Appellation Australia

National Riesling Challenge 2005 – Aus & NZ – Class 4

2003 and 2004 Dry

The second largest class with sixty eight wines and I tasted through sixty five of them. All wines are from 2004 unless otherwise mentioned.

Some good wines, but in general quite mediocre – can probably be put down to 2004 being an average year for Riesling in our two biggest quality areas, the Clare Valley and Eden Valley.

Babich “Marlborough” – 91/100
Ninth Island – 91/100
La Colline – 90/100
Goundrey “Homestead” – 90/100
Neagles Rock – 89/100
Goundrey “Reserve” – 89/100
Peter Lehmann “Eden Valley” – 89/100
Pipers Brook – 89/100
Skilogalee “Clare Valley” – 88/100
McGuigan “Earth Portrait” – 88/100
Leasingham “Bastion” – 88/100
Capel Vale “Whispering Hill” – 88/100
Annie’s Lane “Coppertrail” – 88/100
Bay of Fires – 88/100
Kamberra “Meeting Place” – 88/100
Elgo Estates – 88/100
John Gehrig “RG” – 88/100
Thorn-Clarke “Sandpiper” – 87/100
Wold Blass “Gold Label” – 87/100
Richmond Grove “Watervale” – 87/100
Neagles Rock “Frisky Filly” – 87/100
Spy Valley “Dry” – 87/100
Wolf Blass “Shadowood” – 87/100
Leasingham “Bin 7” – 87/100
Bass River – 87/100
Abbey Rock “Old School House” – 87/100
Trevor Jones “Reserve” – 87/100
Chrismont – 86/100
Kim Crawford “Anderson Bone Dry” – 86/100
Seppelt “Victorian” – 86/100
Mount Langi Ghiran – 86/100
Wallaroo Wines 2003 – 86/100
Tamburlaine – 86/100
Gilberts “Mt Barker” – 86/100
Dal Zotto Estate – 86/100
Cardinham 2003 – 86/100
Wirra Wirra “Hand Picked” – 86/100
Tamar Ridge – 86/100
Sandalford – 86/100
McWilliams “Regional Collection Eden” – 86/100
Cellarmaster “Storton Eden Valley” – 86/100
Capel Vale – 85/100
Barton Esate – 85/100
Hartz Barn “Eden Valley General Stores” – 85/100
Jacob’s Creek “Reserve” – 85/100
Delatite – 85/100
Brown Brothers “Milawa” – 85/100
Kim Crawford “Marlborough Dry” – 85/100
Amor Bendall – 85/100
Jim Barry “The Florita” – 84/100
Gladstone – 84/100
Mitchell “Watervale” – 84/100
Chatto Wines – 84/100
Taylors “Jaraman” – 84/100
Pettavel “Evening Star” – 84/100
Kirrihill “Reserve” – 84/100
Cardinham – 83/100
Leeuwin Estate “Art Series” – 83/100
Angoves “Select Clare Valley” – 83/100
Gibraltar Rock – 83/100
Te Whare Ra – 82/100
Nepenthe – 82/100
Taylors – 81/100
Oak House “Burings” – 79/100
Muddy Waters “Waipara” – 79/100

National Riesling Challenge 2005 – Aus & NZ – Class 3

Current Vintage (2005) Sweet

Only two wines entered in this class, which made it easy to try everything on offer! The Forrest Estate wine from New Zealand was very good, sweet honey and marmalade along with obvious botrytis influence but at the same time fresh and with enough acid on the finish to keep it from being cloying.

Forrest Estate “Botrytised” – 90/100
Mitchelton “Blackwood Park Botrytis” – 87/100

National Riesling Challenge 2005 – Aus & NZ – Class 1

Current Vintage (2005) Dry

The biggest class on show with 149 wines. Due to time constraints, I aimed to mostly try wines that had done well in the judging – hence the high nature of my scores in this class. From the 25 wines I tasted in this class, 2005 is going to be a very successful Riesling vintage for our most prominent Riesling areas.

The standout wines here were the Seppelt Drumborg which was fresh, very acidic, wonderfully structured and sure to be a delight to drink in years to come, the Amietta which is more approachable and has better intensity than the Drumborg at the moment but still has the structure to improve with age and the Leo Buring Eden Valley which is just outstanding value for money.

