2006 SPINIFEX ESPRIT - THAT'S THE SPIRIT!

In the past decade or so, Spinifex has established itself as one of the Barossa Valley’s leading lights. It has done so thanks to an understated approach, one that respects the high quality fruit and the history of southern Rhône blends in their native France. It is not surprising that many Spinifex wines have a European sensibility, albeit lent a Barossa Valley accent.

Esprit is one of several multi-varietal blends bottled at Spinifex. In this instance, it is a blend of Mataro (34%), Grenache (31%), Shiraz (30%) and Cinsault (5%). Six years on from vintage, there is evidence of development, with the wine displaying a mix of floral and slightly earthbound aromatics, which are reflected on the palate.

Although the tannins are soft and plush, there is sufficient depth of fruit to suggest that the wine is capable of developing further in bottle for at least another 4-5 years. Of course, it depends on how you like your wine. For many, it is at a very good point now.

2006 ESPRIT
Producer: Spinifex
Variety: Grenache et al
Vintage: 2006
Region: Barossa Valley, South Australia
ABV: 14.5%
Closure: Diam
Format: 750ml
Retail price: N/a
Date tasted: 23 June 2012

Tasting Note:
Deep ruby. Bright nose, touch of lilac/violet, slightly earthy pointing towards bottle development, powdered cocoa, plum, blackberry. Dry, rich and full bodied, velvet texture, relatively low acidity, plum/briar interwoven with cocoa, gamey/earth notes. Good length.
Score: 16.5/20

2009 SUAVIA 'MONTE CARBONARE' SOAVE CLASSICO - A VERY SUAVE SOAVE

Soave is a name all too often associated with thin, insipid and watery wine grown on the plains of the Veneto region between Vicenza and Verona. However, there are a number of quality producers flying the flag for Soave and the Garganega grape variety. One leading producer is appropriately named Suavia. This family-owned estate dates back to the late 1800’ss, but it wasn’t until a century later that the Tessari family decided to bottle their own wines, rather than sell their fruit to the local cooperative.

The 2009 Soave Classico ‘Monte Carbonare’ has deservedly met with many positive reviews in Italy. It is a single vineyard wine, fermented in stainless steel. It sees 15 months on lees, contributing to the wine’s bright colour and lending textural weight. Malolactic fermentation is blocked, which helps the wine to retain a fine spine of acidity.

On pouring, the wine is noticeably deeper in colour than many Soaves, golden yellow rather than a watery white. It literally jumps out of the glass, with attractive peach, pear, honeysuckle and floral notes. This extremely well made Soave is full flavoured and dangerously moreish. Although there is plenty of flavour, it is extremely well balanced and never flirts with excess. It is a wine that will convert many to the wonders of Italian white wine.

Although drinking well now, the producer notes that it can be aged for 8-10 years, during which time it should build textural weight and more honeyed notes will develop.

2009 SOAVE CLASSICO ‘MONTE CARBONARE’
Producer: Azienda Agricole Suavia
Variety: Garganega
Vintage: 2009
Region: Veneto, Italy
ABV: 13.0%
Closure: Natural Cork
Format: 750ml
Retail price: $32.99
Date tasted: 23 June 2012

Tasting Note:
Bright golden yellow. Highly attractive nose of white peach, pear, toasted almond meal and honeysuckle. Dry, medium bodied, excellent fruit intensity, as per the nose, in the peach/pear vein, hint of creamed honey, all held in check by fine, well balanced acidity. Finishes long and dry. This is an excellent example of how good Soave can be; real depth of flavour.
Score: 17/20

LUKE LAMBERT SYRAH - THE WHOLE BUNCH

Luke Lambert is one of a host of relatively young winemakers utilising what some would consider to be a minimum intervention approach to producing their wines. Traditionally, Australian producers have been schooled to control the winemaking process, to play it safe and thereby eliminate potential risks.

Over the past decade, an increasing number of young and well travelled winemakers have chosen to tread a different path, allowing the wine to ferment naturally, eschewing the use of inoculated yeasts. There has been a trend among some toward whole bunch fermentation, that is, including whole bunches of grapes, often including the stems, in the fermentation vessel. This approach has long been used in Burgundy, where the technique originated, and by some New World Pinot Noir producers. However, it is not the traditional way to vinify Shiraz.

