2008 Martinborough Vineyard "Te Tera" Pinot Noir

The Martinborough journey continues. I am struggling to find an Australian pinot that is as consistant as this region. Recently, I have tasted 2006-current vintages from this region and the consistent quality and core, unmistakeable, Martinborough characteristics shine through.
Anyway, back to the wine. Purchased from Vintage Cellars Coorparoo for $38. Dark crimson colour. Plum and spice nose and a tiny bit of sweetness. The palate has subtle oak and ultra fine tannin. Beautiful red fruit, pepper and spice dominate and last forever. This is a great wine. 90/100 and i would buy this again in an instant.

2006 Murdoch James Martinborough Pinot Noir

2006, Talked up as one of the great years, lets see.

Dark Crimson colour which surprised me a little. Nose is exceptional, barnyard floor and a hint of spice and cinnamon. I sat smelling this wine for a long time before tasting. On the palate, definite aged characters coming through. Lovely mouth feel with plum and spice, some tanin but on the way out. Great finish, however the nose lead me to expect more. Still a lovely wine which i would buy as long as its available. 90/100, awesome nose but a touch thin on the palate.

2009 Mt Horrocks Watervale Shiraz

Purchased cellar door for $35. Was at Mt Horrocks specifically to taste the Cabernet, as well as make the first weekend of the Grosset cellar door for 2011 which is just down the road (they open for about 6 weeks only). Tasted this and bought a couple in the moment. The wine is being promoted as 'remarkable'. It's very good but 'remarkable' it aint! It's ripe and fruity, with plenty of plum on the nose. While it smells very good and the initial taste is very good, the finish is not quite there. It's soft and lacks any real kick. The tannins are barely discernable. To me, this is a drink now proposition and an overpriced one at that. I'll leave the other for a year and so and see what happens. Score 84/100. Buy again, no.

2008 Jacobs Creek Reserve Adelaide Hils Chardonnay

I have been reading all the hype over this wine, so I had to see for myself. I felt like wearing a disguise to buy this wine but opted not to, I can wear the snickers by the 18 year old checkout clerk, what would she know anyway :) So I ponied up the 11 bucks at Firstchoice, Maroochydore and ran. Well, here goes. Great nose, obvious toasty oak and peach, good start. First taste is surprising, beautiful restrained oak and buttery characteristics, rich fruit and so well balanced, this is really elegant, and has a finish that lasts forever! The bogan is not going to let me forget this, but I don't care, this is seriously good. I give this 89/100 and will bye bucket loads of this coming into summer.

2008 Palliser Estate Pinot Noir

As a consepuence of my beloved Victorian Pinots being in general disappointing, I have turned my attention to our kiwi bros, Martinborough in particular.
Spice dominates the nose, followed by lifted ripe red fruit, which the Bogan refers to it as alcohol burn and not enough fruit.
The palate has alot of tannin, which buries the fruit somewhat, but the wine is still enjoyable. Massive length, and one to lay down for a few years.
Definitley buy again. 85 points.

1999 Richmond Grove Watervale Riesling

Purchased from First Choice, a 12 year old Riesling. Who knows where they would have sourced this. The label boasts as being one of the original stelvin caps. Upon opening, the frog sympathiser commented how fresh it seemed so the closure must have done its job.

Lovely golden colour. Subdued nose, some honey, a small amount of kero coming through. The palate seemed flat to me, in decline perhaps. For a 12 yo wine though, it has still held up quite well but for 30AUD, I wouldn't venture here again. I didn't get enough of those aged charcteristics I was hoping for. Perhaps it was not an exuberant wine to start with. My score 80 (good).

2005 Jim Barry McRae Wood

Purchased at cellar door back in July 2010 for $50.

This is ready to go now and should continue for some time. A fruit bomb, big and beautiful. Black fruit, eucalypt, licorice and plenty of spicy goodness on the nose. Full bodied palate, a long finish that is beautifully balanced. Great stuff.

Just finishing off the glass, shit this smells good!

A score. 91/100, outstanding.

