Another from the variable (for Riesling, at least) 2007 vintage in the Clare Valley. Skillogalee tends to sit a bit “out there on its own,” stylistically, and I happen to enjoy many of its wines a great deal. This wine may come as a surprise to those who are more accustomed to the style of neighbouring Mitchell, for example, or any number of other more austere Rieslings from the area. A relatively rich colour; hay with a bit of light green, excellent clarity. The nose is equal parts lemon juice and sweeter, tropical fruit (tinned pineapple springs to mind). You don’t need to work hard to get smells from the glass, and the aroma profile is indulgent rather than crisp and piercing. The entry shows sizzly, textured acidity and slightly fuller body than one might expect. The mid-palate is as much textural as it is flavoursome, with more rustic acidity and some phenolics sitting alongside citrus and pineapple fruit, plus some bitter herbs. Acidity is a tad unintegrated. Flavour isn’t the most intense I’ve ever experienced, nor is there significant complexity, but it’s present and tasty. The after palate brings a focus on the fruit, which drives a nice line through the middle of the tongue. The wine dies a bit on the finish.Not everyone will like this wine, I imagine, especially if your taste runs to the dryer, more austere Clare Rieslings. And it’s not the best Skillogalee Riesling I’ve had, being perhaps a tad obvious in fruit flavour and coarse in acidity. But it’s a tasty wine, fresh of mouthfeel and with easy fruit flavour. I’d pair this with Chinese food, as I’m about to on this Chinese New Year’s evening.SkillogaleePrice: $A22Closure: StelvinDate tasted: February 2008
As I was handed a plastic picnic cup full of Verdelho yesterday, I reflected that not all wines are intended to demand the full attention of the drinker. A lot of wines are crafted and marketed for their lifestyle value. The new Lindemans “Early Harvest” range is a good example. From what I can tell, it’s the vinous equivalent of low carb beer, “30% less alcohol, 30% less calories” trumpeted proudly on the front label and through the back label text. Fair enough, I could stand to lose a kilo or ten, and I do enjoy lower alcohol wines for their practicality.Very pale green colour, good clarity. The nose is of adequate intensity and presents simple aromas of passionfruit, tropical florals and a bit of capsicum. Nothing challenging, but at least it smells of something pretty. On entry, two things become apparent: there’s not much acid, and the lower alcohol is presumably due, in part, to a moderate amount of residual sugar. These two factors create a rather flabby experience on the middle palate, the sugar propping up and adding body to the wine’s dilute aromatic fruit and slightly grassy flavour profile. The after palate slips away to an interesting, not entirely pleasant, chalky finish. I’m not sure the value in considering this wine in terms of absolute quality, as it will be chosen, I suspect, on the basis of its other attributes. Fair enough. Just don’t think about it too hard as you’re drinking. If this wine works well in the market, I wonder if it’s naive for me to suggest the time for quality off-dry Riesling styles could be near? I wish.LindemansPrice: $A14Closure: StelvinDate tasted: January 2008
Is there anything more terminally daggy than the Semillon Chardonnay blend? Perhaps the mullet, but even that seems to enjoy periods of resurgent popularity. Which is a shame, because the mullet really does deserve a good, long rest. This wine, however, is bloody nice. According to the back label, the Chardonnay and Semillon were separately vinified, then blended prior to bottling.
One of the lovely things about Hunter Semillon is that it’s tremendously revealing of vintage conditions and site, something it has in common with Riesling. It’s interesting to compare this single vineyard wine with the
Hunter Valley Verdelho. Perhaps not the most awe-inspiringly fashionable phrase. However, sometimes, one wants to relax with a straightforward, giving sort of wine. I’d argue that Verdelho can be such a wine, ideal for mid-week quaffing or those mythical “afternoons lying by the pool.” Pass the 30+…
Served straight from the fridge, this wine shows exotic, attractive tropical fruit aromas with a hint of herbal astringence. Entry has good impact and delivers flavour very quickly to the tongue. The middle palate is a gush of more tropical fruit, along with the first wave of more astringent bitterness that becomes the primary feature of the after palate. It’s cleansing and fresh, perhaps lacking the textural interest of the Tulloch example tasted recently, but still tasty. Acidity is relatively soft but present enough to provide direction to the palate, and some freshness in mouthfeel. Medium bodied and generous. The finish is quite persistent, reverting to sweet tropical fruit as it fades slowly away.
Tyrrell’s suggests one serve this wine only slightly chilled, but I beg to differ. As the wine warmed, it lost a bit of focus, the fruit flavour becoming a tad broad for my taste. The more bitter flavour notes also jar in the context of a softer wine. I have one other bottle of this wine, and will certainly drink it nice and cool.
I keep most of my wine in storage in Sydney. As I am in Brisbane, this means (embarrassingly) regular shipments to the Sunshine State to replenish local stocks. The upside of this is that I get to put together mixed dozens from cellar stock, a task that generates some excitement whenever I’m called upon to perform it. It’s a bit like online shopping without the bill (of course, this a ridiculous way of looking at it, as I’ve already been slugged for the wine months, perhaps years, prior). Anyway, the point of this rambling is that I haven’t been drinking much Hunter Semillon of late, which is totally uncharacteristic. To remedy this, I made sure to include a couple of recent releases in my latest “aid drop” (as I like to think of my wine shipments), the first of which I am sitting down to this evening.
