A Jaunt To The Southern Highlands

So I had a brief little sojourn to the Southern Highlands early last week. Some wine tasting, touring and eating was done, all in all a pleasant way to pass the time. The start wasn't all that auspicious however as after the 1.5hr burn down the freeway from Sydney, we arrived at our first port of call only to find it not open! I was keen to visit St Maur Wines as I had had a few good samples previously. It seems the website and printed material are at odds and they are in fact closed on Monday. Don't make our mistake, go on the weekend (the website is currently not correct)! Next trip I guess I'll just have to drop in, the wines are good though so give them a go.

Chris, with one of the staff out front.

Disappointment still smarting, some debate ensued about where to go next. We also drove past a few places; I blame the driver in these situations, however salvation appeared on the horizon or at least the signposting, in the form of Centennial Vineyards. This is a rather grandly styled establishment along french provençal meets grand château lines. You can dine here as well so this was a definite plus as our late start meant lunch beckoned. Rather an excuse to drink more wine I thought but that's a good thing!

Quite loooong

Looking at the tasting list what strikes you immediately is the number of wines produced. Riesling, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Savignan and Pinot Gris in the whites, then Pinot Noir, Cabernet, Merlot, Shiraz, Tempranillo, Sangiovese and Barbera for reds. I may have missed some as well, anyway these wines are also made into two different ranges for some grapes and I believe they also have Nebbiolo in the ground! When I see this in a single producer wariness creeps in as often a lot of mediocre wines result. I don't know if that comes from the winemakers efforts being spread a bit thin or a lack of focus in the vineyard, but it can be a problem. However I'm prejudicing things a bit for you so it pleases me to say I was pleasantly surprised, there was some good wines in the mix, and some interesting stuff. I still think they try and do to many different things but overall quality was good.

Without giving notes on all the wines there were some highlights: in the whites the Riesling and Chardonnay were good, I was particularly taken by some of the off dry rieslings presented. These wines had lovely balance between the residual sugar and acidity whilst being lovely and aromatic. I would see these as very versatile and food friendly wines. The Rosé style, Sauvignon blanc and Savignan made pleasant if not exceptional quaffers. In the reds Cabernet was the dark horse, perhaps not classically styled, but this wine was intense with fruit concentration and formidable tannin, pretty interesting and atypical. In the other wines the Tempranillo and Barbera are very good wines worth a look. The Pinot was good if not exceptional. I wasn't impressed by either the Shiraz (which had a 5% co-ferment with Viognier) or the Sangiovese.

Upside down tasting plate (uploaded oddly, hmmm)

So the advantage here was the range having something for most tastes; if you are a bit into wine there's interest, if you just like a drink to chat with that's here to. Overall the wines can't have been too bad as we decamped to the dining room...

Faux Château was the term I jokingly ascribed to the décor and styling, maybe when I make some wine that's what I'll label it! It all depends if you like this sort of thing in your interior decorating; for myself I find it treads a line a little close to tacky, not bad just not me. Each to their own I suppose.

Lovely Asparagus spears and Pork belly in the background

The food itself was very pleasant and well executed. Sourdough was a great start along with a shot of pumpkin and ginger soup. I enjoyed some Oysters and then the tasting plate with a glass of Chardonnay and then some of the Tempranillo. The plate had a lovely terrine of pork, cauliflower soup shot, beans and peas with feta, oyster, chicken sausage, salt cod croquette. Quite a mix but very tasty, except for the sausage which was rather beige in flavour. My other quibble was that it needed some of the lovely bread to go with it, still nice. Serving the tasting plate and oysters on bits of slate was a nice textural effect, if a little contrived. I also had images of the slate being frisbeed away after use (given the cost of slate I'm sure it goes in the dish washer)!

The Tempranillo was quite interesting as I always find this wine a bit of a shape shifter in the glass. It has really nice lighter cherry and rose characters on the nose, but then you get lovely whiffs of funk and meatiness. Sweet fruit and hints of citrus also follow on the palate and the acidity keeps it taut. Nice and light but with quirks so a nice lunch wine.

Around the table we also had a rolled roasted Loin of chicken, Pork belly and a lovely side of fresh asparagus. Yum!

Faux Chateau courtyard...

Overall then a pleasant way to spend a couple of hours and it's always nice to have some of the wine just tasted in a real world setting, with a meal. This gives you more of a sense of what the wine is really like, just like people...

So... Some Wine?

Tallarook Shiraz Viognier 2004, Victoria

This producer is I fear defunct.  Rather a sad outcome as I reckon they made some nice wines, not for everyone, but a bit more than interesting and rather enjoyable.

The pliers add to the rustic nature of the photo,
just like my messy kitchen.

