1993 Petaluma Coonawarra Cabernet Merlot (Coonawarra)

This was courtesy of my aunty and uncle in Canberra, while I was down there last week. They have a fantastic cellar, which includes Semillons and Rieslings from the 70s. While there we opened a ’76 Leo Buring Riesling, but sadly, while drinkable, it was well past its best.

The 1993 Petaluma Coonawarra, however, is certainly not past it, and indeed is drinking very well right now. At twenty years of age there’s still plenty of beautiful blackcurrant fruit, along with sweet cedar, and just a hint of eucalypt. There’s a lovely earthiness that runs its length and sees it finish long and savoury. The acidity and tannins are there if you go looking for them, but they are perfectly folded into the wine at this stage. I’d suggest it’s at its peak now, though it should still age gracefully over the next 5-10 years, cork permitting. Simply put it’s a lovely aged Coonawarra Cabernet and the kind of wine I love drinking.

Rated:

 

 

 

Drink: 2013-2018

Website: www.petaluma.com.au

 

 

 

Red

2006 Canobolas Smith Alchemy (Orange, NSW)

Bordeaux varieties, and in particular anything with some Cabernet Franc in it, work well in Orange. The 2006 Alchemy from Canobolas Smith is a lovely example of this. It’s a blend of Cabernet Franc (60%) Cabernet Sauvignon (35%) and Shiraz (5%).

This is a Cabernet that is ageing nicely. There is still plenty of primary fruit, but savoury, secondary characteristics are becoming increasingly prominent. Beautiful plum and milk chocolate are paired with leafy/tobacco notes and an earthiness that became more evident over 3 days of tasting. Very moreish, this wine is underpinned by a lovely acidity, and is great with red meats. Its good to drink now but will also age gracefully over the next 5-8 years.

 

 

 

Rated:

RRP: $45

ABV: 13.7%
Closure: Screwcap

Drink: 2012-2020

Website: www.canobolassmithwines.com.au

Red

2004 Bodega Catena Zapata - D.V Catena Cabernet

One of the (many) wines tasted during my relaxing holiday in Argentina. :-)


Faded crimson in colour, with brickish red on the rim, a nose of menthol, salted liquorice, cassis and x factor pong I can only put down to site/ bottle age.
The wine is ripe- varietal without knocking you over. Cassis on the nose follows through on the palate, the texture is velvety in an almost warm climate Australian Cabernet way. Tannins are fine and understated, and French oak (80% new) has been largely absorbed.

Reasonably intense and fruity at the start, it drops away quite quickly in a classic doughnut cabernet way, and though it does not finish with a whimper, there is minimal length. On the finish is a herbal, leafy bitterness that adds a bit of interest and steers this away from sweet fruit bomb territory, though there is some acidity on the finish that is a bit harsh (especially if you are sensitive to it). The longer it was opened the more the acidity stood out as not being properly integrated or prominent, possibly as a result of the wine being in the process of falling over.

While not a bad wine, there are superior Australian and New Zealand Cabernets to be had locally at the same price. Furthermore, if you were buying an Argentinean red, Malbec would definitely be my preference based on what was tasted in-country.

Rating:

 / 88*  possibly 2 years past its best.

ABV: 13.5%

RRP: $30 (retail in Argentina)

Website: http://www.catenawines.com/

Hawke's Bay Tasting - Spitbucket at Coast Restaurant

How to make Hawke’s Bay Cabernet sexy? A significant challenge for any marketer in Australia I would imagine. New Zealand and Pinot are somewhat synonymous and fashionable, but NZ and Cabernet are not. Moreover, Cabernet is positively uncool as a varietal in Australia at the moment. Pinot is trendy, Shiraz is ubiquitous, and everyone’s talking about the wonderful turnaround in Australian Chardonnay. In the Twitterverse there has been a Rose Revolution and a Summer of Riesling. However, Cabernet kind of sits outside a lot of the discourse about wine in Australia at the moment.

This is something I find a bit incongruous given I continually find Australian Cabernet as impressive as any other variety that we do, and indeed I’m as impressed with Hawke’s Bay Bordeaux blends as I am with any other red wines from New Zealand. However this doesn’t seem to be a view held by many and is seemingly well illustrated with the just released New Zealand wine liftout/magazine from Decanter magazine where Hawkes Bay Cabernet barely rates a mention. Fortunately Dan Coward (http://spitbuckets.wordpress.com/) and Poppy Greeson (http://www.coastrestaurant.com.au/) are not of this view and organised a great Hawke’s Bay tasting at Coast Restaurant in Sydney last week

The tasting started off with some Hawke’s Bay Syrah. There’s plenty of critical acclaim for these wines, but to be honest, apart from a couple of exceptions, I’m yet to be really impressed by their Syrah. This possibly reflects a bit of ambivalence on my part for cool-climate syrah. I often find a bitterness and/or stalkiness in these wines that doesn’t quite work for me. Funnily enough I don’t mind a bit of stalkiness and bitterness in my Pinot, but in Syrah it's rarely my thing.

