Appellation Australia

In November of last year a tasting was held to compare two of Australia’s most prominent Cabernet Sauvignons. It was expected that we would see two very different styles of Cabernet with the family owned Mount Mary from the cool Yarra Valley in Victoria and the corporate giant Southcorp owned,
Penfolds 707 Cabernet from the warmer Coonawarra and the Barossa Valley in South Australia.
The first dinner was Cullen and Moss Wood and I wrote about it here.

The tasting was as follows, in order served;

Pol Roger NV:
This bottle was cellared for 3 years after release. Citrus, touch of yeast, apple, pear and toasty development. A balanced and delicate palate with lovely restrained, focussed fruit intensity. This was ready to drink now.
88/100

St John’s Road Eden Valley Riesling 2005:
Opened with a fair bit of sulphur which was difficult to get past, but there was some light honey, lime and toast lurking in the background. The palate was soft and dilute across the mid-palate, lacking much to get excited over.
83/100

Penfolds Yattarna 1996:
Corked, just slightly - but enough to ruin the experience for me.
NR/100

Mount Mary Chardonnay 2005:
Pears, grapefruit, passionfruit, florals and minerally slate on the wonderfully pure nose. The palate is structured, balanced and elegant - it is already lovely to drink, but this is going to be sensational with time. Drink now if you like them young, but otherwise check back in 5+ years.
93/100

Mt Mary Quintets 1986:
Aromas of briar, tobacco, leather, violets and crushed rocks. Good depth of flavour, with elegance and balance but not a whole lot of complexity or texture/mouth-feel to it. This bottle was drinking at, or just past its peak.
90/100

Mt Mary Quintets 1990:
A nose of tobacco, blackcurrant, blackberry and cedar. Excellent structure to the mouth-coating palate, with tannins still prominent at this stage. There is the potential to improve over the next 6-7 years from here. I took a quarter of the bottle home and it was holding up very well the next evening.
91/100

Mt Mary Quintets 1991:
Cinnamon, liquorice, aniseed, rhubarb and cherry aromas on the nose. A mature, structured palate with components well integrated at this stage and the fruit holding up well. This bottle has reached its peak but I think it would have held its plateau for a number more years.
89/100

Mt Mary Quintets 1993:
Some smoked meats, chocolate and brief whiffs of capsicum comprise the nose. Good texture to the palate, but there are some bold tannins poking out and a flash of bitterness on the back palate. I still found enjoyment in drinking it but it was one of the weaker vintages on the night.
86/100

Mt Mary Quintets 1994:
The nose opens with pepper, roasted vegetables, violet and some artificial citrus type notes. Palate shows green, bitter tannin and oak flavours smothering the thin fruit. Couldn’t see this coming together with more bottle age, but others had more hope for it.
82/100

Mt Mary Quintets 1996:
A nose dominated by intense red cherry, raspberry, rhubarb and cedar. Very youthful and richly fruited on the palate, but with the tannin structure and depth of fruit behind it to indicate that this could be superb with some more time. While it provided some pleasure to drink now, it will improve over the next 10 years and maybe more.
92/100

Penfolds Bin 707 1986:
A weedy, pumpkin and dill dominant nose. The palate lacks cohesion, with tannins standing out and some acidity on the mid-palate throwing the line right off. The more that I tasted this as it sat in the glass, the less that I liked it. This bottle was quite youthful but I doubt it would have ever found balance.
81/100

Penfolds Bin 707 1990:
Restrained nose of tobacco, black fruits and a touch of American oak backing. The palate was quite fleshy and showed some richness to the fruit flavour. Dipped away at the end of the palate, finishing a bit short, but otherwise the balance was good and this had the stuffing to improve for another 5 years.
88/100

Penfolds Bin 707 1991:
Black cherry, blackberry, pomegranate and some nicely integrated oak aromas. There is good balance and length to the palate with the structure and depth of fruit to continue developing well over the next 6 to 7 years. This was probably my favourite wine from the 707 line up on the night, with the depth of fruit and the integration of the oak the deciding factors.
91/100

