Appellation Australia

This is one of three 2006 Rieslings from this producer based in Pemberton, Western Australia, the others being a Dry and an Auslese version. This sits in between the other two versions, very much in the off-dry style.

A clean, perfumed nose of musk, floral notes, stonefruit and citrus. Very good balance between some slightly tangy acid and the sweetness from some residual sugar on the palate. Good length, and very easy and enjoyable to drink. I think this is going to be best drunk now and over the next couple of years. A bargain at $15 AUD, I’m very keen to try the other two now.

Score: 90/100 Drink: 2007-2009
Price: $15 AUD
Source: Annandale Cellars
Producer Website: http://www.bellarmine.com.au

What a great night and opportunity this was to taste wines from the two leading big name Cabernet producers in Margaret River from some generally good to great vintages. These wines were all from the same cellar and only the Mount Langi ring-in was tasted blind.

Lanson Black Label NV
The nose is fresh and lively with aromas of apples and a touch of toast. The palate doesn’t have a great deal of depth, but it is very refreshing which is the whole point of this wine. Good value for money in the Champagne stakes.
87/100

Cullen “Diane Madeline” Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 1999
A deep colour. Some toasty chocolate/mocha oak with dusty and briary/brambly aromas. The palate is fairly generous with good intensity and body. There is a suggestion of oak backing to the palate, but also the depth of fruit to hold it in check. Fine tannins complete the package, but you will need to have patience to let this wine really show what it can do in about 10 years time.
92/100

Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon 1999
Blood, iodine, blackcurrant and briary aromas. Slightly astringent tannins on the palate with deep, dark fruit loitering in the background. Medium length and without real texture or complexity, but you suspect that this wine will look better in 6-8 years time.
89/100

Cullen “Diane Madeline” Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 1998
There is a hint of floral, violety youth to the nose that is smothered by a wave of vanilla oak. Again on the palate, oak dominating any character that the wine may have had to offer. Seems to have good length and plenty of firm tannins left. Is it just in a difficult phase of its life? Perhaps it is, I struggle to see that there will be enough fruit left to swallow the oak in the future.
85/100

Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon 1998
A melange of un-diluted lime cordial (it had a sweet concentrated artificial lime smell), spearmint and weedy aromas. Very astringent, austere palate with no generosity of flavour or depth. The only bottle left unfinished at the end of the evening.
83/100

Cullen “Diane Madeline” Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 1996
The first bottle shared some common characteristics with well worn sport shoes - somewhat smelly and lacking fruit. Not corked as far as we could tell, just bad.

The second bottle was much better, plenty of blackberry, tobacco and roast beef. Had lots of rich, deep fruit on the still youthful palate. Good balance and length, perhaps lacking in character and complexity at the moment to be considered better than very good, this may come with time.

First bottle: 82/100 - Second Bottle: 92/100

Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon 1996
A floral nose with blackberry, cassis and plum. Shines on the palate, with excellent balance, super length and tannin structure. Not really showing any secondary development at all yet, but it has the structure to end up being excellent in 5-10 years time.
92/100

Cullen “Diane Madeline” Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 1995
Probably the best judged use of oak on the Cullen wines on the night, well integrated and balanced cedar as well as floral scents and loads of sweet fruit - raspberry, cherry and blackcurrant. The palate shows excellent balance and great structure with fine tannins. Some very deep-seated fruit lends a restrained intensity to the palate. Will live and develop positively for a long time.
93/100

Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon 1995
Was a little bit furry and mousey with some game, bramble and pencil shaving aromas coming in underneath. I thought that the palate was elegant bordering on under-fruited. Not close in quality to a bottle we opened earlier in the year from the same cellar.
88/100

Cullen “Diane Madeline” Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 1994
A tight nose with some tar, blood, blackcurrant and tomato leaf. The palate is austere and the drying tannins are the prominent character that lead into a rather abrupt finish.
86/100

Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon 1994
The nose was fairly restrained with some soap, herbs, briary notes and tobacco. The palate has a twinge of astringency, foiling the otherwise excellent line and length. A generous, rich berry flavour to the palate which I think should carry this wine forward for some time yet.
90/100

Cullen “Reserve” Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 1991
Ash, tobacco and blackberry on the nose. The palate is elegant and balanced but also a touch dull, lacking any great levels of complexity, intensity or depth. A good wine, drinking well now, but unlikely to get much better with additional age.
88/100

Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon 1991
I think that the first bottle was mildly corked or at the very least the fruit was stripped from the palate.