Fading ruby to look at, this smells like dried herbs and flowers, with, violet? over mineral earth. The palate follows through with more herb, leather and dry earth, but the fruit is suprising with it's bright rasberry lolly and cherry character. Open for an hour or so classic shiraz fruit and spice show through. From here stem and leaf chime in and this producer always builds over an acid/tannin backbone, oak is subtle but nicely present. This all carries the wine and imbues structure and length. 90.

A bit of an old world pretender, I'd be intrigued to see this next to a couple of examples from the Rhone. Overall this is tight, but opens with a bit of time, it may also be a bit over age, but again this is gracefully so and I really like the faded primary characters yielding to other funk and complexity.  Like many good wines, the fruit comes up once the bottle is open for a little while.  The other point to mention is the deft handling of the Viognier, some of the previous editions of the wine have used Marsanne to the same end; the element to like here is that it is intergrated with such class.  The only hint to it's presence is the slight floral edge and ephemeral dried apricot note.  So many of these wines are so overladen with the viognier that they taste like apricots and flowers, which if the shiraz is good does not compliment, but rather overtakes.  As they say less is more right? 

And So To Dessert

Pear With Figs In Red Wine


A dessert done many times, this edition has a few tweaks I enjoy to give it a little more zing. I always like playing with elements typically used at the opposite end of the flavour spectrum; the chilli in this instance would more often be seen in a savoury offering, however here the very small amount used enhances the flavour and lifts the dish as a whole. Dark chocolate and chilli are in my book a rather classic combination anyway.

I must apologise for the terrible photo/plating,
time was short however you get the idea...

Ingredients

Pears, peeled*
Dried Figs, 2 per pear

1 bottle Red wine
Star Anise, 1 head
Cinnamon, 1 stick
Cardamom, 1 pod
Chilli (small sliver)
Dark Chocolate, 50g finely ground
Brown Sugar, taste

Double Cream

*I tend to leave the cores and stems in the pear. I like the aesthetics of the pear on the plate like this and it all holds together better. The purists would say there is little worse than biting into a lovely pear and getting core or seed. That seems a bit silly to me when you know it will be there, decide for yourself and prepare accordingly...

Prepare the pears and set in a saucepan so they fit snugly, this means they wont move around unless you want to adjust them, thus select a pan size accordingly. Put the figs in as well and throw all the spices in. Pour the wine over the top, they should be covered by about ½ to ¾, more is probably better. Poach gently for around 45 minutes, here long and slow is good. Set the pears and figs aside when done and retain the liquid.

The wine and spice can then be reduced by half and sugar added. I have not put a measure here as it depends how sweet the wine and your taste, you will need to balance it to the spice. Strain the liquid and then slowly combine the chocolate through the sauce.

Pour the sauce over the plated pear and figs, serving with cream.

A Drink Perhaps?

Most things in life, even the supposed minutiae and extras like writing a blog, require discipline.  I could say that my various other life strands intervened, but this would negate the fact that I should have just made and set aside time to post and create material.

So at 11:09 in the morning I'll get the ball rolling once more with a wine review from the back catalogue.  Who knows, maybe it will roll through to something else.  The review is published as is; by way of context it was a response to a review of the wine by Cambell Mattinson on The WineFront.


2004 Longview Nebbiolo (tasted May 2009) Adelaide Hills, South Australia.

Well I read this review with interest as I acquired a case of this a while back. I tried a bottle or two but never got round to writing a comment, and thought I’d like to as Nebbiolo intrigues me. I mean when I poured a bit out you look at the wine and have a first whiff, c’mon you say, is that it!

Desperately light is generous when describing the colour and the nose wasn’t giving anything away. Sat it for a bit and things unfold. Is one of the problems with this grape the impact the colour has before tasting? Your thinking thin if your not careful before you start.  Anyway after breathing the wine thickens out; the nose is tarry, resinous and quite intense along with some more delicate herbs, “rose petals” lol. The palate is concentrated, but the fruit restrained, with darker flavours, cherry? as well as the raspberry, hint of grass and a bit of boiled lolly on the end. (I feel like an idiot when I write a tasting note) Tannins are dry, grippy and long, but I quite enjoy that and it pulls it all together balancing out the slight alcohol hit, but as you say I don’t think its a problem. I think I’ll pour another.

89

......

I was interested to read something like this from a while back as it's intriguing how ones writing evolves and stays the same.  I still have some of this wine so it should be educational to try it now or in the near future and see how the wine is travelling.  Nebbiolo is a variety I really like, it's pretty interesting and here in Aus and we are now making a few that are decent drops.  If you like it, worthwhile examples locally are coming from Pizzini and S.C Pannell amongst others.  Of course there are many others and I really urge everyone to give it ago, it's certainly something different.  A quirk perhaps, but the wine I drank that introduced me to Nebbiolo was a 2001 bottle from the Granite Belt in Queensland.  It was a most lovely wine and one of the best examples I can recall, even allowing for those heady days of first love!