A forward, expressive nose (for young Hunter Semillon) that shows striking powdery citrus and soapy notes, along with perhaps a hint of tropical sweetness. Well balanced and attractive. Entry is immediate and of good impact due to the wine’s acidity, which sizzles from the very tip of the tongue. From here, the wine softens a little and flows to a generous middle palate of lemon juice and some more of that tropical fruit. There are also some musky notes and a bit of herbal astringency too. Although the fruit is full and relatively gentle, the wine’s acidity is still quite prominent, creating a sherbet-like effect. I can’t decide whether the acid is a bit disjointed or just slightly unbalanced considering the softness of the fruit. Either way, it’s not a huge deal. The after palate tightens and becomes more sourly astringent (I liked it), leading to a clean, dry finish of decent length.
A very slight question mark over the acid, then, but I have to say, I really enjoyed this wine. It’s clean and full, with good complexity for a young Semillon thanks to those tropical notes. A real step up from the Lost Block tasted the other day, and at the price it’s sensational value. I guess you could try and age this one if you wanted, but personally I’d drink it young. Pair with canapes or a club sandwich.
I’m a big fan of the Tyrrell’s Semillon portfolio, and enjoy the Stevens, Vat 18 and Vat 1 examples with satisfying regularity. I’ve also enjoyed the Lost Block Semillon in the past, not least for its more affordable price. Picked up a bottle of the 2007 at the local bottlo and cracked it tonight to have with dinner.
A confident nose of powdery citrus, flinty minerals and some underlying sulfur. It’s a bit one-dimensional but it’s also attractively firm and characterful. The entry is lively thanks to some good quality acidity that drives flavour right on to the middle palate. Medium bodied, this wine shows more lively citrus and floral notes on the palate. The acidity is worth pondering for a moment, as to my taste it is cleverly balanced to create an immediately drinkable wine. There’s none of the austerity here that one might encounter in a young “cellaring style” of Semillon. No, this wine is all about enjoyment right now, and the acidity is soft enough to play along. The wine slips along to a slightly hollow after palate, then to a finish that lingers delicately, with some slight sweetness showing.
Clever winemaking here. It’s a wine that knows what it’s for — consumption in its youth, with food, well chilled. Great summer quaffing wine.
Cheap Pinot Grigio — surely I’m tempting fate. Nevertheless, this wine is in a super pretty bottle with a label that exists without paper. How could I say no? I’ve not tried either wine from T’Gallant’s budget “Juliet” range, and it’s always nice to see well priced wine from the Mornington Peninsula, so let’s see how we go with this one.
A generous, clean aroma of non-specific fruit that hovers around pear and apple but, dare I say it, is mostly “grapey” in character. Hence, it has the (considerable) appeal of fresh juice rather than anything more challengingly vinous. Quite simple, though. The entry is easygoing and widens to a light/medium bodied palate that shows mostly more of the grapey fruit character seen on the nose. In terms of structure, the wine is quite light on acid, such that mouthfeel is fresh but lacking a little in “zing,” especially as the wine warms. Phenolics are a little more present as the wine progresses towards the after palate, but again these are subtle and contribute a slight savoury note (herbal, perhaps) and some roughening of mouthfeel. Quite a satisfying finish, with phenolics carrying some sweet fruit flavour through with good length.
A well judged wine that is terribly easy to drink. It’s almost entirely lacking in sophistication, but for its intended purpose, who cares? Serve well chilled with food.
More quaffers for me, including this one, which is a ridiculously cheap Pinot Noir. Already two things in its favour as far as I’m concerned. Grapes are from various regions in Victoria, including the Yarra and King Valleys.
Perfumed, lively nose showing strawberry-like red fruits and perhaps a little stalk. I’m not going to kid you and say there’s any significant complexity, but the fruit is varietal, clean and tasty. The light to medium bodied palate is surprisingly generous, with only a slight hint of the flavour dilution that marks this wine as a budget offering. Fruit flavour itself is attractive, with a delicious sourness adding itself to the simple red fruits observed on the nose. Again there’s slight stalkiness and well balanced acid to keep things moving. Mouthfeel is a highlight; it’s delicately textural without ever becoming coarse. The wine’s finish is light on tannin and of adequate length. If there’s any oak here, I couldn’t taste it.
I’m chuffed that $12 buys a Pinot of clearly varietal character, cleverly made in a style that rewards immediate consumption with food. We had this with salmon, and the combination was rewarding, the fish bringing the wine’s brighter flavours to the fore. De BortoliPrice: $A12Closure: StelvinDate tasted: December 2007
The other half is quite fond of Pinot Gris and that keeps me in the tasting loop as far as this variety is concerned. It’s quite fashionable to knock Gris as unworthy but, occasionally, a wine does stand out. They are the exceptions that prove the rule, perhaps.Quite a rich colour, hay-like verging on golden. A subtle nose of pear, apple skins, some vanilla oak and bitterness. The palate is big but strangely flavourless. Initially, the entry ushers in similar fruit flavours as seen on the nose. On the middle palate, however, phenolic bitterness becomes quite prominent and persists until an after palate and finish that display alcohol heat (14%).These combine to mask the attractive, varietal fruit flavour and transform the wine into a rather coarse experience. Time in glass didn’t assist with the wine’s balance. I think this wine might be best accompanied by something summery and rustic in flavour — Caesar salad, perhaps.Black BarnPrice: $NZ20Closure: StelvinDate tasted: December 2007