The second bottle was somewhat better with a bloody, tary and iodine nose. The shows good depth of fruit considering the age and decent balance, but not a great deal of complexity or interest really.
First Bottle: NR/100 - Second Bottle: 88/100

Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay 1997 (magnum)
Corked! Equivalent to two bottles being undrinkable. Bloody corks.
NR/100

Chateau Cantemerle 1983
Roast vegetables, cigar box and well integrated cedary oak. The palate is balanced, savoury and all the components were well integrated. Pulled up a touch short on the finish and just started to slip out of balance after 30 minutes in the glass, but a nice mature wine while it lasted.
88/100

Mount Langi Ghiran “Langi” Shiraz 1994
Dried chilli flakes, chalk, nutmeg, blackberry and some trademark pepper that became much more obvious to me once the label was revealed The palate is spicy and has great balance and length. Shows excellent aged texture and complexity. A super wine that must be close to hitting its peak, but has the structure to live for a long time.
93/100

Some quick notes from an excellent evening hosted by David Lole in Canberra. All wines were tasted and scored blind except for the Curlewis, the St. Henri and the Petaluma Essence.

Rockford Sparkling Black (Sept. 2005 disgorgement) - (Barossa Valley, South Australia):

Bright, clean raspberry, cherry, pepper, vanilla and blackberry aromas as well as a smidge of oak. Flavours refreshingly dance across the tongue into a good length finish. Rather lovely to drink - sure it is youthful, but at least you don’t have to deal with the infamous leaking/snapping Rockford corks when you open them early.

90/100

Grosset Watervale Riesling 2002 (screwcap) - (Clare Valley, South Australia):

Lemon and lemon zest, floral aromas, gunflint (although I wasn’t as troubled by the sulphur as some others) and a touch of toast and honey. The palate is austere and shows an excellent minerally acid structure. Certainly youthful and not providing all that much pleasure to drink at the moment, but the promise lies in its future in around 5-8 years time.

91/100

Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay 1999 - (Margaret River, Western Australia):

Toast, strong pear, peach, grapefruit and nutty, creamy oak that is well blended into the rest of the nose. A very classy palate that is just slightly let down with just a touch too much oak at this stage and just a bit of alcoholic heat on the back palate that I fear may not subside with time.

91/100

Curlewis Reserve Pinot Noir 2002 - (Geelong, Victoria):

Lots going on with the lovely nose - black cherry, earth, forest floor (I learnt a new descriptive French wine term on the night - “valley of the hare”) stalks, some beetroot, spice and honey. Superb length, great depth of fruit and fine walnut flavoured tannins. A genuine top-shelf Australian Pinot Noir that I think is drinking very well at the moment.

93/100

Seppelt Great Western Shiraz 1996 - (Grampians, Victoria):

Deep youthful colour, but there was some complexity on the nose suggesting that it had a bit more age to it. Earth, mushroom, violets, rosewood, a hint of black pepper and cassis. Tannin structure is present on the palate but showing good integration with the other components. An excellent wine that should be drinking at its peak in around 3-5 years and should live on for some time after that.

93/100

Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz 1998 - (Regional Blend, South Australia):

Chocolate, blueberry, vanilla oak and lots of clean, vibrant red berry fruit. Lovely balance on the clean palate, with good length and importantly it is very enjoyable to drink! Sure, it doesn’t give you a sense of place - but that obviously isn’t what it is aiming for. Drinking really nicely now, but has the structure and balance to develop complexity should you want to give it time over the next 6-8 years.

92/100

Penfolds St Henri Claret “Special Release” 1979 - (Regional Blend, South Australia):

Great colour, no browning even around the edges. Leathery, sweet earthy fruit. Everything is fully resolved and balanced on the palate. A nice old wine that was drinking without faults, and not falling over in the glass, but almost certainly would have had a lot more to offer in the early to mid 90’s.