The wine (generally) also benefits greatly from bottle age, possibly not on the scale of the benchmark Barolos, but it can be a little austere as a youngster.  I'm expecting this wine to be at a bit of a peak now.

I'm also left to ponder the relative value of stuff by this wine because I picked up a case of 04 and a case of 05 for less than $200.  From that perspective it's some of the best wine and value for money buys I've ever encountered.  In the negative I don't think the producer benefited greatly from my auction win.  Enough of that though, here's to good wine, winemaking and drinking! 

*Not the original label art for the vintage, but this 2007 example is exquisite.  Thankyou to Longview Vineyard for the image.

The Old And The New

Finally I got round to writing up a few wine notes, seriously you have to watch it, else you're surrounded by small scraps of paper with illegibly scrawled adjectives.  Happily for now crisis has been averted, or atleast stalled for a while.  I've popped these up together as one spurred me to tidy up the notes and both of these made me think about things a bit.  Anyhow make of it what you will and I hope it's slightly less bland than some esoteric naked tasting notes.

These two bottles are worlds apart, literally, but I think that's good in both the drinking and in terms of discussion.  Depending on what part of the world you source most of your wine familiarity with either locales will vary accordingly, though each region hardly needs an introduction.  The Gigondas appellation is in the southern Rhone region of France and the Tyrrell's comes from the Hunter Valley in Australia. 

Domaine De Longue Toque Gigondas 2008

Hailing from the Rhone, the wine is a GSM blend though I'm unsure of the exact breakdown of the various components.  Deep ruby purple hue.  Tight perfumed nose with hints of rose, spice, red fruit and meatiness, also a vegetal and flinty mineral note.  Firm in the mouth, but with some generosity, there’s red fruit and herbal note of rosemary to accompany the initial features.  A hint of violet, then flintiness comes through towards the back of the palate with firm but svelte tannins which frame the wine nicely.  Medium bodied, savoury with some persistence, interesting and structured.  89-90.

Tyrrell’s Vat 11 Shiraz  1995 Hunter Valley NSW

 On opening a little flat, smelt like old shiraz (well duh!) but it came alive after being open for an hour or so.  The intensity surprised me, lovely ripe fruit and strength came through over the elegant aged characteristics of dusty shiraz spice with straw, leather and earth.  The overwhelming thing in the mouth was how blended and harmonious all these features were along with the tannins, oak and acidity of the wine; the complexity was pleasantly challenging. To elaborate, all the features were nice, but you wouldn’t say for example there was a distinct red or dark fruit component such as blackberry and raspberry, rather they were there and so subtly integrated that you were grappling in your mind (in the best possible way, struggling!) to identify and separate different elements, rather like in a fine perfume.  Rich texture in the mouth and tasty savoury qualities with fine but present tannin and acidity driving the tremendous length.  Fine stuff in the bottle and pretty classic Hunter Valley.  I didn't want to score it. 

The exciting thing about a wine like the Tyrrell's is how ephemeral an experience it can be.  One moment not much is happening and then the wine blossoms, delivering a moment in time and beauty as a heady flash, but then gone just as rapidly.    



 These two wines also got me thinking about wine and the differences between places and approaches to vinification.  Both of these wines are pretty high quality, but I suppose my next point is looking at the lower end of the market for the obvious differences these days.  The Rhone wine, whilst still having fruit presence is enjoyable for it's secondary characteristics being more to the fore than similar Australian wines.  While I think there's a lot of cross pollination and changes in winemaking the world over, this is indicative of one of the main differences in appoach between Australian and Old world wines.  Many Australian wines are driven by primary fruit and often fresh and bright, but perhaps lacking the savoury quality aimed for in the french example.  Let me be clear I'm not saying one is inherently better than the other or that either place confound what I've just said and produce an opposite sort of wine to the stereotype I've mentioned.  If only it were that simple, but I do rather like the fact that there is this stylistic difference and obviously individuals enjoy different wines just as different occasions and situation demand diverse wine styles.  The contradictory factor to this as well is at the higher end of the market here in Australia, (I think) now having surpassed much of the world market in the way we have the complexity, but with the beautiful fruit quality integrated.  Simultaneously there has been a move to a less austere style from the French, so perhaps we're all learning from each other.

Of course I feel slightly silly writing all of that because to me it would seem pretty obvious that, stylistic considerations aside, you want both qualities of fruit and secondary characteristics in your wine.  The Tyrrell's really embodied that for me and set off that little rant... 

Pour Yourself A Glass

Lowe Reserve Shiraz 2006, Mudgee NSW



Pulled from an overnight holiday in the fridge



Interesting little wine this, and should develop over time.  It’s really the antithesis of the big aussie Shiraz that many may be familiar with, which is no bad thing.  In terms of the winemaking process, a third of the fruit was wild fermented; the rest was inoculated with a Rhone yeast and whole bunch fermented.  The wine was matured in both old and new French oak and is 100% organic.  Of course the main point here is how has this shaped the wine?  With some wines, for all the label babble you don’t really get much of it happening in the wine.  Happily this wine bucks that trend.

