Author Archives: Julian Coldrey

Château Musar 2000

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Quite a wine. I wasn’t sure what to expect as I approached this, my first Musar, and the overriding impression I’m left with is of a lovely Bordeaux crossed with something completely foreign. It’s a vibrant, rough wine, hewn of distressed leather and sweat, revelling in its imperfections. The aroma shows cigar box, snapped twig and leather, very expressive and dusty in the Cabernet manner, but lacking the poise one might expect of a fine Bordeaux. That, though, is very much part of the wine’s charm, and its wildness contributes to its presence.

The palate delivers dense flavour onto the tongue and its persistence makes sense of a chaotic flavour profile. This fairly attacks the palate with flavour, fruit stubbornly adhering to the tongue. While drinking this wine, I was reminded of old leather goods, noisy markets and desert heat, images that suggest the disorientation of travel. Tannin structure is fine and reminds one that this is, in fact, a really good wine. Generous, messy and quite delicious.

This was tasted alongside a 2000 Lake’s Folly Cabernet whose refinement of form really showed up the Musar. No matter; I kept coming back to this so that it might let me linger in its heady world a bit longer.

Château Musar
Price: $N/A
Closure: Cork
Source: Gift

Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque 1985

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The bottle is indeed very pretty.

To the wine’s appearance first, there’s little mousse apparent on pouring and a reticent bead thereafter; this certainly looks an aged wine. Colour is honey-gold with a pleasing richness of hue. Immediately a range of tertiary notes emerge from the glass, including a prominent browned apple note that is the clearest sign of age. The influence of oxidation isn’t overwhelming, though, and beneath it there is a complex aroma profile of citrus, mushroom, bread and an attractive nuttiness. Certainly one to smell at length.

The palate is surprisingly fresh, with good spritz in evidence and a fascinating tension between still-firm acid and a decidedly tertiary flavour profile. Cut apple is less obvious in the mouth, and the wine’s butterscotch note takes centre stage from the middle palate onwards. It’s rich and unctuous, mouthcoating in intensity and impressive in length, all the while freshened and firmed by spritz and acid. The elegance of its finish is especially fine, and I love the way caramel lingers on the tongue, becoming softer and a mere echo of itself some time after swallowing.

A nice start to an evening’s entertainment.

Perrier-Jouët
Price: $N/A
Closure: Cork
Source: Gift

Offcuts: as we approach Christmas

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Although drinking season is upon us, I’ve been remiss in my note taking. No matter, the more interesting wines recently consumed tasted linger in my memory and are noted below.

Grosset Springvale Riesling 2012
To describe our dry Riesling styles as precise is a cliché, but more importantly it misses the point; the joy of this wine is in how its precision serves the most exuberant of flavour profiles. It’s expressively floral and shows a poise in the mouth that is surprising in such a young Riesling. Excellent.

Ata Rangi Pinot Noir 2009
I tasted this alongside a 2006 Pierre Amiot Clos de la Roche. Although the Burgundy showed greater complexity, this shone for the purity of its fruit and in some respects was the more delicious wine. Pure plum fruit, minerality, sap and a seamless line. Texture is especially fresh and fine. This is a wine of great sophistication.

Ridge Geyserville 2007
I love the Geyserville for its familiarity as much as anything else, so smelling this gave me much pleasure despite it seeming less focused than some vintages I remember. No matter; typical Zinfandel fruit cake and spice, cut with other purer fruit notes. Not too big in the mouth, this delivers lazy satisfaction and the cuddliest of flavours. A chesterfield lounge of a red wine.

Traversa Sori Ciabot Barbaresco 2007
I’m looking forward to my next bottle of this, as the first went down much too quickly. This has the sort of funky complexity I look for with this style; it’s not overtly challenging but has edges of savoury herbs alongside sweetly floral fruit, nuts and spice. It’s quite a flirtatious flavour profile. Structure is a highlight, the tannins fine and long. Not a blockbuster, but so pleasurable.

Clayfield Grampians Shiraz 2006
In the last few days I’ve tasted a few Clayfield wines; this one as well as the two 2010 premiums. The younger wines are somewhat unsettled and in need of air and patience, while the 2006 is starting to drink beautifully. Oak, often a feature of young Clayfield wines, has folded right back into the fruit, adding further dimensions to the fruit’s already spiced flavour profile. It’s prickly and bold and expressive.

Tyrrells 4 Acres Shiraz 2007
My first tasting since its release. This has barely moved in that time except to show a slight mellowing of acid. The flavour profile remains primary, which is in no way a bad thing. The wine’s depth of flavour was very much in evidence on this tasting, as was its fundamental prettiness and the seamlessness of its line. It remains a subtle, balanced wine that will provide rich rewards to those who grant it the benefit of patience.

Marqués de Murrieta Reserva 2006

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I attended a satisfying dinner on Friday evening where the wines were wide ranging and the table’s reactions diverse. I was interested to note the styles that appealed in such a setting. They were invariably forward and aromatic, with fruit flavours that were clearer and more readily identifiable. No surprise there, but I was left wondering about quieter wines that don’t offer such immediate gratification but which can, when contemplated solo, provide tremendous pleasure.

