It’s especially satisfying to follow a label over time and observe how it varies with each vintage. Sometimes an especially good vintage will show extra depth, or unusual complexity, or a particularly intense perfume, all the while retaining an essential consistency with its siblings. There’s no doubt this is an excellent Hilltops, and it shows the trademark fruit density and character that I look forward to every year. But there’s a powerful something “extra” in this release — an almost flamboyant spiciness that is present both on the nose and palate — that has me smiling tonight.
Meerea Park Alexander Munro Shiraz 1999
Pure Hunter Valley nose. It’s fragrant, earthy, clean, showing hints of aged sweetness and even a bit of iron. I find the aroma very detailed, almost like a fabric that, upon looking more closely, keeps resolving to a finer and finer weave.
Mount Pleasant Elizabeth Semillon 2004
It’s customary to bang on about this classic label in terms of its value for money. To be sure, I love that I’m able to purchase a wine held back from release until its point of maturation for under $A15 (and I paid somewhat over the odds,too). It’s especially ironic that McWilliams persists with its release strategy across the Mount Pleasant range when other labels, including some premiums, are pushed out earlier and earlier, very much to the detriment of the consumer who might like to obtain at least a little enjoyment soon after purchase.
Tyrrell's Vat 9 Shiraz 2005
The cellar is well stocked with Tyrrell’s wines and a fair few make it through to this site. I can’t think of too many producers in the Hunter Valley with an equivalent portfolio of fine wines. It probably shouldn’t matter, but there’s also a lovely connection one feels when drinking the wine of an historic producer (or region). I guess that’s why retro labels live on and, in some cases, are enjoying a resurgence in (presumed) prestige.
None of which has much to do with the liquid in the bottle. Thankfully, it’s rather good. After tasting a few new release 2007 Tyrrell’s reds lately, I gave in to the urge to try a recent back vintage of the Vat 9. As an aside, I was at Dan’s the other day and saw bottles of the 2006 on sale. Didn’t this used to have more time in bottle prior to release?
A pungent, forthright nose that has changed considerably through the evening. It started off quite stinky, with perhaps some sulfur in addition to strong regional dirt and a dash of tart cherry fruit. Two hours later, there are cooked meats, almonds and more savoury red fruits, slightly liqueur-like in character. It’s like Chianti via Burgundy, but with freshly turned soil that’s all Hunter. Good detail.
A flavoursome entry that shows consistent line from nose to palate. There’s an edginess here, which is a function of structure tilted firmly towards acid. Not to suggest there are no tannins; in fact, they are a highlight, being fine, ripe and sweetly rich. But I’m getting ahead of myself. The fruit character, as per the nose, is quite liqueur like in its intensity and (contradictorily) its tart sweetness. Very much in the cherry spectrum, without the plummy depth of the 2006 and 2007 models, the fruit shows excellent complexity. Medium bodied, this wine seems to throw itself at all corners of the mouth with the intention of sticking around as long as possible. Acid sizzles along through the after palate, with a seamless segue into the aforementioned tannins. A long, long finish.
Bloody nice wine. The 2007 version is probably better, but I like this one for its transparency and detail. A fabulous wine with food. I’m going to leave the rest of my stash for a few years before retasting.
Tyrrell’s
Price: $A30
Closure: Cork
Date tasted: October 2008
Tyrrell's Vat 9 Hunter Shiraz 2007
I didn’t buy any Vat 8 this year, so with this note I conclude my tastings of new release Tyrrell’s reds. Unlike the 4 Acres and Old Patch, this wine is still available from cellar door.
A riotously fragrant wine that, when first poured, smelled for all the world like a Central Otago Pinot. Sweet earthiness, though, gives the regional game away. I’m finding the aroma profile a little difficult to describe. It’s floral and shows confident, yet lightfooted, plum fruit, some spice and dustiness of the sort one usually associates more with neglected cupboards than wine. It’s quite high toned and complex, and (to me) delicious.
The palate continues the nose’s generosity. Tingly, fresh acidity hits the tongue and awakens it to a subsequent wave of bright red fruit and sweet spice. Body is light to medium, but intensity is considerable. Flavours of sour plum, spice and licorice allsorts coat the tongue, helped by a mouthfeel that moderates acidic prickles with a fine velvet caress. There’s some drop off on the after palate, as the wine’s acidity tends to overwhelm the fruit flavour somewhat. The finish, however, goes on and on.
