A mixed bag of some of the more interesting recent wines.

Firstly a tasting last Tuesday of Yalumba wines with one of their
winemakers, Jane Ferrari, who was great fun. This is a bit of travelling
show in someways and if it comes your way I wouldn't hestitate to
recommend it.

2002 Y Series Riesling (£7)
Slightly rosy nose, floral and easy to drink, perhaps slightly thin but
good value.

2003 Y Series Viognier (£7)
From the show of hands I was one of several that hadn't had Oz Viognier
before, but this was very nice, lovely nose, flowery and peaches, reminded
of Gewurztraminer. Some richness. Nice and my vote for best value wine of
the evening.

2002 Barossa Chardonnay (£7.49)
Junior Burgundy. Didn't suffer the far too common Oz Over Oaking syndrome.
Some oak, nice fruit, slightly buttery, decent length. Chardonnay at this
price is usual dreary, this wasn't.

2002 Eden Valley Viognier (£12)
The bigger brother of the Y series (there's a third the Virgilius which is
the premium one but wasn't on tasting). Much more serious but demanding of
some effort to appreciate, whilst all the other wines were much more laid
back. Intense nose, peaches again, richer and more complex than the Y.
Good but I'd probably drink the Y more often.

2002 Y Series Merlot (£7)
The one wine of the night that fell flat for me. Jammy nose, some
cherries, main impression in the mouth was lots of alcohol with some
acidity and tannin. Distinctly uninteresting.

2002 Barossa Shiraz (£9)
Doesn't make much of it but this also has a splash of Viognier (5% I think
was the figure mentioned), since the other Oz wine I've had with this
blend is D'Arenberg's Laughing Magpie which is huge, I was surprised by
now smooth and approachable this was. Viognier came through on the nose,
Very velvety. Good and good QPR.

1998 Menzies Cabernet Sauvignon (£18.50)
Dry Cab Sauv nose with some oak. The first thing you notice on tasting
this is tannins which are exceptionally dry, otherwise solid with some
mint, also a little bit hot. Apparently this is just beginning to come
round but the suggestions was you'd still need to give it five years and
have some faith it will get there. Decided I didn't have enough experience
to have that faith.

1998 Signature Cabernet Shiraz (£18.0)
On sheer quality this was the pick of the night even if the Shiraz and Y
Viognier probably win for QPR. Well rounded, lots of rich fruit (rhubarb)
and much more approachable than the Menzies.


For a completely different tasting the previous Thursday. This was
celebratory tasting as the store had had a host of good news recently.

1996 Pol Roger (£40)
Second time I've had this, previous being at a tutored Champagne tasting a
year or so ago when it was my pick of the night. Hasn't got any worse.
Full, nice biscuit yeastiness; almost colourless, slightly yellow. Intense
but not too dry but slightly hard mousse.

2001 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Perrieres 2001, Charles Thomas (£35)
I going to a tasting of this domaine next Thursday but hadn't come across
them before this. Had been open about 2 hours when we tried it. Oaky nose
but struck me as having a slightly stale edge, light gold. Mild, soft and
creamy but with a fair amount going on.

1998 Batard-Montrachet Grand Cru 1998 Vincent Girardin (£93)

Oh boy, don't have much experience at this price level, and certainly
haven't had white Burgundy of this quality before. Very dark yellow, rich
butter and fennel nose, very enticing. Very oaky, rich, full and long,
hint of sweetness. Long. "Everything in one mouthful" was Julie's comment.
"Please sir, can I have some more?"

1996 Beaune 1er Cru Clos des Ursules, Louis Jadot (£40)

This had come very recently from Jadot's cellars and those who had tasted
it before thought it was evolving much slower than the other bottles they
tried. Nose was very restrained, in the mouth there was quite a bit of
acid, some fruit, quite barnyardy and restrained. Bit disappointing for me
(probably accentuated by the company it was in).