87/100

Best’s Bin 0 Great Western Shiraz 1998 - (Grampians, Victoria):

A nice coincidence to have this wine on the same night as the Seppelt Great Western. Raspberry, bramble, blackberry and a lovely touch of floral lift (which had some thinking Shiraz/Viognier). A palate that has great weight and depth of fruit flavour. Very youthful and primary but has the class to go the distance and I think it’ll hit its peak in 8-10 years. Should have been poured after the Giaconda, but that is one problem with tasting wines blind.

92/100

Giaconda Cabernet 1992 - (Beechworth, Victoria):

60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc. Excellent colour with just a hint of thinning around the edges. Classic cabernet nose of graphite, capsicum, cedar and some some smoky ash. Excellently balanced palate flows through to a long finish. A much better bottle than the one I had late last year with some friends in Sydney at a dinner. Not showing any signs of tiring, but it is well and truly ready to drink.

92/100

Petaluma Botrytis Semillon “Essence” 1999 - (Coonawarra, South Australia):

Great depth of aromas to the nose with honey, botrytis, peaches and pears, crème Brule, burnt toffee and caramel. The palate is just a bit over the top, especially in comparison to the balanced 2000 vintage of this wine that I served late last year. The acid structure is there in the background, but it is just overawed by the level of sweetness. It did seem to come together slightly with some air. Very good but not great.

89/100

I went to a hastily arranged dinner at Sakana-Ya in Crows Nest following the Torbreck tasting at North Sydney Cellars that I wrote about here. The quality of the dishes was good and there was some interesting food that I haven’t tried previously (Fried Eel being an example). The service was attentive and polite. Take your own glassware if you are serious about wine as the provided stemware is sub-par. It was slightly on the expensive side, but I guess when you are paying for high quality, fresh sushi-grade seafood it is to be expected.

All wines were tasted blind except for the Plantagenet and the Leo Buring.

Clos Cazals Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru 1997 (Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Champagne):
Slightly toasty, apples, pears, lots of flint and minerals on the nose. Very elegant and what I would call a “pure” tasting palate with good length and balance. It started to take on a bit of extra palate weight with air time but still had fine and focused flavour.
90/100

Gaston Chiquet Tradition Brut Premier Cru NV - Disgorged November 2004 (Dizy, Champagne):
80% 2000 and 20% 1999 fruit. 45% Pinot Meunier, 35% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Noir. Nose is fairly intense with slightly funky/sulphurous notes and earth, with yeast and brioche. I found the palate a little bit broad and just a bit short.

An interesting contrast in style to the Clos Cazals.
87/100

Plantagenet Riesling 1992 (Mount Barker, Western Australia):
The nose is obviously quite developed - honeyed with some marmalade and orange and just a small whiff of petrol. Palate has some decent intensity to it, but is lacking the acid structure to retain balance.

It was doing alright for a 14 year old Western Australian Riesling, but the Plantagenet 1991 we tried 6 months ago faired a considerable amount better.
84/100

Leo Buring Leonay DW16 Watervale 1994 (Clare Valley, South Australia):
1994 was one of the few vintages when a Leonay was produced from both Eden Valley and Clare Valley fruit.

There was some gasoline and citrus (lemon and lime) on the nose. The palate is loaded with acid and a slight spritz as well as a bitter character on the finish. Not really falling over, but I doubt that this bottle would have come into any kind of balance in its remaining life.

I had enjoyed a stunning bottle of the Eden Valley Leonay last year, but this was just not as good.
86/100

Fox Creek Reserve Shiraz 1999 (McLaren Vale, South Australia):
This is clearly a serious wine. I found it to be brambly, a bit leafy and spicy which led me on the wrong path with options, as well as some bitter chocolate. Good tannins and what I thought was well integrated oak provided good structure. Clearly needs some time to develop fully, but I didn’t mind drinking it as is.
89/100

Wild Duck Creek “Yellow Hammer Hill” Shiraz Malbec 2000 (Heathcote, Victoria):
65% Shiraz, 35% Malbec. This is apparently inspired and moulded on the Wendouree Shiraz Malbec blend and only available through some restaurants and to some customers at cellar door.