There is an increasing number of Australian Shiraz on the shelves these days made using whole bunch fermentation (in part or in full). Such wines tend to be characterised by bright aromatics and a supple even slippery texture with very fine tannins.  In terms of texture, they often possess a mouthfeel that is more akin to a Pinot Noir than a Shiraz. To some, the wines can be alluring and attractive, drinking well in their youth. To others, the wines can appear to lack structure and depth.  Like any wine, the quality of the raw materials is the most important factor.

Luke Lambert’s 2010 Syrah underwent wild yeast fermentation, with 60% whole bunches added. It was bottled without fining or filtration. Unlike some examples of ‘new wave’ whole bunch fermented Shiraz, the wine has genuine depth on both the nose and palate, a twist of ground black pepper lending authenticity to the Syrah moniker. Texture-wise, the wine is velvet smooth and polished, with fine grained near imperceptible tannins. While there is plenty of pleasure to be had already, there is sufficient depth of fruit to suggest that the wine should develop well in bottle for several years. Like any good wine, there clearly has been a sensitive hand at the winemaking tiller here, allowing the Yarra Valley fruit to come to the fore.

2010 SYRAH
Producer: Luke Lambert
Variety: Syrah/Shiraz
Vintage: 2010
Region: Yarra Valley, Victoria
ABV: 13.5%
Closure: Diam
Format: 750ml
Retail price: $40.00
Date tasted: 18 June 2012

Tasting Note:
Crimson, fading slightly toward the rim. Bright nose of blackberry, raspberry, ground black pepper, slightly meaty, violets adding floral lift. Dry, medium bodied, very plush, suave and polished, refined and elegant, dark fruit interwoven with star anise and fennel, gentle peppery note on the finish. Although very approachable in its youth, the wine should improve in bottle, at least over the medium term, with Rhône-like notes of charcuterie likely to emerge.
Score: 16.5+/20

HODDLES CREEK PINOT NOIR - BANG ON FOR VALUE

Yarra Valley producer Hoddles Creek has earned a deserved reputation for well priced high quality Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. At around $20, the Chardonnay represents outstanding value for money, matching many Chardonnays that are priced well over the $30 mark.

Although not quite in the league of the Chardonnay, the Hoddles Creek 2011 Pinot Noir is a very solid effort. Although a relatively simple wine, carried by cranberry and redcurrant fruit, it is dry, savoury and food friendly, attributes that many more ambitious New World Pinot Noirs often fail to deliver.

If placed in a Burgundian context, it is the equivalent of a modest Bourgogne Rouge from a good but not great producer. That said, there is plenty of pleasure to be had here, especially when the wine is enjoyed as it should be, in the context of appropriate food (in this instance, Roast Pork Belly, Caramelised Quince, Sautéed Chicory. With modest fruit intensity, this wine is unlikely to be a keeper, but it should improve in bottle over the next 12-18 months.

2011 PINOT NOIR
Producer: Hoddles Creek
Variety: Pinot Noir
Vintage: 2011
Region: Yarra Valley, Victoria
ABV: 13.2%
Closure: Screw cap
Format: 750ml
Retail price: $20.00
Date tasted: 17 June 2012

Tasting Note:
Light cherry red, transparent. Bright nose of cranberry and redcurrant, touch of rose petal lends floral lift. Dry, medium bodied and savoury, cranberry and redcurrant appear once again. Finishes with well balanced acidity. Although not a long term wine, it should improve in bottle over the next couple of years.
Score: 15/20

MUDDY WATER PINOT NOIR - SHE'S ALRIGHT!

Muddy Water is a small winery located in the Wairapara region on the east coast of New Zealand’s south island. Certified organic in 2011, it produces Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Syrah and, rather idiosyncratically, Pinotage.

Pinot Noir tends to fare well in Wairapara, thanks to its southerly latitude and cool maritime climate. This particular wine is one of three Pinot Noirs produced at Muddy Water. While it doesn’t possess the raw power of the flagship Slowhand Pinot Noir, it is arguably more elegant and truer to the variety.