So a bit of a note…

Bright ruby red colour with a similarly bright nose, predominantly red fruit initially, then a hint of flowers and minerality, followed by a touch of violet and plum.  Palate has the red fruit along with some shiraz spice and funk, darker notes peek through temptingly.  Tannins provide shape and backbone, being firm but supple they finish this nicely.  Well structured.  90.

I tried this with food and then again the next day when I wrote an actual note about it.  Certainly this will age well and this would bring out further dimensions in the wine, perhaps along the” darker notes” which are hiding a little bit.  On opening it really is quite lean and bright, I‘d say you could mix this up with a Cotes du Rhone or similar GSM style wine if you tasted this blind.  The next day though the wine was overall darker and more “shiraz” if that makes sense; the floral had dissipated, more black fruit was present and there was more of a classic shiraz nose.  It suggests to me a wine which would really be great in five or even ten years.

***A little update, I left the wine in the fridge and tried it again 3-4 days after opening, only about a third left in the bottle.  Even better, and it made me think my 90 was stingy, seriously!  Thus I'm tempted to go 92+  Sometimes it's nice to be a little off the mark.  Comments are along the lines of the 2nd day tasting, things really opened up even more, multi dimensioned, depth and really integrated.

A high quality producer, well worth checking out so have a look Lowe Family Wine   

  

Vino Contrasts.

Wynns Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 & Printhie MCC Riesling 2010



The iconic label art

 By my own admission I'm terrible at promptly writing up my tasting notes (this one is from back in October). It probably has plus and minus factors, but I do find it makes me think about the wines a bit before putting it all together in a “proper” note. These two contrast nicely, both are classic varieties but come from very different regions and wineries, one an established producer with a distinguished pedigree, the other an impressive newcomer. Each really impressed and were very much enjoyed.

The Riesling comes from the Orange region in New South Wales. Printhie make many lovely wines and this is the equal of any in the range. It also compares well with other varietal examples and indeed other rieslings from Orange.

Lovely pale gold colour and tight nose. Candlestick, minerality and kerosene on the nose which envelopes sherbet and grapefruit/lemon citrus fruit. The palate has zesty lemon lime, generous sweetness, a hint of the floral and a pineapple note. Acidity draws it all together but it's not too dry. Whilst good fresh, I tried it over subsequent days and the wine was lovely, with a softening and a tantalisingly complex mix of all the elements. A little short term cellaring may be an option. 90.

Second up is Cabernet from a classic Coonawarra producer Wynns. (This is the 2005 Black Label), I really like the wines from this producer and this is as good any they have released. The beautiful deep ruby colour (very youthful appearance) is the first aspect you notice and this is followed by the powerful and focused nose. There's cedar, tobacco along with a eucalypt/menthol note. Ample red and black berry fruit comes through, tailed by an earthy ferrous note. The palate reflects all the features of the nose and the fruit is lovely and held by more savoury elements of leather, briar and coffee. The tannins are mouth coating but well measured and close the palate nicely as a dusty afterthought. Great length. Just like the nose the striking thing is the power and focus of the wine delivered with such finesse, it's so complex and yet beautifully integrated and balanced. My pencil scrawl said “understatement & power; a Rolls Royce.” No doubt it will go for many more years. 94.

Although absolutely different wines, red and white, old and new, this pair are wonderful in many ways but share one crucial characteristic. This is the manner in which they reflect a sense of place and style; terroir. It may seem obvious, but there are far too many wines which don't do this and are generic. This might be ok for industrial high volume production, but I don't want to drink those wines and quite frankly life is too short. The depressing point here is that sometimes it isn't just cheap wines which are guilty of this, there are some supposedly quality examples which are in the frame. I'm not going to endorse faulty or rough wine making, but I'd take on these problems in a wine if the maker has “gone for it” in an attempt to strive for some style and individuality. From this point they can begin to create wine, because like playing music if you don't bring some style or something new to the process it's not really art and not really wine is it...

A Doubleheader, Cruickshank Cabernet Rosé 2011 & Shiraz 2007

I felt it only appropriate to complete the cycle of Cruickshank wines I have to hand in the current release.  We have already looked at the Cabernet and Chardonnay/Verdelho blend, but Cruickshank are well regarded for their rosé and indeed the Shiraz may be the best of their wines.

Rosé can often be a non event rather than the most beautiful of understatements.  They should not be in your face with acid, or overladen and sweet, but it's always such a plus when these wines whilst retaining delicacy and finesse, have depth and some complexity lurking. Here is one of those wines, there's something for all comers, meaning you could serve this to wine lover or casual friday night drinker alike and both would probably enjoy, if not demand another glass!