This is one such wine. Not an exalted label by any means, but it’s a whole lot of good things — expressively aromatic, well fruited, evenly structured. Yet it lacks a hook, something immediate and excitable, which would make me fear for its fate in a large line-up of wines. No matter; tonight, it’s the only wine on my table and I’m pleased to consider it at length.

The aroma shows definite tertiary characters which gives a mellow gloss to underlying fruit aromas. Dark berries and some snapped twig swirl at its base, while a range of other smells build on each other. It shares a gene with the sort of exotically spiced blend that might be encountered in a tea house. Here, spice is a link between fruit, oak and bottle age.

In the mouth, a sensuous wine; its structure caresses the tongue as dense fruit coasts above. The weight of its flavours edges on ponderous but detail and definition are sufficient to keep the wine from cloying. I especially like the integration of flavours, from dark berry to aromatic orange peel to leather; this ultimately tastes like a single, complex note. Structure is present, with acid in particular carrying the wine’s movement. The after palate is relaxed and the finish decent.

$30 is a bit extravagant for regular drinking, but if I had the means, my quaffing wines would be like this: humble, quiet and perfectly formed.

Marqués de Murrieta
Price: $A30
Closure: Cork
Source: Retail

Matison Wines The Kirk Pinot Noir 2010

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Some wines taste a bit wild, and I don’t use that word as a euphemism for faulty. These are the wines that leap from the glass with abandon and offer aromas that suggest the forest floor, freshly picked wildflowers and other, not-quite-tamed scents. While not always appropriate, I’ve always appreciated Pinot Noir that shows this character, and feel it can be a great red carpet to Pinot’s often heady show.

This is one such wild Pinot. The aroma offers a mix of slightly feral vegetal aromatics and fresh fruits of the forest. It’s sappy, pithy and shows sensitive oak input. The overall profile is high toned and chaotic, but for me its vibrancy outweighs any lack of composure.

The palate shows a similar flavour profile, with quite masculine, blocky fruit flavours and some forest floor. Structure is firm and attractive, acid juicy and tannins fun and a bit unpredictable in profile. Although it lacks some intensity, this is a charismatic wine in the mouth.

Not a wine of great refinement, but it is compelling and fresh and I like it a lot.

Matison Wines
Price: $A35
Closure: Diam
Source: Sample

Hoddles Creek 1er Pinot Blanc 2012

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My rough notes on this wine contain the phrase “fruit-backward,” not something one might often observe of a young aromatic white from Australia. Which, of course, makes it a lot more interesting, especially as it’s clearly a wine made with skill and intent. Suffice to say, one smell and my curiosity was aroused.

The aroma is dry, powdery, floral, tight and flinty. That ought to give you a fair idea of its vibe, but it’s a lot more fun than the austere descriptors might suggest. There is fruit, buried under a pretty unyielding aroma profile, and it’s pithy and high toned when it does peek out.

The palate shows really unusual tension between a fruit character I can only describe as grapey and the sort of insistent savouriness that never quite feels comfortable. The fruit gives this wine a fundamental juiciness but it keeps bouncing up against a mealiness that seems to dovetail into assertive texture, which itself seems inseparable from some pretty fierce acid. I particularly like the textural dimensions and feel they make an excellent accompaniment to food that might be too rich for other aromatic styles. Intense, driven and probably in its least interesting phase of existence.

In context, a singular style, but much more than a curio.

Hoddles Creek Estate
Price: $A40
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Gift

Domaine Alain Chavy Bourgogne 2010

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In some ways, the styling of affordable wines is just as interesting to me as the achievements of great, no-holds-barred labels. It’s a mantra nowadays that with great fruit, the wine “just makes itself;” even allowing for hyperbole, that does suggest there may be a bit more thought required to make average grapes into wine that’s both accessible and enjoyable.

One option is to make the sorts of cheerfully anonymous wines that, I admit, have their place in the industry and in many peoples’ lives. Another is this – a clearly artisanal wine from a small producer in Puligny-Montrachet that comes in at, given the context, a decent price.

The approach here is one of moderation. The fruit that went into this wine seems of modest quality – it’s too sweet-edged and simply flavoured to be truly fine. But it’s clean, and the winemaking that surrounds it has given it enough counterpoint to frame it with graceful appropriateness. The aroma mixes bright, bouncy fruit with overlays of mealiness. The fruit, at first, showed a slightly distressing pineapple character, but that has mostly blown off and settled to a still-bright but more attractive melon note. There’s no complexity to speak of, but it’s a delicate, polite aroma that knows its boundaries and works well within them.

The palate is fresh and flavoursome, with moderately intense waxed lemon fruit and oatmeal. Here again the fruit edges towards a confectionary vibe and is held in check by savouriness that seems winemaker-led. The fact that it’s not overly driven works in its favour; there’s nothing outsize about this wine, and that means its limitations as well as its strengths are modest. A nice creamy after palate leads through to a finish that is fresh and juicy, with only a hint of sweetness marring the flavour profile. Acid is fine. Serving this wine on the cool side helps to temper the fruit’s more vulgar tendencies.

