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.