Tag Archives: 2008

Clonakilla Hilltops Shiraz 2008

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Seems I had a similar reaction to last year’s model. I thought it terribly spicy, perhaps more so than usual, yet here I am with the 2008, inhaling a veritable pepper grinder of aroma. Perhaps it’s a function of youth; I confess to having drunk more of this wine with a few years’ age on it than at release. Whatever, it’s nice to be surprised year after year. 

The aroma is quite wild, with pepper and spice and a herbal character akin to fragrant aniseed; think Thai basil. It’s also a bit meaty, and I can imagine some people reacting really negatively towards this wine for its forthright, savoury character. I’ve always enjoyed the Hilltops label, though, and this is certainly feeding that enjoyment. As it gets some air, the purple berry fruit aromas are peeking out a bit more, though it remains a spice-dominant aroma profile.
The palate is really well-weighted. On entry, more black pepper and herbs, before some berries start to bubble up through the middle palate. I like the Hilltops Shiraz character; I always think of purple fruit when I taste it, though I’m not sure that’s terribly helpful to anyone but my nagging inner voice. There’s a simplicity to the fruit character, though, that — when combined with moderate intensity of flavour — is a little disappointing. Structurally the wine comes across as almost easygoing, at least until ripe, abundant tannins start to caress the tongue through the after palate. A clean, acceptably long finish.
Delicious wine if you like the style. I just wish it sustained its complexity better through the entire line.

Clonakilla
Price: $A25
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Retail

Dowie Doole California Road Shiraz 2008

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This single vineyard wine is, in some respects, the ideal Dowie Doole red. Incidentally, Dowie Doole must surely be amongst the more satisfyingly alliterative names in the wine world. It’s the name of a card game, or perhaps a bubble gum and, whether deliberately or not, its wines often reflect a sense of relaxed playfulness.

What I like about this wine is the depth and richness of its fruit. Forget reflexively fashionable words of the moment like “elegant” and “restrained” and instead revel in old school McLaren Vale Shiraz, complete with bold oak flavour and lusciously abundant fruit. A slightly lifted nose shows cedar and toasted coconut, dutch cocoa and very squishy mulberries. There’s a raw, sappy edge to the aroma (and indeed palate) that speaks of youth more than anything else, and which should calm down with a few months’ rest. 
In the mouth, quite strikingly full and fruit-driven. The entry is slippery and dark, plum fruit mixing it with vanilla oak and hints of licorice. Flavours open out through the middle palate, with a wide range of fruit notes — ranging from raspberry to plum to much darker berries– combining in a liqueur-like expression of notable sucrosité. Underlying this sweet fruit is a savoury note that reminds me of tarragon. It’s quite distinctive, in fact, and satisfyingly regional too. Oak is supportive and acid surprisingly firm. Tannins are of the ultra-fine, soft variety, making the wine approachable despite its young flavour profile. Time will be of benefit, though, as its constituent parts operate somewhat independently at present. A really long, delicious finish follows an after palate that sings with fresh fruit juice.
A bit less showy than its Reserve sibling, this wine possesses the easy flow I look for from this maker combined with the characterful fruit one expects from a single vineyard wine. I like.

Dowie Doole
Price: $A35
Closure: Diam
Source: Sample

Dowie Doole Reserve Shiraz 2008

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I’ve tasted quite a few Dowie Doole wines over the past few months, and in most cases they have been an unpretentious pleasure. This wine, the flagship Shiraz in the range, is interesting to me as it’s the first “serious” red I’ve tasted in the portfolio, and I wonder how the approach shown in the standard range translates to something more upscale.

The most evident artifact of this wine’s position is a hell of a lot of oak, of the Bounty Bar sort, and a density of fruit not seen in the lower rungs. On opening, the wine fairly yelled its seriousness across the room. Give it a good decant — or in my case a couple of days of air — and the seriousness remains intact, minus the outré oak character and volume. So do give it some time, and you’ll be rewarded with a powerful nose of fleshy, liquerous fruit and luscious oak, young but quite well integrated, and curiously attractive subsidiary notes of licorice and spice.
The palate is characterised mostly by a flood of clean fruit. Despite the oak and dense structure, the fruit flows freely through the mouth, showing that especially nice red/black berry McLaren Vale character that fans of the region will recognise and rejoice in. More licorice and oak flavours accompany the berry fruit, along with a slightly astringent, bitter finish that should calm with some more time in the bottle. Certainly, the fruit remains present and attractive along the entire line. Nice long finish.
This is a good wine and what I was hoping for from this maker — a reserve-level wine that, in some respects, takes an obvious approach (oak, density, etc) but which nevertheless retains the fun of its lower priced siblings. 
Update: subsequent conversations with the winery reveal this was bottled in November 2009, for release mid-2010. I should imagine my day 2 experience will be closer to the wine as it will be on release.

