Category Archives: Red

Sebastien Roux Pommard 2004

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On the nose, this wine presents a solid, medium bodied nose of red fruit gel with a hint of cinnamon or other sweet spice – cloves perhaps? There’s also a hint of cedar of possibly even cigar box; it isn’t feral, really, but more along the line of sweet wood, almost sandalwood.In the mouth, it’s immediately apparent that this is a French wine: there’s quite a bit of drying tannin there, and it’s only after a minute or so that the fruit starts to show itself; after the first swallow, it wasn’t especially pleasant. With time and air, a beautiful cherry note appeared; the wine starts off on almost a sour red candy note, then smooths out into a lovely, supple finish of rich, velvety red fruit and again some tannin.It’s entirely possible that this bottle needs a bit more air to further integrate the tannins; even so, this is a fine drink and good value for money.Sebastien Roux [Domaine Roux Pére et Fils]Price: US $19.99Closure: CorkDate tasted: March 2008

Domaine Ninot Chaponnière Rully 2005

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A village-level wine from Rully in the Côte Chalonnaise. This is another “value” Burgundy from a lesser appellation and, at $A25 a bottle, this wine sits within an increasingly crowded price bracket of local Pinot Noirs. A pretty, bright ruby colour, sparkling and clear. Initially, the nose smelled of spicy, toasty oak and not much else. With time, it settled into a more balanced expression of lifted red fruits, oak and some savouriness. Not terribly complex, and slightly New Worldy to my taste. The palate is marked by a notable astringence that comes across as a sourness of flavour profile. Entry is quite lively, with bright flavours and fresh acidity. Mid-palate is medium bodied and brings the wine’s sourness into full focus, although there are subtle tannins and enough intensity of fruit flavour to prevent the wine from being totally one-dimensional. There’s a slightly animal note in there, but overall no great complexity. A nice lift of flavour through the after palate lightens the flavour profile to a sappier, freshly fruited note, before a decent finish sees the wine off in some style.This isn’t a world-beater by any means, and there are probably (conventionally) better local Pinots for the price. But it’s well made and just different enough to keep things interesting. Again, how to put a price on difference?Domaine NinotPrice: $A25Closure: CorkDate tasted: February 2008

Domaine Anne et Hervé Sigaut Les Noirots 1er Cru Chambolle-Musigny 2005

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Onwards with the Burgundy 2005 tastings, and here we have a 1er Cru wine from Chambolle-Musigny. A pretty ruby colour, slight haze. This wine’s aromas has proven elusive and changeable through my tasting experience. At first yeasty with strawberries and cream, then morphing to a raspberry liqueur sort of expression, finally (the morning after) ending up firmly in savoury territory, with mineral and sous-bois notes running underneath vanilla spice and delicate fruit. Although it is an expressive nose, it is complex and subtle and almost evasive. The palate has gone through an equally interesting evolution. Entry is striking, with acidity and sappy red fruits registering quickly on the palate. At first, the mid-palate was mouthfilling, light to medium bodied, with intense flavours and bright freshness. Over time, the wine has gained complexity and lost some of its hedonistic edge. Its flavour profile is quite savoury and intense, but delicate too. I love the acid structure of this wine, which provides a clearly delineated flow for each flavour component and which I can almost “visualise.” Good line through the after palate, with a finely drying finish of decent length. Although there’s a lot in this wine, it feels unresolved to me, as if it needs some time to make up its mind what it wants to be. I’ll allow my remaining bottles that luxury. Domaine Anne et Hervé SigautPrice: $A65Closure: CorkDate tasted: February 2008

