The Home of Renowned Tasting

Day One
The notes are a little sketchy, although I took some, but for once I’d expect that you might let me off the hook a little as it’s a social occasion for me, rather than a professional one (such as I might consider myself every now and then). I’m writing these notes straight from the heart - the best wines evoke this (feel free to call me a wanker now). The first night (Friday) was held at the magnificent Yarra Valley restaurant of Gary Cooper and Tim Sawyer, Bella Vedere, who shut up shop and created a feast of Babettesque proportions for our vinous revelry. And now if I don’t concentrate too much on the food, then that’s not because I don’t appreciate it, but more because this is a wine review site. I will say that it was breathtakingly good grub at times, and the food and wine matching was, well…a match made in some sort of heaven. You can click on the menu to have a look at the dishes.

Quail egg with green salt and sugar
96 Krug
This was our standing up and chatting wine - and coupled with the sweet/salt/creamy taste of the innovative egg dish..well masterful. It’s almost a dry white, like a big strong white Burgundy in its intensity and power. Hazelnuts, licorice, white fruits, biscuits and spice but rolled layer upon layer so that the concentration is almost mind blowing. Painfully intense and destined for greatness…but not a wine for pleasure now. Outstanding Champagne.

Caviar Malossol superior Oscietra on crushed kipflers, with flat leaf parsley
90 Krug,
Sitting down now. The 90 is dry and very fine, subtlety harnessed to power. Showing some bottle age, but essentially youthful and vigorous with classic Krug complexity and an explosion of citrus and yeasty fruits. More superlatives required. A much better wine than the 96 at this stage..but not later. The Caviar on kipflers quite simply amongst the best things I have ever eaten.

Crayfish and scampi in brandy butter on angel hair pasta with tomato and crayfish porcini froth
01 Ramonet Montrachet
White flowers, fragrance, almond paste, mineral and yellow fruits. Light but enormous power (often the hallmark of truly great wine). Rich but bone dry with a tapestry of vanilla, almond and stone fruits. The length carrying on for an eternity. Magnificent wine. Amongst the best White Burgundies I have tasted.

03 Leroy Corton-Charlemagne
Slightly funky and fishy, smoke, peach, vanilla and grilled nuts. A big wet sloppy kiss of a wine but full of flavour and drive. It’s fat but beautiful. A lascivious creature that overwhelms the senses. Not the class of the Ramonet, but certainly a compelling wine. Superb long dry finish leaving the mouth aglow with warmth and longing.

96 Drouhin Montrachet ‘Marquis de Laguiche’
Flowers, almond, a smokiness, yellow fruit and vanilla oak. It combines the best attributes of rich creaminess with a bone dry, almost tannic, flinty character - although subtle and winning. By any mortal standards a wine of considerable greatness.

Licorice tea smoked duck breast with fennel and black truffle
88 Leroy Musigny
An engaging potato sack earthiness coupled with sweet black raspberry, vanilla, licorice and an almost alarming fragrance. In the mouth a huge spread of dry extract offering beautiful tannic density combining with earthy but sweet dark fruit. It’s magnificent and builds and builds and builds with time in the glass. Apparently one of about 300 bottles. A rare wine and a rare privilege to taste.

01 Leroy Musigny
Bloody hell..you could get lost in the aromatics pumping out of this. Raspberry, spices, earth, violets, soil, caramel - multi-layered and complete. The palate is an effortless journey from finish to end. Velvety but concentrated - rich but floating through the mouth. The finish endless. The essence of red Burgundy. One of the greatest wines I have tasted. I’m dribbling as I type!

Foie gras and Sauternes jelly with toasted brioche
59 Suduiraut
Now I must say that I’m a moderate consumer of animals, perhaps a couple of times a week, and a lot of vegetarian dishes I cook…so the old FG I approach with respect and caution…but I love the stuff. I’m a bugger for it and we were delivered a rare old slab here. The 59 is an amazing wine - it smells like the freshly torched sugar on a Creme Bruleé and then some apricots, old leather bottle age and a host of other subtle smells. The palate is rich and full with apple and quince past - great intensity and closes with a bone dry finish of enormous length. I’m not a big one for sweet wines but this had me raving.

