Wine thread

[Spanner in the works]

Just knocked over Clonakilla and Eden Road. Some highlights:

Clonakilla

• 2016 riesling. Just fantastic. If Clonakilla's riesling isn't regarded as amongst the best in the country, it should. Acidity and minerality - the future is very bright, and long, for this one.
• '15 O'Riada Shiraz. Elegance and power. It's still tightly wound, but this fragrant beast, is going to satisfy over the coming decade or more.
• '15 syrah. So the Shiraz Viognier is its famous cousin, but this one is every bit as good, albeit in its own little way. It's very regal and I love the cherry/berry notes coming through. Would buy now and open it up in 10 years or more. Murrumbateman shiraz.

Eden Road. I stuck largely with chardonnay and syrah here, but was impressed with much of their stuff. Forgot to grab a tasting list, but a couple stand out:

• 2014 Canberra Syrah and '13 Tumblong Syrah. Both very different, and both great. I preferred the Tumblong, but ended up getting the other one. I felt it had higher acidity and tannin, meaning I could get a few years bottle age on it. Also had the '14 Long Road and '15 Gundagai. The Gundagai was also fantastic.
• '15 Maragle, Courabyra, and '13 Tumbarumba chardonnay. Genuinely surprised with the quality of these three. Did it in a flight, which was a great way to explore regions and vintages. Courabyra won me over in the end, but if you can get a few friends over, worth doing all three over dinner.

 

[Bazal]

Just knocked over Clonakilla and Eden Road. Some highlights:

Clonakilla

• 2016 riesling. Just fantastic. If Clonakilla's riesling isn't regarded as amongst the best in the country, it should. Acidity and minerality - the future is very bright, and long, for this one.
• '15 O'Riada Shiraz. Elegance and power. It's still tightly wound, but this fragrant beast, is going to satisfy over the coming decade or more.
• '15 syrah. So the Shiraz Viognier is its famous cousin, but this one is every bit as good, albeit in its own little way. It's very regal and I love the cherry/berry notes coming through. Would buy now and open it up in 10 years or more. Murrumbateman shiraz.

Eden Road. I stuck largely with chardonnay and syrah here, but was impressed with much of their stuff. Forgot to grab a tasting list, but a couple stand out:

• 2014 Canberra Syrah and '13 Tumblong Syrah. Both very different, and both great. I preferred the Tumblong, but ended up getting the other one. I felt it had higher acidity and tannin, meaning I could get a few years bottle age on it. Also had the '14 Long Road and '15 Gundagai. The Gundagai was also fantastic.
• '15 Maragle, Courabyra, and '13 Tumbarumba chardonnay. Genuinely surprised with the quality of these three. Did it in a flight, which was a great way to explore regions and vintages. Courabyra won me over in the end, but if you can get a few friends over, worth doing all three over dinner.

Two of my absolute favourite local wineries...that 15 Syrah is a stunner, I grabbed one last time I was out there and will have to try and grab a couple more before they sell out.

 

[Bazal]

Speaking of local wines, 2009 Lerida Shiraz Viognier.

This wine has always perplexed me. It won a swag of awards and the owners of Lerida (who are crazy IMO but that's another story) used it as the reason to bump the price up from $35 for the previous vintage to $65 and now $75 for the current vintage. They were telling anyone who would listen that it was better than Clonakilla because of the awards (despite the fact Tim simply doesn't bother to enter his in shows)...

On release I enjoyed it. I didn't see the comparisons to Clonakilla, it was riper and heavier, but it was a well put together wine. I never got the hype, but when First Choice committed seppuku they slashed the price by like 40% and I picked up a few

8 years on and any comparisons to Clonakilla seem utterly laughable. It's got loads of black fruit and still shows some power but absolutely no elegance or poise. The nose is still very pleasant, vanilla and black berries and briar and a hint of peppered game meats, although none of the pretty perfume you get from the wine they compared themselves to. But it falls away in the mouth. There's fruit, and there is still the shadow of a powerful wine and a touch of savoury meats. There is also an overly aged bitterness on the finish which surprises me a little given the vintage.

It will open up a bit more as the night goes on and I get less coherent, so perhaps I'm being a little harsh. Even if it does though, it's made a liar of the winery owners. At best this will open up into a good quality, slightly overripe Canberra shiraz.

If you're gonna compare yourself to the king, you need to be special, and this isn't. I prefer the Clonakilla O'Riada, let alone the big daddy.

 

[Scott Gourley's Lovechild]

Tempus Two Pewter Seal Hunter Valley Cab Sauv 2000. Bought this about 3-4 years ago for $79.99 (don't judge me, I was young and naive). Back Label says to cellar for up to 10 years, so I'm 7 years too late apparently. Took a lot of effort to get the cork out, but got there in the end.

