2019 Huntington Estate Merlot

Posted on March 2, 2021 by Tony Peters

If they could think and have an opinion in the land of the red grape, I wonder if ‘Tall Poppy Syndrome’ would be a thing.  Do you know what I mean?  When there is a ‘Noble Variety’ and a ‘most planted in Australia variety’, I sort of wondered where Merlot fits in among these tall poppies.  It doesn’t seem to have a tag like other varieties do, does it?  It just gets called ‘Merlot’.  And you know what, when you see good examples of the variety like this one, it doesn’t need a tag or to be know by anything other than what it proudly is.  Merlot.

It’s a lovely bright crimson colour with a slight youthful purple at the rim of the glass.  It’s definitely (and proudly) Merlot on the nose with plums, black fruits with just a little sweet fruit aroma coming through.  It’s elegantly medium bodied on the palate where it shows its varietal definition.  Plums, blackcurrants, some red fruit sort of ‘freshness’ and a hint of spice to top things off.  It has a nice, smooth and lingering finish even though the tannins are a tad drying but that’s okay with me.  Very much enjoyed it and I wasn’t the only one. 

Huntington Estate Website

Region: Mudgee, NSW     Price: $32     Source: Sample thanks to Huntington Estate

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2018 Huntington Estate Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon

Posted on February 27, 2021 by Tony Peters

I’m pretty sure I have mentioned before that these two varieties make for the perfect couple.  They just seem to get on so well together.  I know they are not exclusive because both have engaged in ensembles with other varieties separately and together and, thankfully, will continue to do so.  I’m happy with that because I know Shiraz and Cabernet will always come back together in the form of quality wines like this one from Huntington Estate.

A lovely deep purple/red colour shines in the glass as aromas of plums and blackberries seep into the atmosphere.  It reeks of youthfulness and freshness and it’s no different on the palate.  Heaps of dark fruit characters coat the palate and some herbs and hint of pepper complement the fruit.  There’s a top quality fine, dark chocolate like smoothness to it as well that I can’t describe better than that. It works beautifully with the abundant fruit characters.  This is a lovely wine, it really is, and for the price, incredible value.

Huntington Estate Website

Region: Mudgee, NSW     Price: $32     Source: Sample thanks to Huntington Estate

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2015 Levantine Hill Sparkling Rosé

Posted on February 16, 2021 by Tony Peters

Have you ever watched a fireworks display on New Year’s Eve?  The pyrotechnicians do an excellent job organising it, sending them up at particular times, in a particular order and with just the right interval in between.  Have you noticed how there will be some subtle colourful ones, then out of the middle of those comes a big, bright, loud and colourful one that lights up the sky?  The senses of sight and sound are stimulated on each occasion and, when it’s all over, you can’t help but marvel at what you’ve just witnessed and think, “They get better every year.”

This wine was like a fireworks display in a bottle, from the opening to the finish.

The sound of the cork ‘popping’ from the bottle gets things started as the first colourful display arrives in the glass in the form of a salmon pink coloured liquid.  The fine bead providing subtle bursts of excitement, slowly fading away and allowing a layer of citrus and an abundance of red fruit aromas to come through and liven up the olfactory senses.  ‘Taste’ is next on the list of stimulated senses thanks to a perfect balance of acidity, fruit and texture simultaneously providing mouth-filling intensity and elegance.  As things seem to settle, another layer appears on the back palate where lemony citrus notes compliment the strawberry, red currant and cherry characters.  Things don’t stop there either.  It just seems to keep on giving resulting in a fittingly, long grand finale.  Delightful.  Truly delightful! I’d like know how they will “get better every year.” This wine sets the bar very high.

Levantine Hill Website

Region: Yarra Valley, Vic     Price: $150     Source: Sample courtesy of Levantine Hill

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2018 Carillion Origins ‘Fenestella’ Shiraz

Posted on February 13, 2021 by Tony Peters

I heard someone say today that, when you have a thought, you can’t get rid of it. It’s there until another thought comes into your head. It’s true. Think about it. I know you’re going to think this is a bit strange but when I saw the word ‘Carillion’ on the label, I had a thought and it stuck with me. It was, it would be a good word to use in a similar sort of context to ‘million’, ‘billion’ or ‘trillion’, you know, like a measure of something.  I can hear a Gen Z saying, “Like, I’ve told you like, a Carillion times I don’t like broccoli.”  Do you know what I mean?  However, from a Baby Boomer (just), I could tell you a Carillion things about this wine but I’ll keep it to a paragraph.