Rare breed pork shoulder braised in chocolate and sour cherries
62 Vega Sicilia ‘Unico’ All fresh and lively - looked like a 10 year old wine - strawberries and lashings of vanilla, medium bodied, sweetly fruited with slight leathery bottle age character coming through on a silky tannin structure. It built in the glass rather than tired but still looked slightly one dimensional compared to the mighty 65 3110…

65 Lindemans Bin 3110
The legend continues. Licorice, earth, dusty bottle age, blackberry. It’s dry and tannic but still young and vigorous. Layers of flavours and always something new to reveal. It’s a magic wine and one worthy of a place alongside all the greatest wines of the world. This is my fourth encounter in the last couple of years, and every bottle has something unique to say.

Glenloth pheasant boned and filled with foie gras and truffle, glazed en cocot with pomme anna potato
74 Heitz ‘Martha’s Vineyard’,
A second encounter with this wine and by far the strongest showing. A myriad scents - sweet fruit, mint, cigar box, spice and earth. The palate is wonderfully complex but still muscular and vigorous showing all the classic Cabernet traits of lead pencil, sweet fruit, herb and mint. An outstanding wine and most likely a fond farewell - I doubt that I’ll ever have (such) the pleasure again. As good as any Cabernet you could wish for.

92 Dalle Valle ‘Maya’
I’ve since decided that Californian Cabernet hits a particular sweet spot for me and this was no exception. Rich Cassis, cherry, chocolate, mineral and lavish oak. Full bodied, dense and concentrated with ripe fruity blueberry, Cassis and good minerality - perhaps lowish acid but no concern for me as the ripe furry tannins are minding this part of the shop. Great wine - although an alarmingly young one.

Wagyu beef oven roasted with orange salt with black bean sauce and buttered broad beans
82 Chateaux Mouton Rothschild
By this stage I was feeling a bit stuffed but there’s nothing like the fragrance of Mouton to revive the spirits (and someone has written in my notebook ‘Gary is a wonderful human being - so glad you are here!’ - so that’s nice too). An exotic and flamboyant nose of lead, cassis, flowers and mineral leads on to a hugely concentrated, yet balanced and poised, textbook Cabernet palate. It’s a wine of irrepressible charm and charisma, and while the palate is not quite at the outrageously great level of the nose, it’s so good that you’d never want to quibble.

82 Chateaux Latour
A second outing with the 82 and an equally compelling bottle. The nose is more sauvage and strict than the Mouton but still a thing of beauty, although reticent - earth, cherry, mineral, coffee and cedar - brooding and magnificent - the young Marlon Brando of Pauillac. The palate ratchets the intensity up a notch with amazing power and thick mouthfilling earthy Cabernet fruit. The line and length astounding. The essence of Cabernet.

82 Chateaux Margaux
Corked.

Cheese plate – Comte and Meredith blue, Yarra Valley walnuts and pear
90 Chateaux Margaux
Two years ago I remember this being a lush and very full wine but here it seems fine and poised. A more delicate wine of grace and great symmetry with the classic Margaux fragrance and a certain fine boned beauty. Perhaps I’m fading. Nonetheless an exceptional wine, but not inspiring for me on this night.

90 Cheval Blanc
It’s about my favourite wine of all time. Raspberries, a gentle grassiness and fragrance cut with smoke and mineral. Sweet fruit on an endlessly fine, medium bodied palate of grace and precision. One of the true greats.

Apricot and white chocolate pudding with cumquat and sauternes ice cream
67 Chateaux Suduiraut
Again the Creme Brulee, cumquat and spice but without the additional layers of complexity of the ‘59 Suidairaut, which made it look a little simple and old. A thick syrupy palate but still fresh and clean. On any other night it would have been a star.

95 Krug
In the car on the way home. It’s a top wine, and refreshing, but fair to say I was not concentrating enough to tell you more…

99 Chateau Petrus
Black raspberry, tea, plum, truffle. It’s a rich wine but very tight with silky tannins and a winning personality - certainly at this time of night anyway. Here I resort to a Clive Coates style note in my pad and have merely scrawled “very fine indeed!”

