Plenty of wine to cover but I'll try to stick w/ the Aussies plus a few others...and for the first time I'll include scores!!
2011 Giaconda Chardonnay - I was a real fan of this when I first tried it..today it seemed a bit out of place...really quite awkward at first...really opening up with some air. Acidity seemed really flat but it definitely started to show a bit more as it opened up. Of the four or so times I've had this though, this was my least favorite time....Just seems to have shut down a tad and not showing as nicely....A lot of people actually don't prefer this vintage over other Giacondas but I definitely do... 89 points.
1986 Mount Mary Chardonnay - Didn't strike me as a nearly 30 year old Chardonnay...Good acidity, oak seems to have fully integrated..a bit of peach, lemon pith....An interesting find if you can get it... 90 points
1981 Henschke Hill of Grace - I had really high expectations of this..not sure they were met...Mint and earth on the nose...dark and red fruits...felt like it had more acid than younger HoGs but that is to be expected IMO...Tannins were fully integrated...Not quite the complexity I'm expecting though..something is missing for me...Good wine though.. 90 points
1991 Wynns John Riddoch - Coonawarra on the nose...Green Bell Peppers for days. Dark fruits, pretty good acidity too which is probably the most surprising and most impressive thing here. Tannins were there but integrated nicely into the wine. This is actually drinking quite nicely...I actually had higher expectations for this wine complexity wise..but was pleased with the overall mouthfeel and texture.. 91 points
1996 Seppelts Great Western Shiraz - This is the wine that is now called St. Peters...Showing a lot younger than I would have thought for a 1996 St. Peters...Bright red fruit, herbs, some earthiness....Good acidity...Oak present but not overpowering..tannins there but well integrated. My understanding is bottle variation on these is quite high but this one was a stunner and could easily go another 10 years... 92 points
1996 Peter Lehmann Stonewell - This was a bit on the ripe side..even seems to have some residual sugar as well..drinking nicely overall with well integrated tannins and oak...acidity is a bit on the low side....87 points
1992 Jim Barry Armagh - These seem to be in very high demand..but really not the style I like. Big brash shiraz..Big dark fruits, felt rather viscous to me...I'm feeling a bit of heat but that said, overall the wine integrated quite nicely together...hard to believe this is a 92 and this will easily go another 10-15+ years...87 points
1996 Wendouree Cabernet Malbec - I had high expectations of this but had a feeling it would be too young..and it was. Great texture and mouthfeel..the structure is there..the fruit will integrate nicely later on and the wine should be great..in another 10 years... I actually enjoyed this because of the texture but definitely felt this was missing something..more so than other younger Wendourees I felt this needed a lot more time..but I think it'll be quite good...91 points
Others:
2003 Armand Rousseau CSJ - I really like Rousseau...I think the wines are fantastically balanced and always have that great power + finesse...This one was..well, not something I expected. On the very overripe side for a red Burgundy...I would have guessed New World...a lot of graphite...felt really quite overworked. Some people really love this but I don't. It could be this will end up being fantastic in 10+ years....Acidity is there but there is something just not right with this....If someone told me it was an Aussie or CA Pinot, I would have believed them..89 points
2010 Foillard Cote du Py 3.14. This might have been my favorite wine of the night..great mouthfeel and texture...like red fruits. At first sip I thought this was Beaujolais (it was served blind) then I felt the tannins and thought, maybe Jura? Once I found out it was Beaujolais I knew it was Morgon but the tannin structure really threw me off...A bit stalky (which I like), good acidity, lighter spicy red fruits...I really like this a lot...Might've been my favorite of the night...92 points
1999 Shafer Hillside Select - Creamy Dark Fruit...Definitely on the fruit bomb side of things...low acidity..big fruit..vanilla oak...It is very much a steak house wine...Was it enjoyable? Yeah...but could I drink this often? No...it wasn't a big brash red...but yeah...for me these feel flat but I can see why a lot of people like them..88 points
Showing posts with label Grampians. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Grampians. Show all posts
Sunday, June 29, 2014
Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Langtons Sydney Classification VI 2014
Langtons has done three tastings of their Classifications and all three have been done very well..
