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I had five reds open on the bench last night and this is the one I drank most of, and although it may not be my highest rated wine of the evening, obviously it was the one I most enjoyed drinking…at least at present.

Showing a little development with blackcurrant, a Christmas cake richness, chocolate, nougat and a bit of spearmint. On the palate medium to full bodied with an interesting mix of flavours - blackcurrant, raspberry ripple, dark chocolate, tobacco and some straying on over-ripe raisin characters. It has fine grained tannins and flows very nicely through the mouth. A really enjoyable wine, toothsome and tasty, and considering the additional bottle age, sold at a very fair price.

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Do we like the labels on these wines? It’s always a question? I know Lincoln does, and now I’ve decided that I think I agree with him. Always a dangerous move. Anyway, I like the what’s in the bottle too. Not sure if I have the points exactly right (could be 91 or so..) but never mind all that; it drinks really well and has intelligence, a swiss army knife (colour) and charm.

It’s spicy with red berries, plum, a touch of mint, black olive and subdued cedar oak - light and attractive. On the palate just medium bodied with red berries, a soft earthiness and some varietal black olive flavours. The tannins are fine and lightly grainy and it feels fresh and balanced with a good clean finish. It’s a lovely drink, not especially deep or rich, but soft and elegant with great drinkability. In short, a refreshing and highly civilised table wine.

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I’m finally catching up and reviewing the Penfolds 2008 Bin releases now. Better late than never I suppose. This year the Bin 311 is “all Orange”, and it does not shine for me as much as last year’s Tumbarumba release. Perhaps too much skin and bones, although it could turn into something beautiful.

Fresh smelling with nectarine, mandarin, cucumber, almond and a little vanilla spice. On the palate light and airy with a slightly glossy texture and tight minerally acidity. It has nectarine, sour edged citrus fruit and greener flavours backed with subtle almond and vanilla oak. Good finish with a bit of an acid bite to close. Quite fine and delicate. Nice wine, and I like it, but don’t find it particularly exciting.

Other vintages: 2006, 2005

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I’m a bit under the pump and the weather at the moment but as everyone knows, vitamin C is good for such things, and seeing as Orange is high in vitamin C I thought I would open this..

Clear bright red in colour and equally pretty to smell with red cherry, strawberry, a little mint, mixed peel, undergrowth and some spicy caramel oak in support. On the palate light to medium bodied with a mix of red fruit, spice and honeycomb (a bit like a Crunchie) flavours although it does feel appropriately dry and fresh. It has light dry tannin and a feathery texture with fruit of good clarity and pinosity and a closes clean and spicy. Flows along very nicely and drinks really well. Very attractive wine.

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In a big country dreams stay with you
Like a lover’s voice fires the mountainside
Stay alive

Orange, Adelaide Hills, Pemberton and the Yarra Valley are all producing outstanding Sauvignon Blanc. It’s a Big Country all right.

Aromas of orange, passionfruit, fennel and cut grass offer up an enticing mix of punchy fruit and more austere herbal characters. On the palate fresh and vibrant with tart kiwifruit, grapefruit, passionfruit and grassy flavours. Dry, tight and minerally with mouthwatering acidity this has great drive and line through the mouth finishing dry and flinty with excellent length of flavour. Complexity and freshness all in one. This is a top wine.

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Funny wine this. Interesting. Challenging. I like it. I think.

Opens up very reduced and rubbery but settles down to show freshly laid road tar, dark cherries and currants with a violet tinted perfume. On the palate medium to full bodied with dense curranty and black cherry fruit, earth and bitter dried herbs. It has firm chalky tannins and a dense chewy texture. Finishes with bitter dark chocolate. A quirky Italian from the Hunter Valley.

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The back label says this was made from McLaren Vale fruit, but the website lists McLaren Vale, Orange and the Hunter Valley. Having tasted the wine I would say the latter is more likely, as it seems too understated for a 100% South Australian wine.

