Glenguin is a small winery located in Broke (Hunter Valley). Most of their wine is a few hundred cases each so definitely a very boutique Winery. I believe most (or maybe all) of their wine is still made by Rhys Eather of Meerea Park. The actual winery itself is own and operated by Robin Tedder MW.
Glenguin School House Block 2009 Shiraz.
I believe this actually has a small amount of Viognier (although it doesn't list it). I get a little floral as well as that umami (savoriness) that I associate with Shiraz Viognier. Really nice red fruits on the nose, a bit of leather and flowers. Decent acidity, this is still a very young wine. Red fruits on the palates that gives away to some leather, and salty/savory. Relatively silky tannins.. To be honest, I'm not much of a Hunter Valley Shiraz Viognier fan....I much prefer Canberra SV but this represents the Hunter very well, I think most people (Wine geeks and non wine geeks) would like this wine.
Friday, March 30, 2012
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Sydney International Wine Competition Top 100 Tasting 2012
Sydney International Wine Competition is a competition where the wine is judged with food. It is mainly Australian wine but there are a number of New Zealand entries....There are also some entrants from Portugal, Italy, Spain and I think France. After the competition they have what they call their "Top 100" tasting which consists of any of the wines that won a Blue Gold medal...they also nominate the Top 100 out of this bunch (So you get two little stickers instead of one).
The tasting itself was fairly well run. They gave you a tasting note/score sheet that listed all of the wine and left you room to score and to write notes. They also had sheets with instructions (although no one took them) that basically said, get a taste, move away, spit when you're done, score (if you want)... The tasting glass had a little line so you knew about how much to pour (25ml..or close to 1 fl oz). There were also plenty of spit buckets all over the place so it was a pretty good setup for getting through a lot of wine. I think the only downside is they didn't have much in the way of something to clean your palate. They brought out some bread at some point but they would've just been better off with water crackers.
Overall, the tasting was a bit of a disappointment wine wise. A few really great whites...some good reds. It was definitely a good opportunity to try some reds I hadn't tried but overall most of the reds were pretty ordinary. I should know better than to think most of these types of shows would have the type of wine I really like...they tend to have a few here and there and then a lot of stuff that is decent. This is contrary to the regional shows where you get to try a good number of really great wine.
One other thing I want to comment on....There is a Pinot Noir Class, then a Lighter Bodied Red, Medium bodied Red and Full bodied Red. For everyone else this would be
Lighter Bodied Reds - Beaujolais, Valpolicella. Actual LIGHT bodied wines.
Medium bodied Reds - Pinot Noir, maybe a Hunter Shiraz, maybe a Nebbiolo or anything that is a bit lighter than a Full bodied Red.
Full Bodied Red - Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Grenache (although you can argue it is medium bodied because of the low tannins), etc, etc.
Now, you can get medium bodied wines of different varieties..but medium bodied is lowish alcohol, lighter mouthfeel.
For this show..
Lighter Bodied Red = Full Bodied Red
Medium Bodied Red = Higher Alcohol, getting into Fruit Bomb territory
Full Bodied Red = HIGH Alcohol, BIG BIG FRUIT. STAIN YOUR TEETH FRUIT. BIG.
I guess it is all relative..but pretty funny. To be fair within their own classification, it was pretty appropriate. The thing I find most odd with this is, except for maybe some of the normal (light bodied) wines, none of the reds are probably appropriate for food...or at least not anything except a big steak...Just seems a bit...well, stupid.
Highlights:
Mistletoe Reserve Chardonnay 2009. This has been cleaning up at shows. This won a trophy at this show. Forgetting about awards (because I could really care less), really nice attack on this wine. Good acidity that tingles your tongue. Really great citrus, cashews, good use of oak. Great balance, great length. The Hunter has been making some great Chardonnay lately and this is one of them...
Xanadu Reserve Chardonnay 2010 - As I mentioned for the Sydney show. This wine is still going strong. Seemed to show a bit more acid this time around but an EXCELLENT Chardonnay..I think I appreciate this more and more each time I try it. Too bad it is so expensive...
Peter Lehmann Wigan Riesling 2005. Again another great showing. This is a great Riesling..I don't care how much anyone says shows don't matter, this one always does well..
