Nice wines I have drunk recently - Red or White

[blackcat20]

Interesting. I took along a bottle to a tasting a few months ago. I thought it was still pretty primary with a long long life still ahead of it.

I Agree. I found it cassis dominant, and tannins still big. Will be better in future IMHO. Not an expert on Wynns Black Label, so will take guidance from others

My preference tends to be from an overly aged wine, so I guess in this context, the wine is at its peak for me. I dont enjoy the "barrel taste" of a wine with a lot of age on it, so I guess Im saying that any longer and this wine would not be to my tastes. Its perfect right now.

 

[beefarmer]

My preference tends to be from an overly aged wine, so I guess in this context, the wine is at its peak for me. I dont enjoy the "barrel taste" of a wine with a lot of age on it, so I guess Im saying that any longer and this wine would not be to my tastes. Its perfect right now.

In terms of this aging, did you detect any rust colour in the wine, possibly one of the first signs of this wine entering a new era? Not a bad thing, but a great confirmation that changes are occurring. From my own perspective, I prefer the original colour to last as long as possible and although 'change is inevitable', I prefer them before this point. My preferred age window is about 6-10.

 

[blackcat20]

In terms of this aging, did you detect any rust colour in the wine, possibly one of the first signs of this wine entering a new era? Not a bad thing, but a great confirmation that changes are occurring. From my own perspective, I prefer the original colour to last as long as possible and although 'change is inevitable', I prefer them before this point. My preferred age window is about 6-10.

No rust colour, just a bit of sediment. It definitely had a different, more aged taste compared with the last bottle we drank. We tend to like our wine in the 6-8 year range.

 

[Whining&dining]

Is that a euphemism or a Pinot?

This one?

 

[AnonymousCoward]

My preference tends to be from an overly aged wine, so I guess in this context, the wine is at its peak for me. I dont enjoy the "barrel taste" of a wine with a lot of age on it, so I guess Im saying that any longer and this wine would not be to my tastes. Its perfect right now.

Tastes differ, as do individual bottles. I can't speak for Daver6, but from the bottle I tasted, I don't think you were in any danger of having a load of "barrel taste" - that'd probably be at the 20 year mark. If you manage to get another bottle, give it another few years, and the primary fruit will recede a bit, exposing other fruit and savoury flavours, bringing it more into balance, rather than being dominated by one flavour. On the other hand, if you prefer cassis dominant cab, then I don't think you need to keep the bottles for as long.

 

[AnonymousCoward]

Battle of the '08 Cabernets tonight:



d'Arenberg Coppermine Road 2008. Drunk over two nights. Dark purple. The nose is of cassis and dark fruits, with a hint of smokiness. Palate has dark fruits, but with undertones of spice and chocolate. Tannins are medium. 91 on CT.
Versus Voyager Estate Cab Merlot 2008.


Dark red. Cassis, dark fruits and coffee on the nose. A mix of dark and red fruit on the palate - slightly sweet, with a lick of vanillin oak. Tannins are well integrated. Definitely more medium body than the Coppermine Road. 91 on CT.

 

[beefarmer]

When you have a couple of wines going over two nights, it enhances the wine tasting experience because the diversity really shows up. Individual characters are far easier to notice but the underlying issue is that they both have to be reasonably matched as you wouldn't want one to suddenly taste of lolly water due to the dominance of the first. Can happen, doesn't happen too often now due to my sommelier skills kicking in. Matching wine with food is for so primary school. Matching wine with wine is an art form that takes a lot of skill. Don't go searching for a nubile with an intact liver to do this !

 

[blackcat20]

Tastes differ, as do individual bottles. I can't speak for Daver6, but from the bottle I tasted, I don't think you were in any danger of having a load of "barrel taste" - that'd probably be at the 20 year mark. If you manage to get another bottle, give it another few years, and the primary fruit will recede a bit, exposing other fruit and savoury flavours, bringing it more into balance, rather than being dominated by one flavour. On the other hand, if you prefer cassis dominant cab, then I don't think you need to keep the bottles for as long.

We've got one more bottle.

A friend has suggested before that I am a super taster, so it may be that some flavours stand out more to me than others. I also have an insane sense of smell (I can tell you straight away if someone has sprayed perfume at the other end of the house)...

 

[Viridianne]

Battle of the '08 Cabernets tonight:



d'Arenberg Coppermine Road 2008. Drunk over two nights. Dark purple. The nose is of cassis and dark fruits, with a hint of smokiness. Palate has dark fruits, but with undertones of spice and chocolate. Tannins are medium. 91 on CT.
Versus Voyager Estate Cab Merlot 2008.


Dark red. Cassis, dark fruits and coffee on the nose. A mix of dark and red fruit on the palate - slightly sweet, with a lick of vanillin oak. Tannins are well integrated. Definitely more medium body than the Coppermine Road. 91 on CT.

AC, do you drink 2 bottles every night?

