When you’re in the dark don’t strike a match

In which I explain my views on some trends and why they may not be important.

Along the way we were given a list of new trends, which was essentially a buzzword bingo lexicon. Cooler sites, early picking, natural acidity, good sulfites, reductive handling, struck match and so on – a range of phrases representing the current trends in relation to new wine styles in Australia.

Slovenian rhapsody

On Tuesday 5th February a tasting of Slovenian wines was hosted in Dublin by Liam and Sinead Cabot, and a very good tasting it was too. This is not the first time that such a tasting has been held here but it is a brave step for a small importer to take and I commend Liam and Sinead for doing this, especially in these tough times. Most of the wines shown would retail around €15 so these are in the top 5% or less of all retail wine sales in Ireland! However, for those adventurous souls willing to experiment there are great rewards ahead.

Love of the sea

I am currently in South africa judging at the Michelangelo CCL international Wine Awards and decided to take the chance to visit Chris Williams, the current head wine maker at Meerlust. With me was one of my fellow judges, Guiseppe Rizzardi of the Guerrieri Rizzardi Estate in Verona. Meerlust means love of the sea, hence the title!

Burgundy - the lovliest wine region in the world

Yes, there might be places with more extreme scenery (the Western Cape, for example) but nowhere can really produce wines like you get in Burgundy. They aren't all good but the best are fantastic and really can change the way you think about wine. Linda Jotham MW came over to give this lecture and presented a very good class with a great tasting. As always, stockists/suppliers in parentheses, details at the end.

Anything but...

I never got the ABC thing - why would you not want to drink chardonnay? A bunch of idiots decided that chardonnay was boring so started Anything But Chardonnay because they were too stupid to see what chardonnay has to offer. Let's examine this. Chardonnay is a grape so, be default, can be no more or less boring than any inarticulate living thing. Ah no, they say, there's a lot of dull, homogeneous chardonnay wines out there. Oh right, so it's the winemakers who are boring then? Well, why didn't you all get up off your backsides and find the good chardonnays, the ones that show the range of styles and flavours this grape offers? Because you're lazy - end of story.
By the way, if my comments offend anyone, good - and don't bother complaining because I won't listen.
Chardonnay comes after riesling, in my opinion, but far exceeds other varieties in the range of wines it can produce. Crisp and lean or broad and round, with or without oak, big and massive or light and delicate they're all possible. Chardonnay is also a very savoury grape - it makes wines that go so well with food. So, if you're the kind of person who finds wine confusing (which it can be) and you're wondering whose opinions to follow in re chardonnay, let me help you. Listen to me - drink more chardonnay. Then learn about wine and drink loads of other wines as well BUT never, ever just follow the herd and stop drinking some of the best wines you can buy.
It's 07:15 here and, as you can see, I'm not an early morning person!
Yesterday we kicked off with chardonnay and had a lovely tasting, all of the 2006 vintage: Tyrell's Vat 47 (Hunter), Cullen Kevin John (Margaret River), Vasse Felix Heytesbury (MR), Leeuwin Estate Art Series (MR), Shaw + Smith M3 (Adelaide Hills), Tapanappa Tiers Vineyard (AH), Giaconda Estate Vineyard (Beechworth), Bindi Wine Growers Quartz (Macedon Ranges), Stonier KBS Vineyard (MOrnington Peninsula), Oakridge 864 (Yarra Valley), Tarra Warra MDB (Yarra), Freycinet Vineyard (Tasmania), Hardy's Eileen hardy (Tasmania, Yarra, Tumbarumba) and Penfold's Yattarna (Tasmania, Adelaide Hills, Henty).
This was a lovely range of wines, from the lemony wines of Margaret River to the classically big Giaconda to an excellent Yattarna. Overall, there were elegant, fresh styles as well as bigger styles but all showed great class. The Giaconda is an interesting wine in light of the ABC nonsense. It's big and fairly in your face (the Leeuwin falls into this category as well) but so what? These are quintessentially Australian in that the average Australian is big and friendly and these wines are like that. They're not big and loud, just generous and welcoming. hen you want a more delicate style (or if that's what you prefer) don't say these are bad, just switch to another wine.