Day Two
I have to retire for the evening - I’ll fill this in later.
(more…)

7 Responses »

This is a bit of a surprise. You’d not normally expect too much of an Australian Tempranillo but this made me double take (or sip). Big Tim Adams has an association with Muga and I’d say a little bit of Rioja magic has rubbed off here, although obviously hard work, top winemaking and quality viticulture are the real factors. What most impressed me here are the silky smooth tannins, almost RODAesque if you are familiar with that wine, that coat and caress the mouth. With regards to rating it, I’m dithering between an excellent and outstanding rating, so I’ll probably decide on a number when I finish writing the review. I tasted it over two days (with no sign of tiring) and have two different scores.

A fine smelling wine with a mix of black cherry and red fruits, cola, creamy spicy oak, liquorice (with extended breathing) and wafting above it all a very faint citrus leaf perfume. On the palate medium to full bodied with ripe black cherry and red fruits, brown spice, mineral, nuts and very slight mintiness. Good flavour but it’s the texture here that wins you over - a velvet fog of plush smooth tannins that coat the mouth and extend all the way through to the back palate. Excellente.

11 Responses »

I seem to have missed tasting the 2002 vintage of this wine but no matter, it was not such a strong year in Rioja anyway and I’m looking forward to the 2004.

An interesting and quite complex mix of smells - black cherry and red fruits, pepper, pencil, vanilla, earth and surely a bit of a smoky bretty character. It’s quite full bodied in the context of Rioja with red fruits and a bit of black cherry, plenty of pepper and spice, a damp earthy character, some dried herbs and vanilla oak. It has coarse open weave grainy tannins and quite tart acidity. Good slightly tannic finish of spicy red fruits and dried herb. Not a smooth operator like the 2001, it’s more rustic and rugged, although still very enjoyable nonetheless.

Other vintages : 2001

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I grabbed this just before going out to dinner, not knowing where we were eating, but on the premise that Rioja is one of the most versatile of red wines. We ended up at a local Thai place which could have been a wine match disaster (not that I care overly about these things) but was not. It went perfectly with my lightly spiced grilled lamb chops and not too shabbily with some BBQ Octopus either. It is a blend of Tempranillo, Grenache and Graciano from the Rioja Baja D.O.

Sweet cherry and red fruits (slightly jammy) and smoky beef pepper jerky. On the palate medium bodied with juicy red fruits, some meaty savoury flavours and a bit of pepper and spice. It has gritty gravelly tannins and balanced acid providing ample structure and backbone and a nice juicy spicy finish of good length. Dangerously easy to drink. A wine of integrity and real character that also hits the fun bullseye bang on.

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The lovely JP bought me an assortment of Spanish and Italian wines for my birthday and I am now onto the Spanish section of the box. This is a very successful wine for a 2003 vintage, and although it does show some of that trademark raw tannin, I really like it.

Aromas of sweet cherry, cassis, roast herbs, ash, mineral and toasty mocha oak. Rich, ripe and satisfying to smell. On the palate full bodied with lashings of sweet cherry and berry fruit, dried herbs, chocolate and a certain minerally earthy crushed rocks (don’t mind me..best I can do) sort of character. Ripe, open and fruity, it really floods the mouth. It has good acidity and plenty of slightly coarse chunky loose knit (but sweet) tannin and very good length finishing with a cherry and dried herb aftertaste. Top wine, excellent now, most likely even better later.

Other vintages : 2001, 1995, 1994

7 Responses »

For almost a decade now Hewitson has worked with a very small vineyard of Tempranillo at Basham’s Beach, located 30km south of McLaren Vale at the southern end of the Mount Lofty Ranges within the Adelaide Super Zone. Situated on the edge of the Fleurieu Peninsula with its strong maritime influence, the Basham’s Beach vineyard has ideal climate and soils for growing this variety. Yet, to make a great wine takes time and persistence and so it was that 2006 provided us with the conditions to do just that.

I’d debate that Tempranillo generally likes a maritime climate as it seems to do best in Rioja and Ribera del Duero which, to the best of my knowledge, are both continental and fairly high altitude. No matter though, because the proof is in the pudding, and this particular pudding is outstanding. I also might add that I really like the quirky retro label that (to my mind at least) respectfully does a tip of the hat to the great Australian wines of yore.