Lawson's Dry Hill Riesling 2010. Great QPR. Really good acidity and development for only a 2008. A bit of honey, slight petrol notes (not a lot), nice long finish. Surprised by this one.
Reds:
McWilliams 1877 2008. A cabernet sauvignon/shiraz blend...This was a pretty big wine. Good acidity, big tannins, the fruit was still big as well. A slightly better wine than the 2009 (to me anyways) but that could be because of the additional age. Seems like the structure is there, tastes good now as well but it is a pretty massive drink right now.
McPherson Basilisk 2010. A blend of Shiraz and Mouvedre. A cooler climite shiraz. A bit of Pepper and red and dark fruits on the nose. Decent acidity, maybe a tad of menthol a bit of pepper, dark and red fruits. Fine tannins, decent length. This is a pretty good blend.
Anvers "the Warrior Shiraz 2008. BIG bottle. This bottle (along w/ some of the Italian ones) weigh at least twice as much as a normal bottle. This was a pretty big wine out of the "medium Bodied reds category". A lot of dark fruits on the nose, smells a bit sweet actually. I'm thinking McLaren Vale (and yes it mostly is). Good acidity but big fruit. Nice silky tannins. Big but a bit more restraint than I expected. My understanding is it has some Adelaide Hills fruit, maybe that is where this is coming from. Pretty good wine overall.
Penny's Hill Cracking Black Shiraz 2010. Big Fruit bomb. Fun to drink. Actually has decent acidity which makes this a bit more enjoyable. This is a sub 20 dollar wine but drinks like one more than that. Really good QPR, showing quite well (at least the bottle I tried).
There were several other reds that were good...some were fairly well known. Kilikanoon Oracle, Yalumba Octavius..both were quite good but not much of a highlight. The were both fine but I expected more...the Pinots were pretty ordinary...
I think the only wine that still confuses me is the Coolangatta 2006 Semillon. It has been doing very well in all of the shows...Nose on this wine is great..like an aged Semillon. It is definitely missing acidity though and seems a bit flat for a semillon. Other than that it is fine but I haven't figured out if it is just me or the particular judges. All of the semillon I have tried that I thought was great (older Tyrrells VAT1 and Mt. Pleasant Lovedales) had that good acidity as well as the development...This one has the development but no acidity..it is weird....Actually, out of the 3 main Semillons there (First Creek, McLeish and the Coolangatta), I thought it was the weakest out of the 3...*shrug*.
The tasting itself was fairly well run. They gave you a tasting note/score sheet that listed all of the wine and left you room to score and to write notes. They also had sheets with instructions (although no one took them) that basically said, get a taste, move away, spit when you're done, score (if you want)... The tasting glass had a little line so you knew about how much to pour (25ml..or close to 1 fl oz). There were also plenty of spit buckets all over the place so it was a pretty good setup for getting through a lot of wine. I think the only downside is they didn't have much in the way of something to clean your palate. They brought out some bread at some point but they would've just been better off with water crackers.
Overall, the tasting was a bit of a disappointment wine wise. A few really great whites...some good reds. It was definitely a good opportunity to try some reds I hadn't tried but overall most of the reds were pretty ordinary. I should know better than to think most of these types of shows would have the type of wine I really like...they tend to have a few here and there and then a lot of stuff that is decent. This is contrary to the regional shows where you get to try a good number of really great wine.
One other thing I want to comment on....There is a Pinot Noir Class, then a Lighter Bodied Red, Medium bodied Red and Full bodied Red. For everyone else this would be
Lighter Bodied Reds - Beaujolais, Valpolicella. Actual LIGHT bodied wines.
Medium bodied Reds - Pinot Noir, maybe a Hunter Shiraz, maybe a Nebbiolo or anything that is a bit lighter than a Full bodied Red.
Full Bodied Red - Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Grenache (although you can argue it is medium bodied because of the low tannins), etc, etc.
Now, you can get medium bodied wines of different varieties..but medium bodied is lowish alcohol, lighter mouthfeel.
For this show..
Lighter Bodied Red = Full Bodied Red
Medium Bodied Red = Higher Alcohol, getting into Fruit Bomb territory
Full Bodied Red = HIGH Alcohol, BIG BIG FRUIT. STAIN YOUR TEETH FRUIT. BIG.
