so I’d say you really need to keep these wines for a while before drinking them.

Purple red. Aromas of sweet blue and black fruits, Black Forest Gâteau, vanilla, violet, earth, new leather and some spicy oak. A fascinating mix of deep rich fruit and more earthy ferrous characters. On the palate full bodied with dark fruit, earth, spice and chocolate flavours. Rich and decadent yet powerful and muscular - a gladiator relaxing at an orgy. Firm powdery tannins and a little warm alcohol. It has great physical presence yet retains a fine sense of balance and never looks clumsy. Enormous length of flavour. A striking and highly individual wine that will cellar magnificently.

Other vintages : 2005

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Mourvedre is a much under-appreciated grape. The poor old bush vines that produce this wine were planted in 1853 and struggle along with no irrigation. They are hand pruned and hand harvested though so at least the old buggers don’t get a damned good thrashing a couple of times a year.

Aromas of black fruit, plum pudding, raspberry, old leather, licorice, earth, cold coffee and spicy oak. You can almost smell the earth in which it was grown. On the palate full bodied with plum pudding, raspberry, bitter orange chocolate and earthy spicy flavours. Firm (not hard) open weave tannins and no hint of alcohol heat contribute further to the fine sense of balance. Dry long walnutty spicy finish. Compelling and charismatic. I rarely get to taste wines that are quite this interesting.

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A new release from Spinifex in the Barossa Valley. This one is a blend of 55% Mataro and 45% Shiraz, and showing some pleasantly meaty blackcherries and minerally earth, with hazelnuts and creamy oak, dark chocolate and spices. The palate is a bit shy at the moment really, seeming a bit hollow and oaky, but there are some brooding black fruits and coffee grounds and the promise of better times when the Mataro sheds its reductive robes. An ugly duckling at the moment, but it has the structure to improve with some time in the bottle.

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Because I am cultured I know that Felix is not only the ‘wonderful wonderful cat’ but also Latin for ‘lucky’. It mentions this on the back label along with the howler that Mourvedre is a Northern Rhone variety. Anyway, they redeem themselves with the text on the front label that says - “She smiled and said ’spicy’. He replied ’savoury, but fruity too’. Wine is the weather of the mouth.” which appealed to me greatly.

Aromas of raspberry, flowers, meat and spice. Fresh and inviting. On the palate medium bodied with bright red fruit, pepper, spice and meaty flavours. Attractive dry lightly raspy tannins and fresh acidity. Finishes with spicy red fruit flavours. This reminds me of an excellent Spanish Joven - so drinkable and easy going. It’s a wine of great charm and utility so forget the points for once because I would happily drink this over many higher scoring wines any day of the week. Yum.

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I know nothing about Barletta, or the eponymous brothers, and their past is safe for the moment as Google doesn’t seem to know much about them either. I do vaguely recall enjoying a GSM blend of theirs a few years ago.

Some browning. The nose shows black caramel, almost treacle, blackberries and plums, and some woody spices. The palate is soft and supple, mature leather with aged meat characters and still some ripe fruit – sour red cherries. The tannins are fine and the finish is drying. It tastes a bit older than 5 years, so I would be drinking this now.

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I like Mataro. And you don’t see many straight Mataro around; I can only think of Hewitson, Spinifex and Wirra Wirra. I am sure there are more.

A deep red in colour. The nose offers succulent red and black fruits, green peppercorns, stalks, a dash of fondant and herbs, and maybe a smidge of pine resin. The palate is very nice too, medium bodied but full flavoured, with soft and supple fruits, raspberry liqueur and stalk, with some herbal, peppery and confectionary undertones. An interesting wine, and quite approachable too, which is a little uncharacteristic for Mataro.

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Roger Voudouris released his smash hit single ‘Get Used To It’ at the close of the 1970’s. He was a one hit wonder but Roger Pike of Marius Wines is a hit machine. His 2004 releases of Simpatico and Symphony were chart topping poptastic wines. Winorama has the first pressing of the 2005 Symposium and it enters our charts at number 95 with a (licorice) bullet. The A side is Shiraz and the B side is Mataro. 50/50. This will get high rotation at our house so I had better ‘Get used to it’.

Aromas of blackberry/boysenberry/blueberry, spice, earth, black licorice, cocoa and vanilla. On the full bodied palate there’s a flood of sweet black and blue berry fruit, spice and more earthy savoury black olive flavours. Suprisingly ripe mouthcoating tannins considering the high mourvedre content. A deliciously warm ride right through to the extended finish. I think there is a huge amount of development potential in this wine - especially when the mourvedre starts to break on through to the other side. Make sure you decant this for a couple of hours if you need to do one now.