 

[Delectable Blue]

Thomas Allen 2014 MMV Pokolbin Shiraz (Hunter Valley)

When I’m 90 I sincerely hope I’m sitting (okay lying) back reminiscing on that great 2014 Hunter Valley vintage. If so, I’m sure this wine, and Thomas Allen in general, will figure prominently. This wine has been released as a sister to their flagship Alasdair shiraz. Sourced exclusively from the old-vine moon mountain vineyard (MMV). If the Alasdair is a world class operatic tennor, then this is a husky blues singer belting out a tune in a dark cigar bar. The yin to the Alasdair’s yang. What a pair...

Here are my CT notes:

A single vineyard shiraz from the old-vine moon mountain vineyard. Very aromatic, heady with ripe berry fruit. The body dense with flavours in raspberry & plum spectrum, although not as intense as the Alasdair. The fruit is fresh and quintessentially Hunter Valley in character. The wine is also not as tannic as the Alasdair, which is a little surprising given the extended cold soaking and fermentation time. There is nice complexity and depth for a young wine, with hints of tar, pepper and spice across that earthy Hunter Valley background. The oak is very restrained and barely perceptible, the balance exquisite.

A 95 on CT from me.

 

[AnonymousCoward]

AC, do you drink 2 bottles every night?

Not every night. Sometimes 3 bottles...

 

[AnonymousCoward]

When I’m 90 I sincerely hope I’m sitting (okay lying) back reminiscing on that great 2014 Hunter Valley vintage.

Whilst we're on the topic of 2014 Hunter Valley, these bad boys arrived today:



Open top fermented, 15 months in new/old French oak. 97 from Halliday, 97+ from Gary Walsh, 98 from Mike Bennie, 97 from Jeremy Oliver sets a scene of high expectations.

Colour is mid-purple. The nose of red berries with some subtle spice in the background. Medium bodied palate of red fruits, subtle oak, medium-light tannins. A touch sweet, with some earthy notes as well. Nice level of acidity. Obviously still quite young, but the structure and potential looks good. Would I say it's a $80 wine? Not sure - time will have to tell. The rest are going away for a good sleeping period. CT92 from me.

 

[beefarmer]

Not every night. Sometimes 3 bottles...

Where do you fit them???

And no smart replies like .in thecellar.

I would think five glasses a night could be doable.

 

[beefarmer]

We've got one more bottle.

A friend has suggested before that I am a super taster, so it may be that some flavours stand out more to me than others. I also have an insane sense of smell (I can tell you straight away if someone has sprayed perfume at the other end of the house)...

BC - if you have such a great sense of smell, insane perhaps, why didn't you notify us that the census was going to be stuffed up as it had a fishy smell to it from the start ? C'mon, and what about the plebescite fiasco. That was also a fishy story from day one. C'mon, you've got a cat there who loves Whiskas, so I reckon some further training is in order.

 

[MadMick10]

Love this wine. I'm down to my last bottle, now waiting patiently for Dan's or WM to offer it again for $25.

Ask and you shall receive!
2013 and 2014 at $25 per bottle at Dan's! (see Dan's thread)

 

[Lolo]

Gday guys,

Anyone here tried the Norfolk Rise 2015 Shiraz? thoughts?

 

[AnonymousCoward]

Where do you fit them???
And no smart replies like .in thecellar.

The open bottles usually sit on a buffet table. Bit hard to drink from bottles in the cellar

I usually get through 1/2 bottle in a night. Multiple bottles open usually mean guests (or out for dinner with others). On the weekend I might open more than one bottle of a night and have left-overs that carry through to Sun/Mon.

That's the nice bottles. Lots of random rubbish bottles opened as well, but I don't bother posting those. Maybe we should start 'The Sink Report' thread for stuff that doesn't make the cut?

 

[Steady]

Maybe we should start 'The Sink Report' thread for stuff that doesn't make the cut?

Not a bad idea AC....

 

[Steady]

A few wines I have sampled onboard QF over the last few days

This was ok but nothing special

This was unmemorable

This was a lovely wine at altitude- silky tannins and well balanced

 

[vedder50]

Whilst we're on the topic of 2014 Hunter Valley, these bad boys arrived today:

Open top fermented, 15 months in new/old French oak. 97 from Halliday, 97+ from Gary Walsh, 98 from Mike Bennie, 97 from Jeremy Oliver sets a scene of high expectations.

Colour is mid-purple. The nose of red berries with some subtle spice in the background. Medium bodied palate of red fruits, subtle oak, medium-light tannins. A touch sweet, with some earthy notes as well. Nice level of acidity. Obviously still quite young, but the structure and potential looks good. Would I say it's a $80 wine? Not sure - time will have to tell. The rest are going away for a good sleeping period. CT92 from me.

Don't take this the wrong way, but I've sensed the vast majority of your reviews are between 90 - 92, good, bad, or otherwise. Hard to gleen any useful insight with such a narrow scoring window.