1998 Antinori Tignanello (£48)
Dark with a scarlet rim. Restrained oaky nose. Rich, dark fruit. This
needs time.

2000 Antinori Tignanello (from a magnum £95)
Hefty. Much richer and more powerful than 98, almost OTT. A beguiling
fruit bomb. I was unusual in expressing a preference for the '98, this
just seemed too big.

2000 La Spinetta Barbaresco, Vigneto Valeirano (£76)
Not sure I've had a Barbaresco before. I'll be having more! Very dark,
masses of dark cherries in a rich and wonderful nose I could have spend a
long time just sniffing this. Lush and full with lots of tannins in the
mouth. Very good and needs time.


And finally a couple of Red Burgundies drunk at home on consecutive
nights.

1985 Cotes de Nuits Villages, Pierre Bouree Fils

This was picked up acouple of weeks ago at bin end sale with a impeccable
providence for £10, with the thought of it might be over the hill but
probably couldn't fail to be interesting in someway. Colour was the best
indication of age; a light reddish brown. Dry nose, quite restrained with
some soft fruit. Light in the mouth with typical red berries and
surprisingly firm tannins. It went very well with plain baked salmon and
given the problems I have in finding reliably good Red Burg in this price
area was definitely worthwhile.

2000 Santenay, Roger Belland
Dark red with a reasonably full nose. Bigger in the mouth the '85
unsurprisingly but otherwise very little difference (this was opened the
night before and still had a some left so I compared them). Okay but not
very exciting. (£12)


Regards

Ian

Hi Ian

Interesting to see your TNs and thought I'd offer mine for comparison.
I certainly recognise the wines in what you wrote, and largely agree,
but seem to differ on a couple of opinions.

If anyone else is dropping by and reading this, please don't take my
notes too seriously - they were really written only for my own
benefit, and have only been lightly edited. Points are out of 10, and
really mainly indicate my enyoyment at the time!

On Sat, 06 Mar 2004 20:51:28 +0000, "Ian Glover" >
wrote:

>2002 Y Series Riesling (£7)
>Slightly rosy nose, floral and easy to drink, perhaps slightly thin but
>good value.

Pale straw. Feint floral nose, icing sugar. Dry (actually off-dry
according to Jane). Lemony. Medium length. Acidic finish.
Refreshing. Not great. 7.0

>2003 Y Series Viognier (£7)
>From the show of hands I was one of several that hadn't had Oz Viognier
>before, but this was very nice, lovely nose, flowery and peaches, reminded
>of Gewurztraminer. Some richness. Nice and my vote for best value wine of
>the evening.

(Agree with Ian about VFM. Hope to buy some of this sometime soon.
And I know what you mean about Gewurtz. T my untutored taste, I also
think Pinot Gris has some of the same characters.)

Light greeny gold. Sweet viognier smell. Typical 'Orange blossom and
stone fruit' according to Jane, and I wouldn't argue. Off-dry. Medium
acid. Spicey orange. Cinnamon and ginger. Excellent length. 9.0

>2002 Barossa Chardonnay (£7.49)
>Junior Burgundy. Didn't suffer the far too common Oz Over Oaking syndrome.
>Some oak, nice fruit, slightly buttery, decent length. Chardonnay at this
>price is usual dreary, this wasn't.

(I found it pretty dreay BTW. I'm all for a dollop of oak to give
cheaper Chards a lift!)

Pale straw. Feint peachy nose. Dry. Medium acid. OK length. 6.5

>2002 Eden Valley Viognier (£12)
>The bigger brother of the Y series (there's a third the Virgilius which is
>the premium one but wasn't on tasting). Much more serious but demanding of
>some effort to appreciate, whilst all the other wines were much more laid
>back. Intense nose, peaches again, richer and more complex than the Y.
>Good but I'd probably drink the Y more often.