It’s quite approachable now, but I suspect this wine will fill out in the most delicious manner with some bottle age. For my taste, and for all its complexity and sophistication, it needs some depth in the lower registers to be truly complete. That should come with patience on my part. The only real disappointment here is a label design that has abandoned its retro origins at time when a baroque aesthetic couldn’t be hotter. Shame.
Tyrrell’s
Price: $A35
Closure: Cork
Date tasted: September 2008
Tyrrell's Vat 5 NVC Shiraz 2003
This label seemed to disappear from the Tyrrell’s portfolio after the 2004 vintage. I recall reading something about damage to the NVC vineyard, but the details escape me. In any case, I have enjoyed it on numerous occasions, and the vineyard seems to impart an earthiness that’s quite regional and perhaps even more prominent than in some other Hunter wines.
A forthright, savoury nose of wet earth, cooked meat, an iodine-like note and concentrated, slightly stressed fruit. It’s deep and dark, and bulkier than many of its regional siblings. In the mouth, intriguing despite dimensions that extend towards clumsiness. Savoury berry fruits flood the mouth on entry, and are joined on the mid-palate by assertive minerality and an equally assertive, astringent mouthfeel. Despite the benefit of a few years in bottle, this wine is still vibrantly primary, with rustic acidity and chunky tannins key to its current balance. The after palate and finish are puckeringly dry.
To be critical, the fruit is slightly dead tasting, and the overall impression is one of heft rather than elegance. Still, it’s a clear view into vintage conditions and perhaps all the more interesting for it. In fact, if you ever find yourself facing a bottle of the 2003 and 2004 NVC Shiraz, they provide a great insight into how vintage conditions can influence a wine’s character. Personally, I loved the 2004 wine. Not a renowned red wine vintage in the Hunter by any means, 2004 nevertheless gave birth to a light, funky, elegant NVC Shiraz. I wish I had more bottles of it.
Tyrrell’s
Price: $A30
Closure: Cork
Date tasted: September 2008
Lake's Folly Cabernets 2006
In amongst Max Lake’s considerable oeuvre is a slim volume of memoirs, richly recounted and highly enjoyable. It colours my view of the Lake’s Folly wines. It’s tempting to view wine solely in terms of what’s in the bottle but, perhaps inevitably, knowing something about its maker, the vineyard from which it came, regional history, and so on, makes for a more complete experience. The difference between wine evaluation and wine appreciation, perhaps. In any case, Max Lake’s memoirs are a nice view into what he originally set out to do with this label, and where it sits in the grand scheme of Australian wine.
A striking, pungent nose showing tobacco leaf, raw spice, fragrant cabernet fruit, sweet earth and a whole lot else besides. It’s really quite complex and distinctive — no doubt too distinctive for some tastes. Certainly not one for Cabernet purists. Very flavoursome entry that starts cool and savoury, but quickly reveals a wider range of flavours. There is a core of moderately sweet dark fruit around which revolve a number of high toned notes: some vegetal, some earthy, some oak-derived. As with the nose, complexity of flavour is a standout. The wine is medium bodied and full of interesting textures, from detailed acidity to ripe tannins that seem to land on the tongue in silty globs. The latter become a gorgeous influence on the after palate, and help flavour to persist with good intensity through a decent finish. It’s young but very well balanced and extremely drinkable now.
This is quite a funky number and, looking back over my impressions of the 2005 Cabernet, perhaps more immediately accessible than its predecessor. I probably prefer the 2005 but this is a lovely wine, full of personality.
Lake’s Folly
Price: $A50
Closure: Cork
Date tasted: September 2008
Tyrrell's Single Vineyard Old Patch 1867 Shiraz 2007
The renowned GW called my attention to the trophy recently awarded to this wine at the 2008 Hunter Valley Wine Show. Congratulations, Tyrrell’s. What better excuse to taste it now?
A deep, dark purple hue, dense and inky. I really didn’t get anything from this wine for the first hour or so. It’s so tight. I must admit, I shook the bottle up before pouring my second glass and, after some further mistreatment in the glass, I’m smelling a range of aromas. First, black pepper and spice, then blackberry, clean and deep. A bit of sappy oak, then aniseed and ripe brambles round things out. It ends up being quite distinctive and characterful, but it’s not a wine that reaches out to you. Not right now, anyway.