Very aromatic: dark cherries, plum, clean brown earth, liquorice, acid drops, and a little bit raisiny too. The palate showed nice plums and cherries, lively and a little spicy, medium bodied, a pleasant richness but with a bit of an acid twang on the finish. The tannins are good, and still a little chewy. A wine offering reasonable value at $20; drink over the short to medium term.

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A blend of 55% Sangiovese from Orange and 45% Shiraz from Young.

Red cherries and earth, a bit of dirt too, with roasted nuts and old wood. The palate showed cherries and earth, plums and a bit of leather, spice and roasted nuts. It has the verve of the Sangiovese and the plumminess of the Shiraz. Pleasantly fruited with a lovely richness and pretty good length. With time, it moved more towards black fruits. Also, I should mention that this looked a little flat straight out of the bottle and it took a while to come out of its shell, so but patient. A tidy price too.

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Another wine from the Angullong Fossil Hill range. I have already reviewed the Sangiovese, but there is also a Viognier, a Shiraz Viognier and a Barbera in the range. I have requested a sample of the last wine because I am interested in Italian varietals.

Pear and pineapple, honeydew melon, dry grass, preserved lemons, a certain broadness and promise of richness. On the palate, fleshy pears and pineapple, a bit of apple, expansive and strong, minerals, finishing with candied oranges, dryly, and strangely afterwards showed a lingering sweetness and spice. Nicely fruited and balanced. Excellent juice, and very much in the Gris style.

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Never heard of this winery, but I now know that Angullong is a family owned winery located in the cool climate region of Orange in the Central West of New South Wales. The vineyards are situated on the southern lower slopes of the Orange region at the foothills of Mt Canobolas, an ancient volcano.

This is actually a blend of 90% Sangiovese and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, not that you’d know after tasting it. Nice florals, dark and elusive, dark cherries and spice with a touch of vanilla. The palate is bright and bouncy, red cherry fruits, raspberries and dry spices, a bit of clove, some savoury notes and a dry finish. Lifted and smilingly friendly, with excellent length and a bit of grip. It needs a decant now, and has the structure to age nicely over the next five years.

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A pale lime in colour. Gooseberries, lemon, pineapple, passionfruit, grass and spice. The palate needed to warm to show gooseberries and lemons, passionfruit, gently herbaceous, a little steely, good spine, fresh and delicate. I am of course drinking this at the wrong time of time: I really should be lazing by a resort pool watching the ocean ebb and flow, but unfortunately the sample did not come with a voucher for this.

Other vintages: 2007

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Hmmm. I must have had this in my box for quite a while now. Should have looked earlier as it’s a lovely wine and absolutely the best of the Printhie wines I have yet tasted.

Aromas of sweet cherry, berry, licorice and a little vanilla. Perfumed and a little briary too. On the palate medium bodied with bright cherry/berry fruit, sap, vanilla and spice. Good light but grainy textural tannins and clean acid. Nice long red fruit and dried herb finish. A very attractive and refined wine. It drinks beautifully and offers excellent value.

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This sauvignon blanc comes from a 1040 metre altitude vineyard but blimey it is big and ripe. Quite different in style to many Orange sauvignons

Aromas of lychee, ripe apple, sweet capsicum and honey. On the palate full bodied with bold flavours of lychee, pineapple, ginger and capsicum with a slightly slippery glycerol texture. Lacks a little focus but packs plenty of taste. Finishes with spiced apple flavours. It reminds me as much of pinot gris as sauvignon blanc.

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Opening up a range of Merlots today so I thought I would start with a couple of wines from the 2006 vintage. This is from Orange which I reckon is a good region for the variety.

Aromas of plum, blackberry, spice, sweet tobacco and touch of vanilla. On the palate medium bodied with plum, red berry, earth and spicy flavours. Plenty of mouthcoating chalky tannins and slighty tangy acid. Finishes dry with a rub of tannin, herbs and red fruit flavours. Drinks well enough and has a good bit of interest.

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Whilst on the subject of tannin management this is a wine that most certainly falls into the ‘I like it hard and firm’ school.