Pale greeny gold. Medium alcoholic nose. Off dry. Low acid.
Excellent length. Drink now. Not as good as the cheaper Viognier IMO
(and I was not the only one that thought that) 8.0

>2002 Y Series Merlot (£7)
>The one wine of the night that fell flat for me. Jammy nose, some
>cherries, main impression in the mouth was lots of alcohol with some
>acidity and tannin. Distinctly uninteresting.

Medium raspberry red. Intense jammy raspberry and strawberry. Off
dry. Low-medium acid. Low tannin. Excellent length. Bitter finish.
7.0

>2002 Barossa Shiraz (£9)
>Doesn't make much of it but this also has a splash of Viognier (5% I think
>was the figure mentioned), since the other Oz wine I've had with this
>blend is D'Arenberg's Laughing Magpie which is huge, I was surprised by
>now smooth and approachable this was. Viognier came through on the nose,
>Very velvety. Good and good QPR.

(It was 5% Viognier)

Medium ruby. Intense spicy nose. Aromatic and mouth-watering nose.
Off-dry. Low-medium acid. Low tannin. OK length. Very nice floral
and spicey finish. 8.0

>1998 Menzies Cabernet Sauvignon (£18.50)
>Dry Cab Sauv nose with some oak. The first thing you notice on tasting
>this is tannins which are exceptionally dry, otherwise solid with some
>mint, also a little bit hot. Apparently this is just beginning to come
>round but the suggestions was you'd still need to give it five years and
>have some faith it will get there. Decided I didn't have enough experience
>to have that faith.

(Jane kept apologising for the tannins. Personally this was the first
wine I really noticed tannins at all on, and it was quite a pleasant
surprise. Maybe been drinking too many old world reds recently.)

Intense ruby. Intense dark fruit and spice and peppermint nose. Dry.
Low-med acid. Low-medium tannin. Good length. Chocolatey finish. 8.5

>1998 Signature Cabernet Shiraz (£18.0)
>On sheer quality this was the pick of the night even if the Shiraz and Y
>Viognier probably win for QPR. Well rounded, lots of rich fruit (rhubarb)
>and much more approachable than the Menzies.

Intense ruby. Feint nose, with some icing sugar maybe. Tobacco on
what's left in glass. Off dry. low-med acid. Red fruit. Medium
tannin, good mouthfeel. Bitter, coffee finish. 9.0

>For a completely different tasting the previous Thursday. This was
>celebratory tasting as the store had had a host of good news recently.
>
>1996 Pol Roger (£40)
>Second time I've had this, previous being at a tutored Champagne tasting a
>year or so ago when it was my pick of the night. Hasn't got any worse.
>Full, nice biscuit yeastiness; almost colourless, slightly yellow. Intense
>but not too dry but slightly hard mousse.

(Must admit I neither know much about, nor really appreciate
Champagne.)

Pale straw. Feint nose. Excellent bubbles. Low-medium acidity but
noticable. Pleasant and biscuity, with lemon. 8.0

>2001 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Perrieres 2001, Charles Thomas (£35)
>I going to a tasting of this domaine next Thursday but hadn't come across
>them before this. Had been open about 2 hours when we tried it. Oaky nose
>but struck me as having a slightly stale edge, light gold. Mild, soft and
>creamy but with a fair amount going on.

Medium gold. Peach and oak on nose. Dry. Low-medium acidity.
Excellent length. Floral perfumed finished. Oaky. Nice now. 9.0

>1998 Batard-Montrachet Grand Cru 1998 Vincent Girardin (£93)
>
>Oh boy, don't have much experience at this price level, and certainly
>haven't had white Burgundy of this quality before. Very dark yellow, rich
>butter and fennel nose, very enticing. Very oaky, rich, full and long,
>hint of sweetness. Long. "Everything in one mouthful" was Julie's comment.
>"Please sir, can I have some more?"