A beautiful pale red colour fading to rust at the edges. Smells of confectionary, strawberry and grassiness combined with lovely musk and perfume notes. Unlike some the wine has a nice fullness of body in the mouth, flavours of sweet fruit played off with sour cherry. My very minor quibble is that it could be a little tighter in the mid palate, but hey, very small complaint! Acidity and dryness really carries it through well anyway. Better wines of this style often improve with a bit of bottle time, obviously not really to age, but they settle down and integrate, so 6 months to a year and this might be even better. 89.

(As a postscript, I was tempted to up the score as time passed, pleasure impairing judgement in a good way I think. Also that the wine was indeed lovely the day after opening and probably more seamless.)

So to the Shiraz. I confess I was aware before tasting that this had received some pretty good reviews, but usually if anything I think this make me more sceptical. (Just to give you some background to tasting this, and how I see things generally I suppose). Getting to the point, this is a pretty good little wine.  It has style alongside varietal and regional character with full flavour and balance. It was even better a day after opening. I hope your getting the impression I really enjoyed it...

Bright fruit heads the lovely rich nose alongside oak and spice. When just opened, this shaded earth, straw and sweat notes which were peeking though, but came up more as the bottle was open. I still think the oak is too pressing, though not to the same extent as in the cabernet. Flavours of generous shiraz fruit and beautiful leather and earth, sweet but still savoury. Oak and white pepper also figure, whilst healthy tannins shape it nicely and the flavours persist nicely for a finish of some length. As mentioned it really came into it's own on the 2^nd day, so decanting may be helpful, as would stashing a bit away, if only for a year or two (that's also known as a clever move!).   92+.

Wine time; A Hunter interlude.

 

Diverting from the Yarra Valley for an evening...  Let us raise a glass or two to Cruickshank Callatoota Estate, a winery located in the Upper Hunter Valley at Denman, New South Wales.  The opportunity to open a few bottles with dinner guests was a great way to sample a few of their offerings together. Cruickshank is an interesting winery for a few reasons and I thought rather than just a raw review here was presented an opportunity to look at wine from a few slants.

note the poor quality and graininess in shot...

Personally, it's one of the first producers I can remember singling out as one I particularly enjoyed and was attracted to for their style and approach. Being small producers, they could be forgiven using another winery and contract winemaker to produce their wines. Instead they do it all in house, formally at Wybong and now at the new vineyard and winery at Denman. This allows the wine to be made the way they want, and to pursue wine styles as they feel appropriate and compelling. Cruickshank has had to relocate in the last few years as a result of a new open cut coal mine which was opening adjacent to the Wybong site, thus the move to the new Denman locale. I find it appalling really that a piece of prime agricultural land and producer come second to a coal mine, but this seems the way of things unfortunately.

A few wines were tried, both old and new, we even had a lovely 2007 Brangayne Cabernet (Orange, NSW) for a bit of difference and comparison. The Cabernet franc comes from the Wybong site, the Cab Sav and white from the newer Denman vineyard.  

  

Cruickshank Chardonnay/Verdelho 2011

Something a bit different, here's a 50/50 blend.  Fruit salad nose, citrus and tropical fruit. Rich with some fruit sweetness, in the mouth similar to the nose but with a lovely melon note, dryness on the finish retains line and refreshment. Here's a great little summer quaffer, 88.

Cruickshank Cabernet Sauvignon 2007

Deep Ruby wine, lightens at the edges, smells rich with fruit and chocolaty vanilla oak. This somewhat masks the inherent cedar wood cabernet characteristics that are present, though these came up with a little air. The palate presents considerable power and generosity, there is something of grandma's Christmas cake here and the American Oak is very present. Thus toasty vanilla and even hints of coconut combine with the fleshy fruit elements of the wine, the cedar and spice also come through. The finish is surprisingly savoury with a satisfying lick of acidity and tannin tying it all together. Flavour lingers nicely in the mouth. Needs more time and should age well. 90.

Cruickshank Cabernet franc 2003

Quite a lovely autumnal colour to this wine as it fades to brick red tones at the edges. Smells of barnyard floor, straw and sweat, remarkably fresh fruit peeking through as well. The palate is redolent of these lovely elements mingling with fruit and cigar box/tobacco notes.  Nice vegetal characters and fine tannins.  Line and length complete an elegant wine of finesse and rustic charm.

We enjoyed the wines with a lovely rare seared whole eye fillet, potatoes and greens.  Simple but beautiful and a recipe which I will post in the future.

I'm loathe to score the Cabernet franc because it really was beautiful and somehow a score diminishes it all a bit. Being as objective as I can I still think it's a 93+ wine! As I have stated before I only like to score to give a rough guide, it's also usually reflective (or tries to be!) of quality and style as I try and take my personal preferences out as much as I can. If indeed this is possible, is really a valid question and challenge of any taster or commentator.  Can personal taste and opinion ever be practically moderated in a meaningful way to this end?  I think not, but I'm all for personal musings and lively discussion.