Dowie Doole
Price: $A50
Closure: Diam
Source: Sample

Tyrrell's Canberra District Shiraz 2008

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No red Hunters worth making from the 2008 vintage; hence, Tyrrell’s turned to other regions to source fruit for its premiums, the result being this Canberra Shiraz amongst other things. I like Canberra Shiraz — for its flavour profile and weight in particular — so this wine appeared adequate compensation for missing out on a vintage of Hunter beauties. Also, I see some broad similarities between Hunter and Canberra Shiraz, climates notwithstanding, so I am interested to see how Tyrrell’s has handled the style.

Very fragrant, with dark red berries and a bit of spice; this seems quite a ripe aroma profile, so the spice is downplayed in favour of juicy fruit and general generosity. The oak is a bit obvious in character but its volume is well controlled, allowing the fruit to speak first. 
The palate is very generous and round, and it has all held up well over two days of tasting. Weight is medium bodied, and structurally the wine has quite firm acid to prop up its flow through the mouth, along with a smattering of dry, dusty tannins on the after palate. On entry, quite tingly and bright, acid registering before much else, then juicy blackberries driving through the middle palate. There’s abundant flavour, and edges of black pepper, though I wish for a bit more complexity to the fruit character. I feel almost as if this is a blending component of a finished wine, that it could benefit from a little extra something. What’s here, though, is delicious and drinkable, so one shouldn’t complain too much.

Tyrrell’s
Price: $A33
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Retail

Angullong A Cabernet Merlot 2008

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There are many different interpretations of a “drink now” red wine, ranging from exuberantly fruity wines like Teusner’s Riebke through to this. I’d describe this as light, somewhat Italianate in style, except it lacks the requisite rusticity of mouthfeel to fully qualify. Nonetheless, it seems a valid enough answer to the stylistic question.

On the nose, quite expressive with a dash of caramel oak, some high toned fruit in dried peel mode and a general impression of levity. This isn’t a bruiser at all, nor is it especially refined or complex, but it’s quite a penetrative aroma profile nonetheless. The palate shows more liquidity than suggested on the nose, and I’m not entirely sure that’s a good thing. With the fruit sitting, as it does, in the upper registers, a more aggressively textural mouthfeel seems appropriate. The rough edges, though, are smoothed over here. Still, there’s ample intensity of flavour, and the fruit is clean. There’s a nice streak of acidity that runs the length of the wine too, which partly compensates for the lack of tannic fun. Pretty decent finish.
There’s some thought behind this wine, which I appreciate at the reasonable price point.

Angullong
Price: $A15
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Sample

Pig in the House Shiraz 2008

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An organic (certified) wine from the Cowra region; 440 cases made. Quite a few producers in this region seem to be pursuing an organic and/or biodynamic approach. Probably not a bad way to define a winemaking community at the moment. I remember only a few years ago organic wines seemed to be held in distinctly low regard.

This is an entirely fruit-driven style that seems designed for immediate, unpretentious pleasure, and in this goal it succeeds admirably. The nose shows expressive dark plums and raspberries, some brambles and just a hint of spice. The fruit seems sweet, and verges on confectionary, but in this context works well. 
In the mouth, a big rush of fruit flavour. The entry is very flavoursome, with dark berries and a sense of immediacy that speaks of freshness and the happy bursting of blueberries. Things only get fresher and fruitier towards the middle palate, though at this point one also realises there are some chocolate-like tannins that are quite assertive and which certainly hold things together. The fruit, again, almost expresses that industrial confectionary edge, but pulls back just in time. Berries and chocolate sauce on the after palate, before a surprisingly long finish of slightly rustic dryness.
A straightforward, attractive wine that seems ideally suited to easy drinking. I’d prefer a lower price, but there’s no doubting this is a fun, well-made wine.

Pig in the House
Price: $A25
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Sample

Clonakilla O'Riada Shiraz 2008

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The second release of this wine, again made from non-Estate fruit. I really enjoyed the previous vintage; it struck me as both quite Canberran but also refreshingly different from the flagship Shiraz Viognier label. The 2008 continues in this vein.

This seems a bit quieter and more resolved than the 2007. I recall the earlier wine as lively, edgy and bright. This, while firmly red-fruited and medium bodied, seems composed and calm too. The nose shows what appears to be whole bunch characters, with a funky stalkiness that never entirely blows off, even as it integrates with intense black pepper and spiced plum fruit. The aroma profile is quite complex, though it’s not one of those wines that feels the need to parade its complexity in the precocious manner of a contestant in a toddler’s beauty pageant. 
The palate is soothingly resolved, remarkably so for such a young wine. There’s plenty of up-front flavour, more spice and red fruit along with an umami influence that adds a particular deliciousness to the flavour profile. The middle palate gets a bit brighter, with acid driving a relatively high toned set of flavours that are generous without ever entirely relaxing on the tongue. The stalk-like notes translate here as a medicinal influence, attractive and sympathetic to the fruit flavours. A nimble after palate and finish round things off well, with good length.
Very attractive, satisfying wine with excellent drinkability. In time, it may improve and gain greater presence across the spectrum of its flavours, from top to bottom. I would not feel guilty about drinking it now, though, as there’s a lot of enjoyment to be had in the immediate term. 
Update: after two days, this has filled out beautifully without losing an ounce of elegance. Super wine.