The palate shows an interesting mix of elements, all tied to a core of assertive but integrated acid. Despite its primacy, somehow the acid feels unforced and already it sits within the overall context of the wine, rather than apart from it. But back to the entry, which is dark and alive with tart, clean blackberry flavour. Things open up as the wine moves confidently through a medium bodied mid palate, and it gathers quite remarkable intensity of flavour along the way. There’s some fruit sweetness and savoury spice, all of which is currently subservient to acid. I love the way it widens in the mouth, creating an impressive sense of scale without any hint of heaviness or excess. In fact, the whole wine strikes me as architectural in the precision of its form. The finish lingers well, although it lacks a sense of weight that, I imagine, will come as the acid softens.
This is a very clean, characterful wine, and its quality is undeniable. It’s also an infant. I suspect it needs a few years, if not decades, to blossom and reveal the full spectrum of its personality. It is completely different in style from the 4 Acres, being a much darker, more brooding wine, less exuberantly fragrant and expressive.
Irrespective of whether you like this wine, it’s nice to be given the opportunity to taste the fruits of remarkable vineyards (or sections therein) that would otherwise disappear into larger production labels. Viewed from this perspective, the Old Patch and 4 Acres wines are an instant lesson in Hunter Valley Shiraz, its common character but also the range of styles that exist within its ranks. Perhaps the outmoded “Burgundy” nomenclature was appropriate in ways we’re only now beginning to see.
Tyrrell’s
Price: $A35
Closure: Stelvin
Date tasted: August 2008
Tyrrell's 4 Acres Shiraz 2007
This label seems to have gathered quite a following over its short life. I count myself amongst its fans. Ever since Gary Walsh created a stir with his review on Winorama, I’ve been particularly excited to taste the 2007 vintage.
The most lovely purple-red hue, deep and moderately dense. To smell, it’s very “4 Acres” but in an altogether deeper register. The characteristically pretty red and blue fruit is there yet, compared to previous vintages, it demonstrates greater, quite extraordinary extension into the bass octaves. With only minimal swirling, an array of other aromas; earth, minerals, purple flowers, the slightest hint of gum leaf; emerge to create significant complexity. There’s also a slightly funky, barnyard dimension that strikes me as essentially regional, though very much secondary. I’ve been smelling this for a good half hour now and remain fascinated by each twist and turn the wine takes.
To the palate, then. So much goes on here, and it’s so attractive, I find it hard to respond analytically. But I’ll try. First, the acid. Structurally, this wine is driven by acid rather than tannin, so the acid’s quality is both critical and highly exposed. The attack is not overwhelming in this regard; instead, acidity builds linearly over the tongue, like a wedge that opens up from front to back of the mouth. It’s finely textured, three dimensional, and would be enough on its own to make a lesser wine worthwhile.
But it’s not on its own here. Flavours that precisely echo the nose run in and around the acidity, winding their way across the palate. The 4 Acres is always intense and finely etched but, as with the nose, there’s a density and depth here that goes beyond my previous experience of this wine. Body is also up on previous vintages. When you add acid to the mix, the effect is not unlike the richest textured velvet caressing one’s tongue. Silt-like, ripe tannins make a contribution to this texture. There’s a climax of acidity on the after palate, and then it all relaxes into a shapely finish that goes on for some time. Sensuous, complex and delicious.
If I were to highlight one quality this wine possesses above all others, it would be an immaculate line. From initial smell to lingering finish, there’s a sense of wholeness and integrity here that unifies each individual component and delivers a wine that, in the end, has its own philosophy. Whether you enjoy it as much as I do will, I suspect, hinge on whether you can relate to its point of view. It had me enthralled.
Tyrrell’s
Price: $A35
Closure: Stelvin
Date tasted: August 2008
Lake's Folly Chardonnay 2006
This is the current release Lake’s Folly white, although I believe it sells out rather quickly, so its currency is rather academic. Lake’s Folly, as a winery, fascinates me. It is historic in terms of the modern Australian wine industry, has deviated little from its original purpose (releasing just two wines each year, and white and a red), exists in a currently daggy wine region and seems to fly under the radar most of the time. And yet its wines remain sought after. I think that’s pretty cool.