2009 Mt Horrocks Watervale Riesling

First drunk in December 2010, tasting notes were 'Quite restrained. Almost clear in the glass. Nose of lime, a medium length and dry finish. A mineral spine to this wine. While I enjoy my riesling young, this is one worth holding'.

This has really come along. Colour is now a light yellow. It has lost a little zest on the nose, the palate has mellowed and now shows some honey, almost a creamy texture. Minerals are there and provide great sructure. The finish is beautifully balanced. Superb drinking, this could be something spcial in years to come.

My score, 90/100 and getting better.

First Blind Tasting

The frog sympathiser bought over to the bogan's place a couple of wines for a blind tasting, his intent of course was to trip me up. Big Darren from the Purple Palate at Maroochydore ponied up some free grog for us to smash (oops sorry, critique). Smash (sorry critique) it, we did. The grog in question was a Barossa GSM v an interesting blend of Heathcote Shiraz and Eden Valley grenache (who would have thought!). My palate had been lubricating over a premium quality 2006 Barossa Shiraz (OK, a Jacobs Creek) so i was well primed for the task ahead.

The two were served side by side and blind. I got as far as saying a recent vintage warm climate versus a cooler climate and slightly older wine. Not very clever at all, but at least on the money.

The undisputed winner was the 2007 Jack Raj Heathcote/Eden Valley Shiraz Grenache. This was difficult for us because the winemaker is know to said bloggers and is generally disliked. Don't you hate that! The very long second was a hot off the press, world exclusive, never been blogged before and very ordinary 2010 Yalumba The Strapper GSM.

Jack Raj has quite a unique nose, I thought it might have been a frog. It is quite complex and a little bit funky, but very nice. The palate is medium-bodied and balanced. A well made wine. The Yalumba on the other hand is young, meaty, harsh and overripe nonesense. Nothing to challenge the palate at all.

This brings me back to the Jacobs Creek. The bogan has a soft spot for them for what they have done for Australian wine in overseas markets. You and I might laugh, but the Poms loved it and as a result, a lot of Australians were employed. As for this wine, who'd have thought? Not big or complex by any measure but perfectly acceptable drinking. Secondary chocolate showing on both nose and palate. Still a little tannin, the finish is well balanced. Surprised on the upside.

Now for numbers. The Jack Raj,88, buy again, first thing tomorrow morning. The Strapper, < 80, offensive for the money. Jacoabs Creek, 85, would buy again if I could.

2008 Bannockburn Pinot Noir

Pure, light brick red with a light translucent-clear edge. Deep sweet sechuan pepper (light spice) and pancetta aromas with underlying sweet red fruits. Very complex. Slight gun smoke. Again acid backs up the palate with fruit, spice and faint tannin backing up the flavors. Needs more time but it's doubtful the fruit will overcome the acid structure. Needs pork crackling or Peking duck.

2008 Bannockburn Chardonnay

Straw gold with very slightly green tinge, beautiful but just over-ripe aromas of deep peach, almond and honeyed wheat. Perfect acid structure that lays the road for pure excellence of fruit and secondary ferment flavors. Overwhelms the palate with ripe fruit, balanced crisp acid and delicious malo. Roast me a chook pronto!!!! Thanks to big Dick for a guest critique.

1998 Taylors St. Andrews Shiraz

Rated No. 1 in the Great Australian Shiraz Challenge in 2001. More bling on the bottle than Lady GaGa.

Let's cut straight to the chase - this is f$&@$&g good. Last night we drank the '04 version of this wine (see previous post) and were super impressed. So much so, we thought let's get the '98 version a run (that was reputably from an equivalent and excellent vintage) and compare.

Wow!! These guys know what they are doing. While we haven't tried everything, for 55 bucks (purchased 3 weeks ago) I'm not sure what else you can expect. The colour is still dark. On the nose the plum and black fruit is still there and mint and chocolate are developing. I'd be happy to sit here and smell it all night, just magnificent. While the palate is approachable now, the tannins remain. Not over the top, but with lovely mouthfeel. a persistent and beautifully balanced finish.

A number. My only criticism from the '04 was that perhaps the palate lacked some tannin, which I like. This wine is better in every aspect, it has colour, a powerful and expressive nose, a magnificent finish and some tannin. The nose for me is the standout, top class.

