Tag Archives: Beechworth

Giaconda Pinot Noir 2008

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As luck would have it, I’m enjoying my Easter long weekend in bed with a messy, feverish chest cold for company. Rather than attempt to taste wine in this condition, I thought I’d reflect on a bottle drunk a week or two ago. This was a gift from my ever-generous co-author Chris. I shall save the other bottle to taste with him, as I’d really like a second opinion here.

It’s clear this wine is all quality, with intensity, power and drive to spare. Stylistically, though, it raises an equally clear question: do these ostensibly desirable qualities contribute to drinkability? I’m not so sure. But first, my impressions of the wine itself. The nose is massively complex, even at a young age. The character of the fruit is alternately sweet/savoury, the Yarra component evident in what strikes me as a luscious, if somewhat blunt, slice of juicy fruit pie. There’s a good deal of oak here too, charry and bold. I was quite bowled over by this wine’s impact at first, and it took me a moment to realise I was being overpowered by the wine, pushed around and told what to do.

The palate is equally powerful and somewhat front-loaded in shape, with good acid and a lovely, drying chalky finish. Flavours echo the nose, with rhubarb and strawberries bursting through an underlay of savoury complexity and an overlay of glossy oak. Again, quite an overpoweringly awesome wine, but at the same time one that doesn’t encourage onward consumption. Indeed, one glass was quite enough, and though there’s no denying the skill and fruit at play, I ended up feeling slightly cornered.

Giaconda
Price: $NA
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Gift

Castagna Genesis Syrah 2005

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I sometimes wonder whether the adaptability of Shiraz to an apparently endless range of regional expressions is a disadvantage. Variety certainly isn’t the issue. But, for someone like me who looks for order and coherence in most things, it can all start to look a bit scattered. Perhaps it seems contradictory to suggest such richness is anything but positive. Certainly, for the wine lover with patience and a well-stuffed wallet, Australian Shiraz on its own offers a world of exploration. 

Victorian Shiraz is my current obsession. From the Grampians to Geelong to Heathcote to Beechworth, there’s an array of styles with little to hold them together. Indeed, the fact they are all Victorian seems purely incidental. So this wine, from Beechworth, is like a bolt from the blue, expressing the most clearly defined idea of Shiraz imaginable, and seeming to set the pace for an entire region. It’s the sort of confidently styled wine I believe we need more of. 
An explosion of complexity on the nose. Meat stock, sour cherries, nougat, smashed black peppercorns, blackberries and ripe canes. There’s a nice balance between the elements, and a nice topography to the aroma profile; unlike some wines that show seamlessness above all else, this wine isn’t afraid to allow its components to stand out. I like its vibe now; in time, perhaps it will show some different, more settled faces. It’s dense and savoury, expressive and perhaps a bit of a show-off, which would be bothersome if it didn’t have such wonderful things to say. 
In the mouth, initially quite tannic. I’ve let it sit in the glass for a couple of hours and, though it remains a structured, tight experience, it is starting to unfold. Give this time. On entry, a freely expressive, textural caress of sour cherry. The middle palate shows stunning complexity; there’s so much going on here and, as with the nose, it’s not seamless so much as intricate and full of tension. Often we value flow and harmony in wine, but this is a lesson in counterpoint, contradiction and angularity. The after palate and finish show a particular glow of fruit and oak that smooth some of the mid-palate’s edges and help the wine to achieve a gentle resolution. A very, very long finish, sour cherry reverberating through a framework of gentle oak and brambles. 
What a fantastic wine.

Castagna
Price: $A85
Closure: Diam
Source: Gift

Castagna Un Segreto 2005

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A Sangiovese Shiraz blend from Beechworth.

This wine raised a lot of questions for me – on the role of blending, on whether a wine is worth ageing, on what is value for money. It also had quite a few of the answers once I came to terms with it. 
For me, on the basis of this wine and a couple of others (notably the much cheaper Pizzini), Shiraz and Sangiovese are undoubtedly synergistic companions. The way aromas intertwine on the nose here is very exciting. Orange peel, almond meal, tonka bean – it all begins to smell rather like a Guerlain concoction before a big hit of nougat and vanilla oak reminds me it’s for drinking, not just smelling. 
The palate is sinewy and intricate, with an array of sensational, intense flavours. Black pepper, dried cherries, unfolding ferns, dark fruit. The fruit character reminds me of the strange little dried things my grandmother used to hide inside dumplings on Chinese New Year – savoury, dehydrated and intensely juicy at the same time. This seems designed to age in that its flavours hint at the sort of complexities that will develop with some time in bottle without yet possessing any such notes. Quite the opposite of a sweetly fruited wine whose vibe might contest developed flavours. Medium bodied, the structure is particularly sophisticated, with acidity blending beautifully into fabric of the wine, and chalky tannins providing textural counterpoint through the after palate.
An intellectual, strong, elegantly masculine wine. Classical sculpture and proportion. Just lovely.

Castagna
Price: $NA
Closure: Diam
Source: Gift

Sorrenberg Chardonnay 2008

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Dinner with family in Melbourne on Friday evening was enhanced by the provision of this bottle. Thanks to my cousin Travis — who continues the Coldrey line as far as an obsession with wine is concerned — for his generosity in supplying all the evening’s drinks. My first Sorrenberg Chardonnay and I’m favourably impressed.
A powerful, worked style that, in the first instance, is most notable for the richness of its fruit flavours. Nectarine, fig and some grapefruit all intermingle within an aroma that also throws a range of caramel and oatmeal notes. There’s significant complexity and scale, but the confident, seductive aromas themselves are what draw me to this wine.
The palate follows through on all aspects of the nose, showing a forthright, complex range of flavours. Good presence and consistency along the entire line. A couple of points, then. Firstly, this isn’t a wine for those fixated on the current vogue for lean Chardonnay styles. The lushness and luxe inherent to the fruit and style are quite contrary to a more minerally, austere expression of Chardonnay. And that’s OK. Secondly, this is a wine to sip and savour, not necessarily to drink in large volumes. Certainly, I helped my dinner companions to finish our bottle with ease. But as I drank more, a cracked toffee note through the back palate became slightly dominant, pushing fruit and savoury characters out of the way to the detriment of the wine’s overall balance. Still, a minor quibble over what is an impressive wine of some beauty.Sorrenberg
Price: $NA
Closure: Cork
Source: Gift