The Home of Renowned Tasting

I am up to my neck in top end ‘icon’ style wines so I will just have to continue ploughing through them. Apologies for reviewing so many expensive things but I have a task at hand and I am both committed and diligent.

Aromas of dark cherry, black plum, chocolate, violet, aniseed and vanilla coffee bean oak. Very rich and adult. On the palate thick and full bodied with blackberry, plum, chocolate, aniseed and cedar oak flavours. Dry but sweet fruited. It is smooth, supple and creamy with plenty of fine grained tannin and a big chocolate and aniseed finish. Great texture. A lovely glossy Print.

Other vintages: 2002

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Fairly shortly I will be doing a vertical of Tahbilk Marsanne from 1999 through 2006 but in the interim here is another Rhone white.

Aromas of pineapple, apricot, lemon, musk and spice with some slightly gluey oak influence. Very nice to smell and a bit funky too but nothing over the top. On the palate full bodied with apricot, lemon and fresh pineapple, musk sticks, spice and some more savoury earthy flavours. Lightly oily but really quite fresh with a light phenolic grip and good acid balance. The alcohol intrudes with a bit of a mouthwashy sting and the finish is dry with lemon and spice to close. Love the flavours but the alcohol takes the edge off an otherwise good wine.

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If you happen to be walking past a newsagents in the next couple of weeks pick up a copy of Inside Out Magazine and you will see a picture of Mr Sexy Sexy near the front in the contributors section. The secret of my youthful good looks is either a) drinking Tahbilk from an early age or b) always submit a photo that’s a few years younger than you currently are…

Aromas of blackberry, blackcurrant, aniseed and salty dough with a violetty lift. On the palate medium to full bodied and quite tight with blackberry, aniseed and cedar flavours. Slightly salty too. It has firm slightly hard tannins and good acid balance. Finishes well with an aniseed aftertaste. A very good wine that needs a little more time to blossom.

Other vintages : 2003, 2003, 2001, 1990

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Hurrah! Tahbilk reds are now under screwcap.

First you viddy the lovely red purple colour and then come all manner of crushed juicy red, black and blue berries, tobacco, aniseed/eucalyptus and subtle dusty oak. It smells fresh and very Central Victorian. On the palate medium bodied with red and black berries, tobacco and aniseed flavours. It has tangy lively acidity, firm lightly abrasive tannin and good balance through the palate. Finishes with spicy red fruit and eucalyptus flavours. A good one to pop into the cellar and forget for a couple of years.

Other vintages : 2003, 1997, 1996, 1994

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Not sure when this is released but I tasted this alongside the 2004 and I think this is a step up.

Aromas of fresh berry, red cherry, black jellybeans, a little smoke and dab of attractive perfume. On the palate medium to full bodied with a mix of red and black fruits, black jelly bean, spice and some apricot kernel. Good fruit with plenty of firm fine grained tannins and bright acidity. Finishes with red fruits and a dash of ouzo. Great value.

Other vintages : 2004

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I have not had a Dalfarras wine before because I am conservative by nature and have always ordered the standard Tahbilk offerings.

Aromas of blackberry, plum, quite earthy and meaty with a subtle aniseed perfume. Nice smelling wine. On the palate medium bodied with blackberry, red cherry, some apricot kernel and meaty earthy flavours. Good flavours although the fruit is a little thin. Attractive fine tannins and a little tart acidity. Finishes dry with some tangy red fruit flavours. A very nice drink.

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My last wine from a quartet of Reserve Cabernets, and very much an equal to the best, possibly better with more age. A rich red in colour, with earthy red fruits and tobacco leaf, drying and a little bit cheesy. The palate is packed full of elemental fruits, red currants, olives and earth, and with time some herbs, leather and bright acid. This is a different wine to the standard Cabernet; yes more oak, but more fruit too, though I don’t think it suffers for it. Still a very young wine; needs another five years or so.

Other vintages: 1998, 1999, 2001

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An old note I admit, but I am trying to tidy up a bit; spring cleaning you could call it. Very different to the 1998 reviewed here, a lot earthier, showing blackcurrants and leather, black olives, brown earth, stinky rocks, old leather boots, and with time displayed a slightly cheesy character. The palate showed sour cherries, deep seated fruits, tobacco leaf, old coffee grounds, parched earth and leather. It is drying, all the way from the tip of nose to the end of my big toe, classically styled, not opulent and for what it’s worth showed better on the second night. Needs some more time.

Other vintages: 1998, 2001

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This is the 1933 Vines jobbie I think, so sits between the 1860s Old Vines and the regular shiraz. A clear garnet red. Raspberries, freshly tanned leather, a bit of pepper and star anise. The palate showed red fruits and leather, good concentration, tangy red cherries, mature though not exactly on an iron lung. I don’t think ‘94 was an ideal vintage, but this wine has good fruit and has handled 13 years pretty well. That said, drink up.

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Well I had lost track of time and this just so happens to be Winorama’s 2000th tasting note….and now I reflect on it I can’t really think of a better wine to celebrate. Lincoln and I (and perhaps David) cut our teeth on Tahbilk, and really, they have to take some part of the blame for our interest in wine. That interest (or obsession) leading to this website and all these pages and pages of tasting notes. It has been a wizard wheeze doing the first 2000 and I reckon we are only just warming up. Cheers all and thanks for popping by.

Aromas of prune, blackberry, licorice allsorts, resin, mint and leather. Lots of action. On the palate medium to full bodied with a mix of prune, raspberry and blackberry fruit with licorice, leather and resin flavours. Good ripe but firm tannins. It looks a bit cooked but pulls it off with plenty of rustic charm and a sense of integrity. It’s a great bargain.