Penfolds Bin 707 1993:
Briar, tobacco and red currants as well as noticeable oak and volatile acidity that ruin the experience on the nose slightly. The palate is well fleshed out and has decent length but not a great amount of depth or complexity. Enjoyable drinking, but not for the long haul. Drink now.
87/100

Penfolds Bin 707 1994:
Cassis/blackcurrant and oak aromas form the restrained nose. Good texture and mouth-feel to the palate, but lacks depth and anything else much to provide a wow factor or to make me want to drink it again. Could well get better given some extra time as it may just be in a slightly quiet phase, but on the night it was no better than very good.
88/100

Penfolds Bin 707 1996:
A dark, brooding nose of cassis, cedar, vanilla and cola syrup. There is a great deal of richness and sweet fruit on the palate but there is also firm structure through some monumental tannins. Allow it time to rest, as of now it is too youthful and forceful at 10 years of age, come back in another 10 and it may still need more time. Could be headed for greatness.
92/100

Rausan Segla Margaux 1996:
A welcome change of pace after some of the full on 707s. Savoury, earthy and meaty with a bit of brett styled complexity and blackcurrant undertones. Elegant and showed very good balance. Tannins are still evident but they are nicely woven into the rest of the elements. Very good now and I think this bottle was only 2 or 3 years away from hitting its peak.
89/100

Orlando St Hugo 1998:
Smoked meat, blackberry, tobacco and cedar from the French oak. Tightly knit palate structure with tannins providing good structure that should bode well for aging this wine. Fairly bold primary fruit flavour and a medium length finish. Give it at least another  5 years as it is too young now.
89/100

De Bortoli Noble One 1998: Two 375ml bottles from the same source which made for an interesting comparison.
Bottle 1: Weak apricot and marmalade with a touch of botrytis. Palate is flabby and lacks acid. Finishes short, dilute and disappointing. No identifiable fault. 80/100
Bottle 2: Wow, what a difference. There is much more intensity and swirling aromas to the nose, still with plenty of apricot and botrytis but with another layer of tropical fruit and honey. The palate shows a similar difference with greater richness and intensity of flavour and a much better acid structure, although perhaps needing a touch more acid to be fully balanced. Good length and delicious to drink. 89/100

I’m the kind of person that believes that without actually trying something, you are not really able to put yourself in the best position to comment constructively on it. So I am happy to finally get to try the wines of a company that gets a significant amount of (mostly negative) discussion around the “serious” wine community.

Both bottles were samples provided by the winery and both were tasted from Riedel “O Series” Cabernet/Merlot (414/0) stemless glassware.

“The Reserve” Cabernet Sauvignon 2004

Fast Facts: Variety: Cabernet Sauvignon Region: Multiple Country: Australia Winemaker: John Casella Closure: Nucork Synthetic Alcohol: 13.5% Cost: Around $9 USD Source: Winery Sample Available in: USA Winery Website: Casella

Tasting Note: A very deep purple colour. The nose provides some floral notes, cherry, pastilles, cedar oak and jammy sweet red fruit. Easy to drink - smooth, ripe, juicy, well balanced and nothing sticking out of place.

When to Drink: Now - 2007. It may live through to around 2009, but I think that it has the most to offer early in its life.

Verdict: This wine has still has plenty of ripe fruit flavour, but has the low level structure to sit above the non reserve bottling as being a wine that people may take a step up to drinking. 87 points.

“The Reserve” Merlot 2004

Fast Facts: Variety: Merlot Region: Multiple Country: Australia Winemaker: John Casella Closure: Nucork Synthetic Alcohol: 13.5% Cost: Around $9 USD Source: Winery Sample Available in: USA and Australia Winery Website: Casella

Tasting Note: Deep ruby red in colour. The nose leaves you in no doubt that the grapes were ripe with boisterous plum and blueberry fruit as well as dark chocolate and some medium level vanilla oak. The palate is dry, balanced and is easy to drink with soft tannins and a smooth texture.

