Well now, some of us have very bubbly personalities and today was the day for them, We had a great masterclass tasting of the best of Australian sparkling wines from Tony Jordan and Ed Carr. A few interesting things came out of the pre-tasting discussion. In Australia, some 70% of the bottle-fermented wines are made by the transfer method, something of which I had been unaware. This is a method where the yeast sediment is removed by filtration rather than riddling and disgorging. It gives exactly the same quality as the traditional method but adds uniformity across bottles (all the wine is blended then re-bottled) and is very cost effective.
We started with Domaine Chandon's Z*D 2005, a zero dosage wine. Tony gave me a dirty look for saying it was broad - I think he'd have preferred rich! This was followed by the 2004 Yarra Burn Blanc de Blancs and then the somewhat oxidatively styled 2004 Josef Chromy Pinot Noir Chardonnay from Tasmania. A really nice Brown Brothers "Patricia" 2004 followed, and then a lovely Arras Grand Vintage 2003 from Tasmania. This was really good.
Then some late disgorged wines: a Chandon 2002, a Jansz 2001, a Hardys Sir James 2000, a Petaluma Croser 1998, an Arras 1998 and a Hanging Rock Cuvee VIII NV. This last was a bit odd but the rest were pretty good.
Then, two roses, a Bay of Fires and a 2005 Chandon, this latter being very good. I found the Bay of Fires fair to good, which has always been my experience with this wine.
Finally, the star of the show for me - Seppelt's Show Sparkling Shiraz 1994. What a wine! Still youthful in style, showing clear Grampians regional character, with a really rich, deep but well balanced palate. Yummy! Really yummy.
About Me
- DermotMW
- Dublin, Ireland
- Hi, I'm Dermot Nolan, and I became a Master of Wine (MW) in 1997, and resigned from the Institute of Masters of Wine in 2023 after being an MW for exactly 26 years. I opened a wine shop in Dún Laoghaire, Ireland, called The Wine Library, which closed in 2018, and this is my personal wine blog. I will do my utmost to be fair and responsible in my posts – please read my Who Pays article in re the ethics of wine trips and writing. I have worked in wine education, retail, and consultancy since 1990. I was a Director of the Institute of Masters of Wine (IMW) from 2008 to 2014 and was also a member of the Events Committee, founder of the Trips Committee, and member of the Governance Committee. Having had problems with potentially libellous comments from unidentifiable posters, I now require that if you post a comment, you must identify yourself properly or it won't be published. Please note that I do not review products or services on request so kindly don't ask. I value my independence and I believe my readers (few that they may be) do so also.
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