Some wines seem to squander their potential; this makes the most of its humble beginnings. Nothing more than cheap Chardonnay, really, but a little marvel of styling nonetheless, and attractive for its honesty.

Domaine Alain Chavy
Price: $A18
Closure: Cork
Source: Retail

Le Domaine du Père Caboche Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc Élisabeth Chambellan 2003

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A little oxidised, but still in good-enough condition to taste and enjoy. I must admit, I have little experience with Châteauneuf-du-Pape whites, so was quite curious to taste this. I can see no evidence of this label on the producer’s site, which suggests it is no longer made. Perhaps a knowledgeable reader can further enlighten us.

The nose definitely shows some bottle age, with honey alongside a crisp biscuit note and beeswax. There was some discussion at the tasting bench regarding what type of biscuit the wine’s aroma most resembles; consensus was Milk Coffee. Fruit isn’t represented much within the aroma profile, but the array of notes feels complete in its own right.

The palate shows a structure that remains alive with acid and texture. Again, there isn’t much fleshy fruit of note, but a gentle spiciness joins honey and biscuit to create an attractive flavour profile, only slightly marred by oxidiation. The wine has good thrust through the palate and decent length. It’s weighty and surprisingly fresh-feeling.

A pristine bottle would be a lot of fun; even this was pleasurable and interesting.

Le Domaine du Père Caboche
Price: $N/A
Closure: Cork
Source: Gift

Mount Pleasant Rosehill Shiraz 2000

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I’ve so quickly become accustomed to the relative reliability of screwcapped wines that, when faced with an older, cork-sealed bottle, I probably feel more nervous than I ought. The last few months have seen a fair few dodgy bottles, mind, but cork does have its good moments, too. This bottle, in excellent condition, was one of them.

I last tasted this in 2008 and for the most part my earlier note stands. This is definitely a rich expression of Hunter Shiraz, a bit clumsy perhaps, but so generous and surely pleasing to lovers of the style. The aroma is very expressive, showing violets, oak, earth, leather and brown spice. Good impact and power in the mouth.

The flavour profile has evolved, showing a bit more leather and bit less brightness of fruit. It’s still fairly primary, though, and appears to be ageing slowly, so I suspect good bottles have a decent life ahead of them. Weight is only medium, despite the richness of flavour and quantity of oak.

My earlier note mentioned elegance, and I saw less of that here, but its deliciousness is only increasing with time.

Mount Pleasant
Price: $A28
Closure: Cork
Source: Retail

Five years of Full Pour

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It seemed like a good idea at the time.

For most of 2007, I had been logging tasting notes in Blogger as a personal aide-mémoire, not wanting to pollute my other writing projects with fumbling attempts at transcribing the experience of wine into words. Meanwhile, my friend and fellow wine lover Chris Pratt was also playing with tasting notes, pushing their form this way and that in his highly personal, vivid way.

To write about the wines we were tasting under the banner of Full Pour brought these threads together in a way that was, and continues to be, somewhat idiosyncratic. Our work was never going to feed an audience hungry for capsule recommendations or insider insights, an audience that was and remains well served by other channels. Instead, Full Pour became an extension of us: two friends and crazy wine people with an interest in the aesthetics of wine; in what it means to open a bottle of something in the real world, in an imperfect setting, with no objective other than to seek enjoyment from the experience, and to sometimes be disappointed. Full Pour was our taste, perception and intelligence on the line, published because we think wine matters enough warrant honest reflection.

Cut to 2012, five years later: 1022 posts, innumerable comments both kind and not quite so generous, some spectacular wines, a lot of less than spectacular ones, a few intellectual battle lines drawn and, I hope, a contribution of some integrity to the dialogue about wine. Full Pour isn’t a wine site for everyone, just as Chris and I will never please every person we meet, but I’ve connected with enough wine writers, thinkers and drinkers through our efforts here to suggest what we do holds, at least, some interest.

There are, naturally, a lot more sites about wine in 2012 than there were when we started in 2007, especially in Australia (and I’m pleased to note the best of the Aussies then (Wine Front/Winorama, Wino sapien) continue to delight today). Moreover, Twitter has happened, and the zeal with which wine people, including me, have taken to it continues to amaze and amuse me. The democratisation of wine has truly arrived, even if the excitement of self-publishing often burns brightly and even more quickly for many, and even if the conversation has, in some ways, become shallower as it has sped up.

I wonder about Full Pour’s place in all this, about the role of a conversation about wine that demands a level of engagement many may not have the time or patience for. That will, no doubt, sort itself out in time. What hasn’t changed, except to perhaps deepen, is my sense of wonder, my yearning to understand more and taste better, and my need to write and read things that make me think.

So, after five years of realising how little I know about wine, here’s to the people whose company matters to me: to Full Pour’s co-founder Chris, to wine writers who care about getting it right, to our readers who do me the honour of their time and attention, and to producers who respect both their product and their customers. I don’t know how things will look in five years’ time, but I hope to be accompanied by these excellent people as we, together, find out.