I guess it is all relative..but pretty funny. To be fair within their own classification, it was pretty appropriate. The thing I find most odd with this is, except for maybe some of the normal (light bodied) wines, none of the reds are probably appropriate for food...or at least not anything except a big steak...Just seems a bit...well, stupid.
Highlights:
Mistletoe Reserve Chardonnay 2009. This has been cleaning up at shows. This won a trophy at this show. Forgetting about awards (because I could really care less), really nice attack on this wine. Good acidity that tingles your tongue. Really great citrus, cashews, good use of oak. Great balance, great length. The Hunter has been making some great Chardonnay lately and this is one of them...
Xanadu Reserve Chardonnay 2010 - As I mentioned for the Sydney show. This wine is still going strong. Seemed to show a bit more acid this time around but an EXCELLENT Chardonnay..I think I appreciate this more and more each time I try it. Too bad it is so expensive...
Peter Lehmann Wigan Riesling 2005. Again another great showing. This is a great Riesling..I don't care how much anyone says shows don't matter, this one always does well..
Lawson's Dry Hill Riesling 2010. Great QPR. Really good acidity and development for only a 2008. A bit of honey, slight petrol notes (not a lot), nice long finish. Surprised by this one.
Reds:
McWilliams 1877 2008. A cabernet sauvignon/shiraz blend...This was a pretty big wine. Good acidity, big tannins, the fruit was still big as well. A slightly better wine than the 2009 (to me anyways) but that could be because of the additional age. Seems like the structure is there, tastes good now as well but it is a pretty massive drink right now.
McPherson Basilisk 2010. A blend of Shiraz and Mouvedre. A cooler climite shiraz. A bit of Pepper and red and dark fruits on the nose. Decent acidity, maybe a tad of menthol a bit of pepper, dark and red fruits. Fine tannins, decent length. This is a pretty good blend.
Anvers "the Warrior Shiraz 2008. BIG bottle. This bottle (along w/ some of the Italian ones) weigh at least twice as much as a normal bottle. This was a pretty big wine out of the "medium Bodied reds category". A lot of dark fruits on the nose, smells a bit sweet actually. I'm thinking McLaren Vale (and yes it mostly is). Good acidity but big fruit. Nice silky tannins. Big but a bit more restraint than I expected. My understanding is it has some Adelaide Hills fruit, maybe that is where this is coming from. Pretty good wine overall.
Penny's Hill Cracking Black Shiraz 2010. Big Fruit bomb. Fun to drink. Actually has decent acidity which makes this a bit more enjoyable. This is a sub 20 dollar wine but drinks like one more than that. Really good QPR, showing quite well (at least the bottle I tried).
There were several other reds that were good...some were fairly well known. Kilikanoon Oracle, Yalumba Octavius..both were quite good but not much of a highlight. The were both fine but I expected more...the Pinots were pretty ordinary...
I think the only wine that still confuses me is the Coolangatta 2006 Semillon. It has been doing very well in all of the shows...Nose on this wine is great..like an aged Semillon. It is definitely missing acidity though and seems a bit flat for a semillon. Other than that it is fine but I haven't figured out if it is just me or the particular judges. All of the semillon I have tried that I thought was great (older Tyrrells VAT1 and Mt. Pleasant Lovedales) had that good acidity as well as the development...This one has the development but no acidity..it is weird....Actually, out of the 3 main Semillons there (First Creek, McLeish and the Coolangatta), I thought it was the weakest out of the 3...*shrug*.
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Aged Hunter Pinot? Plus a Frenchy?
French wine is incredibly expensive in Australia...Based on the conversations I've had with various wholesalers...basically everyone is keeping the price up and pocketing the margins. Apparently it is for when the currency is against them...which hasn't been the case for a long long time.
2005 Chateau Les Grands Marechaux. Cotes de Blaye. Mostly Merlot with a bit of Cab Franc and Cab Sav. A real value wine for 2005 Bordeaux. Punches very well above its weight. If you can still get it, you'll find it 20-30 in the US. 50-60 in Australia. Started off rather tight but really opened up with some air. Really nice red fruit, some herbs, spice maybe a bit of licorice on the nose. Decent acidity. Good red and dark fruits on the palate. Tannins are not too big in this..and I don't think they have been for awhile....The wine is going down really smooth...maybe too much. I would definitely drink this now or in the next year or two. A fantastic value at 20-30...at 60 AUD...no way.