94/100 is where we have settled. Not sure why other than it is better than The '04. If 95 is "extraordinary and exceptional", this is getting up there. If you can still get this for $55, ridiculously good value.

2004 Taylors St. Andrews Shiraz

Purchased at Dans for $55. James Haliday describes this as "a distinguished wine from a distinguished vintage". We all agree he is on the money. A lovely black fruit and plum nose that is beginning to develop some earthy and tobacco secondary characters. It is still powerful. The palate is complex and is full of fruit, licorice, chocolate, you name it, it's going on. The tannin is gone, the finish is as smooth as a baby's backside. This is a cracking good drink. The '04 St. Andrews Cabernet I gave a 92/100, this is every inch as good and maybe a bit better. Shows just how good the '04 Clare vintage was.

I'm thinking about the score and trying to pick a fault. This isn't easy with such a complete wine. If I was to be pretentious, I'd say this would be better with some tannin, a little bite and grip on the palate perhaps. No-one agrees with me however, this is normal. OK, 93/100. Buy again? At $55, a wine of this quality is sharply priced. At it's peak, drink up!!!

PS. The consensus is that after more time in the glass, the better this wine gets. 93+/100. That is an official FNVTBB record.

2008 Stella Bella Chardonnay

Purchased from Purple Palate Maroochydore for $22. Pale green straw colour, it has developed some colour since last time we tried this. Beautiful restrained oak nose with a hint of cashew and stone fruit, very Burgundian. We discovered this wine at a wine dinner on the Sunshine Coast last year, and wow, what a collection of wine he makes, the Chardonnay was the standout for mine. We managed to have a great chat with the winemaker and got onto the topic of our common love for Burgundy and in particular the wine maker Etienne Sauzet, who is his main influence in making this wine. Undiscovered, understated and underpriced, this wine is an excellent example of it's variety, regardless of it's origin. 90/100 and buy as much as you can while at this price, it won't be this value for long.

2010 Clos Clare Watervale Riesling

I must first disclose my conflict of interest.  I'm a born and bred Clare Valley lad and my favorite drink is Riesling, so I have been accused of talking up a wine like this in the past.  Just trying to keep a few old school mates employed.

This particular wine comes from the very distinguished Florita vineyard. This loamy clay over limestone has won numerous trophies and hundreds of medals since the '60's under the then Leo Buring label and (since the mid-80's I think) the Jim Barry label.

On this occasion there is no need for me to embellish the truth.  This is fantastic.  Almost clear in the glass, a very pale green colour.  Lovely citrus and floral aromas. The palate is perfectly balanced.  A long, mouth puckering finish (OK, guilty, I'm talking it up).  The structure of this wine together with the track record of the vineyard tells me that this will just get better with time, maybe a very long time.

Now, for those of you that think Riesling is sweet nonsense in a brown paper bag, think again. For me, the best examples are bone dry, like this one.  Riesling is great with food.  Riesling is great without food.  Riesling has great aging potential where it can develop from being almost clear, with  zesty citrus and floral characters to a much darker and far more complex wine, often with toast and honey characteristics.

And the kicker is that even the very best examples are cheap because they are relatively cheap to make.  No oak, no cellaring. Grosset Polish Hill is probably Australia's most distinguished Riesling (Langton's Exceptional classification) and it's readily available for 35 bucks!

So get into it, and keep some Clare Valley locals employed.

Oh, sorry, back to the wine.  My score 91/100.   Buy again? For $20 bucks, amazing value. At the time of writing, East End Cellars in Adelaide still have some.

2006 Two Hands Lily's Garden McClaren Vale Shiraz

It's a big Aussie fruit bomb! Approachable and enjoyable, but still some time away from it's peak. Dark red inky colour. Big red fruit dominate, some licorice, not a great deal of tannin. Too much alcohol?? This wine needs some time to critique properly. Can't wait to try again in 3-4 years. Our score.....ask us in 4yrs time.