Initially somewhat reticent on both the nose and the palate, the wine opens up over the course of half an hour or so to reveal varietal cherry, rhubarb and plum interwoven with floral aromatics. There’s good definition here, but just modest complexity at this point in time. That said, there is sufficient structure to suggest that there may be upside in cellaring for up to 5 years.

All in all, Muddy Water Pinot Noir is a good expression of the varietal and is a better wine that the more heavily extracted flagship Slowhand Pinot Noir from the same producer. Unlike many New World Pinot Noirs, it successfully combines ripeness with dryness, never flirting with confection. It is a wine worth watching over the next few years.

2009 PINOT NOIR
Producer: Muddy Water
Variety: Pinot Noir
Vintage: 2009
Region: Wairapara, New Zealand
ABV: 14.0%
Closure: Screw cap
Format: 750ml
Retail price: $34.99
Date tasted: 11 June 2012

Tasting Note:
Bright ruby red. Initially reticent, the nose opens up to reveal cherry, rhubarb, plum, liquorice and star anise. Medium bodied, dry and savoury, bright cherry/rhubarb fruit interwoven with liquorice. Acidity is well integrated and tannins are fine grained. Although of moderate interest at present, the wine opened up considerably over the course of 1-2 hours, suggesting that there might be upside in cellaring it for 4-5 years.
Score: 16/20

COOBARA WINES SHIRAZ - COOL CLIMATE IN A BOTTLE

Coobara Wines is a relatively young venture based near the Adelaide Hills town of Birdwood. This part of the Adelaide Hills is perhaps best known as the destination for the annual Bay to Birdwood car rally. Yet, as with many of Australia’s cooler climate regions, there has been an explosion in vine plantings over the past 10-20 years.

Established in 1992, Coobara Wines has achieved show success, including a Gold Medal at the 2009 International Cool Climate Show for this very wine, the 2007 Coobara Wines Shiraz. Of course, medals and trophies mean relatively little, as many of this country’s very best wines are never entered in competition.

So what of the wine? Texturely, it is medium bodied, and stylistically is unmistakeably cool climate. That said, there’s no black pepper or tapenade alluding toward the Rhône. This is very much an Australian wine, with hallmark menthol adding lift to bright cherry, raspberry and plum fruit. For a relatively modestly priced wine, there’s a fair bit to enjoy here, and there’s the added benefit of being able to find in on the shelf with 5 years bottle age.

This isn’t the most complex, rich, intense or powerful Shiraz one will ever come across, but a wine that delivers a decent amount of flavour and value for money at around $20 a bottle.  The wine held up well over after a couple of days in the fridge, suggesting it will drink for a few years yet.

2007 SHIRAZ
Producer: Coobara Wines
Variety: Syrah/Shiraz
Vintage: 2007
Region: Adelaide Hills, South Australia
ABV: 14.0%
Closure: Screw cap
Format: 750ml
Retail price: $19.99
Date tasted: 14 June 2012

Tasting Note:
Bright ruby red. Fruit driven nose of cherry, plum and raspberry, fig and menthol lending a touch of lift. Medium bodied, elegant mid-weight wine, tannins are soft and inobtrusive, fruit characters on the nose flow through to the palate, which displays reasonable concentration and decent enough length for the price.
Score: 15/20

HEWITSON OLD GARDEN MOURVÈDRE - A PIECE OF VINOUS HISTORY

The Barossa Valley is home to some of the world’s oldest Shiraz, Grenache and Mourvèdre vines. Few can be much older and gnarly than the vines that are the source of Dean Hewitson’s Old Garden Mourvèdre. Planted almost 160 years ago in 1853, these vines must be among the oldest vines on the planet to have been in continuous production. Consider the events that have passed since these vines took root on the Barossa Valley floor.

To anyone acquainted with the wines of Bandol, and some of the Mourvèdre-heavy blends of the southern Rhone, this wine is unmistakeably Mourvèdre. In its youth, it is a tautly structured wine, defined by powdery tannin, blackberry/blueberry fruit and dusty Mediterranean herbs. Over a decade in bottle has seen the tannins and primary fruit fade, revealing a complex and slightly earthbound wine that is savoury and gamey.

Although the Hewitson Old Garden Mourvèdre mightn’t ring everybody’s bell, it is a wine that lovers of wine, more particularly, lovers of authentic Australian wine, should try a mature example of at least once in their life.