1998 Petersons Back Block Pinot Noir. Hunter Valley. Not a fan of Australian Pinot in general (although there are some good ones). The Hunter Valley is not really suited for Pinot but you sometimes get a few here and there. I don't believe Petersons even makes this any longer. A lot of red fruits, cherries and spice on the nose..a bit of leather as well. My nose says Pinot but not necessarily Australian Pinot...interesting. Palate strikes me as oddly similar to some of the other aged Petersons stuff I've tried. Really good acidity, I'm a bit surprised considering the general lack of acidity in Australian Pinot. Maybe its the age, I'm not sure. Getting a good amount of cherry on the palate, some nice leather, earth, leaves and herbs. A bit of spice in there as well. As this gets air, the more Pinot like it starts becoming and it is quite nice. I had read some other notes online that this was a big fruit bomb type Pinot..it definitely doesn't strike me as that right now...I'm not sure what it is about the Hunter but their reds, even this Pinot, age really well.
2005 Chateau Les Grands Marechaux. Cotes de Blaye. Mostly Merlot with a bit of Cab Franc and Cab Sav. A real value wine for 2005 Bordeaux. Punches very well above its weight. If you can still get it, you'll find it 20-30 in the US. 50-60 in Australia. Started off rather tight but really opened up with some air. Really nice red fruit, some herbs, spice maybe a bit of licorice on the nose. Decent acidity. Good red and dark fruits on the palate. Tannins are not too big in this..and I don't think they have been for awhile....The wine is going down really smooth...maybe too much. I would definitely drink this now or in the next year or two. A fantastic value at 20-30...at 60 AUD...no way.
1998 Petersons Back Block Pinot Noir. Hunter Valley. Not a fan of Australian Pinot in general (although there are some good ones). The Hunter Valley is not really suited for Pinot but you sometimes get a few here and there. I don't believe Petersons even makes this any longer. A lot of red fruits, cherries and spice on the nose..a bit of leather as well. My nose says Pinot but not necessarily Australian Pinot...interesting. Palate strikes me as oddly similar to some of the other aged Petersons stuff I've tried. Really good acidity, I'm a bit surprised considering the general lack of acidity in Australian Pinot. Maybe its the age, I'm not sure. Getting a good amount of cherry on the palate, some nice leather, earth, leaves and herbs. A bit of spice in there as well. As this gets air, the more Pinot like it starts becoming and it is quite nice. I had read some other notes online that this was a big fruit bomb type Pinot..it definitely doesn't strike me as that right now...I'm not sure what it is about the Hunter but their reds, even this Pinot, age really well.
Friday, March 9, 2012
Kay Brothers 2005 Hillside Shiraz
Kay Brothers 2005 Hillside Shiraz - I picked this up a couple of years ago on a trip through parts of South Australia...This is one that makes it over to the US quite a bit. Some previous vintages have garnered some high points from RP in the past. You can see why. Big nose of dark fruits, blackberry, blueberry, a bit of mocha and vanilla. Palate has decent acid, I'd probably prefer more but for this style it works. This wine is really smooth. Silky tannins, big big dark fruit. This is a crowd pleasing wine. Good use of oak...getting a hint of vanilla, some spice, really nice depth. Long finish.....It is very much a typical mouth coating McLaren Vale Shiraz...but without being too obnoxiously big. Alcohol was reasonable and no hint of heat anywhere..the wine had good balance...Overall a great buy, a great crowd pleaser. Probably not the style of wine I prefer but I'd be perfectly happy drinking this anytime.
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Meerea Park
Meerea Park is located in the Hunter Valley. It is owned by the Eather brothers and Rhys is the winemaker. Rhys also makes the wines for several other labels in the Hunter. Last I checked he still made the wines for Glenguin, Ferraris and Mountain X.
Meerea Park is, in my opinion, one of the best wineries in the Hunter. They have a very large range of wines and across the board, they're all very well made. They also do one thing I think is fantastic...They don't release their top semillons until 5 years after vintage. This allows people to have them as they should be rather than far too young where you get pure lemon and acid.