When to Drink: Now - 2007

Verdict: A well made wine that delivers some varietal typicity at a good price. 86 points.

Summary: Yellow tail is a favourite target of ridicule for some wine lovers (whether they have tried any of the wines or not), but they are a family owned company that has put in a significant amount of hard work over the past 40 years to achieve their success (something that the big wine companies in Australia weren’t able to do in the USA). Unquestionably, they know their target market well and deliver exactly what drinkers desire at those price points.

To balance the night of French legends that I spoke of in the last post - it was decided that we should come together again in early April to have a dinner that would be a tribute to some great Australian wines.

We gathered at Restaurant Atelier at Glebe - another restaurant with an excellent reputation.

We again selected the degustation menu as we find that it is best to space out the amount of time that you spend with each wine, and this is easier to do with multiple small courses of food.

The degustation menu is decided two days prior to the booking, to take into account what fresh produce can be obtained and it consisted of the following courses;

Sourdough Bread, EVOO, Balsamic & Tapenade, Échiré Butter
Chilled Spiced Lentil Soup & Roquette Oil
Duck Egg ‘ATELIER’ w Goat Curd Soubise, Unpasteurised Ocean Trout Roe
House-Made Black Pudding with Foie Gras, Seared Scallops and Parsnip Puree
Zucchini Flower filled with Prawn, Crab and Bill, Fillet of King George Whiting, Sauce Vierge
Rare-Roasted Gauler River Pigeon, Confit Cabbage, King Mushrooms
Seasonal Selection of Cheeses, House-Made Lavosh, Sourdough.
Sauterne Custard with Lychee Gastrique
Caramelised Almond & Praline Soufflé

It was interesting to note the similarity in some dishes to the menu at Marque (the Egg, Black Pudding, Rare Pigeon and Sauterne Custard) - but while they sound similar, the difference in flavour profile was quite pronounced for some of them.

I would say that if I were to cast a critical eye on the food (and I guess I am), it was of excellent quality and taste - but it probably didn’t quite have the depth of flavour or excitement that the food at Marque did. Some members of the party were not impressed with the Pigeon dish saying it was too rare. It is very rare and that gives a certain texture to it that you may or may not like, but for my tastes it was fine.

The service was smooth and well executed and Julian the sommelier was right on top of things when handling our wines. The glasses were alright but not great (bring your own if you are bringing special wines) and the number of decanters provided was good. The chef (Darren Templeman) was also able to produce some good looking (and apparently tasting) dishes for a member of our party who has a very long list of foods that he is unable to eat.

And the bill? $110 total per person including the 7 courses ($75), bread, cheese ($8), corkage ($8 per bottle), coffee ($5) and gratuity. I think for a degustation of this quality, you would have a hard time doing much better than that.

I think that Atelier is among the top level of restaurants in Sydney and if I were to rate it, I would give it 94 points including a couple of extra points for the value.

So, with that out of the way - let’s talk about the wines. 19 bottles opened and each one a classic wine from mostly classic vintages. Our 19 bottles were from 11 different wine regions in Australia, showing that regions outside those two or three that are currently in fashion can still make great wines. They performed as follows -

Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 1996 - (Clare Valley, South Australia):
A mid-gold colour. Nose is comprised of butterscotch and lemon meringue, as well as some honey characters after some time in the glass. Length was good, but some overt acid on the palate disrupts the balance. Seemed a bit over developed, holding up alright but was apparently not nearly as good as another bottle consumed by two others at the table late last year and not a patch on the ‘96 Grosset Watervale I had recently. 87/100

Tyrrell’s “Vat 1″ Semillon 1994 - (Hunter Valley, New South Wales):
Rich nose of lanolin, honey and a small amount of toast. Palate is of medium intensity and has excellent mouth-feel, balance and length. A very good wine and it was consistent with a bottle that I had last year at a Tyrrell’s tasting. Drinking well now for my tastes, but should hold for some time. 92/100