Aromas of blackcurrant, red berries, mint/menthol and some nutty vanilla oak. Smells like cabernet and a nice one at that. On the palate dense blackberry, cassis fruit, mint and cedar flavours. Excellent fruit here with tasteful oak and good weight but there are formidable hard stalky tannins that finish with a bitter astringent flavour. I like the wine but can’t get past the tannin without something like a big plate of lamb shanks to help things along.

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This has been lurking in the fridge at home for quite a while. I meant to open it when the weather was a bit warmer but here it is anyway. It’s pretty hard to work myself into a white wine tasting mood in winter though (as the rieslings and semillons pile up) but not as difficult as drinking big reds in the hot weather…

Attractive scented aromas of lime, spice and a little toast. On the palate light and clean with a mix of citrus fruit, spice and some toasty flavours. Quite chalky squeeky acidity here that gives the wine a light grippy texture. Finishes with some floral and sour apple flavours. Nice wine but there’s plenty to choose from at this price point.

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I don’t think you need a preamble on Meerea Park, because you should have seen quite a bit of their wine reviewed here. And deservedly so - they are an excellent modern Hunter producer. This wine is made from Hilltops and Orange fruit. A rich nose, sweet brambly fruit, barbeque sauce (yes, Gary was spot on), a bit of coconut, and finally a hint of molasses and something a bit fishy. Now these slightly odd descriptors shouldn’t put you off, because it is quite an interesting and complex nose. The palate is firm and assertive, rich black Cabernet fruits with mocha, coffee beans and some nutty savouriness. Good length too, and gets a snappy thumbs up for value for money.

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Only April and already a 2007 vintage wine. It makes me feel all Beaujolais Nouveau-ish and what’s more is that the wine has been sitting in my office for a couple of weeks! Perhaps this is the worlds first online review of a 2007 vintage wine?
The Windy Peak range is normally sourced from only Victorian vineyards but the frost, fire and drought (no locusts, pestilence or flooding touch wood) largely stuffed this for the 2007 vintage. The fruit is sourced from all over the place (see above). This is a blend of 75 percent sauvignon blanc and the remainder semillon.

Aromas of gooseberry, passionfruit, grass and spice. Quite fresh and punchy. On the palate light and fresh with flavours of gooseberry, passionfruit, lemon sorbet and herbs. There is a slightly chalky phenolic grip which adds texture and interest. Just a fraction off dry thus avoiding ‘face weened on dill pickle’ syndrome. Really nice wine with lots of class.

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Chanel No.9 or Phillip Shaw No.17. Well both have a distinctive perfume. In this case the No.17 is arrived at by adding the plot numbers (2, 3, 5, and 7) from which the fruit was sourced. This is a blend of 43 percent merlot, 34% cabernet franc and the remainder cabernet sauvignon.

Aromas of blackcurrant and red berry, fry’s chocolate cream, cigar box and a rustle of briar and grass. On the palate a wine of some elegance and sophistication with smooth fine grained tannins and flavours of cherry, red fruit, roast coffee, tobacco and herbs. It is fresh and supple with excellent texture and good length of flavour. A few years in the cellar should see this flesh out and gain complexity. Perhaps too green for some but pretty good for me.

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Well I popped up to the Hunter the other week and of course no visit is complete without a quick hop in to the Boutique Wine Centre. As usual big Garth Eather got me in an ear-lock but before I escaped he slipped a bottle of this into my box. I don’t generally keep many tasters at home but this one was handy..and as the old saying goes..’If you can’t be handsome, be handy’…although of course everyone knows that I am very handsome so this does not apply to me.

Aromas of blackcurrant, blackberry, BBQ sauce, mint, toasted coconut, lemon, cedar and tobacco. A curious smelling wine but most certainly an attractive and engaging one. On the palate medium to full bodied with blackcurrant, blackberry, spicy BBQ sauce and more earthy tobacco flavours. Tannins are fine, dry and lightly grainy and there is a slight citric acidity that adds freshness. Finishes with spicy tangy blackcurrant flavours. Packed full of flavour and interest. This is a highly slurpable and very tasty wine.

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