A nose comprised of earthy, gamey, weedy and a hint of cheesy characters. It is certainly a wine with a point of difference. Nicely integrated palate components - everything working together well. I enjoyed it for being out of the ordinary.
88/100

A quick get together at Borelli’s Italian Restaurant in Epping. The restaurant was good for what it is, a small local place that has food with good flavour and large servings, with fairly priced meals (for us it was around $50 AUD per person for three courses and tip) and corkage at $4 a bottle. Most importantly, it was centrally located for the people attending this get together. We had an interesting little mix of wines on the night with a couple of them standing out at the end.

Pol Roger Brut 1996 - (Champagne, France):
A nose of green apples, citrus, some minerals and a touch of yeast but seemed to have softened in intensity since I last tried it in December 2004. There was a slight musty character that reminded me of a similar character on the 1988 Dom Perignon that I had at the French wine dinner at Marque I but I don’t think it was corked (nor did anyone think the Dom corked), it can be hard to tell sometimes though. A glass left to the side for a few hours didn’t seem to have any obvious level of taint to it. The palate had some nice texture to it and a cleansing wave of acidity across the length. A bad bottle or not, I still thought it was a nice wine.
88/100

Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay 1996 - (Margaret River, Western Australia):
Citrus peel and roasted nuts on the nose. Generous flavour on the palate and the length was good except for a weird bitter echinacea like character on the mid to back palate. Seemed quite developed - not as good as a previous bottle that I had late last year. Based on this bottle and even the one previous, I’d been drinking it over the next couple of years.
86/100

Paul Jaboulet Domaine de Thalabert Crozes-Hermitage 1997 - (France):
Cherry, liquorice, stalks, iodine and tar. Tannins and oak well integrated on the fairly sappy palate. Drinking pretty nicely at the moment, I don’t think it would benefit from much more age.
87/100

E. Guigal Hermitage 1997 - (France):
Blackberry, liquorice, dark berry fruits, dark chocolate. Again the slight sappy green element to the palate, but not as pronounced as with the Jaboulet. Structure, tannins and length seemed to be slightly better than the Jaboulet. A nice wine that will probably be a bit nicer with a few more years in bottle.
88/100

Castagna Genesis Syrah 2002 - (Beechworth, Victoria):
Pepper and spice with background apricot as well as bright raspberry and cherry aromas, there were some floral notes coming through as it just started to open up. I didn’t think the viognier too overt (although if you hate it, it is certainly there in the background). Palate exhibits some excellent texture and structure. Needs another 5+ years to really shine.
91/100

Parker Estate Terra Rossa First Growth 1994 - (Coonawarra, South Australia):
Lots of blackcurrant and cassis, smoke, hints of slightly roasted vegetables and capsicum. Palate is smooth and the components seem well integrated, but it surprisingly has very little secondary development as yet. Very good now and should probably get better if everything stays balanced while it develops complexity.
92/100

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

Sydney experienced a 45° celsius (113° fahrenheit) New Years day this year, so we did what any sensible group of wine lovers would do - go ahead with the dinner anyway and celebrate the New Year with some great wine.

This was my first visit to Elio, an Italian restaurant which is based in Leichhardt and I would certainly go back for an offline in future. The food was excellent, service was very friendly and most importantly they were one of the few places open on New Years Day. Corkage was $5.50 per bottle which is about average for decent Sydney restauarants.