Mount Pleasant Philip Shiraz 2005

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What with all the Burgundies lately, I thought it might be amusingly ironic to taste what used to be known as Hunter Burgundy — made from Shiraz grapes, of course. Philip is usually a reliable choice in that it generally displays good typicité within the context of the vintage — no mean feat at this price point. 2005 being a good vintage in the Hunter for red wines, I was keen to try this one.And, I must admit, I was rather disappointed at first. Although Hunter character was present, the wine was swamped with a spirity, fortified edge that more or less obliterated any nuance of fruit character, and created an overblown, filling-yet-hollow mouthfeel of little textural interest. I had almost decided not to write it up, but left half the bottle to retaste the following day, just to be sure.It’s remarkably better after a good night’s airing. Although it hasn’t magically transformed into a different wine, it has a sense of balance that was not present on opening. Good Hunter savouriness alongside sweet yet subtle red fruits on the nose. There’s a bit of oak in there too; sweet but not overwhelming. The palate shows the most marked improvement, with a noticeable diminution in portiness, which has the effect of bringing the fruit into focus, and allowing the wine’s delicious, savoury tannins their proper place. It’s Hunter, but on a large scale: medium verging on full bodied, the alcohol still noticeable (though not all-consuming), denser flavours than one might expect. In the end, a good wine and excellent value. Despite the wine’s dimensions, it retains the elegance and softness of good Hunter Shiraz, so should please fans of the style.McWilliams Mount PleasantPrice: $A13Closure: StelvinDate tasted: February 208

Domaine Trapet Père et Fils Gevrey-Chambertin Ostréa 2005

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A village-level wine whose name apparently has something to do with the oyster shells found in and around its source vineyards.Piercing, complex and focused aroma profile comprising elements of cherry/plum, red fruits and a lovely stalky/sappiness. It’s just delightful to smell this wine and, although it has remained relatively static over the last couple of hours, its inherent complexity carries it well, and I’m continuing to enjoy each sniff very much. There’s some underlying oak that plays a well judged supporting role.Straight from the bottle, this wine tasted a little thin and bright on the palate, but it did not take long (thirty minutes at most) for the fruit to fill in. Entry is rich and flavoursome, introducing not only ripe fruit but the two key pleasures of this wine: structure and texture. No doubt there are gorgeous, ripe fruits and what appears to be whole bunch complexity here, but with each sip I keep coming back to the clearly defined acid framework and the powdery phenolics (including fine, ripe tannins) that create significant textural interest on the tongue. For all the fruit ripeness, it’s only a medium bodied wine, yet full of intensity and flavour. The after palate shows good line, but there’s a sudden drop as the finish kicks in, somewhat mitigated by the fact that this slightly subdued finish possesses more than satisfactory length.This is my kind of wine, and is drinking better now than some of the other 2005 Burgundies I’ve tasted recently. Elegant and alluring. I’d like to see it with a couple of years on it, though, primarily to experience the wine’s texture as it softens.Domaine Trapet Père et FilsPrice: $A66Closure: CorkDate tasted: February 2008

Jacques Cacheux & Fils Vosne-Romanée Aux Réas 2005

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Onwards with the Burgundy tastings. Here we have a village level wine from Vosne-Romanée.On pouring, I thought this wine was faulty, so funky were some of the smells emerging from glass. But it wasn’t — it’s just on the wilder side of Pinot, and perhaps all the better for it. Complex aromas of pepper, stalk, sous-bois and bright red strawberry fruit intermingle on the nose, but these descriptors may give false impression of my certainty — it’s a subtle, changeable nose that has evolved a fair bit through the evening. Quite expressive and beautifully perfumed.When I first sipped the wine, I found the acid overwhelmingly assertive. This subsided after an hour or so to reveal a still-bright but more balanced palate. Entry is lively and immediate, with acidity registering, followed quickly by sweet, plummy red fruit. Complexity builds towards the middle palate, where notes of pepper and spice become quite prominent. There are also smoky, meaty edges to the flavour profile, as well as a bit of vanilla oak. I wouldn’t call this a “clean” wine, but it’s funky and interesting in the most positive way. Body is medium, as is intensity. The wine continues well through the after palate, with a slightly confected note emerging towards the back of the mouth, lingering on through a finish of good length. I must say, I do like this wine a lot. It has changed a fair amount through the evening, gaining weight and body whilst not losing its fundamentally bright profile. I enjoy the slightly wild flavours too — squeaky clean fruit bombs can get boring after a while. There’s definitely a few years in this wine yet, but if you must drink now, do decant for a couple of hours, or at least sip slowly.Jacques Cacheux & FilsPrice: $A55Closure: CorkDate tasted: February 2008