Deep gold. Intense. Oaky. Citrus, honey, spice, flowers on nose.
Dry. Medium acidity. Viscous. Excellent honey and spice finish.
For me, not as good in mouth as nose suggested. 9.5

>1996 Beaune 1er Cru Clos des Ursules, Louis Jadot (£40)
>
>This had come very recently from Jadot's cellars and those who had tasted
>it before thought it was evolving much slower than the other bottles they
>tried. Nose was very restrained, in the mouth there was quite a bit of
>acid, some fruit, quite barnyardy and restrained. Bit disappointing for me
>(probably accentuated by the company it was in).

(The comany? Hope you mean the wines rather than your dirnking
comanions :-)

Light garnet. Intense pinot nose, with some mushroom and spice.
Dry. Low acid. Med-high tannin. Really disappointing for me. 6.0

>1998 Antinori Tignanello (£48)
>Dark with a scarlet rim. Restrained oaky nose. Rich, dark fruit. This
>needs time.

Intense ruby. Feint nose. Dry. Medium acid. High, but good, tannin.
Soft fruit. Disappointing now. Needs more time to soften tannins,
for me at least! 7.5

>2000 Antinori Tignanello (from a magnum £95)
>Hefty. Much richer and more powerful than 98, almost OTT. A beguiling
>fruit bomb. I was unusual in expressing a preference for the '98, this
>just seemed too big.

Intense ruby. Complex bouquet. Intense fruit. Medium tannin. Good
mouthfeel. Drinking better now than the 1998. 9.0

>2000 La Spinetta Barbaresco, Vigneto Valeirano (£76)
>Not sure I've had a Barbaresco before. I'll be having more! Very dark,
>masses of dark cherries in a rich and wonderful nose I could have spend a
>long time just sniffing this. Lush and full with lots of tannins in the
>mouth. Very good and needs time.

Medium garnet. Amoratic tar on nose, with cherry notes. Dry. Low
acid, but distinctive. Orange and spice. Medium-high tannin. Good
mouthfeel. Excellent length. Multifaceted finish. Just wanted to
grab the bottle and disappear into a comfy chair in a quiet corner
with this one! 9.5

--
Steve Slatcher
http://pobox.com/~steve.slatcher

On Sat, 06 Mar 2004 22:04:36 +0000, Steve Slatcher
> wrote:

>Hi Ian
>
>Interesting to see your TNs and thought I'd offer mine for comparison.
>I certainly recognise the wines in what you wrote, and largely agree,
>but seem to differ on a couple of opinions.
>
>If anyone else is dropping by and reading this, please don't take my
>notes too seriously - they were really written only for my own
>benefit, and have only been lightly edited. Points are out of 10, and
>really mainly indicate my enyoyment at the time!
>
>On Sat, 06 Mar 2004 20:51:28 +0000, "Ian Glover" >
>wrote:
>
>>2002 Y Series Riesling (£7)
>>Slightly rosy nose, floral and easy to drink, perhaps slightly thin but
>>good value.
>
>Pale straw. Feint floral nose, icing sugar. Dry (actually off-dry
>according to Jane). Lemony. Medium length. Acidic finish.
>Refreshing. Not great. 7.0
>
>>2003 Y Series Viognier (£7)
>>From the show of hands I was one of several that hadn't had Oz Viognier
>>before, but this was very nice, lovely nose, flowery and peaches, reminded
>>of Gewurztraminer. Some richness. Nice and my vote for best value wine of
>>the evening.
>
>(Agree with Ian about VFM. Hope to buy some of this sometime soon.
>And I know what you mean about Gewurtz. T my untutored taste, I also
>think Pinot Gris has some of the same characters.)
>

Thanks for these notes. Ian That must have been a fun event.
It's good to read your praises of teh Viognier as I just bought 3
bottles yesterday. ( It was just released in Ontario)
I guess I will open one sooner that I thought I would. (possibly
tonight) So maybe I'll get a few more.
cheers
Zed


---
"Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four essential food groups:
Alcohol, Caffeine, Sugar & Fat"