Krug Grande Cuvée MV - (Champagne, France): My first taste of Krug MV (multi-vintage blend) and I’m almost already a convert. Full, powerful nose of almonds, hazelnut, yeast and toast, while at the same time exhibiting fresh citrusy lemon and lime characters. Exceptional length on the palate with waves of flavour. I could easily get used to this! My favourite wine on this evening.. 95/100

Tyrrell’s Vat 47 Chardonnay 2000 - (Hunter Valley, New South Wales): Citrus, peaches and a touch of butter and oak in the background. Quite a powerful, intense palate. Not showing much development yet but has the structure to hold while secondary characters are taken on. 89/100

Suckfizzle Sauvignon Blanc Semillon 1998 - (Margaret River, Western Australia): Herbaceous, grass, tobacco leaf, tinned beans and what I thought was a whiff of disinfectant on the nose. A tangy element to the palate. I didn’t enjoy this but others at the table did. I came back to the wine later in the evening to see if my opinion would be kinder to it after some time had passed, but I still didn’t like it. 84/100

Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay 1997 - (Margaret River, Western Australia): Oatmeal, citrus, toasty oak and a bit of cheese dominate the aromas. Nice creamy mouth-feel but a touch of acid sticking out disrupts the line and otherwise good length. 89/100

Bass Phillip Reserve Pinot Noir 2000 - (Gippsland, Victoria):This may be the only wine that I come close to picking blind this year at offline and I didn’t get the vintage, but I’ll take what I can get. Would not (and did not) pick this as being as young as 2000.

Stalks, cherries, violets, some confection and a touch of earthiness. Upfront, very smooth and easy to drink but also showing good texture and structure. I really quite liked the wine, but I rather less like the price tag associated. 92/100

Domaine Jean Gros Vosne-Romanee 1989 - (Burgundy, France): Earth, wild mushrooms, sour cherries and some spicy oak aromas form the forward nose of this wine. The palate lets the wine down a little bit, with some acid poking through that I don’t think will be resolved with any further time. 90/100

Chateau Bon Pasteur 1995 - (Bordeaux, France): Freshly shaved sawdust and tobacco on the nose. Tannic and lacking fruit. I didn’t pick any obvious TCA elements but will give the wine the benefit of the doubt as one member of the table had a better bottle previously. Not Rated

Pillitteri Estates Winery Sparkling Icewine Riesling 2002 - (Ontario, Canada): An interesting and unusual experience. Only a very light sparkle to it. Lifted fresh nose of apricots, raisins, lemon, pear and ginger. The palate was very sweet on its own but was toned down slightly when having it with dessert. Acid structure is there in the background but needs to come forward a little to achieve balance.

This is the first vintage of sparkling Riesling Icewine from this winery (and apparently the first sparkling Riesling Icewine from the region) and I’m sure they’ll improve the results with more experience. 89/100

Charles Melton Sparkling Red NV (Disgorged Nov-99) - (Barossa Valley, South Australia):Cherries along with spicy and meaty notes comprise the nose. Palate had just a touch of sweetness about it. Not bad. 87/100

Some notes taken at a dinner attended by some fellow wine lovers -

Seppelt Show Sparkling Shiraz 1990 - (Grampians, Victoria): A nice way to start the proceedings. Blackberry, cherry, spice, violets and earthy characters on the nose. Nice rich mouth-feel, with a bit of sweetness on the palate. Good, long finish. 88/100

Dry River “Lovat Vineyard” Gewürztraminer 2004 - (Martinborough, New Zealand): A style which polarised people somewhat. Lovely, varietal, intense fresh floral nose along with lychee, turkish delight, lemon, apples and a little bit of musk and spice. A concentrated, rich, sweet palate with a long finish.

There was some discussion that this was too sweet to be a table wine but not sweet enough to be a dessert wine, I’m of the opinion that in a non-offline situation you would find a food to match the wine rather than try to force this square peg of a wine into a round hole. However, I won’t argue that it isn’t worth the money. 89/100

Tahbilk Marsanne 1992 - (Nagambie, Victoria): Deep golden colour. Some honey, but mostly oxidised characters on the nose. Palate was thin and sharp. Sadly, a bottle well past its best. Not Rated

Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chadonnay 1996 - (Margaret River, Western Australia): Fairly obvious nutty caramel oak on the nose as well as grapefruit and citrus fruits. Rich, broad palate - powerful creamy texture. Very long finish. From what I’ve tasted of LEAS Chardonnay this vintage seemed to be a good representation of the style with a bit of age. 91/100