One Tree Hill Shiraz 2003

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I don’t know anything about One Tree Hill. I don’t think the bottle I consumed has anything to do with Scaffidi Wines, which uses “One Tree Hill” as a label on some of its products. The back label identifies it as a Hunter Valley wine made “under the supervision of Len Evans.” It happened to be on sale for $5 at the local First Choice. I’d be interested to know more about its origins.
A dense purple-red colour, still youthful. The nose initially showed dominant raisin-like notes and assertive vanilla oak. Then some complexities: prunes, fresher red fruit, some black pepper and clovey spice. If you can get over the dried fruit notes (which, I admit, aren’t always to my taste), there’s some good intensity here. It is not, however, a lightfooted aroma profile.
The entry shows a slippery-slidey mouthfeel that lands on the mid-palate with more vanilla oak, raspberries, dried fruits. Quite intense, yet clumsy and oak heavy too. Low in acid and tannin, this wine’s structure steps back to place full bodied fruit at centre stage. The after palate is spicy but tapers quickly to a short-ish finish.
I’m not going to complain too much over a $5 wine, especially one that is full of flavour. The flavours, though, seem stressed, perhaps a result of the very dry 2003 vintage in the Hunter. Those raisin/prune notes, as well as the assertive oak, don’t mesh well with my sense of Hunter Shiraz or, more broadly, of what I enjoy drinking. On the other hand, this is very clearly not an industrial product, showing character (including what one might classify as faults or markers of a difficult vintage) and generosity. Perhaps one should be grateful for that fact alone.
One Tree HillPrice: $A5Closure: CorkDate tasted: February 2008

Clos Salomon Givry 1er Cru 2005

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Givry, located in the Côte Chalonnaise, is often regarded as a “value” appellation and lacks the lustre of villages located within the Côte d’Or. Given the words “value” and “Burgundy” are rarely seen together, I’m willing to give this wine the most generous of chances. Expressive, pretty nose of florals, deep red and black fruits, a very slight sappy edge and some exotic incense-like character. There’s a lack of definition to the fruit that detracts ever so slightly, but one receives adequate compensation through the amount and attractiveness of the flavours that are there. The entry is deceptively slippery, as it takes a few moments for the wine’s acidity to register. Once it does, though, relatively intense fruit flavours sizzle within the wine’s medium bodied palate. There are quite masculine berry flavours mixed in with vanilla and spice oak, plus a hint of earth/mineral. Most of the wine’s fruit weight is currently sitting towards the front of the palate, as the acid tends to take over as the wine progresses towards the after palate. The fruit hangs on, though, and re-emerges on the finish as a lingering, prickly sweetness that persists through a wash of acid and tannin. I think some time for the acid to subside will see the fruit fatten up and sit more evenly through the wine’s line. Even as it sits in the glass, the fruit is thickening and gaining weight and complexity. For all that, it’s drinking pretty well now.This is a very tasty wine that shows clean winemaking and attractive fruit. To be critical, the fruit is slightly clumsy, lacking the poise and structure of the best wines. This is not an overly intellectual wine. Drink now or drink later; the choice is yours, but I’ll be leaving my remaining bottles for 2-3 years before retasting. Good value for what it is.Clos SalomonPrice: $A38Closure: CorkDate tasted: February 2008

Sebastien Roux Volnay 2005

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Disclaimer: I’m at the tail end of the annual bout of flu that goes around the office, so take anything I write here with a grain of salt…First off: It looks like Sebastien Roux isn’t actually a Burgundy producer, but rather a négociant label used by Trader Joe’s here in the USA. [This entry was updated on Feb. 10, 2008 to correct my mistake. My apologies to M. Roux and his family – they are in fact a family-owned winery that’s been making wine since 1885. Please refer to his comment below for a complete explanation…]There’s a bit of sweet tobacco leaf on the nose here, almost exactly like Red Man chewing tobacco, and it’s pleasant enough. There’s also kind of a high-pitch neon electric cherry vibrating across the surface, and that’s not too bad, either. There’s also a sort of tomato leaf note here, a sweet greenness, that’s appealing as well; this is all balanced by a sort of low-key spice box approach, something like Dutch sausage (think cloves). In the mouth, OMG TANNIN!!!1!11! After some time in the glass, though, the tannins calm themselves down nicely, so what you get is a moderate bodied, smooth drink that ends on a slightly clumsy note of tannin and oh so French minerality. It’s all very, very French and a welcome change from the ubiquitous California pinot noir found in these parts.At this price, though… well, I suppose it’s appropriately priced. Not terrific value, but not a rip-off either. I suppose that’s the best one can expect to do in these post-Sideways times.Sebastien Roux [Domaine Roux Pére et Fils]Price: US $19.99Closure: CorkDate tasted: February 2008