I never finished my last trip to the Hunter but it wasn't all that exciting...
I had the opportunity to go out there again with some friends that were not wine geeks...We went to:
Meerea Park
Brokenwood
Tyrrells
Tower Estate
I'm not exactly sure how we only hit four places but we did enjoy our time at each of these places. Special thanks to Meerea Park, Tyrrells and Brokenwood for spending the extra time and effort.
Meerea Park
Meerea Park 2011 Hell Hole Semillon.
I have decided I'm not really into young Semillon. There are some good examples but I think what I'm looking for in Semillon and what I get from a young Semillon are not consistent. This is a very nicely drinking young semillon. Lemon, good acidity. I'm craving toast and depth...This is a nice summer drink but not what I'm looking for but for people that enjoy young semillon, this one is very nice.
Meerea Park 2006 Terracotta Semillon: I have always been a fan and this often sells out so quickly that you rarely get the opportunity to taste it. Really good development, very nice toasty notes, a bit of honey, lemon, lemongrass. Still has great acidity..A lot better than the Alexander Munro 2006 as far as acidity...This one will last at least another 5 years but is drinking fantastic right now.
Meerea Park 2007 Alexander Munro Semillon. This is drinking far better than the 2006 Alexander Munro..which I thought was really good at release but every subsequent time I've had it, I've been disappointed. The acidity is not as good as the Terracotta but it has very good development, very nice complexity to this one and overall is probably a bit better balance wise than the Terracotta..but the Terracotta is going to outlast this. I'd probably drink these up in the next few years.
Meerea Park 2010 XYZ Chardonnay. Better than expected with good citrus and peachy notes. Old French Oak and no Malo...seems very in line w/ the style of Chardonnay we're seeing today.
Meerea Park 2011 Alexander Munro Chardonnay. A slight step up from the XYZ. Slightly more oak (using some new oak) and still no malo, this used to be one of my favorite Chardonnays in the Hunter and is still one of the better ones...but there are so many really good Chards coming out of the Hunter now..
Meerea Park XYZ Shiraz 2010. A good solid Hunter. I believe they also add a bit of Viognier which is definitely not obvious at all. Leather, Earth, almost typical Hunter but softer. Relatively good value but this butts up right to the Aunts...
Meerea Park "The Aunts" Shiraz 2010. Very well made Hunter Shiraz. This is always very good each year. Most years it seems to use some American oak, sometimes as the majority. Soaking up that American oak gives it a bit of vanilla on top of the leathery notes you normally get from the Hunter.
Meerea Park Hell Hole Shiraz 2009. Almost every year this is my favorite out of Meerea Park. Great Acid, very Hunter in its characteristics, red fruits, leather, earth, hint of herbs, smooth tannins... It is basically everything I'm looking for in a Hunter Shiraz.. It ages beautifully but is approachable early on.
Meerea Park Alexander Munro Shiraz 2010. Their Flagship wine which is excellent every year. It is made for the long haul so the tannins are quite evident. The fruit is darker and bigger than the Hell Hole. I consider this to be more like a Hunter Shiraz made to be similar to a Barossa. Very hard to evaluate at this stage but looks to be very good. As typical from their Alexander Munro line...this will go 20+ easily and is made to drink probably after 8-10 years.
Brokenwood
Well known for their Cricket Pitch (low end) and Graveyard Shiraz (high end), Brokenwood makes a very wide variety of different things to try. We tried a large variety of different things here so I'll concentrate on the ones of note. Brokenwood tends to use at least some American oak in their Shiraz..which is not really typical for Hunter Shiraz..it being a bit more delicate than SA Shiraz but it definitely adds something different and I can see why people really enjoy their wine.
Brokenwood Nebbiolo 2010. Not very typical of this grape variety. I don't know if I'd call it a good Nebbiolo but it was a decent drop. Nice medium body, a bit of cherry, decent acidity...lacked the tannins I'd expect from a Nebbiolo...Overall a decent version out of Australia but if you can get Barolo, Barbaresco or just Nebbiolo from Italy, it'll likely be a bit better than this.
Brokenwood Verona Shiraz 2009. A block right across from the Graveyard vineyard, a very good Hunter Shiraz. Good Acid, medium tannins, getting leather, earth and a bit of vanilla and a bigger mouthfeel. American Oak somewhere? A quick look reveals they use 50/50 American/French oak. Good overall wine, maybe a bit on the expensive side.
Brokenwood Hunter Valley Shiraz 2005. There is often some declassified Graveyard fruit in these which is always a plus. Very nice Hunter Shiraz with that plushy vanilla and big american oak coming through but not too big as it has integrated nicely into the rest of the wine. Overall a very nice wine and a good example of what these wines will become. Price was insane though (80?). Their recent vintage release is currently at 40 although you can find it for 30 or around there if you look.
Brokenwood Wade Block 2 Shiraz 2007. Made from McLaren Vale fruit...This is a fruit bomb. Big, glass coating, thick fruit bomb. Big fruit and lowish tannins...but decent acidity which is a nice change of pace and to some might pop this out of the fruit bomb category. Definitely an enjoyable wine but one you'd only have with meat or dark chocolate or on its own.