It seems that over time the wines have been tidied up and are cleaner and more polished in their production. Again it's arguable as to the relative pros and cons of this; cleaner wines promote the purity of fruit and varietal expression, but the slightly dirty rustic quality does lend some charming idiosyncrasies to the wines. Overall it's probably a move in the right direction, the wines should last better and indeed they still have the qualities that appealed previously. The dirt and paddock are still there but with a degree of subtlety absent previously. It may also be prudent to remember that the new source of fruit has no doubt changed the equation somewhat as well.  With regard to the fruit I'm tipping some great things as it settles down and the vines get a little older, heady times!

At the moment I thought the Cab Sav a good wine, but not to my taste entirely as the oak component seemed rather overpowering. The wine should integrate nicely over a few years though as it settles down and things harmonise a bit. On the Oak; and I'm being picky here, (I have a bit of an American oak thing!) I prefer french or atleast old oak, as otherwise I feel like things are a bit of a coconut vanilla bomb. For those who love it, this may be your thing.  For myself it just comes across as heavy handed, sticking out everytime I taste.  Time to pour another Malibu and Pineapple by way of training... 

In The land of Verdonnay/Chadelho/Denman gold things were suprisingly good. There has been much speculation amongst others who enjoy a Cruickshank drop as to what this wine would be like. Well, here it would seem is a lovely summer afternoon/evening drop!  I'm not a huge fan of the straight Vedelho, so this impressed and may even be something better than the individual varietals offered.  Regarding a name for the wine, perhaps a more oblique name or reference might give it a suitable title. 

So finally to the Cabernet franc much lauded previously, not much needs to be said; lovely wine and one so identifiably of the Hunter Valley, perhaps even more than the varietal characteristics.  Bliss!

Have a look at their website for more info, well worth a glance http://www.cruickshank.com.au/

Tasting the delights outside the Paris of the south... (Or a short segue to the Yarra Valley) Part 1.



The Boss...



Long overdue, but here it is.  I had a lovely jaunt to Melbourne a few weeks ago, it certainly was a pleasure to catch up with my dear friends Anthony and Andrew; in addition to their four masters Hebe, Lucy, Pixie and Millie.  If only landlords were as considerate as the boys cat bosses, and that's after one decided my luggage was an attractive place to relieve the bladder.  Just as well I'm not one to hold a grudge!

Anyhow amongst other activities Anthony and I headed off to the Yarra Valley to taste, rate, even gulp some of the local wines.  Things you should know at this point: Andrew didn't make it, he was “tired”/hungover.  The weather was balmy, a lovely 8 degrees in fact.  I had to break out the shorts! 

Sun cream packed  we motored north east, I dreamed of the Caribbean, working on the tan as Anthony got slightly lost...  A bit of my GPS later and all was back on track.  Laughter aside the locality itself really is a lovely part of the world, rolling hills, the resulting verdant vistas and... vines!  So we pulled in at a toilet block.



Look at that sun!  We could be in Champagne.



It wasn't a public convenience, that's just what I told Anthony it looked like (James Halliday gave it 91 points and described it as unassuming, the cellar door, not the wines)!  No, here was St Huberts cellar door.

To be fair, the view from inside the building was good and the wines very good.  Chardonnay and Pinot were the stand out.  Bit disappointed there was no straight Cabernet to try, but you have to remember that the area was subject to smoke taint due to the terrible bushfires a little while back.  Thus many producers literally have nothing to release at this time as a result. 

As we drove away it still looked suspiciously like a toilet block, but on we went!  A pullover, sunshower and   u-turn later, we arrived at Oakridge.  I probably should mention at this point that this was the AFL grand final Saturday, thus we were amazed to find anyone actually at the cellar door.  For any international (or non Victorian readers, because they consider it a world sport...) AFL is a provincial and somewhat bizarre ball game, where players fumble around for the small version of what looks a rugby ball, occasionally trying to get the ball between a couple of pairs of sticks.  Anyway, being the truly international sport it is I was a amazed to find this place full of young women.



Slightly blurred map, after a tasting or two.



Had I been of sound mind we probably should have gone over and ingratiated ourselves, though  foolishly we concentrated on the wines.  All was not lost though as there was some good stuff on offer here. Quite deliberately I won't bore with tasting notes (serious reviews will come), go and try it for yourself!  But some observations:  I had a Pinot Grigio that was actually of some interest, very nice.  Chardonnays were again very good, lovely.  Cabernet from here was excellent, yum :)  Pinot was ok and our lovely pourer/server/bar attendant was beautiful and informative.  Which sounds like I was biased or distracted but she really was and I am most sorry I can't remember her name.

A couple of happy snaps later and we were back on the road.  Sensibly Anthony suggested we really must have lunch and thus it was decided we should head immediately to Medhurst Wines.  They had Wine and food!  (And were seriously good!)