We then moved on to the Bordeaux varietals at which point the interest and appeal of the wines increased and indeed found a crescendo with the final two wines of the night. All of a sudden I remembered what I love about Hawkes Bay. Beautifully balanced Bordeaux blends that are generally medium-bodied but that don’t lack for anything in terms of intensity and grip.

My favourite of the final two, and my wine of the night, was the 06 Newton Forrest Cornerstone Cabernet Blend. It had a complex, savoury bouquet that had an appealing whiff of varnish. On the palate it had a beautiful intensity of savoury flavours, lovely tannins, and a touch of leafiness. A quality Cabernet with just a bit of an X-factor to it.

The other wine was the 07 Trinity Hill The Gimblett, which for me was just a whisker behind the Cornerstone. It was in a richer, more fruit forward style, reflecting a greater Merlot component, but was of undoubted quality. Lovely blackcurrant and plum flavours, excellent quality oak, and nice tannins in support. It should age nicely.

Hawke’s Bay Bordeaux blends may be a bit of a tough sell at the moment, but I do hope the region continues to focus in this area, because to my mind it is one of the New World’s most impressive styles of wine.


Red

2007 Te Mata Estate Awatea Cabernet/Merlot (Retail)

Based on some of the press coming from New Zealand, the Hawkes Bay wine region has aspirations of matching Bordeaux in terms of the quality of the Cabernet blends they produce. Aim for the stars to clear the trees I say. RedtoBrown have been impressed with the wines we have tried from Hawkes Bay in the past, and at the entry-level, the Awatea is one of them. What stands out primarily with the Awatea (and also its TeMata big brother, the Coleraine) is its relative 'New World' austerity and restraint. There is sometimes balancing act between restraint and lack of fruit flavour/diluteness, though that is not an issue for this wine.

The Awatea (40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Merlot, 17% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot) has a slightly herbaceous nose with capsicum and tobacco, though a pretty blueberry scent dominates. It is medium bodied, no more, and savoury.
An understated entry gives way to blackcurrants and medicinal herbs on the mid palate. Some more tobacco pops up on the finish, along with a prominent herbaceous bitterness (which may divide opinion, but I was a fan). Tannins are very fine and chalky, and the oak is subsiding a bit from when I first tasted it (yet not overpowering the fruit).

In summary, an elegant, restrained wine that may lack the oomph of some of the Aussie versions I know and love, though has enough weight to support its fine boned structure. I would like to try this wine with 5-10 more years of bottle age.

Rated

RRP: $45
ABV:14%
Website: http://www.temata.co.nz/

2008 Cape Mentelle 'Trinders' Cabernet Merlot (Margaret River)

Another 08 Cape Mentelle wine, only this time it’s the Trinders Cabernet Merlot. Same score as the Chardonnay, only this wine provides more interest and appeal at this stage. In fact, looking at the note I wrote on this wine, I could just about have used the note I wrote on the 07, which was a wine I really enjoyed as well

The nose has a bit of sex appeal with some lovely integrated French oak, blackcurrant, black olive, tobacco, and touch of eucalypt. On the palate it turns decidedly dry and savoury. Its medium bodied with some chocolate, dried herbs, and a long, slightly sour finish. All of which is supported by unobtrusive acidity and fine, powdery tannins. As with the 07 it’s beautifully poised and if cellared well, should do 10 years in a canter.

Given that this can be picked up for under $25 in many places there aren't to many classier Cabernets going around for the price . . .

Rated:


RRP: $32
ABV: 13.5%
Website: www.capementelle.com.au



Red

World Class Australian Cabernet – Langton’s Classification V Tasting

Brown and I attended the Langton’s Classification V Tasting in Sydney earlier in the week. It was a bit testing at times in terms of the crowds, but nevertheless a wonderful tasting. It afforded me the opportunity to try numerous wines that are considered genuine Australian benchmarks, many of which are either too expensive or too rare for me to typically get my hands on. While I certainly didn’t get to try every wine there, I did manage to try pretty much every wine I hadn’t tried previously, as well as a number of great wines that I had.

There was some amazing Riesling, Chardonnay, Pinot, and Shiraz to be had on the night, but the highlight for me really was the Cabernet. As a Cabernet lover this is perhaps not surprising, but I genuinely thought the quality across the board was outstanding. I’ve had a few people who have drunk plenty of Bordeaux suggest to me that, with the exception of the very best bottles of Bordeaux, Australian Cabernet is the equal of any on the world stage. The Cabernet I drunk this night would certainly be supportive of this supposition.