Tyrrells
I think Tyrrells has become THE best producer, overall, in the Hunter. They make fantastic Semillon and fantastic Shiraz. They also make a very good Chardonnay and surprisingly enough, a pretty decent Pinot Noir as well. Not only that but they have a huge range within each grape variety. They have very low end stuff you'll find at the store for 10 or less...and they have top notch stuff that competes w/ the best Australia has to offer...and generally several steps in the middle....They'll have similar wines at the same price point but made in a very different style from each other...each giving you a sense of place and personality.
I think they're quite busy on the weekend but if you happen to visit them during the week, you'll get to spend more time talking to them and if you're lucky, you'll get to do glass to glass comparisons of their different offerings. I always enjoy getting to see wines side by side to have a point of reference...and especially for my friends, I think it was a great learning experience and we even got to taste some of their higher end stuff which has further cemented Tyrrells, in my mind, as the best overall producer.
I've already previous gushed over Tyrrells VAT 1. It is THE best Semillon in the world in my opinion. It ages beautifully and will age for a LONG time and just has such complexity, depth and great acidity. I don't think they drink great young...they definitely need time...but with age they are absolutely stunning.
Tyrrells VAT 1 Semillon 2005. Still a young one but showing a bit of honey and toast as well as fantastic acidity. To be honest, I was expecting a little bit more development which leads me to believe this one will go on for 20+ more years..especially w/ a screwcap.
We also got to try
Stevens Semillon - one of my favorites. Consistently very good, great acidity and development. Superb value. This and the Meerea Park Terracotta are very similar, I believe they're from the same area but right next to each other.
HVD Chardonnay 2011
Vat 47 Chardonnay 2011
Both were able to show different styles of winemaking as well as showing off the fact that the Hunter is coming out with great Chardonnay, especially lately.
Tyrrells Brokenback Shiraz 2010. A very typical Hunter but actually quite a bit better than I would have expected for a 20 dollar bottle. This includes from the 4 Acres vineyard because it wasn't of sufficient quality to make the 4 Acres. I have heard people say this is a good example of what is going on in the Hunter in any given year...but to be fair to everyone else, this year's Brokenback is probably exceptional compared to previous years. Very Hunterish...great acidity...an utterly fantastic buy with tremendous value. Even my non wine geeky friend that does not like Shiraz really liked this...
Tyrrells Rufus Stone Heathcote 2009. A cooler climate shiraz, this also represents great value. Bigger than a Hunter Shiraz, cleaner, but not huge like the McLaren Vale, the Rufus Stone line has always been a great value buy.
Tyrrells Rufus Stone McLaren Vale 2009. A fruit bomb style but not quite a fruit bomb. Probably the biggest crowd pleaser out of these last 3. Big fruit, lowish tannins, lowish acid..but not huge alcohol. A really good buy and I can see people drinking a lot of this.
And now...to the two wines that basically made me rush through everything else...
Tyrrells 4 Acres Shiraz 2011. Cherry, raspberry, red fruits on the nose. I'm getting something I always say "herbs" on but I guess when I have to describe it, no one specific herb. A tad bit of "green" which most people call forest floor. It could be stalks were included in this, I'm not sure. Either way, getting a bit of leather, not a very STRONG sense of the hunter but it smells a bit more like an aged Hunter..which I find odd and interesting because this is not an aged wine. On the palate I get a gush of bright but light red fruit with fantastic acidity..no green in the palate, a little bit of leather, but as the wine is in my mouth it keeps evolving. Raspberry, truffle, a hint of thyme, all backed by very pure fruit and wonderful acidity. It FEELS like an aged Hunter...but the fruit is telling me there is no way this is an aged Hunter. Layer upon layer upon layer while I'm waiting for it to end so I can spit...a stupid smile comes across my face and a nod...this is good.
Tyrrells Johnnos Shiraz 2011. This is supposed to be the best Johnnos they have released...I look and it has lower alcohol than the 4 Acres...Smells a bit tighter, it looks like it is bigger..odd. Having this after the 4 Acres was a bit odd..at first I thought, this is missing some acidity..but it wasn't..it was just the 4 Acres had more. The fruit is a bit darker, but very nice. I think a bit more oak is showing through..definitely a different wine but starting to see a few things poke through. I stop, spit..and give myself some time because I feel like the 4 Acres is influencing my tasting....Next mouthful gives me a much better idea of what I'm looking at. Darker reds fruits, a bit of leather, a bit more oak, still great acidity, none of the herbs I got from the 4 Acres....Lower alcohol but definitely bigger mouthfeel than the 4 Acres...I'm about to spit and then it starts to gush...Layers, spice, layers, different red fruits, layers, spice, leather, earth....Wow..
Which is better? I'm not sure...Two different Hunter Shiraz showing off their sense of place. These ARE Hunter...no doubt. They easily compete w/ the best the rest of Australia has to offer. They are nothing like what the rest of the world thinks of as Australian Shiraz....
What else can I say except they make one of if not the best Semillon...and some of if not the best Shiraz in the Hunter...and then past that, their mid range wines are fantastic...Good Good...