Tastes like a mix of old Cab Sauv and young Sangiovese. The tannins are long gone, but the leather & dark bitter chocolate still remain. Replacing the tannin is a big sour cherry hit. For a wine that was supposed to peak 7 years ago, it's still pretty tasty.

 

[Bazal]

Lol @Scott Gourley's Lovechild . Tempus Two? For shame!

Tyrells Vat 70 Cab Sav 2009. Hilltops. Fruit from my buddy Brian Mullaney at Grove Estate.

Probably the exact right time to drink it. For me anyway, liking a bit of youth in a wine. Big cabernet, classic fruit characteristics with some olive and tomato savouriness. Brambly herbs, dry tannins, might still be too tight for a lot of SA cabernet fans but I like that in a cabernet. I'd buy it again if they made it again.

 

[Scott Gourley's Lovechild]

I SAID DON'T JUDGE ME!!!!

 

[Bazal]

You bought an $80 Tempus Two wine....judgement was a foregone conclusion!

 

[Twizzle]

have you tried the black Shiraz Baz ?

 

[Bazal]

have you tried the black Shiraz Baz ?

Which one mate? A few places make a black shiraz

 

[Mong]

I have a couple of bottles of Reschke bos 2008 cab sauv, anyone tried it and if so is it worth drinking now or keep it for a bit?

 

[Bazal]

Generally they hold the Bos back so it's ready on release, but it will still go a bit longer too.

Best bet IMO is to drink one and see what you reckon. I prefer a bit of life and youth in the wines I drink as opposed to a genuinely aged wine, but everyone's different.

 

[Twizzle]

I have a couple of bottles of Reschke bos 2008 cab sauv, anyone tried it and if so is it worth drinking now or keep it for a bit?

yes and I went back for more, nice full bodied cab sav

 

[Mong]

yes and I went back for more, nice full bodied cab sav

Ok thanks twizzle and bazal

I might give one a go sooner than later in case I want more. Plenty of 09 around, not a lot of the 08 that I could see.

 

[_Johnsy]

The countdown is on. Good Food & Wine Show Friday Oct 27th.

Us (me & mrs Johns) & our best mates have been going for 10+ years now. Always a belter of a day, walking around drinking too much wine. It's pretty much adults XMas day.

 

[Bazal]

Long time no wine....been consciously drinking less in an effort to drop some kgs. But tonight decided to crack something to go with the unbelievable fillet steak I picked up from the local butcher.

So Penley Estate Reserve Cab Sav 2010. Classic Coonawarra Cabernet, big and quite frankly well overripe but that's the style. They've made it beautifully though. There's a lick of peppermint but it's all about fruit power, channelling the ripeness into a seriously powerful and weighty wine. There's no over-oaking like you sometimes get to compensate for a big wine, they've let the fruit shine and it does so brilliantly, even of it is a touch jammy it's so clean and has so much length that it doesn't come off as a fault.

Not my favourite style of cabernet but still seriously, seriously good.

 

[Twizzle]

had that myself, dont mind the Penley Estate wines

 

[Scott Gourley's Lovechild]

Angove “The Medhyk” McLaren Vale Shiraz 2008. The first ever release of this particular wine by Angove, was gifted a bottle of it at the official SE Qld launch party at Currumbin RSL. A solid wine, but a $60 bottle it is not. Still plenty of grip for a 10 year old drop, but a pretty quick finish and not a whole hell of a lot of body. Hopefully the more releases this wine has done, the more it’s improved, as I have plenty of time for this company. Better off getting a bottle of their Vineyard Select or Family Crest range.

 

[Scott Gourley's Lovechild]

Stanton & Killeen 12YO Topaque. Lovely fortified wine, a great introduction for those who only know of Tawny Port or Muscat. Super concentrated sultana, with brioche & salted caramel notes. Delightful.

 

[Mong]

Generally they hold the Bos back so it's ready on release, but it will still go a bit longer too.

Best bet IMO is to drink one and see what you reckon. I prefer a bit of life and youth in the wines I drink as opposed to a genuinely aged wine, but everyone's different.

I was very underwhelmed.

 

[Bazal]

I was very underwhelmed.

Fair enough. I like the Bos personally but wine is so subjective and I've certainly noticed a trend towards preferring younger wines...

Like today, I've not been drinking heaps lately but I felt like a wine so I just grabbed a quaffer. $5-$10 Zilzie Bulloak Pinot. Ever so lightly chilled for a warm arvo, awesome drinking.