2002 d'Arenberg The Custodian Grenache

Purchased as a mature re-release from the cellar door for $25. Powerful nose, with some alcohol heat. Lovely earthy aromas with cinnamon and clove, top class. Good length palate with plenty of tannin that cut through our spicy chicken. Luscious raspberry/blackberry fruit, maybe lacking a little on the back palate, but as it opens up, seems far more balanced. Drinking beautifully. Our score 89/100. Buy again, a bargain, if only you could.

2006 Cirillo Old Vine Grenache

Purchased for $40 from Purple Palate on their recommendation. Very refined wine that is beautifully made. A restrained nose that was unmistakably Grenache. Beginning to develop a secondary chocolate character. The palate had lovely balance. Alcohol in check, a little tannin. Our score 91/100. Buy again? At $50 rrp, not sure. See if you can get a discount and then enjoy.

2007 Richard Hamilton Gumpr's Shiraz

Purchased by accident. When buying half a dozen of the '08, this '07 somehow got mixed up with it. The professional reviews are ordinary, I think it is pretty good, in fact this was terrific until right at the end. Lovely nose of plum and developing earth and chocolate. The full bodied palate is spicy with black fruit and plum, but loses some balance and/or structure on the back palate. Tannins are drying and the finish quite long. Overall, for the price paid, OK value. My score 83/100. Buy again, no.

2004 Claymore Graceland Cabernet Sauvignon

Purchased as a back vintage at cellar door for $18. Offers genuine bang for buck. A lovely Clare eucalypt and mint nose, primary black fruit still there but on the way out. A medium bodied palate retains some fruit with a luscious chocolate finish. Tannins are there, this could go for another year or so but is peak drinking now. My score, 88/100 and definitely would buy again if I could.

2007 Howard Park Scotsdale Shiraz

Purchased from Dan's for $30. Lovely (but not big) nose of primary plums and developing chocolate/mocha. Michael thinks also some turkish delight, Brooke reckons rose water (which I'm told is damn near the same thing). The palate doesn't meet the expectation of one of Margaret River's best Shiraz. Medium bodied at best, back palate seems a little too acidic. The balance improved with time out of the bottle, but still a little thin. Long finish however, dark fruits. Our score, 85/100. Buy again, they tell me the '08 is better.

2008 Main Ridge Estate Chardonnay

Purchased cellar door for $45. A clean and delicate nose, restrained oak. Creamy and nutty palate, just lovely. Beautifully balanced finish, perfect amount of acid. We loved it then, we love it now. Our score, 92 (that's a biggie for FNVTBB) out of 100. Buy again - need to track it down somehow.

1999 Leroy Bourgogne Rouge

 Let the frog nonsense begin! I love this wine. If this is Regionale then I don't need to buy 1er or Grand Cru again. Leroy is one of the finest Burgundy producers, so even their regionale is of superb quality. At $50 it is an affordable treat. When you break the foil, expect something ugly! But do not be alarmed, this is what it should look like. Leroy have adopted the wet cork approach which seems to work, I haven't had a faulty bottle so far. The corks are completely sodden in wine then sealed. Be sure to wipe all the funky growth ffrom the top of the cork before pulling it. I decanted this wine for 30mins, then enjoyed it over 2hrs, and it kept getting better! Impressive for a wine of this age and so called inferior fruit :). Rich Oriental spice and black current. Super fine tannin that lasts an eternity and succulent big mouth feel. It is showing some aged characteristics and some of the primary fruit is missing, but what is left is still divine and rewarding. I will buy this while I can. 90/100. This wine purchased from The Wine Emporium, Brisbane.

2008 Sevenhill Cellars Inigo Shiraz

Purchased as a speculator, and it really delivered. Decanted for 2 hours. A Very dark colour, ink. A seriously good nose of inky red fruits with some chocolate and mint. Only a medium bodied palate (a surprise), not massively complex but everything in balance. Tannins are there and quite drying. This will be better again in couple of years time. Our score, 87/100. Buy again - 100 year old vines for 17 bucks, you betcha.

The Giant Steps Chardonnay was very nice. Purchased from their cellar door. I felt the Aurthur's Creek Vineyard was the pick of the current release chardonnays. To be super critical, there was just a touch too much acid, which I am sure would balance out given some time. 87/100 and I would buy again.