Mount Mary Chardonnay 1999 - (Yarra Valley, Victoria): A contrast to the Leeuwin Chardonnay above, but not in a bad way. Steely, minerally, gunflint and struck match on the nose. Delicate, elegant palate with minerally acid providing structure. Long finish. Very good. 92/100

Main Ridge Pinot Noir 1999 - (Mornington Penninsula, Victoria): Sour cherry with strawberry, green stalky characteristics and hints of earth. I didn’t feel that it had enough complexity or interest on the palate to make up for the nose. 84/100

L’Arrosee 1982 - (Bordeaux, France): Wonderfully youthful colour. Cedar, tobacco, blackcurrant, cassis and a bit of a smoked meat on the nose. Balanced, elegant palate leading into a long finish. Drinking so well now and not likely to fall over anytime soon. 92/100

Wynns John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon 1988 - (Coonawarra, South Australia): Green capsicum, chocolate, mixed herbs and blackberries. Medium weighted on the smooth palate. Good but I thought it needed something more to take the step up into excellent. 88/100

Mount Mary Quintet Cabernets 1995 - (Yarra Valley, Victoria): One of the vintages of this wine that was recently said to not be worth higher than 80 points by Robert Parker Jr. Lovely violets dominate the nose, as well as blackcurrants, earth and sour stalks. Elegant palate, perhaps heading a bit too far towards the thin side of elegant though. 87/100

Masi Costasera 1997 - (Amarone, Italy): Very powerful and upfront. Plenty of oak evident as well as plum and cherry on the nose. Ripe, full bodied, concentrated and powerful - but not at all ready to drink - needs more time for the big tannins and oak to integrate. 87/100

Penfolds RWT 2001 - (Barossa Valley, South Australia): On the nose; Plenty of vanilla oak, cedar, coffee, blackberry, liquorice and some interesting floral overtones. Rich, fruity, oaky palate. Unsurprisingly primary at this stage - needs time for components to integrate and develop complexity. 87/100

Charles Melton Nine Popes 2001 - (Barossa Valley, South Australia): Meaty and savoury, plums, tobacco and blackberry as well as a little bit of sappiness. Smooth and well balanced on the palate - 15% alcohol but doesn’t show any sign of it. Rating is for the wine on the night, but as an afterward, the remains did show a bit better the night after. 89/100

Petaluma Botrytis Essence 2000 - (Coonawarra, South Australia): From a local store wanting to get rid of these because they couldn’t sell them. Slightly over 100 cases of half bottles made. Rich, powerful nose of honey, apricots, citrus peel and some botrytis evident. The palate is luscious, intense and sweet but held in balance by excellent acid structure. Impeccable length. Will age, but I’m not sure that it is worth waiting. Delicious stuff. 92/100

I wrote recently about my first bottle of this wine here.

There have been some reports of bottle variation from the case purchased at auction earlier this year by some of the other syndicate members. My first bottle was good but looked a little bit tired, this second (and final) bottle displayed better freshness and was a small step up on the previous bottle. Still, I still think that it is sliding away very slowly and would have been unforgettable at its peak rather than “merely” excellent now.

It is interesting that there is such variation between individual bottles of the same wine, that have been stored in exactly the same conditions for so many years. From undrinkable to bordering on perfection. I don’t know if screwcap is the answer, but cork surely isn’t.

Tasting Note: Such amazing complexity on the nose - honey, caramel, butterscotch, marmalade, mixed nuts, lemon sherbet and toasted spicy oak. The palate is outstandingly deep, balanced and lively, with a powerful, creamy, layered mouth-feel and a long vein of acid holding it all together along the superb length of the wine. 94 Points Drink: Now

Last month Australia’s largest wine company Southcorp (now part of Fosters and even bigger) put on its annual road-show to showcase its wines across major capital cities.

In Sydney, this was held at the completely refurbished Hilton hotel that was reopened in July. As often happens at these public events it didn’t take long to descend into madness, with two full metre high spittoons being knocked over and spilt across the brand new carpet, but I managed to make a few brief notes before it became too difficult to move.

Next year hopefully Southcorp will either halve the number of tickets sold, double the size of the room hired or hold the event over two days.