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I really like grapes that start with the letter M. There should be more of them. This is a cellar door only special. Only 120 cases made.

Aromas of coconut/vanilla oak, toast, blueberry/blackberry, earth and spice. On the palate it has berry, spice and earth flavours backed with cedary vanilla oak. A bit lacking on the mid and back palate. Tannins are gritty. Pulls up a bit short. Vanilla berry aftertaste. Not enough M rated fruit to censor the oak. Perhaps some G rated grenache might have helped fill it out.

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Just popped into North Sydney Cellars for a preview of this weekends Rhone-style tasting. On the bench this week 05 Teusner Joshua GMS, 03 Torbreck Steading GSM, 04 Penfolds Bin 138, 03 Guigal Cotes du Rhone, and this one, the 04 Deisen Mataro. The one I choose to write about. It is 100% Mataro from vineyards located in the Marananga sub-region of the Barossa.

Aromas of dutch licorice, leather, earth and dark plum fruit with some floral lift. On the palate a big fat earthy tarry wine with excellent dark plum/cherry fruit. Make no mistake though it is not particularily fruity and the dark earthy licorice flavours dominate. Tannins are plentiful but fine. Alcohol gives warmth and body but does not intrude. Strong finish. Very charismatic wine.

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A blend of 60% mourvedre, 20% shiraz and 20% grenache.

Aromas of sweet red berry, red licorice, meat, pepper and something sweet and herbal - like chamomile. On the palate medium bodied with spicy red fruit, meat and dried herb flavours. Some warmth from alcohol. Not overly fruity or heavy with light dry tannins. Herb and strawberry finish. A well made wine with a bit of style.

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This was also tried at an in-store tasting. I must admit that I am a Mataro-iste - I love the stuff. This one was black/red in colour. A sweet earthy nose, with bitumen, nutmeg, a bit of cloves, black olives and dried meats. The palate is not very giving at the moment, structurally excellent, but angular, with a very drying and leathery finish. It is not tannic by any means, but needs some time to flesh out. It certainly doesn’t have the roundness of the Torbreck Shirazes. I have rated this on its potential more than its current drinkability, because at the moment there ain’t a lot of luving in the glass.

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A Côtes-du-Rhone Villages wine from Frederic and François Alary. Typically a blend of 60% Mourvedre, 20% Syrah and 20% Grenache.

Deep red. A lovely nose showing raspberries, red berries, blackcurrants, nutmeg and dusty herbs. The palate also shows red/black fruits, with gravel and minerals, pepper and herbs. The fruit is precise and has the balance of ballerina. A very good savoury wine with excellent length that is drinking well now and should drink well for another 4 years or so.

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I remember having the first vintage (1995) of the 28 Road at Walter’s Wine Bar in Melbourne sometime in 1997. I was quite taken with the funny grape that started with the letter M. A year later we were staggering about at the Sea and Vines festival in McLaren Vale..and after an heroic walk from Coriole down to d’Arenberg we purchased a dozen of the 1996 vintage. All gone now. This 2004 is a re-introduction to the wine and it includes Langhorne Creek fruit which has moved the goalposts a bit. This wine is a much lighter, fresher wine than the brooding examples I have tried previously.

Aromas of red berry pie, herbs, pepper and spice with some floral notes. Low oak influence. Interesting smelling wine. On the palate a medium to full bodied wine with red fruit/cherry, ripe tomato, herb, spice and grassy flavours. Quite fresh. Tannins are firm and dry but not intrusive. It has a bit of a Spanish accent this young Australian…which is probably why I am having a little trouble understanding it at the moment.

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100% Mataro. Very dark red, verging on black. A nose of blackness too: black fruits, black spices and molasses. The palate is juicy and malty, with blackberries and muscular fruits, chewy and textured; new leather, baked spices and black earth. It is really quite complex already, and though it is sweet, it is balanced by spice and a drying savoury finish. Dense and beautifully textured with terrific length. Needs 5+ years. A special wine - I am getting a six-pack of this one.

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A blend of 64% Mataro and 36% Shiraz from the Barossa Valley.

Quite a pretty floral nose, malty stonefruits, with some spice and leather, black cherries and earth. The palate is full flavoured, gobby black plums and savoury spice, with nice balance and chock full’o’love. Not really a fruit bomb but perhaps slightly on the sweeter side - soft and forgiving - molten tannins with a drying finish in a cinnamon bark kind of way. Quite young at the moment; needs some time to shed some puppy fat and gain some complexity.

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