This offers up a deep pool of lush berry fruit, licorice, chocolate, spice and tobacco that is so seductive you can’t but help but find yourself slipping under. On the palate full bodied with saturating sweet dark berry, cherry, chocolate, cola, dried herb and licorice flavours and superb mid-palate richness with an ample spread of plush velveteen tannins and a smooth creamy texture. Very long and satisfying. It’s a spectacular wine and almost irresistible. I miss it already.

14 Responses »

Take 3, and at last a good bottle. Blackberries and blueberries, crushed quartz, spices and earth. The palate is luscious and sweetly fruited, dark cherries and red cherries with spices like cinnamon, nutmeg and old black peppercorns. Though for all the juicy fruit, there is some savouriness. The tannins are soft, and slightly grainy, and the finish is sweet. Needs a couple of hours to come out of its shell, and appears sweeter as time passes. Nicely balanced too.

Other vintages: 2006

One Response »

The fruit comes from the foothills of Tumbarumba and wine maker Andrew Birks offers

In cooler areas, especially those, like Rioja, with a bit of elevation and continentality, I’m confident that tempranillo can be consistently used in its own right to produce medium-to-full-bodied reds of great distinction and interest.

Nice and spicy with berry fruit, a little earth, dried herb and just a touch of oak. On the palate light to medium bodied with spicy earthy berry fruit and some dried herb flavours. Quite fresh acidity with firm lightly gritty tannins that give the wine a bit of shape and drive. Finishes clean and dry with a light herbal aftertaste. Very good drinking this is.

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This comes from the Alicante DO which is known for being a bit of a Monastrell/Mataro/Mourvedre region. Imported by Ce Soir Wine Importers.

Quite pruney and meaty but also has some sweeter plum fruit with a bit of green tobacco and dried herb. The palate is a step up and is medium bodied with plum and prune, roast coffee bean and dried herb flavours. Firm fairly rustic drying tannin. Finishes with some tannin and roast coffee flavours. This would be excellent with a nice bit of fatty lamb. Good solid wine at a very fair price.

5 Responses »

From Ribera del Duero. A rich red in colour, with splashings of deep purple. It just makes me what to sing a couple of verses of “Highway Star”. The nose is complex and alluring, like the sirens of the sea, showing blackberries and sage, coffee grounds, smoke, minerals, and some creamy and nutty characters that dissipated with time. The palate is smooth, with blackberries and blueberries, and tannins that I am in awe of, ripe and meltingly soft, finishing with nutmeg and cinnamon spices. It is supple and concentrated, drinkable, too drinkable, and my head does say it’s boozier than my palate thinks it is. Strangely, it closed down after 5 or 6 hours. Probably needs time given the pedigree of the producer.

5 Responses »

The cascabel is a small, round, hot chilli pepper that is prized for its heat. Its name is a Spanish word for “small bell” or “rattle”.

A lovely nose, with black cherry, red cola, earth, sweet raspberries and redskins. The palate has quite a zing to it, red cherries and black cola, liquorice, sweet and fresh, finishing with some barky spices. A lively wine, pleasantly fruited, and though I cannot see any oak on the wine, the back label states that it saw 3 months in French oak. A good move I reckon. A very good food wine.

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I’ve been trying to write a tasting note on this wine for a couple of weeks now. My first bottle was corked, cheerfully replaced of course. This bottle was also faulty, well certainly compared to shaggy’s review on tinto y blanco. I will try again next week, but for the moment, this is my impression. Raspberry cordial, cherries, soapy, light with smoky stalks. The palate shows minimal red fruits and stalk, holllow in the middle, sappy and stalky on the finish. Another disappointment. I would certainly like to see a few Diams thrown into wines like this. Another review will follow soon I hope; a more positive review.

8 Responses »

I have recently had a hankering for tempranillo, both local and foreign. This one is a cheapie from Arrowfield in the Hunter Valley, though the fruit is from the Murray Darling region. A light red in colour with hints of purple. A sweetly scented nose, red cherry and spice, cranberry, with a bit leathery dried meat. The palate showed lifted sweet cherry fruit and spice, raspberries, lightly bodied with a bit of acid and char on the finish. Also note that it actually looked better with some air time. A decent bistro-styled wine.