Rockford "Black Shiraz" Sparkling Shiraz, 2007 Willow Creek Cistercia Chardonnay, 2008 Domaine Terlato & Chapoutier "lieu dit Malakoff" Shiraz and 2008 Frogmore Creek Iced Riesling.

I am a massive Rockford fan, despite some not so nice experiences at their cellardoor. So to finally get my hands on this sparkling shiraz was exciting. However, at $70 I will not be buying it again. Dont get me wrong, it was delightful, but I expected more from them. As you would expect, it was full of rich dark fruit and a sweet spicy nose, but it was disjointed on the palate. 86/100.

2004 El Nino (Massoni) Mt Eliza Estate Pinot Noir

Tuesday night dinner, Brooke (Gritty's female offspring) provided this speculator. Great colour, dark crimson brown. Nose is obviously spice driven with a hint of cherry. To taste, it's smooth, red fruit almost strawberry flavour with great length with a vanilla oak finish. This wine is a hidden gem, not obviously Massoni labelled, but obviously Massoni made with quality fruit that stands the tests of time. 87/100 almost 88. And here is the kicker, this wine cost $10 from Purple Palate on Duporth. I would buy this wine again and again at this price.

1996 Penfolds Bin 42, 2008 Gembrook Hill Pinot Noir, 2010 Lucy Margaux Monomeith Vineyard Pinot Noir and 2008 PHI Lusatia Park Vineyard Chardonnay.

We caught up with some friends in Brisbane last night and went through more wine than we should have. These we the stand outs. I contributed the PHI and Gembrook Hill. The Phi was just spot on, delicate fruit and acid, restrained oak and perfect finish. 89/100 and I would definitely by this vintage again (the 2009 is not to this standard) $40. The Gembrook Hill is truly outstanding. The deceiving pale colour is packed with black fruit and spice on the nose. The taste is seamless and delicate and was enjoyed by everyone. 90/100 and would by this wine over and over $45. From there we opened a rare Bin 42, from memory there has only been two vintages produced. The cork broke into a million pieces, dry and brittle. It ticked all the boxes on the nose but sadly, it could have been any aged wine, nothing jumped out and wowed us. But I can now say I have tried it. I will reserve a score as I think it was past its best, and at roughly $400 I wouldnt go out of my way to track it down. Finally, we opened a new found favorite of mine, Monomeith Vineyard Pinot Noir. We didnt plan on having this wine which explains drinking it after the Bin 42, but this wine is big enough to hold its own. A truly old school making method with no fining and filtering. Beautiful nose and massive mouth feel. I wish I could be more descriptive, but by this stage we were getting quite happy and loud, just trust me its something special. 90/100 and at around $40 its well worth it.

2009 Coriole Sangiovese

There are plenty of good reviews on this wine that I think are justified. Nose of red fruits and cherry with some earthiness (is that a word). Medium bodied palate of dark berries, spice and some licorice in there somewhere. Plenty of tannin and acid, there is a small amount of Shiraz included, I assume to tame these. A lovely Sangiovese drying finish, quite well balanced. I'd say a drink now or soon proposition. My score 85 (very good)/100. Buy again - yes, need a supply for pasta nights.

2008 Mount Horrocks Cordon Cut Riesling

Top shelf! The cordon cut is an old favourite but I've not tasted the '08 before. It's almost effervescent. The colour is taking on a more yellow appearance, an almost amber colour. Lime and apricot, acid and sweetness in perfect balance. This will gain further complexity with time. Delicious, 91/100. Buy again - absolutely, a bargain at $23.

2009 Two (both) Hands Angel's Share Shiraz

I was mucking about on Cellar Tracker and came across this wine. From 19 tasting notes came an average score of 91 (outstanding) and for $20, definitely worth a look. I find cellar tracker averages to be reliable but not this time around. This is just a $20 wine that is reasonable value. Not much going on and would appeal to the non-drinkers amongst us. Plenty of alcohol heat, it's big, fruity and jammy. The palate is quite well balanced, ticks the boxes but don't expect to be challenged. Our score 86 (very good+) and did get better with more time out of the bottle. Buy again - Probably not. Get a Teusner Riebke instead.