Giaconda Chardonnay 2002 - (Beechworth, Victoria):
Nose has good intensity - toasty, spicy and caramel oak, citrus, nutty and minerally/flinty characters. What I really enjoyed about this wine was its texture and mouth-feel. It has very good length with excellent structure. It should develop very well over the next 5-7 years. 93/100

Leeuwin Estate “Art Series” Chardonnay 1987 - (Margaret River, Western Australia):
Good complexity on the nose - toasty oak, marmalade, oranges, honey and grapefruit. Palate has good depth, but there is a note of tartness on the finish just disrupting the line slightly. Sits in between the two bottles I have had previously, one better (see here) and one worse. It was still an excellent wine and did deserve to sit in on a dinner of Australian legends. 93/100

Bass Philip “Reserve” Pinot Noir 1997 (375ml) - (Gippsland, Victoria):
I was truly in the minority at my end of the table, but I really liked the complex nose on this - stems, sappy, earthy, mushrooms and a bit bloody and gamey. I did not like the palate so much, there was some tartness and some aggressive stalk characters disrupting the finish. 88/100

Bannockburn “Serre” Pinot Noir 1998 - (Geelong, Victoria):
Nose shows stalks, cherry and earth as well as being a bit alcoholic. Palate was simple and somewhat one-dimensional, but I thought it was smooth and had good balance and carry. It wouldn’t surprise me if this took on some complexity with additional age. I preferred the aromas of the Bass Phillip, but would take the palate of the Bannockburn. 89/100

Mount Mary “Quintet” Cabernets 1986 - (Yarra Valley, Victoria):
Corked - musty and totally stripped of fruit on the palate. How can people say that they would miss the “romance” of cork? NR

Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon 1995 - (Margaret River, Western Australia):
Youthful in colour. Nose has elements of violets, cedar, cassis and iodine. The palate is brooding and powerful yet beautifully balanced with all the elements present and working together. Excellent tannin structure and bound to be even better over the next 10 years. 93/100

Wynns “John Riddoch” Cabernet Sauvignon 1982 - (Coonawarra, South Australia):
This was the backup bottle for the corked Mount Mary. Mocha/chocolate, plum, earth and some capsicum (but in the background rather than the foreground “essence of capsicum” of the previous bottle I had generously been given the chance to try). The palate shows superb focus, depth and length. A remarkable wine that will live for years to come (bottle/cork variation pending). This was my Wine of the Night for drinking tonight. 95/100

Cullen “Diana Madeline” Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2001 - (Margaret River, Western Australia):
A last minute ring-in for the 1996 Cullen DM. Alcoholic heat on the tight nose as well as some violet and cherry aromas. A tannic palate that culminates in a harsh acidic finish. Just a development phase or falling to pieces, I suspect probably the former. 87/100 on this showing.

Penfolds “Grange” Shiraz 1972 - (South Australia):
Corked - One of the worst cases of TCA that I have ever experienced initally - and almost unbelievably it got worse with more air - I was unable to reuse the glass that this was poured into. NR

Penfolds “Grange” Shiraz 1978 - (South Australia):
Furniture polish as well as the furniture itself on the nose. Palate is acidic, tannic, lacks fruit and has a bitter finish. This bottle was way past its best. 78/100

Henschke “Hill of Grace” Shiraz 1986 - (Eden Valley, South Australia):
The brett police were out early on this one but I wasn’t getting any. Dark chocolate, sour cherry, leather and sweet fruit on the nose. A still youthful palate showing some tannins sticking out a little bit. The palate was getting better and taking on weight with additional airtime. A lengthy finish. Just needs to come together a bit on the palate. 93/100