Margaret River stood tall, with many 07s and a number of 08s on show, reinforcing my belief that it’s Australia’s greatest combination of region and grape variety. Coonawarra was also well represented with some wonderful wines. This of course is what you would expect from Australia’s two premier Cabernet regions. There were however, also, some wonderful examples from the Clare Valley, Tasmania, and the Yarra Valley. Below were my favourite Cabernets on the night

2008 Yarra Yering Dry Red No.1 (Yarra Valley, $75, cork) – This is one of those wines that had me with my first sniff of its fragrant, yet complex bouquet. On the palate it’s medium-bodied and elegant, and yet still intense with beautiful sweet and savoury flavours. Defined more by its natural acidity than its tannins. This is just going to get better and better. My wine of the night.

2001 Domaine A Cabernet Sauvignon (Coal River, $91, cork) – I’d always been intrigued and bit sceptical of this wine (not having ever tried it) as a Cabernet from Tasmania. Tasmania being more or less the coldest part of Australia is more readily associated with Pinot Noir. Like any broad regions however, specific sub-regions and sites can make a huge difference and according to Peter Althaus, Domaine A’s winemaker, their site for Cabernet Sauvignon in the Coal River has less problems ripening grapes than Bordeaux does. Peter had brought along the museum release 2001 for people to taste so as to demonstrate how this wine ages. For me it stood out as different from the other Cabernets I tried on the night and yet also a quintessential Cabernet. Some lovely leafy and capsicum notes mingled with berry and blackcurrant fruit. Perfectly balanced and built to age. All scepticism has been wiped away.

2008 Wendouree Cab Malbec (Clare Valley, Cork) – Wendouree has been one of those wineries that has held a bit of a mythical status for me ever since I first read some of Halliday’s writings about them a number of years ago. As he wrote about them requiring 20 years minimum in the cellar and described them as an iron-fist in a velvet glove it immediately enamoured me to Wendouree and made me think that it was a winery that ought to be part of any cellar I was going to build. The fact that they have been so removed from the mainstream of websites, cellar doors, and sample sending only increased my interest in the winery. In the past couple of years as I have had both the means and the opportunity to purchase some Wendouree, however, I’ve just held off as I’ve heard and read quite a few dissenting voices who have questioned the quality of these wines. Having now tasted the wine I can cast these doubting voices aside and look to add Wendouree to my cellar shortlist. The 2008 is very much as Halliday has often described the Cab Malbec with a lush, fragrant nose followed up by a powerful, rich and mouth smackingly tannic palate. Love it! Happily these wines will apparently be under screwcap in future as well (the Cabernet that never dies?).

2007 Cape Mentelle (Margaret River, $85, Screwcap) – Prior to trying the Cape Mentelle I tried the 08 Cullen Diana Madeline, which I found to be an interesting, atypical Margaret River Cabernet. I doubt I would have picked it blind as being from Margaret River. It was in a medium-bodied, almost dilute style, that doesn’t deliver much in the way of enjoyment now, though the quality is there to suggest it could build with time in the cellar. Anyway, the reason for that little aside on Cullen, was that it contrasted so vividly with the Cape Mentelle which to me was just classic Margaret River. My beloved gravel was there on the bouquet, and it was a ripe, powerful yet nevertheless restrained Cabernet. Beautiful structure. Could drink this sought of wine with alarming regularity for my bank balance

2006 John Riddoch (Coonawarra, $75, Screwcap)- Rippling tannin. I love to see powerful tannins in young wines and the John Riddoch has this element in spades. Importantly, however, the tannins never overwhelm the wine and the fruit is more than up to the task through the long finish. This should age into something quite special over the next couple of decades.

I already have some of the John Riddoch in the cellar. Now to explain to the missus why the other four Cabernets are such must buys despite the price tags . . .

2006 Grosset Gaia (Clare Valley)

While Grosset’s Rieslings are almost universally praised, their Cabernet blend, the Gaia, has always come across to me as a bit of a polarising wine based on what I have read, or at the very least, not as highly regarded as their Rieslings. It’s funny how you can build up a view point on a wine you’ve never tried, and I certainly had with the Gaia, thinking it a bit of an overpriced wine. Having now tried the 06 Gaia, however, I reckon it’s a damn impressive wine, and viewed in context in no way over-priced.


The 2006 Gaia is a blend of 75% Cab Sav, 20% Cab Franc, and 5% Merlot.