2002 Greenock Creek Cornerstone Grenache

A dinner of braised lamb neck (sounds fancy but not really, looked a lot like stew to me). The drink. Purchased from Purple Palate for $32. The nose is a chocolate bar wrapped in dirt, or should that be earth. Lovely aged qualities. On the palate, the fruit is dissappearing, the tannins are gone but there is still a hint of spice to finish. Grenache is a favourite of ours, the challenge is finding a straight grenache and a good one at that. This is one of them. 89/100, excellent drinking. Buy again - yes if we could.

2009 Mount Riley Seventeen Valley Pinot Noir

Its Thursday night and my usual after work libations are on hold until my colleague returns from holidays. So, in keeping with the Thursday evening tradition I decide to open this. Yes I know its a kiwi wine. But damn, they get it right when it comes to Pinot Noir.... I was recently introduced to this wine at a Purple Palate tasting where I met the wine maker. A great young guy with some decent pedigree behind him. That night we tasted the 2006 version of this wine and it impressed me greatly. It channeled its French cousin from Gevrey-Chambertin displaying the firm-masculine and tighter stuctures, with lots of red and black fruit, and earthy barnyard finish. This vintage, I am not sure why we didnt get 07 and 08, has similar characteristics. Very elegant, with the same red and black fruit, fine tannins and a smokey finish. Still a babe, and cant wait to see what a few years will produce. Perfect with chicken Maryland in Diane sauce. For $35 its a bargain. I give it a 90/100.

2006 Mount Pleasant Maurice O'Shea Shiraz AND 2008 Michael Hall Adelaide Hills Chardonnay

Tuesday night dinner of lamb koftas with pita bread, hommus and spicy spuds. Michael brought over a 2008 Michael Hall Adelaide Hills Chardonnay to start, he paid $36 from Purple Palate. Nose was quite restrained and gave little away, minimal oak influence. Well balanced, acid in check, quite a citrus palate, finished slightly astringent on the back palate. Overall nice drink but wouldn't buy it again for the money.

The Koftas were eaten with a 2006 Maurice O'Shea Shiraz, purchased from the First Choice Bargain Bin for $32 bucks - a bargain indeed!! I can't remember the last time I drank a Hunter Valley shiraz but after this, I should do it more often. Decantered for an hour and even into 1 hours drinking (i.e. 2 hours out of the bottle), still an understated nose with just hints of black and red fruit. Particularly spicy at first, the palate is beautifully balanced, tannins in check with (again) black and red fruit, perhaps some leather. Beginning to develop those lovely aged (chocolate) characters. The finish is long and damn near perfect. While excellent (++) now, this will be another rung up the ladder in time. Our score, 90/100. When is peak drinking, not clever enough to know. Maybe 5 years? Buy again - definitely.

Elderidge Estate

We sort Elderidge out as we were recommended by and purchased from the Barrique wine place in Healville an Elderidge '07 Pinot. It was a cracking good drink. Unfortunately, at the cellar door, the current vintages were nothing to get excited about, certainly at the prices being asked. The wine maker loved the sound of his own voice which probably didn't help.

Paringa Estate

Had a mostly terrfic afternoon at Paringa. We did the usual tasting thing across their entire range of Peninsula, Estate and Single Vineyard wines followed by a superb lunch of quail entree and mains of duck and salmon. The hilight though was a 1997 Unfiltered Estate Pinot, of which only a few bottles were made as an 'experiment' by winemaker Lindsay McCall. We had one of the last six remaining. So keen was Lindsay to hear of the results of his experiment, he joined us for a chat after lunch. The news was good re the wine, lovely nose although the fruit was on the way out, as you would expect. The conversation then degenerated into talk of french wine and other FROG NONESENSE.

Main Ridge

What a cracker this place is. Everyone we spoke to said this was a 'must visit' and they were definitely on the money. Winemaker Nat White came out of the vineyard to look after us (if you are wondering he was pruning his Pinot to 4 canes, 3 buds a piece). He had '08 and '09 Chardonnay to try, which were the best that we had outside of Yarra Yering. There were 3 Pinots, and a $60+ each, were excellent value.

How many canes Tony?...