Clonakilla
Price: $A35
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Retail

Kalari Chardonnay 2008

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My second Cowra Chardonnay for this evening; always fun to do some comparative tasting. Against to the just-tasted Cowra Estate, the balance of this Kalari is notably different, tending more towards a generous, peachier style, though still far from the sort of peaches and cream buxomness of old school, now-maligned Chardonnays. 

The nose shows some vanilla ice cream oak along with a tiny bit of sulphur and not a lot of fruit. This doesn’t sound great, but in fact it’s attractive to smell, and the fruit is there, it’s just bound up in the oak character at present. The palate is quite a different story. Here, the fruit flows more freely, an even mixture of white and yellow peach. On entry, sizzlier acidity than the Cowra Estate and a bigger presence in the mouth; this seems to present a bit more of everything across the board. The middle palate smoothes out with ripe peaches and cheap ice cream (you know, the ones that are more ice than cream), all underlined by lively, somewhat rough acidity that contributes level of sourness to the profile. The after palate thins out compared to what has come before, but the finish more than makes up for it with good continuity of fruit flavour and surprising length.
Another solid, straightforward Cowra Chardonnay, and one I might give a few months’ further in bottle before drinking. These don’t scale great heights but nor do I believe they set out (or need) to, as they present attractive fruit in a food-friendly package. Good value drinking.

Kalari
Price: $A17
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Sample

Cowra Estate Chardonnay 2008

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Australia’s oldest Chardonnay vineyard – so proclaims the label, even though an establishment date of 1973 reveals the relative youth of this variety’s presence on the local wine scene. I’ve got a couple of Cowra Chardonnays on the table this evening, both reasonably priced (as a lot of Cowra wines appear to be).

On the nose, some smokey, burnt match overlays tight, white stonefruit notes and a bit of minerality. It was a bit yeasty at first but those funky notes blew off fairly quickly, leaving behind this lean, quite stylish aroma profile. No overt complexity, just balance and a bit of tension between notes that don’t quite go together — I mean this in a good way.
The palate follows a similarly lean route, emphasising the nose’s attractive minerality and elaborating a little on the fruit character. A cool, clean entry that shows firm, fine acidity. Things don’t get terribly flavoursome until the middle palate, where a mostly-savoury character relaxes a little on the tongue. Fruit begins to leak: grapefruit, white nectarine, very much a cooler climate flavour profile. This expands through the after palate, whose acidity shows some hardness but which nonetheless is well-shaped and straightforward. There appears a minimum of winemaking here and the consequently simple style comes as something of a relief; also, it seems well-matched to the fruit character. The clean finish is quite mineral and very refreshing.
Good value, utterly unpretentious Chardonnay.

Cowra Estate
Price: $A18
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Sample

Windowrie The Mill Verdelho 2008

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A few years ago, I remember asking someone to whom I wanted to make a gift of some wine whether she had any favourites. Her answer was “Cowra Verdelho,” a singular response that sticks in my mind to this day. Needless to say, I didn’t hold high hopes of tracking any down. Halliday’s Wine Companion site lists just two Cowra-based producers with a Verdelho in their portfolio, of which this Windowrie is one. Further, the label lists this as a wine of the “Central Ranges,” the zone into which Cowra falls, so the fruit may not be entirely sourced from the Cowra region. No matter – this is the closest I’ve come to Cowra Verdelho since the memorable, unfulfilled request.

And hey, it’s a Verdelho alright, presenting straightforward, crisp fruit salad-like aromas. The particular fruit salad here isn’t anything fancy; it’s the salad I remember seeing (and not especially liking, though I was a fussy child) at numerous barbeques in the 80s; a bit heavy on the unpeeled red delicious apple, not much in the way of tropical fruits, and perhaps a squeeze of lemon to keep it all from browning. I quite like it.
The palate is lightly flavoured, with a rounded, hot presence that speaks to this wine’s 14.6% abv. Despite this unexpected scale, it’s curiously satisfying and certainly pleasant to drink. Verdelho is one of those wines one tends to approach without many expectations, save those relating to drinkability and simple pleasure; within that context, this delivers well and is squeaky clean. Entry and middle palate are both quite fruit-driven and mouthfilling in a decidedly hydraulic manner. The after palate shows a line of bitterness that offsets the fruit flavour particularly well. The acid seems a bit low to me, or at least overwhelmed by the mouthfeel. 
On the whole, if this is representative of Central Ranges Verdelho, I prefer the Hunter style, which seems more robust and fully flavoured. However; what’s here is tasty and very easy drinking.

Windowrie
Price: $A17.99
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Sample