On the nose, the wine seems serious, like it’s here to make a statement.  And it does but in a profound and polite way. Same when you taste it too.  This is a very good example of a wine that can be rich and concentrated but sits perfectly in the medium bodied spectrum.  There’s a menagerie of black, red and blue fruits providing plenty for the taste buds to contemplate in a calm and considered way.  Tannins are fine…perfectly fine, as they present on the long and elegant finish to this lovely Hunter Valley Shiraz.  Yes, everything is very primary at the moment, can’t deny that, yet it is still approachable and quite delicious.

https://www.carillionwines.com.au/

Region: Hunter Valley, NSW

Price: $60 (worth every penny)

Source: Sample courtesy of Carillion Wines and Define Wine

Origins 2018 'Fenestella' Shiraz
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2019 Clandestine Vineyards McLaren Vale Shiraz

Posted on February 5, 2021 by Tony Peters

I no longer run anywhere.  These days it’s walking and to call it brisk would be an overstatement.  Near where I live there’s an area of sports fields where I like to walk. It’s not very exciting but it is flat and the grass is thick and always cut to a nice cushioning length.  I was walking there recently and out of nowhere came about half a dozen swallows (the bird variety) darting around at speed and low to the ground.  They were so smooth and effortless at times I wondered if they were actually using their wings!  Their stamina was incredible too. It went on for the entire time I was there and was pretty impressive to watch.  Talking of smooth, effortless and impressive, this wine will have you interested in a different type of ‘swallow’.

A terrific deep-ish, inky purple colour in the glass screams youthful…and it is.  The aromas of (mostly) red berries and herbs and a touch of spice prepared my palate perfectly.  It’s beautifully weighted.  I’d like to say medium bodied but it seems richer than that, yet has a certain elegance about it. There’s plenty of delicious dark fruits to the fore, a liquorice like thing happening, an earthiness yet a freshness too and finishing with smooth effortless tannins. The swallows were impressive to watch but this was impressive once swallowed.

Region: McLaren Vale, SA

Price: $30

Source: Sample thanks kindly to https://clandestinevineyards.com.au/ and https://savvycomms.ninja/

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2019 Clandestine Vineyards Margaret River Malbec

Posted on February 2, 2021 by Tony Peters

I have a mate who definitely, without question, knows about wine.  Mainly from one particular state but has been involved in many a tasting and judging panel over the years.  I will never forget a comment he made a couple of years back.  It was, words to the effect of, “Why would you drink Malbec (as a stand-alone variety)?” Not that he dislikes the variety, he just believes it does better when in a blend.  I have given him straight Malbecs since that day (I can’t remember if I served them blind) and I have still struggled to convince him.  I wish he was around the day I opened and tasted this one.  It would have gone a very long way to convincing him that Malbec does well as a stand-alone variety.

This is a beautiful deep, dense and dark purple colour in the glass.  It smells rich, robust and fruit forward thanks to a combination of plums and dark red fruits.  My first taste made my eyebrows involuntarily and instantly raise.  What lovely, juicy flavours it has! Where do you start with the dark fruits?!  There’s plenty of them in the mix.  Add a touch of black pepper notes to the rich fruit flavours and you have a delicious, smooth wine that finishes nice and long.  Yum!

Region: Margaret River, WA

Price: $30

Source: Sample thanks kindly to https://clandestinevineyards.com.au/ and https://savvycomms.ninja/

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2020 Clandestine Vineyards Tempranillo Rosé

Posted on January 28, 2021 by Tony Peters

It’s that time of year isn’t it.  The days and evenings are warmer, and bottles of wine start taking up space in the fridge and, you shuffle food items around to make room for more wine.  I don’t know if it’s the same in your home, but Rosé seems to be appearing in equal numbers to white wines in our fridge these days.  When I see and taste Rosés such as this one, I know why the ‘Rosé Revolution’ will continue for some time and not just in the summer months.  Ones, like this good example, are also great accompaniments to Asian style cuisine.

It starts off quite aromatic with strawberry, floral and herb like characters on the nose.  It’s really fresh on the palate.  It may be light-ish in body but still flavoursome thanks to red berries and cherries the main contributors.  There is lovely texture on the mid palate where a savouriness comes through and it finishes nice and dry with reasonably good length too.  I’ve made this sound like a simple wine, but it isn’t and not necessarily complex either.  It’s a genuinely good, very moreish Rosé, which about sums it up really.