Continued in part two, which is on the way...

Cavalier Crest Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 Margaret River, WA



I've decided to go for the most amateur and crappy photography
ever when it comes to my blog, bucking the trend. 
You saw it first here...



Something to get you all in the mood, and to convince everyone that I don't just sample wines from Mudgee.  This ones a cracker... 

Having tried a couple of vintages of this wine I thought this one the best to date. Classic Cabernet nose with cedar and sandalwood combined with lead pencil, menthol and a hint of spice. In the mouth this nose is reflected but augmented by savoury juiciness and fruit with dry herbs.  There's also leaf, stalk and meatiness, all meant in the most positive way as it builds complexity in the wine.  I was reminded of prosciutto ham at a few points. A somewhat extracted quality is present, but that adds to the intensity and fleshy feel of the wine. Fruit is there, but this wine does a nice line in acidity and fine tannins, which along with the restrained oak integrate all the components here. A little time should see it all marry together and smooth out whilst becoming even more savoury.  This would make a natural choice to accompany some great food, particularly lamb or pork, 92.

Ossobuco alla Sydney

Well this is definitely one of my favourite dishes for winter. It's rich, tasty and satisfying, with the best part being the ease of preparation. For this edition of the dish I had a collaborator, with my brother joining the fray. Full credit must go to him for the delicious mash we served with the meat and broth!

We improvised the recipe really, don't all the best rustic Italian farmhouse cooks? Anyhow the result is fairly faithful to the dish most of us know, with a few tweaks here and there. Interestingly there are really two main types of sauce you can go with: The modern version we know with a tomato base, onions, celery, carrots etc, and the much older Ossobuco bianco, which is primarily flavoured with bay leaf, cinnamon and gremolata. I always find it fascinating the extent to which we associate the tomato with Italian cooking, when in fact it is a rather recent addition, tomatoes arriving in Europe from South America in the late 1500's with the returning Spanish. Even from this point not being adopted into Italian cuisine on a large scale until the 17^th century.

In a nod to the older version of the dish, I started with a mix of spices including cumin, bay and cinnamon, I love the tomato richness as well so here's our take...

Ossobuco pieces, dusted in flour (as many as you need, 1 per serve)

2 onions

2-3 cloves of garlic

chilli flakes (few dashes to taste)

cracked black pepper ½ tsp

white pepper ½ tsp

mixed herbs 1-2 tsp

cumin ½ tsp

cinnamon ½ tsp

salt 1 tsp (to taste really)

sugar (again to get balance, to taste)

Rosemary 2 sprigs

Sundried tomatoes 150-200g

2-3 dried leaves, (use less if you have fresh, and of course these are always better!)

handful of chopped parsley

I also added about 75g of rendered sauce from a pork belly roast I made, and froze. It was a little like a stock base I guess, and you could use something similar or add some more stock to the mix of a type to your liking. The whole point is the depth of flavour in the finished dish.

red wine 250ml

water and/or stock (judge to cover the meat)

Tin of whole tomatoes 375g

2-3 carrots, roughly halved or chopped

Butter

Olive Oil

In a large, heavy pot, brown the meat in a little oil and butter, the more colour and caramelisation, all the better for the flavour later! When you are happy with this stage, throw in the chopped onions and garlic along with the herbs and spice (at this point I added my “Pork belly booster” and the sundried tomatoes).  Mix it all together and let the onion and garlic cook a little before adding the wine to deglaze the pan. At this point you can add the canned tomatoes, mix them through and then add the other liquid ingredients so everything is immersed. We simmered on a very low heat for about 5-6 hrs, obviously you can go shorter if time is tight, just simmer a bit faster. With the extra time you can go for a very low, barely bubbling simmer, everything cooks very slowly and is extremely tender. The carrots were added with about 2 hours to go and the lid removed for the last hour, to cook off a little liquid. Don't really reduce as your after a broth rather than a thickened sauce.

For the potatoes, quarter and boil in salted water until tender. We mashed with butter, salt, black and white pepper and a good handful of finely chopped parsley. If your adventurous a squeeze of lemon really lifts the mash, whipped through just before serving.

A flexible dish, my brother enjoyed this with a Guinness.  I on the other hand thought it sublime with a 2004 Adelaide Hills Nebbiolo, each to their own I guess but it worked nicely both ways. (I'd say try with the Piedmont expat though ;) ! )  There may have to be a review of this wine now...  

What else to say but a tasty, satisfying and glorious dish for the cool weather when something hearty is craved. I think it's so good you can do it anytime...

Vinifera Graciano 2008 Mudgee, NSW

I do actually drink and sample wines from all over, but here's another wine of interest from Mudgee!  In my defense, it is a little bit exotic...