Henschke “Hill of Grace” Shiraz 1990 - (Eden Valley, South Australia):
Nice complexity on the nose. Cherry, raspberry, blackberry and very well integrated oak. Palate has good structure but is powerful and intense as well. Perhaps maybe just a touch of acid sticking out on the palate to disrupt what is otherwise a wine with a very long life ahead of it. 90/100

Penfolds “Grange” Shiraz 1990 - (South Australia):
Primary, rich nose of sweet caramel, chocolate, plum, spices and American oak. Good intensity on the palate, tannins are prominent but are of high quality. Excellent length. Very young and needs a significant amount more time to really strut its stuff. 93/100

Penfolds “Kalimna Block 42″ Cabernet Sauvignon 1996 - (Barossa Valley, South Australia):
A vibrant nose of spice, raspberry, earth, tobacco, cedar, dustiness, cassis and restrained oak. The palate is very classy, elegant yet it has superb depth and intensity of fruit, wonderful balance and a long, unbroken line and length. It may not be a pure expression of Cabernet Sauvignon, but it is a pure expression of Barossa Cabernet Sauvignon. Needs 10, maybe 15 years to be at its peak and could be one of the all time classics at its peak. My Wine of the Night for potential and just all around class. 96/100

Brokenwood “Graveyard” Shiraz 2000 - (Hunter Valley, New South Wales):
Very closed, very hard to judge. Some liquorice, violets, blackberry on the nose. The alcohol was showing through on the palate. I was excited to taste this, but it really felt a bit lacklustre. I would not touch another one for 5 years. 88/100

Jim Barry “The Armagh” Shiraz 1991 - (Clare Valley, South Australia):
The backup bottle to replace the ‘72 Grange. From a single vineyard in the Clare Valley. A nose comprising pepper and spice, hazelnut, mulberry and chocolate. The palate has a certain vibrancy to it. Very good, long finish. Really enjoyable. 91/100

De Bortoli “Noble One” 1984 - (Riverina, New South Wales):
Nose shows a bit of promise with apricot, botrytis characteristics and sultana. The palate is disjointed, alcoholic, spiky and finishing short. Disappointing for one of the legends of Australian dessert wine.80/100

Once again a merry band of men and women from the Winestar Forum met up in order to enjoy some food and wine.

The Restaurant: I quite liked the restaurant; my entree of Balmain Bug Raviolo was excellent and was perfect for the white wines. Wasn’t quite as impressed with the main of Char-grilled Sirloin on mushrooms, but it was still good. Service was fine and corkage very reasonable ($3pp). Came to about $70 per head including bread, a small starter, entree, main, dessert, gratuity and corkage.

The Wines: Only the Kalleske Cleanskin was served masked on this occasion.

Charles Heidsieck NV (Mis en Cave 2000) Brut Reserve - (Champagne, France): Hyper-active, fine bead. A little bit of toast initially, with a hit of unbalanced acid on the finish. Pleasant enough, but I don’t think it is going anywhere special. 86 Points

Mount Mary Triolet 2001 - (Yarra Valley, Victoria): Blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Muscadelle. Something off-putting on the nose asides from some grassy notes, someone at the table mentioned oysters and I wouldn’t disagree. It didn’t have a great deal of complexity or interest on the palate - some tropical fruit but it was only barely there. Pulled up a bit short and watery on the finish. Didn’t live up to the reputation for me, perhaps just not my style. 84 Points

Plantagenet Riesling 1991 - (Mount Barker, Western Australia): Nose was not giving anything away. Much better on the palate, aged toasty characters with structure holding in-tact. Balanced across the palate with a good length finish. No kerosene characters. Was holding up very well for a 14 year old West Australian Riesling and I though was quite pleasant to drink but without having the intensity of a great aged Riesling. 89 Points

Savaterre Chardonnay 2001 - (Beechworth, Victoria): A wonderfully complex nose of peaches, cream and pears with well integrated oak supporting. Restrained elegant power on the palate, lovely mouth-feel, still showing some freshness. Great balance and structure. Clean, long finish. Best Australian Chardonnay I’ve had this year and I’m going to do my best to source some of this. My favourite wine this evening. 93 Points