Meerea Park 2006 Hell Hole Shiraz. Made from the Howard Family's "Somerset" vineyard..A brilliant medium bodied Shiraz. Leather, earth, a bit of pepper...red and dark fruits on the nose. It smells like a Hunter. Really good hunter acid, a lot of red fruits on the palate, plum, a bit of herbs, leather...Fine sweet tannins..Very well balanced, fantastic length. This drank wonderfully young, it drinks fantastically with a few years on it. I really do wish they exported more of this style of wine to the US.
Meerea Park 2003 Alexander Munro Shiraz. The Alexander Munro line has become the flagship line for Meerea Park. It tends to be done in a much bigger style of shiraz compared to the Hell Hole. Sourced from the "Ivanhoe" vineyard, this is a relatively big wine for a Hunter Shiraz. Nose has a bit of reduction which I find is typical of this line but this blows off relatively quick. I'd actually strongly suggest decanting this as well... BIG nose of dark fruit, chocolate, leather. This doesn't come across as a typical Hunter nose...more of a cross between Hunter and Barossa. Decent acidity but less coming across than I'd probably like but it could be because the fruit is big..really big. Very ripe, dark fruit. Some spice, some leather, a little bit of earth but not much. If I haven't said it enough, this is really big for a Hunter Shiraz. Tannins are nice and silky. The wine feels like it has years left to go but drinking quite well now. This is actually released now as a Aged Release....This wine is fantastic but the Aged Release price is a bit much...Personally, I think I prefer their Hell Hole line..it is more in line with what I want from a Hunter...but this wine is still excellent.
Meerea Park 2006 Alexander Munro Shiraz. As I mentioned before, this line tends to be made big. This wine has a bit of reduction on the nose but it blows off quickly. Nose of dark fruits, herbs, a little bit of leather..a bit vegetal. Fairly good acid, dark fruits..a bit greeny...A bit of leather. This one seems to be in an odd place right now. After a few hours this starts to get rid of the greenies...Acid is coming out better now, a bit of red fruit along w/ the dark fruit. A bit more leather. I had this over 4 days and it was actually best on day 3 and 4. Fairly certain this wine needs quite a bit more time. Otherwise I would decant this for several hours before drinking.
Meerea Park 2005 Alexander Munro Semillon. This line only gets released 5 years after vintage and I'm really glad they do this. Really good acidity, wonder Hunter semillon aging going on...Honey, toast, lemon. Great depth of flavor...good complexity...very nice finish...
Meerea Park 2006 Alexander Munro Semillon. I've had this several times. The first time, I thought the acidity was good, the last couple of times, it has been a bit flat. I'm not sure if the bottles were oxidized or it was opened too long before trying it (Both were in a public setting). I'm not sure what it was. Nowhere near as developed as I would've expected and nowhere near the acid. I'm not sure if it is just me or if this wine is on the decline.
Meerea Park 2009 Alexander Munro Chardonnay. Made from fruit from the Casuarina Estate, this is actually one of several great Chardonnays to recently come out of the Hunter. I think the change in style from big oaky, buttery, creamy chardonnays has allowed the Hunter to shine. Made without Malo and 40% new French Oak, on the nose you get melon, peach. Really good acidity and purity of the fruit. Has some creaminess but not a lot. The French oak is adding really nice complexity.
As a general overview of the rest of their line...
Terracotta Shiraz. For some reason every single one of these I've had young, I haven't been impressed with. With age though, it becomes VERY nice. The added Viognier integrates fantastically and the wine picks up fantastic complexity.
XYZ Shiraz - First two vintages were very good with the 2007 being fantastic. 2009 is falling more in line with it's price point.
Aunts Shiraz. Made with American Oak, this is very much a Hunter Shiraz but with a bit more vanilla. Really good value....Tends to have really good acidity, a bit of leather...
Terracotta Semillon. This might actually be my favorite Semillon they make...but quantities are really minute. Sells out quickly and near impossible to find. If you like the Tyrrells Stevens Semillon, you will likely like this one as well....