This wine is elegant in all the right ways. It has a distinctive nose with sweet berry aromas, but also some appealing greener, herbal notes, including a hint of capsicum. On the palate it is medium-bodied and superbly balanced. It has a lovely core of rich, sweet fruit with hints of chocolate but nevertheless gives an overall impression of being savoury with some nice earthiness. Fine tannins support the smooth, long finish. Nothing overdone and everything in its right place. Loved drinking this (after a good decant), and reckon it will just get better and more complex over the next 10 years.

Details
Rated:
+


RRP: $58
ABV: 14%
Website: http://www.grosset.com.au/


Red

2002 Sevenhill St Ignatius Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec.

I love the Clare Valley. For me it is always an under the radar region: It can produce good to great Riesling, Shiraz and Cabernet and is home to some lovely cellar doors (not to mention the home of Wendouree – enough said), yet seems to not receive the attention of other regions (at least from my view from Sydney).


My local wine shop at Randwick is stocking some wines from Sevenhill, the historic winery in the Clare Valley still being run by the Jesuits. The St Ignatius had some bottle age so I decided to give it a go.

It is a deep and dark crimson with brick tinted edges. On the nose it is all Christmas cake, dark berries, liquorice and spice, with suggestions of ripe Jammy fruit and coconut ice. A relatively smooth entry leads to a flurry of dark chocolate, cloves and menthol on the middle palate. The finish is quite long, with earthy, drying tannin on the finish that might be off putting for some, though I warmed to it.

As the wine saw more air the tannins softened, though there was still oodles of chocolate, fruit and nicely integrated oak. For the price it was a good value wine, and one I would recommend for those curious about Clare Valley Cabernet blends. Caesar’s interest was raised by the wine, and lept into the photo (presumably checking if the Jesuits were up to anything other than making wine), as is the want of a Caesar.

Margaret River Tasting

I went to a WA wine tasting the other night through work. The tasting was quality rather than quantity and was one of the best tastings I've been to this year.

The first tasting were the chardonnays which was the 06 Voyager and the 07 Moss Wood. It was a great comparison as the Moss Wood represents the best of the old school chardonnay being matured in 100% new oak and receiving 100% malolactic fermentation. The Voyager on the other hand represents the best of the new, being 50% new oak and only 15% malo. The Moss Wood really is dominated by oak, with that oily, butteriness being the lasting impression. Not to say it's not enjoyable, because it was definitely was, and there is some really good fruit supporting it. Reckon Moss Wood should stay with this style, as most other top chardonnays have moved toward being much less worked. It's great to still have a quality representative of the strongly oaked chardonnay. The Voyager's difference is immediately obvious from the lighter colour. It's a cooler, tighter wine with a much finer structure. Grapefruit, well integrated oak, and the occasional whiff of struck matchstick. Its long and you'd reckon it will age really well. Really enjoyed both, but personally preferred the Voyager.

What was fascinating was that the group I was tasting with, preferred the Moss Wood overall! Interesting result given the average punter's supposed preference for your crisper sav blanc style white. Most of the people there liked their wine but not many of them were especially knowledgeable about wine. Proves to me that a lot of the dislike of chardonnay is fashion and image, rather than taste. When presented with two chardonnays their preference was for the oakier, more buttery chardonnay. Call it Pinot Grigio and it would sell like hotcakes!

We then tried two Pinot Noirs. A 2007 Picardy Pinot from Pemberton and the 2007 Moss Wood Pinot. The Moss Wood was a pretty good result for a Margaret River Pinot, but was a touch confectionary and flabby, and highlights how certain varieties ultimately don't work with certain regions. The Picardy on the other hand was a really nice pinot that had a beautiful nose of red fruits and a very nice, tight structure. Some nice tannins for a Pinot and good length. Will definitely age. Had never had a Pemberton, let alone a Picardy Pinot, but I reckon it's a region/variety combination I might start looking out for.

We then moved onto the cabernets, and the two on offer were the 07 Vasse Felix Cab Sav, and the 04 Voyager Cab Merlot. I've been lucky enough to try the Voyager a few times previously and each time it's been beautiful. This tasting was no different. It will age very well but it is already drinking beautifully. In the best way it has some sweetness to it, with some chocolate notes. Long with understated tannins. Would love to see what this wine is like in 10 years time. The interesting thing was that the Vasse Felix sitting next to it lost nothing to the Voyager (in my opinion anyway). Just a straight cab sav so it gave me more classic MR 'gravel' love on the nose than did the Voyager, and had more noticeable structure and tannins. Quality fruit and had some minerality to it as well. Reckon it has at least 10 years of ageing in front of it, and possibly a lot longer. Both were beautiful Margaret River Cabernets, but were also distinctly different.

Margaret River is close to being my favourite wine region in Australia, and this tasting did nothing to undermine that view.



Red