Seppelt “Drumborg” – 92/100
Amietta Vineyard – 91/100
Leo Buring “Eden Valley” – 90/100
Helm “Classic Dry” – 90/100
Madfish – 90/100
Mount Majura – 90/100
Hunter’s “Marlborough” – 89/100
Hungerford Hill “Clare” – 89/100
Boston Bay Wines – 89/100
Leo Buring “Clare Valley” – 89/100
St Hallett “Eden Valley” – 88/100
Mount Langi Ghiran – 88/100
Knappstein “Hand Picked” – 88/100
Siegersdorf – 88/100
Tower Estate – 88/100
Yalumba “Y Series” – 88/100
Mesh – 88/100
Helm “Premium” – 88/100
Heggies Vineyard – 87/100
Stringy Brae of Sevenhill – 87/100
Best’s “Great Western” – 86/100
Annie’s Lane – 86/100
Te Whare Ra – 86/100
Wolf Blass Gold Label – 86/100
Leeuwin Estate “Art Series” – 83/100

National Riesling Challenge 2005

15 classes of Riesling featuring 338 entries from Australia, New Zealand, Germany and North America? $15 entry and you get to pour your own samples and you get to take home whatever half bottles that are left over at the end? All I have to do is drive 4 hours to Canberra? I’m there.

So it was on the 22nd of October this year, I found myself in Canberra tasting through a rather daunting list of Riesling. My focus was on tasting briefly a wide selection of Riesling rather than detailed analysis of a limited sample. Thus, only a brief summary of each class followed by points from the standout wines.

The official awards from the judges follow;

Best Museum Class – Peter Lehmann “Reserve” 2001
Best Open Class – Palandri Wines 2004
Best Current Vintage – Madfish 2005
Best Riesling for the Canberra District – Mundoonen “Canberra” 2002
Best Riesling from New Zealand – Villa Maria “Reserve Noble” 2003
Best European Riesling – Weingut Schales “Eiswein” 2004
Best North American Riesling – Sheldrake Point “Ice Wine” 2004

The Best Riesling – Madfish 2005

My awards in the same categories would have been;

Best Museum Class – Jacob’s Creek “Steingarten” 2002
Best Open Class – Villa Maria “Reserve Noble” 2003
Best Current Vintage – Seppelt “Drumborg” 2005
Best Riesling for the Canberra District – Helm “Classic Dry” 2005
Best Riesling from New Zealand – Villa Maria “Reserve Noble” 2003
Best European Riesling – Weingut Schales “Eiswein” 2004
Best North American Riesling – Sheldrake Point “Ice Wine” 2004

The Best Riesling – Jacob’s Creek “Steingarten” 2002

I’ll post my notes and scores on each class over the next few days …

Australia’s Best Blogs – Finalist

Thanks to SmartyHost for including my blog amongst the finalists in their search for Australia’s Best Blog. Over five hundred blogs were judged for the contest and to make it to the final eleven was exciting (and unexpected).

If you are a new visitor, then welcome. As an introduction, the About page talks about some of the things that I’m looking to achieve with this blog. Aside from that, you can view stories and tasting notes on specific regions via the Categories section on the right hand side or just browse through all the previous pages via the links at the bottom of each page.

Please feel free to email me or leave a comment with any questions, suggestions or general feedback that you have for the site. We are working on some exciting features for the near future and I hope that you’ll continue to visit and enjoy.

I think that my prize for reaching the final eleven consists of some hosting services, so it looks like Appellation Australia is finally getting its own domain name. Suggestions for the domain name would be welcomed, www.appellationaustralia.com has already been registered. Perhaps a name change for the site is in order as well.

As for the grand prize of $10,000 for the overall winner Singing Bridges, well, there is always next year!

Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay 1987 Revisited

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

Castagna “Genesis” Shiraz Viognier 1999

I recently reviewed the Castagna “Sauvage” – a blend of Shiraz, Viognier and Sangiovese here. “Genesis” is the flagship of the Castagna range and as mentioned in the previous review, it wasn’t able to be made due to drought and bushfires in 2003.

This particular vintage, was the second release of “Genesis” and the first made from vines owned by Castagna. When the grapes were picked, the vines were less than two years of age – if this is what Julian Castagna can do with such young vines, I am looking forward to his future releases when the vines become fully mature.

Tasting Note: Lifted scents of violet and a touch of apricot with earth, spice, tobacco, blackberries and plum, along with some gamey, meaty characters in the background. Lovely textured mouth-feel. An outstanding effort from such young vines. 92 Points Drink: Now – 2007

Grosset Watervale Riesling 1996

Jeffrey Grosset has been at the forefront of Australian Riesling production over the past two decades. He makes a range of wines, but none are more famed than his two Rieslings, one from Polish Hill and one from Watervale – both located in the Clare Valley in South Australia.