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Too much Cabernet is barely enough in my books. King of grapes and grape of Kings. The fact that Tahbilk offer such a classic cellar worthy wine year in, year out, for so little money should rate them as a national treasure alone. Bugger the historic buildings!

Aromas of blackberry, blackcurrant, aniseed, eucalypt, truffle and cedar wood. A little jammy and minty but really attractive. On the palate full bodied with blackberry, blackcurrant, aniseed, spice, truffle and cedar flavours. The tannins are firm and distinctly grippy here. Finishes with spicy aniseed flavours and a slick of firm tannins. Robust, rustic and very satisfying.

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Last but not least, the famous 1998 vintage, my favourite wine of this tasting (although the 1999 ran it very close). I’d be happy to buy a bottle just so I could smell it again. Outstanding aromatics. This vintage also had a very significant amount of sediment in the bottle so be wary and reach for the decanter when opening.

Aromas of violet, red berry, walnut, leather, licorice, a little mint and plenty of vanilla oak. An amazing smelling wine. On the palate medium to full bodied with sweet red fruit, walnut, licorice, violet and cedar oak. Really lovely flavours. Very strong grippy tannins and clean acidity. A wine of considerably strength but with no heaviness. Finished dry and long with tannins to close. Superb.

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The total production of this wine is around 300 cases, and when you extrapolate that out to 3,600 bottles, it means there really aren’t too many people who are going to get a good slurp of it. It’s not a big make like Grange, so all things being equal (fat people use more soap), the price seems pretty fair. This is a curious wine. If any of you are familiar with the episode of Red Dwarf where the lads go into backwards world then you would understand this wine a little better. It opened up very Porty and then proceeded to freshen up and look more youthful over the next day! That’s tricky.

A little porty with aromas of prunes and raisins but also dark cherry and blackberries. Coffee grounds, violets, spice, licorice and vanilla oak add further complexity. On the palate full bodied with prune, blackberry, mulberry, spice, licorice, lead pencil, vanilla and coffee flavours. Plenty of smooth ripe melting tannins here and the wine travels very smoothly from front to back with an extended minerally finish. A quirky mix of flavours but a thoroughly fascinating and engaging wine.

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Absolutely fascinating wines these 1860 vines. They are rustic but so full of charm and rugged personality that you can’t help but love them. I have had quite a few vintages of 1860 in the past but never had the luxury of looking at four vintages at once over a couple of days. The wines evolve and move about so much that capturing a snapshot for a tasting note is really quite tricky.

Aromas of red and black fruit, violet, licorice, some burnt sugar and plenty of spicy woody oak. On the palate medium to full bodied with red and black fruit, aniseed, leather, cedar and some spice. Dry and savoury. Tightly coiled wine with very firm tannic grip and slightly obvious acidity. Decent length but the palate does feel a little compressed. Looked much better after being open for a day. Needs time to soften and smooth off a few edges.

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Brave old vines bear fruit
Nurtured by man, wood and time
Silenced with a bark

Part of a vertical tasting including 1998, 1999 and 2000 vintages and included for the sake of completeness. Notes to follow.

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I sampled this next to a 2004 Yarra Valley Cabernet, and in comparison it did look a bit rustic, not that that is a bad thing in my book. Red and black cherries, leather and earth, tobacco, green capsicum and herbs, and a certain cheesiness. The palate is big and tannic, and only after it has been open for 8 hours had it softened enough to be really enjoyable, with flavoursome black fruits, olives, dried herbs and tangy acids. But be not fooled, even then it still possessed relatively puckering tannins. A wine made for the long haul.

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They call this wine “The Calf” because it comes in half bottles and it’s designed to complement a nice piece of prime beef. I love half bottles and wish that more producers would use them. Perfect for restaurant wine lists when you don’t want a full bottle (or aren’t prepared to risk a glass of dodgy three day old brown wine) and equally handy in domestic situations that call for an emergency glass of something red.

Very inviting aromas of rich bramble fruit, chocolate, some meatiness, aniseed and very light cedar oak. On the palate medium to full bodied with juicy blackcurrant (pastille) and berry fruit, chocolate and pleasant minty flavours. Firm lightly grippy tannins cleanse the palate and the finish is clean, blackcurranty and very satisfying. Tasty and highly enjoyable.

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I always think Terra Felix is in the Margaret River when I hear the name. And of course I couldn’t be more wrong, because it is actually in central Victoria. I suppose this shows the branding power of that other Felix winery. A relatively closed nose, with red cherries, light earth, butter, lightly perfumed apricot syrup and a bit of spice. The palate showed soft red fruits and spice, sour cherries and a dash of plums, full and rounded but in a lightly bodied way if you know what I mean. A nicely balanced wine, with soft tannins and good length.

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First cab off the rank, ha ha. According to the Tahbilk vintage charts this is supposed to be cellared for 20+ years, so you might expect to find it overly tannic or closed. In fact it was quite the opposite, opening with huge blackcurrants, a bath full of blackcurrants, overpowering and heady, so much so I had to let it rest. After while it had settled, showing more red currants than black, with leather, red liquorice and a touch of red capsicum. The palate was lovely, with a rounded richness, ripe but with a savouriness and dusty dry spices. This hardly looks like a 9 year old, and should drink up to 20 years of age, though it would be my preference to drink it sooner.

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The second bottle from a mixed six-pack. The 2005 was okay, so I was pleasantly surprised to find this older wine a lot fresher and generous. It was a clear cherry red with a deep aromas of maraschino cherries, spice and some creamy oak. The palate showed sweet cherry fruits, a richness, with cinnamon bark and dry spices. On the lighter side of medium bodied with a dry finish. Good balance - really quite a lovely cheapie.

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