Tasting delights 1

It is currently misty in the Barossa - I can barely see 100 m even at 7:07 am! Yesterday we had a fabulous range of wines to taste - given that we can expect the range to be better today we're in for a treat.
Yesterday afternoon's session was a chance to taste some fairly classic wines from some fairly classic regions. First off were two rieslings - a Clare Valley wine: Grosset Polish Hills 2008, and an Eden Valley wine, Pewsey Vale "The Contours" 2002. Both were very good although in different styles, especially age. The Grosset was typical with lime and mineral notes while the Pewsey Vale was round and supple and as close to perfection as you're likely to taste.
Next up was a fairly mature Tyrell's Vat 1 Semillon from the Hunter. What was interesting here was how little aged character it showed, being still somewhat herbaceous although there were some toasty notes on the palate. It was a really good example of the style. Nest two chardonnays, a Leeuwin Estate Art Series 2005 from Margaret River and a Petaluma Piccadilly 2006 from Adelaide Hills. These were two quite contrasting wines. The first is an "old style" Aussie chardonnay, quite big and ripe yet still very fresh and showing no sign of the 100% new oak in which it was fermented and matured. Lovely stuff and why, oh why do people persist in drinking sauvignon blanc when there are wines like this around? The Petaluma was a more restrained style and absoluely gorgeous - more Burgundian perhaps but very savoury.
Next we had a pinot noir from Geelong, Gary Farr's By Farr Sangreal 2006. This had a lovely, elegant nose and fruity entry but, for me, was slightly tannic on the finish. I gather our pinot nour flight later this week will be blind so we have some arguments ahead, I reckon!
Then two cabernet based wines, Vanya Cullen's 2001 Diana Madeline Cabernet Merlot from Margaret River and Wynn's John Riddoch Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2004. Both were very good wines, with the merlot component in the Cullen wine giving it a slightly rounder feel. The general response to a question as to te perceived supremacy between the regions was that Margaret River was excelling currently but that Coonawarra should be better.
Then a flight of four shiraz. First, a controversial Brokenwood Graveyard 1998 from the Hunter. I found this wine poor but there was a general response that this was Hunter style. However, at dinner we had a second bottle and, for me, it was better - it still had the sort of red fruit style that Hunter shiraz is known for but was also fresher and rounder. Then a Mt Langhi Ghiran Langhi 2004 from Grampians. I was saddened at dinner to learn from James Halliday that the guiding light of Mt Langhi Ghiran, Trevor Mast, has got Alzheimer's and that he is no longer involved at the winery. The wine was a classic Mt Langhi style with subtle pepper spice and a slightly firm palate.
Then Henschke's Mt Edelstone 2006 from Eden Valley - what a wine! Supple and subtle and about as perfect a shiraz as you could want. Stunningly drinkable right now yet with a great potential to age. Then Penfold's RWT 2004 from Barossa. Another elegant style with a bit more chocolate character than the Mt Edelstone yet also drinking well despite being a great wine for ageing. Finally, a Glaetzer Anaperenna Shiraz Cabernet 2006 from the Barossa. A much bigger style than the previous two - I think this is a Glaetzer style - but with great richness and balance. A modern take, perhaps, on the big Barossa style but I always find their wines to be very good.
The last wine of the afternoon was De Bortoli's Noble One Bortytis Semillon 2006 from Riverina. Gorgeously sweet yet with a clean acid structure it was yummy.

We're off to see the wizards...

Those wonderful wizards of Oz - the only question, then, is who is the lion, the scarecrow, the tin man and who is Dorothy? Well, this morning saw us leaving out hotel bright and early for a quick visit to the Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI) where we did a mini-mini Advanced Wine Assessment Course (AWAC). Normally, an AWAC is a four day tasting calibration session but we did just two short flights of riesling and then shiraz. I had done a one-day version of this earlier this year in Dublin.Today, my red scores were pretty good although the whites were a little variable. Oh well, early morning, perhaps?
Then on to the Barossa where we have been lodged in the sumptuous Louise - check out www.thelouise.com.au to see what sort of place we have been incarcerated in! Cruel and inhuman, I'm sure you'll agree LOL. Our afternoon session was a quick review of Australian regions with an excellent tasting to go with it - Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 2008, Clare Valley; Pewsey Vale The Contours Riesling 2002, Eden Valley; Tyrell's Vat 1 Semillon 1998, Hunter Valley; Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay 2005, Margaret River; Petaluma Piccadilly Chardonnay 2006, Adelaide Hills; By Farr Sangreal Pinot Noir 2006, Geelong; Cullen Diana Madeline Cabernet Merlot 2001, Margaret River; Wynn's John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon 2004, Coonawarra; Brokenwood Graveyard Vineyard Shiraz 1998, Hunter Valley; Mt Langhi Ghiran Langhi 2004, Grampians; Henschke Mt Edelstone Shiraz 2006, Eden Valley; Penfold's RWT Shiraz 2004, Barossa; Glaetzer Anaperenna Shiraz Cabernet 2006, Barossa; and De Bortoli Noble one Botrytis Semillon 2006.
After such a line up what next? Well, shortly it's off to dinner to not only meet some of Australia's finest but also to taste some mini-verticals including Steingarten rieslings and even some pretty old wines - more on these tomorrow!