Region: Geographe, Western Australia

Price: $30

Source: Sample thanks kindly to https://clandestinevineyards.com.au/ and https://savvycomms.ninja/

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2018 Carillion Origins ‘Block 22’ Wrattonbully Cabernet Sauvignon

Posted on January 11, 2021 by Tony Peters

The suburb I live in and the suburb next to it are divided by, literally, one street.  On one side of the street, the suburb where I live starts.  On the other side, the ‘other’ suburb ends.  Both are a very popular suburbs and for some reason, a few years ago, the suburb I live in was viewed as being a bit snobbish.  How things have changed!  The hidden qualities of the ‘other’ suburb are now well recognised and so it should be.

The reason I mention this is, Wrattonbully is 30 kilometres away from its more famous neighbour Coonawarra.  When you look at the list of wine producers that either produce wine in the region or source grapes from there you’d be wondering, like me, why it isn’t more on the wine drinker’s mind.  This terrific example has certainly reminded me of the quality of wines coming out of the region and I hope it prompts you to find this and other wines from Wrattonbully.

The lovely deep red colour kicked things off as I poured it into the glass and it didn’t take long for the aromas to make their way to my nose.  Hello to an array of dark fruits and a touch of dried herbs while there is a hint of oak poking through.  Tasting it was an absolute pleasure.  Rich, intense and delightful flavours of ripe, lush and juicy dark berries.  Can’t you just taste them?  Let’s not forget about the other contributing characters of this wine.  There are some herb notes doing their bit, creamy ganache like chocolate has a say, tannins don’t miss out on some attention either and the oak presents so well alongside the plentiful fruit.  What definitely got my attention was the excellent, long finish.  It stuck around for quite some time. 

I don’t know if you noticed, but I was very impressed with this wine.  It’s still very young and, as much as it will drink well with a good decant, it really deserves to be allowed to age gracefully in a cool, dark place.

https://www.carillionwines.com.au/

Region: Wrattonbully, SA     Price: $50    Source: Sample courtesy of Carillion Wines and Define Wine

Origins 2017 'Block 22' Cabernet Sauvignon
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2018 Castle Rock Estate Great Southern Shiraz

Posted on January 1, 2021 by Tony Peters

The Castle Rock Riesling did it to me and now this Shiraz has done it to me as well.  By that I mean, much like the Riesling, I’ll get straight to the point and let you know my thoughts about it. In a nutshell, it’s pretty darn special.

It’s a lovely deep, shiny red colour in the glass.  Quite attractive actually and that attractiveness doesn’t stop there.  Aromatically it presents beautifully! Complex and generous with plums and dark fruits along with hints of pepper and herbs.  Rich and generous flavours of black fruits and dark cherries sit very nicely on the palate while plum characters fill out the mid palate.  Black and white pepper, a touch of spice and smooth tannins contributed to a terrific, balanced and textural finish.  This is a ripper of a Shiraz and, for the price, a bloody cheap ripper of a Shiraz!

Castle Rock Estate Website

Region: Porongarup, WA     Price: $25    Source: Sample courtesy of Castle Rock Estate and Define Wine

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2018 Clandestine Vineyards McLaren Vale Grenache

Posted on December 19, 2020 by Tony Peters

You’re not going to believe this, just like I didn’t when I read it; Grenache achieved the highest price per tonne in Australia for 2020 and one of only two that broke the $1000 mark (thanks Mr Halliday).  Considering it was the main subject of the vine pull scheme in 1987 and, before that, mainly used for the production of sort of out-of-favour fortified wine, I think this is somewhat of a damn good result!  This shows, quite pleasingly, as far as I’m concerned, just how deservedly popular Grenache currently is,  I can honestly say that. since I was introduced to it way back when, I have always been a fan of Grenache.  I just think it is an honest wine (don’t ask me what I mean by this, it’s just what I think about it) that consistently shows its best without having to do much.  Here is another to add to the list of go-to Grenaches.

Very inviting on the nose thanks to it being quite floral (I know, sounds strange for a red wine) with plenty of red berry freshness.  Tasting it was what got me in.  Gee it’s a good’un.  Those red berries are back along with some ripe cherries, some spiciness, pepperiness, a touch of sweetness and there’s a hint of oak (strangely maybe for a Grenache) and it is very nicely balanced.  It borders on medium bodied, which is not normal for a Grenache but it doesn’t distract from the wine at all and it finishes quite long for the variety.  This says a lot about the attention to the (very good) winemaking.  This has the ‘Yum’ factor and it’s because of wines like this that Grenache has become a crowd favourite as a table wine…again!

Region: McLaren Vale, SA

Price: $30 Source:

Sample thanks kindly to https://clandestinevineyards.com.au/ and https://savvycomms.ninja/

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