Meerea Park is, in my opinion, one of the best wineries in the Hunter. They have a very large range of wines and across the board, they're all very well made. They also do one thing I think is fantastic...They don't release their top semillons until 5 years after vintage. This allows people to have them as they should be rather than far too young where you get pure lemon and acid.
Meerea Park 2006 Hell Hole Shiraz. Made from the Howard Family's "Somerset" vineyard..A brilliant medium bodied Shiraz. Leather, earth, a bit of pepper...red and dark fruits on the nose. It smells like a Hunter. Really good hunter acid, a lot of red fruits on the palate, plum, a bit of herbs, leather...Fine sweet tannins..Very well balanced, fantastic length. This drank wonderfully young, it drinks fantastically with a few years on it. I really do wish they exported more of this style of wine to the US.
Meerea Park 2003 Alexander Munro Shiraz. The Alexander Munro line has become the flagship line for Meerea Park. It tends to be done in a much bigger style of shiraz compared to the Hell Hole. Sourced from the "Ivanhoe" vineyard, this is a relatively big wine for a Hunter Shiraz. Nose has a bit of reduction which I find is typical of this line but this blows off relatively quick. I'd actually strongly suggest decanting this as well... BIG nose of dark fruit, chocolate, leather. This doesn't come across as a typical Hunter nose...more of a cross between Hunter and Barossa. Decent acidity but less coming across than I'd probably like but it could be because the fruit is big..really big. Very ripe, dark fruit. Some spice, some leather, a little bit of earth but not much. If I haven't said it enough, this is really big for a Hunter Shiraz. Tannins are nice and silky. The wine feels like it has years left to go but drinking quite well now. This is actually released now as a Aged Release....This wine is fantastic but the Aged Release price is a bit much...Personally, I think I prefer their Hell Hole line..it is more in line with what I want from a Hunter...but this wine is still excellent.
Meerea Park 2006 Alexander Munro Shiraz. As I mentioned before, this line tends to be made big. This wine has a bit of reduction on the nose but it blows off quickly. Nose of dark fruits, herbs, a little bit of leather..a bit vegetal. Fairly good acid, dark fruits..a bit greeny...A bit of leather. This one seems to be in an odd place right now. After a few hours this starts to get rid of the greenies...Acid is coming out better now, a bit of red fruit along w/ the dark fruit. A bit more leather. I had this over 4 days and it was actually best on day 3 and 4. Fairly certain this wine needs quite a bit more time. Otherwise I would decant this for several hours before drinking.
Meerea Park 2005 Alexander Munro Semillon. This line only gets released 5 years after vintage and I'm really glad they do this. Really good acidity, wonder Hunter semillon aging going on...Honey, toast, lemon. Great depth of flavor...good complexity...very nice finish...
Meerea Park 2006 Alexander Munro Semillon. I've had this several times. The first time, I thought the acidity was good, the last couple of times, it has been a bit flat. I'm not sure if the bottles were oxidized or it was opened too long before trying it (Both were in a public setting). I'm not sure what it was. Nowhere near as developed as I would've expected and nowhere near the acid. I'm not sure if it is just me or if this wine is on the decline.
Meerea Park 2009 Alexander Munro Chardonnay. Made from fruit from the Casuarina Estate, this is actually one of several great Chardonnays to recently come out of the Hunter. I think the change in style from big oaky, buttery, creamy chardonnays has allowed the Hunter to shine. Made without Malo and 40% new French Oak, on the nose you get melon, peach. Really good acidity and purity of the fruit. Has some creaminess but not a lot. The French oak is adding really nice complexity.
As a general overview of the rest of their line...
Terracotta Shiraz. For some reason every single one of these I've had young, I haven't been impressed with. With age though, it becomes VERY nice. The added Viognier integrates fantastically and the wine picks up fantastic complexity.
XYZ Shiraz - First two vintages were very good with the 2007 being fantastic. 2009 is falling more in line with it's price point.
Aunts Shiraz. Made with American Oak, this is very much a Hunter Shiraz but with a bit more vanilla. Really good value....Tends to have really good acidity, a bit of leather...
Terracotta Semillon. This might actually be my favorite Semillon they make...but quantities are really minute. Sells out quickly and near impossible to find. If you like the Tyrrells Stevens Semillon, you will likely like this one as well....
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)