I only attended the non Exceptional categories...
Highlights:
Maurice O'Shea Vertical. I love when wineries do this because it really gives you the opportunity to try several different versions of their wine at once. In this case they did 94, 98, 99, 2000, 2003, 2009. My favorite of the bunch was the 1998...Great acid, good structure, a bit of leather and dirt, red fruits, a bit of tannin structure still there...great wine. My least favorite was the 2000 which was overly tannic (a huge style change) and in a very awkward place.
Bests Thomson Family 2012 - Great wine. Great structure, wonderful fruit. Acid in the right spot, tannins in the right spot..fantastic complexity....A bit on the expensive side but a very good wine.
Wendouree Cabernet Malbec 2012. My pick of the Shiraz/Malbec (which was almost sweet and VERY approachable), the Shiraz Mataro (Still very approachable) and straight Cabernet Sauvignon which is generally my least favorite Wendouree. Great acidity and firm tannins, red fruit, mint, a bit of eucalyptus, herbs, spices..really great wine. I'm really convinced the Cabernet Malbec is the best of the whole bunch (which includes the straight Shiraz).
Langmeil Freedom 2010. Big fruit but at the same time, great acid, great overall structure. Bigger wine than I'd generally like but the acidity really helped carry this through. Dark fruits, spices, herbs, noticeable oak but the wine carries it well. The tannins are there telling you it'll be around awhile but they're not so aggressive as to make this undrinkable. The acid gives it great freshness. I'm not sure if they added acid here given they're at 15% alcohol and 6.9g/L of acidity...but either way, the wine is looking quite good and while not my top 3 for the night, it was my biggest surprise of the night. Apparently these vines used for this wine are well over 100 years old. I'm not sure I'd buy it at 100/bottle but still, I'd be happy to drink it.
Yeringberg 2011. A very elegant version of Yeringberg. Red fruits, good acidity, softer tannins..no sign of being unripe though. I was actually expecting something pretty bad but they did an excellent job of making this. Not typical of what I think of Yeringberg but still a very good wine given the vintage conditions.
Kilikanoon Oracle 2010.
Another big wine that surprised me. Coming through with mint, dark fruits but really good acidity to balance out this normally large large red. I'm certain a lot of these places are starting to add acid but few will actually admit to it. Either way, this is drinking quite nicely. Great complexity, really nice wine...
Penfolds St. Henri 2010.
This has had so much press lately, I tried to approach this with as little bias as possible. First thing - the structure. Big tannins but not overly aggressive tannins. Good acidity, surprising acidity. Fruit is VERY VERY young. Because they don't use new oak, just very large barrel old oak, I'm not picking up any oak at all and that is probably contributing to the mouthfeel and the freshness of the fruit. The fruit itself is very complex, dark and red fruits, some spice, a hint of mocha, but still, very young. To be quite honest, I don't feel like this is showing well right now...and given all other St. Henri's, that's probably right. It isn't supposed to be drinking well right now..and it really isn't. That said, I know this will age, Penfolds wine generally does age very well. St. Henri in particular, has a long history of aging very well. Some critics are calling this quite possibly the best St. Henri ever...is it? I don't know. I do know it has great structure, great fruit and given the pedigree, I'm sure this will end up being a fantastic wine..but it'll probably be 2030+ before you should drink it...
Chambers Rosewood Rare Muscat.
I've never had this but I know it is supposed to be great..and let me tell you, it is great. Huge complexity, wonderful mouthfeel....In general I find there are a lot of very good rare muscats..this one is just a step above those. At the same time, this is probably 4-5 times more expensive. Worth trying if you get the opportunity, definitely worth trying.
Other honorable mentions: Tyrrells Vat 1 2008- Young, maybe too young, but a great Semillon. This will be great in another 10 years.
Lakes Folly Cabernet Blend 2011. Great acidity, great Lakes Folly...Might be their best one in awhile.
Bowen Cabernet Sauvignon 2012. A great comeback after a really poor 2011. Probably one of the best values out there at 25/bottle. Great acid but still very Coonawarra.