Apart from these wines, I also attended a Seppelt Fortified Masterclass which I will write about in a separate post shortly.

Secret Stone Sauvignon Blanc 2005 - Grassy, herbaceous, very fresh, a pretty good attempt at a stereotypical Marlbourough Sauvignon Blanc. I’m sure it’ll sell well. 87/100

Leo Buring: Recently refocused as a Riesling only label after dabbling in a few other varieties over the years. At the base level are the Clare and Eden Valley Rieslings which retail for around $12AU, followed by the Leonay Riesling which is only made in great years and can either be from the Clare or Eden Valley depending on which produced better grapes and retails for around $28. Two new Rieslings were on show, a single vineyard Watervale Clare Valley Riesling and a Mount Barker Riesling from Western Australia which will be released at the same price point as the Leonay Riesling later this year.

Clare Valley Riesling 2005 - A touch yeasty? Needs time to settle down after bottling - nice aromatics of lemon/lime. 88/100
Eden Valley Riesling 2005 - More restrained than the Clare - showing excellent structure and should age very well. 89/100
Leonay Eden Valley Riesling 2005 - Great minerality, great acid structure. Approachable now but will blossom with time. 91/100
Single Vineyard Watervale Riesling 2005 - Planned as an aged release in 2010. Very, very good. Superb pure fruit. Looking forward to seeing it again on release. 92/100
Mount Barker Riesling 2005 - Over the top, bracing acidity that will settle down after time and should give it the structure to age. Worth putting away a couple of bottles to see what happens. 90/100

Leonay Riesling 1991 - Not showing well on this occasion. No fruit, a bit of honey and butterscotch, no kero. Short on the finish. 81/100
Leonay Riesling 1995 - A touch of coffee(?), kero and honey on the nose. Lovely mouth-feel. This bottle seemed ready to drink. 90/100
Leonay Riesling 1997 - Touch short on the finish but otherwise very nice. Still very youthful with no signs of the fruit fading, will go for quite some more time. Balanced flavour profile. 91/100

Devil’s Lair: A brand that has a good reputation from the Margaret River region in Western Australia. Aside from their flagship Chardonnay ($35) and Cabernet Blend ($45) reviewed here, they produce a second label called Fifth Leg which is aimed at a lower price point ($15) and is apparently selling very well.

Chardonnay 2001 - A Chardonnay with a bit of character and complexity but perhaps lacking balance side by side with the 2003. 89/100
Chardonnay 2003 - More power than the 2001 but the balance is held together by smart oak usage. Good structure, excellent length. 90/100
Cabernet Blend 1999 - Minty nose and a bit of sweetness on the palate. Not my thing. 87/100
Cabernet Blend 2002 - Too herbaceous and green. Disjointed palate. I’ll pass. 85/100
Cabernet Blend 2003 - To be released April ‘06. This is more like it. Rich nose of berries, cassis, tobacco. Perhaps a bit too much oak on the palate but that may sort itself out between now and release. 89/100

Seppelt: The shining example of a winery under the control of a huge corporation that is actually making very good wine across the board, from their under $10 Victorian range to their flagship St Peters Shiraz at $50. I’ve written about Seppelt and the not so complicated secret behind their success before here.

Salinger Rose NV - Strawberry nose. Quite light, worth a look at over summer. 86/100
Salinger Sparkling 2001 - Crisp, refreshing. Good value for money. 87/100
Drumborg Riesling 2005 - Lovely restrained floral nose. Great length and structure. Give it some time in the cellar and be rewarded. 92/100
Moyston Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 - Earthy, grippy tannins. Give it a few years to develop and will be good. 89/100
St Peters Shiraz 2003 - Very approachable. Great balance. Not quite as intense as the 2002 St Peters, but still excellent fruit, smart use of oak and the structure to age well. Highly recommended. 95/100
Benno Shiraz 2003 - I have seen some recent comments on a disturbing amount of oakiness on the palate and this tasting didn’t give me any reason to disagree. A bit disappointing as the fruit is clearly very good. Should probably come together, but the jury is out. 90/100