2010 De Iuliis Sunshine Vineyard Semillon (Hunter Valley)

Well this is the fourth 4 Star white wine I’ve reviewed in a row. I’m not sure if there is anything significant about this, other than the fact I’m drinking some fantastic white wine at the moment.

The thing that marks this Semillon out from its peers is a funky soy sauce-like note that is there on both the bouquet and the palate. I’m not sure if its vineyard or vintage related, but regardless it added plenty of savoury appeal to the wine. That being said it otherwise presents as a classic young Hunter Semillon. Strong citrus flavours, prominent acidity at this early stage, and hints of an earthy minerality, all lend to a wine that can certainly be enjoyed in its youth with seafood. It also has lovely balance and proportion, and excellent length. Drinking it over a few days you get a nice sense of the weight and texture this wine will build over the next decade.

Whether you’re wanting something to drink now or are looking for something to cellar, you can have your cake and eat it to with this little number.

Rated:


RRP: $25
ABV: 10.6%
Closure: Screwcap
Website: http://www.dewine.com.au/


Red

2009 Yalumba "The Virgilius" Viognier (Eden Valley)

Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris/Grigio, and Viognier are three white wines I rarely seek out. A standard offering from these three varieties doesn’t do much for me. However, I would also say that the best examples of any variety can be both impressive and enjoyable, regardless of your natural preferences and biases. And so it is with this wine. In fact it’s close to being the best Viognier I have had.

It’s a tidy $50 a bottle, but there is plenty of love and care that has gone into it. From Yalumba -

Hand-picked grapes were whole-bunch pressed directly to barrels, and the juice handled with passive oxidation. The wine was fermented in mostly mature French oak barriques by a population of naturally occurring and differing species of yeast indigenous to the environment of the vineyard. In these wild ferments each yeast played a small and subtly different part in the development of the wine, creating layers of richness, complexity, fine textures and flavours. After fermentation the wine was aged on lees with regular batonage for 11 months to further heighten the palate weight and increase the complexity and flavour generosity. At blending only the finest barrels were chosen for the final wine.

The wine lives up to the spiel. It’s got a bit of varietal apricot generosity, but keeps this often blousy aspect with Viognier in check. There’s a beautiful ginger spice that pervades throughout, while in the background notes of melon, musk, florals, and dried herbs add further appeal. Fine acidity and a bit of phenolic grip provide lovely texture. Once again that spice is there on a long, refined finish.

It should age nicely over the next 5 years, but is good to go now with a bit of air. A cut above.

Rated:


RRP: $50
ABV: 13.5%
Closure: Screwcap
Website: http://www.yalumba.com/


Red

2011 Scott Fiano (Adelaide Hills)

If you had asked me a week ago where to go for a good Australian Fiano, I would have said Coriole, maybe Oliver’s Taranga, and then have been stumped for much else. I can now add Scott Wines from the Adelaide Hills to that list. I initially tasted it blind in amongst a line up of 35 other whites, courtesy of wine scribe Mike Bennie, and it really stood out then, and only subsequently improved upon retasting over a couple of days.

This is a wine of nice weight and richness of fruit that remains taut and trim all the same. It tastes of melon and pear, lovely spice, and some appealing herbal notes that really add to the wine. Crisp acidity, a sense of minerality, and that bit of viscosity, all give it a texture that distinguishes it from more run of the mill white wines. A great length of finish rounds it all off.

This 2011 Scott Fiano is terrific and worth seeking out if you want to see what we are capable of with this Southern Italian variety.





Rated:


ABV: 13.5%
RRP: $26
Website: http://www.scottwinemaking.com.au/


Red

2010 Vasse Felix Chardonnay (Margaret River)

I’m a big fan of Vasse Felix Cabernet Sauvignon, but have never been overly enamoured with their Chardonnay. This 2010 Chardonnay may turn the page on that view however.

I could drink quite a lot of this, especially as a Chardonnay that can be picked up for $20-$25. It needs a bit of air to show at its best, and once it does it reveals ripe peaches and grapefruit, spicy oak, and a beautiful creaminess. All of this though comes across in a restrained manner, and nothing is overdone. There’s a nice texture and grip to the wine through the mid-palate before it finishes off with good length and cleansing acidity. Nice flow, plenty of yum factor, and enough interest and complexity to keep a wine nerd like me happy. I ummed and ahhed between 3.5 and 4 stars, but in the end I really like this wine.

Rated:


RRP: $25
ABV: 12.5%
Website: www.vassefelix.com.au


Red