This is a note that I started a couple of weeks ago. Rich red fruits and an undercurrent of mulch. A lot more vegetative on the palate, cherry liqueur, cassia bark, some acid with a bit of harshness. Tough work. Lacks the texture on the palate with the acid and greenness sticking out. Perhaps too young but unsure how it would mature. Points? Mid to low 80s I think. Screwcap. $42 from the cellar door.

I think I have mentioned this before, but I am not a big Cabernet drinker. So when I opened this bottle I did not expect to be compelled to write a note. Lovely balance on the nose, with currants, soft tobacco and mocha characters, leading to medium weight palate; ripe fruits balanced by understated Cabernet characters. Excellent tannins and really quite charming. Everything in its right place. Looked great on the second night too, fwiw. Winery sample. RRP $25 $40. 92 points. 14.0% abv. Drink 2012-2017+

The first of four tasters from the winery, all from the Vineyard collection of wines. And all red. If you’re interested to know, the Miamba vineyard is located at the southern end of the Barossa Valley near the town of Lyndoch. That’s the one on the right hand side when the kids have said “are we there yet?” for the twentieth time. Blackberries and nutmeg, plums and black peppercorns. The palate is intense, brash black fruits galore with dry spices. Definitely needs time or serve now with something hearty. 14.5% abv. RRP is $19.95 or $23.95…. I have lost the info sheet that accompanied the wines :blush: As a postscript, I must add that I like the oak treatment: nothing creamy or coconutty or confected. It must be praised for that. 91 points.

Well the summer holidays are over and it’s time to get off the wagon. I haven’t written a note for a while, so I think it might take me some time to get back into the swing of things. This one was a winery sample. Red cherries and some earthy spices on the nose. The palate is fruity and rounded, soft tannins, quite nice but perhaps a bit on the simple side. Solid entry level wine. 86 points. Better with food. Sealed under screwcap. 13.5% abv.

This has been sitting in the cellar for a few years. And since I have high humidity it was covered with all sorts of growths. God knows what they are. A bit of stink, which ebbed with time. Earthy cherries on the nose, with some old leathery undertones. The palate is savoury, dark cherries, strong tannins and acid, with a drying finish. Not any spice or anything much else going on, but satisfying for the fruits and the structure. Good with some wood smoked knackwurst and a green salad. Sealed under cork. 13.5% abv. Was $49 from Festival Cellars. Drink now. 90 points.

Ployez Jacquemart Selection Rose: Lovely – just right, and its pinkness was Christmas-appropriate.  And it won over a non champagne crowd with its delicate strawberry and lemon notes.
Ployez Jacquemart Brut 2000: Served too warm – tasty nonetheless for being Christmas day.  Another bottle will get consumed very shortly.
Auburn Lowburn Riesling 2010: Improving out if sight with a year’s age (personal interest disclaimer on this label).
Joseph Sparkling Red 2010 disg: My favourite disgorgement of this wine so far. Sweeter and fruit-fresher than earlier versions, although the alcohol seems to stick out a little more these days. Like it a lot.
Zilliken Saarburger Rausch Auslese 1993: A cellar release from 2010.  Best bottle so far out of a sixpack. Shows its pradikat through weight rather than sweetness, with juicy acidity balance perfectly by racy green pineapple and lemon fruit which is nly now showing signs of its 18 years of age.

Had a glass of this last night with some brie, and it was then into the fridge. Today it is out on the stage again, and I cannot believe I’m saying this, but this one is a real glass stainer. An inky purple red in colour. A youthful nose; yeasty red fruits, vanilla, red cherries and black cherries, interlaced with warm summery spices and a bit of earth and minerals. Good length. Quite acid dominant really. Dusty dry tannins and dried mushrooms on the finish. Very similar flavour profile to the GSZ I tasted recently. Sealed under screwcap. $32 from the cellar door. 14.7% abv. 91 points.

Year in year out I eagerly anticipate this release – I recall at a 10 year vertical where the regular wines out performed the reserves and are half the price. The 09′s were tidy but the 2010′s have ramped up the intensity & complexity.

Spicy morello cherries perfumes up – fruit driven medium bodied a touch of plum – raspberries……
Hard to beat this as a VFM pinot full stop.
88

Yes yes fish again-local line caught snapper- fresh squeezed lime juice from our tree & the obligatory chard.
I will say it again- New World chardonnay has gone ahead leaps & bounds the last few years.
Complex barrel ferment integrated harmoniously with lemon/stonefruit and oak. Linear acid structure – perhaps a touch young & raw – but this is brilliant – leave another 6-12 months and it will be as up beat and complex as New Order’s Bizarre Love Triangle.
89.5- 93