Generally it is said that the Watervale is for earlier consumption than the Polish Hill and so at nearly 9 years of age, the Watervale was due for drinking.

Tasting Note: A lovely bright light golden colour. Honey, toast and just a small touch of kerosene (which i personally don’t mind). Outstanding length. At or very close to its apex, but I feel like it has the structure to hold this peak for years to come. A beautiful example of mature Australian Riesling. 93 Points Drink: Now -2007

Petaluma Adelaide Hills Shiraz Viognier 1998

This Shiraz/Viognier blend from Petaluma is not as well known as their Riesling, Merlot or their Cabernet blend – but has still received some excellent reviews from Australian wine critics.

Tasting Note: Youthful colour and a not-at-all shy nose – blackcurrants, ripe cherry, clove and other assorted spices along with a fair amount of oak and a subtle floral lift from the small Viognier component. I didn’t mind the oak treatment too much, however the wine would be better if it were slightly more restrained. Give it some time and it may integrate better. For a first vintage – a very good effort. 90 Points Drink: 2008 – 2012

Lanson Champagne Dinner

While not exactly fitting the theme of this site, I wanted to post some impressions on wines tried when I recently attended a Lanson Champagne dinner put on by a local retailer and the Lanson sales representatives for Australia.

Flight one wines were from 750ml bottles. All wines from flight two onwards were poured from 1500ml bottles that were disgorged late last year.

Flight 1:

Rose NV: Very pale salmon colour. Nose is a little bit shy, some strawberries, earthy notes and a hint of musk. Good enough but lacked excitement. 85/100

Black Label NV: Light straw-yellow. Very fresh, apples dominating the nose with a bit of citrus and a mere touch of yeast in the background. A creamy palate with some hazelnut influences. Easy to drink and good value for money. 86/100

Flight 2:

Gold Label Brut 1976: Light golden colour belies its age. Full nose of burnt toffee and caramel. A little bit of sharpness on the mid-palate. Quite powerful palate and good length. Possibly a bit past the stage where I would personally prefer to be drinking it. Still it was interesting and one of the more distinctive wines of the evening. 86/100

Gold Label Brut 1979: Much better than the ’76. Lighter on the nose, but surprisingly fresh and crisp. Tight, focused palate, good complexity. Very nice. 89/100

Gold Label Brut 1981: A little bit dirty on the nose and palate initially which produced a scent reminiscent of potatoes. This blew off with time and ended up being quite pleasant. Still showing good acid structure but perhaps a touch short on the finish. Broader on the palate than the 1979. 87/100

Flight 3:

Gold Label Brut 1982: Showing its age a bit with some toasty notes on the nose. A little flat and broad on the palate. 87/100

Gold Label Brut 1983: Mute nose, perhaps a touch of pear but not giving much away. Palate was flat and short. Very boring – lacks complexity and interest. I’ve had a better bottle of this! 84/100

Gold Label Brut 1985: Spices and clove on the nose. Restrained power. Still fresh. Excellent length and balance. 90/100

Flight 4:

Gold Label Brut 1988: Powerful nose. Very good mouthfeel. A long life ahead with excellent structure. 90/100

Gold Label Brut 1990: Weakest wine of this flight. A powerful nose of grilled nuts and with a disjointed palate with overt acid sticking out. 86/100

Gold Label Brut 1996: Shows its youth by being a very pale lemon in colour. Grapefruit, fresh apples and citrus on the nose. Good, balanced acid structure. Will age well. 89/100

Flight 5:

Noble Cuvee 1989: Quite light on the nose and palate. Very fine bead. A bit of nuttiness on the palate, but not a great deal of complexity. Good but not great. 87/100

Noble Cuvee 1997: Very good. Fresh, fruity, floral nose. Very approachable. Fine and focused. Tempted to get a bottle and give it some time to build complexity. 91/100

Summary: My preferred wines from each flight were the Black Label, the 1979, 1985 and 1996 Gold Label and the 1997 Noble Cuvee.

A point of difference between Lanson and the majority of other Champagne houses is that they do not put their wine through maloactic fermentation – which gives them rather distinctive apple and pear fruit purity and freshness.

These wines seem to be quite good value for money, with the NV Black Label around $45AU, the Rose around $55AU and the current release Gold Label around $65AU.

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