Giaconda Cabernet Sauvignon 1992 - (Beechworth, Victoria): Tobacco and smoked meat on the nose. I noted down that the tannins are still quite prominent. A modicum of class, perhaps a shadow of the past. A good enough wine and I certainly wouldn’t refuse a glass, but not mind-blowing, and certainly not living up to reputation or price. 88 Points

Seppelt Dorrien Cabernet Sauvignon 1991 - (Barossa Valley, South Australia): Nice enough savoury bouquet and palate, but the fruit was missing in action, presumed dead. Finish pulled up short. Mike, who brought this bottle, had tried a much better bottle earlier this year. Ah, the “joys” of bottle variation. 86 Points

Penley Cabernet Sauvignon 1990 - (Coonawarra, South Australia): Notes are a bit scarce on this one sorry. Was a bit green (on the nose) and mean (unbalanced tannins). I thought that it was lacking in length and pulled up short on the finish. 86 Points

Clos L’Eglise Pomerol 1999 - (Pomerol, France): Thought this was looking a bit tired and weary for a ‘99. The shop is closed for business, nothing there to hold any interest. Might just be going through a phase which it will come out of. 85 Points

Kalleske Shiraz Cleanskin 2002 - (Barossa Valley, South Australia): A glass stainer. Massive nose - Somebody mentioned Chocolate Bullets which summed up perfectly the liquorice and chocolaty oak. Despite the full on body, there was still balance to be found. Perhaps a little bit short on the finish, but I don’t think you’ll find better value for $7.50 anywhere. 89 Points

Preveli Merlot 2002 - (Margaret River, Western Australia): Sadly, without any doubt corked. Not Rated

Clarendon Hills “Sandown” Cabernet Sauvignon 1998 - (Clarendon, South Australia): Nothing happening at first. Was given a couple of hours in the decanter to open up (and I believe a number of hours beforehand) - If anything it got worse as time went on and in my opinion was offensive in the end smelling a bit like rotting cabbage. Maybe TCA affected but definitely not a good bottle either way. Not Rated

Oliver’s Taranga Shiraz 1996 - (McLaren Vale, South Australia): Deep red in colour. Quite powerful but lacking balance and I found the alcohol overbearing, leading to a hot finish. 86 Points

Henschke Keyneton Estate 1996 - (Barossa and Eden Valleys, South Australia): Blend of 65% shiraz, 30% cabernet and 5% merlot. Yes it was a little bit gamey (read: bretty) but I thought it was all the more interesting for it. Lovely complex nose, great balance and a good length finish. Close to hitting its peak. My favourite red wine of the night. 91 Points

Seppelt Great Western Shiraz 1991 - (Grampians, Victoria): Was a bit clunky and all over the place to begin with, but after half an hour seemed to pull itself back together and was quite enjoyable, if lacking in anything to make it stand out from the crowd. Likely a couple of years past its best. 88 Points

Miranda Golden Botrytis 2002 - (Riverina, New South Wales): Didn’t pick up a whole lot of botrytis in this. Not a great deal of intensity. Some overt sweetness sticking out, but not enough to ruin my enjoyment. Medium length finish and a good accompaniment for dessert. 88 Points

Malivoire “Moira Vineyard” Chardonnay 2002 - (Ontario, Canada): Disappointing. Very developed in colour for a reasonably recently bottled Chardonnay. A very oniony, sulphury nose put down to mercaptans. “Do Not Put In Mouth” stuff. Took most of the bottle home to see if they blew off but was just as bad the next evening. Can only put this down to being a bad bottle, I will write to the maker and see if they care to respond. Not Rated

Perhaps this offline should be known as the “It has shown better in the past” night with so many bottles not showing as well as they had previously! I had a good time regardless and am looking forward to the next one.