2001 OLD GARDEN MOURVÈDRE
Producer: Hewitson Wines
Variety: Mourvèdre
Vintage: 2001
Region: Barossa Valley, South Australia
ABV: 14.5%
Closure: Natural Cork
Format: 750ml
Retail price: N/a
Date tasted: 16 June 2012

Tasting Note:
Bright ruby, fading to garnet. Alluring nose of lavender, cocoa, tilled earth, blackberry, dusty herbs, hung game. Dry and savoury, at the medium end of full bodied, tannins have resolved to the point of being imperceptible, quite earthbound, cocoa, rosemary. Good length.
Score: 17/20

NV MORRIS CELLAR RESERVE GRAND LIQUEUR MUSCAT - LIQUID GOLD

We’ve talked about the odd piece of Australian wine history on these pages. Here is another, Rutherglen stalwart Morris wines. Although it has been absorbed into the global Pernod Ricard empire, a visit to Morris is like it always has been. Stepping into the cellar door is like taking a step back in time. Barrels of liquid gold, liqueur Muscat, Tawny ‘Port’ and the unfortunately rebranded Topaque mature under the galvanised iron roof.

As the name suggests, the Cellar Reserve range is available only at cellar door, a suitable reward for those prepared to make the journey to Rutherglen. In an era when Rutherglen stickies are no longer the dead set bargains they used to be, but are attracting the prices they merit, the Cellar Reserve releases from Morris are the stand-out in terms of quality and value.

The Cellar Reserve Grand Liqueur Muscat is deep mahogany, verging towards black in colour, indicative of a high proportion of aged material. The nose is at once captivating and complex, delivery an array of dried fruit, spices and burnt toffee, all of which are reflected on the palate, plus more. It is a wine to enjoy on its own at the end of a meal as a dessert in its own right, or balanced by a salty blue cheese such as Stilton or Roquefort.

N.V. CELLAR RESERVE GRAND LIQUEUR MUSCAT
Producer: Morris
Variety: Fortified Muscat
Vintage: Non-vintage
Region: Rutherglen, Victoria
ABV: 17.0%
Closure: Screw cap
Format: 500ml
Retail price: $32.00
Date tasted: 9 June 2012

Tasting Note:
Deep mahogany, fading ever so slightly at the rim. Open and inviting nose of raisins, toffee, molasses, apricots, fig, dried peel, star anise, liquorice, tar. Rich, lusciously sweet, opulent, the nose follows through to the palate, which is thick and viscous. You really don’t need much of this wine – a little goes a long way as there is so much power, sweetness and complexity.
Score: 17.5/20

2009 FIANO SANNIO - THE GREAT WHITE GRAPE OF SOUTHERN ITALY

Fiano is one of the great white grape’s of Italy’s south, producing fuller bodied wines from the hilly hinterland of Naples in Campania. Fiano d’Avellino is the best known DOC here and arguably the source of the some of the finest examples of Fiano. This particular wine is from the lesser known Sannio DOC. Like Avellino, it is characterised by undulating hills. Soils are a mixture of clay and limestone.

The wine, from family-owned producer Corte Normanna captures the essence of the Fiano grape. It is a wine that screams peaches and honeysuckle, with lemony acidity lending freshness. While not overly complex, it possesses a lovely texture that is weighty, but never heavy. It makes an excellent food wine, and in this instance was the perfect foil for a simple and very Italian dish of Prawns in Lemon Olive Oil.

The 2009 Fiano Sannio from Corte Normanna is an excellent introduction to the great white wines of Italy’s south, and represents a good benchmark to compare Australian efforts with this exciting varietal.

2009 FIANO SANNIO
Producer: Corte Normanna
Variety: Fiano
Vintage: 2009
Region: Campania, Italy
ABV: 14.0%
Closure: Natural Cork
Format: 750ml
Retail price: $30.00
Date tasted: 11 May 2012

Tasting Note:
Bright lemon yellow. Fresh aromatic nose of peach, touch of lemon citrus, slightly honeyed, floral notes. Dry, medium bodied, nicely rounded palate with good fruit weight and intensity, balanced by fine acidity. Finishes long and fine.
Score: 16.5/20