Graciano hails from Spain calling the Rioja region home, therefore perhaps this wine is a little Latin flavoured. This example is interesting as the variety is still a relative rarity in Australia, and this is the only example from Mudgee.



The wine, probably quite enjoyable with a few
pages of The Adventures of Augie March...



The wine is light Garnet with good clarity. Nose is of floral notes, citrus and spice flowing through to a shellac, leather and a wood dust note. Although the wine is light to medium on the palate, this is deceptive as there is considerable depth. Initial sweet fruit gives way to sour cherry, cumquat and a hint of anise/musk. There's a good savoury character coming through to back the fruit in a leathery wood note. Good acidity keeps thing nice and tight, without being overbearing. Tannins were quite fine. Overall it probably finishes a little short, but there seems to be a lot of potential here, and I think it could age gracefully, if you are into a number score I'd say about 89+.

This wine is exciting for a few reasons, not least of which is the relative rarity here of the variety. Intriguingly, the grape is noted for somewhat harsh tannins, but in this case as a varietal wine the producer seems to have tamed this. I'm unsure of the vinification process used in this instance, but it has successfully overcome any issue in this regard.   (The grape is often blended with Tempranillo and Grenache, giving tannic backbone and color to the wine.)  The flavour profile is also a welcome change from many of the usual suspects; I certainly enjoyed the duality of this wine with it's seeming opposites of sweet fruit and floral citrus notes set against the savoury leather, sour cherry and firm acidity. Tempranillo (another Spaniard) is enjoying a wave of popularity at the moment, I think this grape in Australian conditions could be as good, if not better.

If you want to check out this producer: http://www.viniferawines.com.au/

d'Arenberg “The Stump Jump” GSM 2009

d'Arenberg are one of Australia's finest producers, Still, it's reassuring and pleasing to find nice wines like this at $10 or less. It's not a complicated, but that's a good thing, rather it's honest and tasty stuff. The most surprising thing I have to say prompted by this wine? Go buy a decanter if you don't possess one already! I say this because it all really opened out nicely after I got stuck on the phone, leaving the bottle open for a good hour or so.



Drinkability indicated by the amount already gone...





So...

Medium weight with red fruit and spice, this deepens to some darker notes, a flick of strawberry jam and cherry, backed with a nice savouriness and acidity. Good tannins. The purity of fruit is lovely and this is so drinkable without being boring. Really a good example of a GSM that puts many other pricier options in the shade, 88.

As I mentioned, a decant would do wonders. The wine is great with something to eat, and to this end I suspect very versatile, equally at home with lighter fare or something more hearty and protein based. Try it with the Sweet spiced chicken perhaps?

Botobolar “The King” 2006/07 Cabernet Shiraz

This is an interesting wine for a couple of reasons, not least that it represents a relatively uncommon example of a non vintage red wine, and a high quality one at that. Somewhat unfairly it seems that when NV is indicated (in a still wine) assumptions are made of an inferior kind, but, surely we should look at this sort of blending as just another tool or option at the winemakers disposal. It is also made from 100% organic fruit. Botobolar have been pioneers and long standing exponents in this regard, being the first certified organic vineyard in Australia, estblished back in 1971. Having made the wine for a while now this edition is as good an example as any of “The King”.

The wine has a lovely vibrant, deep ruby red colour. The nose is fragrant with red fruit, spice and earth, it invites you to drink. In the mouth the wine is a mouth filling chunk of red and black berry flavours, with a satisfying but not overpowering jamminess. This is all infused with lovely notes of spice, star anise and pepper. Further Complexity is given with straw and barnyard characteristics, even a hint of smoke. Firm tannins and judicious oak provide line and grip to balance the gutsy fruit honesty of this big but balanced wine.

I'd say if you gave it another couple of years the wine will integrate more and only get better. To 2016. 89+

As a side note the fruit for the wine is sourced from two vineyards, Shiraz coming from Rosnay 07 and Cabernet from Brombee 06. It is a 50/50 blend.

2006 Louee Cabernet Franc

Tasted June 2011, the wine comes from the Rylstone sub region, which is just outside Mudgee NSW. 

An interesting wine, Brick to Ruby red in colour which is followed up by a very complex and lovely bouquet. Initially you could be forgiven for identifying this as a Cabernet Sauvignon, Cedar, cigar box and mint mingle with a some green vegetal characters. There is however also a softer side of fruit, spice and rose petal coming through, perhaps indicative of the variety.  The palate has lovely fruit sweetness of cassis, cherry and blueberry. This is balanced by some lovely darker savoury notes of leather, earth, oak and mocha. The tannins are gentle and fine, but draw the wine to a sculpted finish in the mouth.

The loveliness of the wine comes, I think, from the firmer characteristics (think of my Cab Sauv comparison) being tempered to an extent by the softer fruit and brighter aromatics of Cabernet Franc. Terroir, I'm sure also plays it's part in the generous character of this wine.

Really good stuff, 91.