I only attended the non Exceptional categories...
Highlights:
Maurice O'Shea Vertical. I love when wineries do this because it really gives you the opportunity to try several different versions of their wine at once. In this case they did 94, 98, 99, 2000, 2003, 2009. My favorite of the bunch was the 1998...Great acid, good structure, a bit of leather and dirt, red fruits, a bit of tannin structure still there...great wine. My least favorite was the 2000 which was overly tannic (a huge style change) and in a very awkward place.
Bests Thomson Family 2012 - Great wine. Great structure, wonderful fruit. Acid in the right spot, tannins in the right spot..fantastic complexity....A bit on the expensive side but a very good wine.
Wendouree Cabernet Malbec 2012. My pick of the Shiraz/Malbec (which was almost sweet and VERY approachable), the Shiraz Mataro (Still very approachable) and straight Cabernet Sauvignon which is generally my least favorite Wendouree. Great acidity and firm tannins, red fruit, mint, a bit of eucalyptus, herbs, spices..really great wine. I'm really convinced the Cabernet Malbec is the best of the whole bunch (which includes the straight Shiraz).
Langmeil Freedom 2010. Big fruit but at the same time, great acid, great overall structure. Bigger wine than I'd generally like but the acidity really helped carry this through. Dark fruits, spices, herbs, noticeable oak but the wine carries it well. The tannins are there telling you it'll be around awhile but they're not so aggressive as to make this undrinkable. The acid gives it great freshness. I'm not sure if they added acid here given they're at 15% alcohol and 6.9g/L of acidity...but either way, the wine is looking quite good and while not my top 3 for the night, it was my biggest surprise of the night. Apparently these vines used for this wine are well over 100 years old. I'm not sure I'd buy it at 100/bottle but still, I'd be happy to drink it.
Yeringberg 2011. A very elegant version of Yeringberg. Red fruits, good acidity, softer tannins..no sign of being unripe though. I was actually expecting something pretty bad but they did an excellent job of making this. Not typical of what I think of Yeringberg but still a very good wine given the vintage conditions.
Kilikanoon Oracle 2010.
Another big wine that surprised me. Coming through with mint, dark fruits but really good acidity to balance out this normally large large red. I'm certain a lot of these places are starting to add acid but few will actually admit to it. Either way, this is drinking quite nicely. Great complexity, really nice wine...
Penfolds St. Henri 2010.
This has had so much press lately, I tried to approach this with as little bias as possible. First thing - the structure. Big tannins but not overly aggressive tannins. Good acidity, surprising acidity. Fruit is VERY VERY young. Because they don't use new oak, just very large barrel old oak, I'm not picking up any oak at all and that is probably contributing to the mouthfeel and the freshness of the fruit. The fruit itself is very complex, dark and red fruits, some spice, a hint of mocha, but still, very young. To be quite honest, I don't feel like this is showing well right now...and given all other St. Henri's, that's probably right. It isn't supposed to be drinking well right now..and it really isn't. That said, I know this will age, Penfolds wine generally does age very well. St. Henri in particular, has a long history of aging very well. Some critics are calling this quite possibly the best St. Henri ever...is it? I don't know. I do know it has great structure, great fruit and given the pedigree, I'm sure this will end up being a fantastic wine..but it'll probably be 2030+ before you should drink it...
Chambers Rosewood Rare Muscat.
I've never had this but I know it is supposed to be great..and let me tell you, it is great. Huge complexity, wonderful mouthfeel....In general I find there are a lot of very good rare muscats..this one is just a step above those. At the same time, this is probably 4-5 times more expensive. Worth trying if you get the opportunity, definitely worth trying.
Other honorable mentions: Tyrrells Vat 1 2008- Young, maybe too young, but a great Semillon. This will be great in another 10 years.
Lakes Folly Cabernet Blend 2011. Great acidity, great Lakes Folly...Might be their best one in awhile.
Bowen Cabernet Sauvignon 2012. A great comeback after a really poor 2011. Probably one of the best values out there at 25/bottle. Great acid but still very Coonawarra.
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