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At first I thought this was corked, but it was just a dusty glass. Phew. And it opened badly, very much like the English in the last Ashes series. Though this is where the similarities end, because it turned out to be a lovely tipple. On the nose, raspberries, red cherries, red liquorice, old leather and dried meat. The palate showed red fruits and liquorice, minerals, a bit of animal hide, dry and savoury, smooth and broad across the palate, very flavoursome. More sweetness emerged with time; a lovely drink for those less serious occasions.

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I was told by the mate who bought this over to our night of unusual varieties that it was a BIG wine. It was served blind although the friend who bought it was confident about it because he reckons it has a bit much oak and he can pick that. In fact he was a little rude about it muttering things like Parker style etc. The rest of us liked it and with the bolognaise I thought it was rather good. The nose is very rich showing intense fruit and pencil shavings oak with a dose of vanilla. My friend M. L’Eveque adores this style and it’s also at his favourite price point. The friend who brought the wine does not like rich doses of oak hence his negative comment. I reckon the mix is pretty good but the reason for the complicated story involving my friends is to illustrate how an oak and fruit mix like this can polarize people. At the price, well worth a try and cellar some to see how the fruit holds.

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Spicy dusted cherries and earth, a bit of tobacco and some dry cinnamon spice. A flavoursome palate, blackcherries and blackberries, earth and spice, a touch of red fruits, with a tasty and slightly tarry finish. Fine tannins, modern in style, with my enduring memory of the wine being the sweetness of the fruit through the palate. Perhaps a little too sweet in fact, so leave a year to see what happens when the puppy fat has been shed.

Other vintages: 2004

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A blend of 45% tempranillo, 43% grenache and 12% souzao. Jancis Robinson notes that Souzão (or Sousao) is a Portuguese wine grape that is used in the production of port wine. While originating in the Minho regions, it is used primarily in California and South Africa. In Portugal, it is also an authorized planting in the Dao area. The grape is known for the deep color it produces in a wine as well as its coarse and raisiny taste.

A bruised black/purple in colour. Big fruited with a powerful nose: roasted meats, blueberries, raisins, blackberries, raspberries and minerals. There are also some strange floral characters, and some Asian spices, but I just couldn’t pin it down. A sweet palate, raspberries, red cherries, minerals, oranges and cumquats, fruit cake and some spices, all combining for a warm inner glow. Drinkable now with a firm determination but really needs a couple of years.

Other vintages: 2004

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I think we are all now sufficiently recovered from Lincoln’s little “Testy Tiger” incident to have another look at this wine…

It’s the eye of the tiger, it’s the thrill of the fight
Rising up to the challenge of our rival
And the last known survivor stalks his prey in the night
And he’s watching us all in the eye of the tiger

Ooops I did it again!

Aromas of blackcurrant, cherry, raspberry, blood, violets, earth, mint and cedar oak. It is all happening here. On the palate medium bodied with red fruit, violet, mint and earthy flavours. Lovely dry fine firm tannins and fresh crisp acidity. Finishes with crunchy red fruit and dried herb flavours. This really builds up with some time in the glass so decant if drinking now. Intriguing and highly interesting.

Previous vintages reviewed : 2005

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Everyone should have some 2001 Rioja in their cellars. If you have not got round to it then I would suggest buying a bit of this modestly priced beauty. I bought six just for the record.

Aromas of cherry, red berry, mineral, lead pencil and subtle vanilla oak. A lovely subdued smell with bottle age adding an extra layer of complexity and finesse. On the palate medium bodied with light cherry and red berry fruit and more savoury tobacco and lead pencil flavours combining with some smart choc-vanilla oak to create a beautifully balanced flavour profile. Fresh acidity and fine lightly dry tannins reinforce the charming and gentle nature of this wine. Finishes with red berry and a little spice. One of the most enjoyable wines I have had in weeks and for balance and typicity I have added an extra point.

5 Responses »

I have found a new quality bottleshop in Brisbane, one that is dangerously close to where I work. It’s called Festival Cellars and is on the old Festival Hall site in Charlotte Street. Anyhoo, I was in there yesterday and picked up a bottle of this wine, because I like Tempranillo and it is only 13.5% abv. Sensible. On the nose, black cherries, red cherries, a bit of plumminess, tar and tomato sauce. There are lots of fruits on the palate, cherries, herbs, rich and tangy, with sour cherries on the finish. Soft tannins with very good length. A very pleasant wine.

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