2019 Angullong Pinot Grigio

Posted on October 24, 2019 by Tony Peters

I haven’t checked any statistics, however I reckon the leader of the most popular white wine in Australia at the moment would be a very close race.  Pinot Grigio/Gris and Sauvignon Blanc must be the leaders in this category.

When it comes to this variety, there is so much being provided (for want of a better word) to the consumer at very good prices.  Gone are the days of a white wine with up front fruity flavours and not much else (for quite a few of them anyway).  These sorts of wines are popping up on bottleshop shelves on a very regular basis and, I can categorically say, many more are being entered into wine shows.  This one has walked away with two gold medals and a trophy.  I can see why!

Goodness me, I loved the aromas that wafted from the glass from the outset.  As expected, it’s fresh and vibrant and smells like it’s jam packed with flavour.  Speaking of which, pears aplenty, peaches and there’s a sort of hint of sweetness, yet delicate acidity brings it back into balance.  Add a nice touch of musk to that freshness and vibrancy (as expected for such a young white wine) plus lovely length, balance and texture and you have very, very good wine indeed.  I have to say the bottle was almost empty by the time my wife and I talked about it and I made notes.  Say no more!

Angullong Website

Region: Orange, NSW     Price: $22     Source: Sample courtesy of Angullong Wines and Define Wine

Angullong Pinot Grigio

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2015 Grey Sands The Mattock

Posted on October 18, 2019 by Tony Peters

I decided to research the actual garden tool, the Mattock (thanks again to Google) and I was a bit surprised, and a little confused, as to its history.  I won’t bore you with it all but part of the (Wikipedia) blurb that stuck out to me was, “Mattocks are the most commonly depicted tool in Byzantine manuscripts of Greek poet Hesiod’s Works and Days”.  If you didn’t already know, Bob and Rita Richter also have a white wine named Byzantine.  Now I don’t know if this is pure coincidence or not but I reckon it’s a great connection into their world of wine.

Merlot makes up the majority of this wine coming in at 60%, with Malbec making up 40% and Cabernet Franc providing very good support, even if it is only 10% of the makeup.

It exudes very nice and attractive, fresh dark fruit aromas that gave me a pretty good insight into what I thought I was about to taste.  Black fruits are the mainstays with blackberries and blackcurrants shining through, then ‘hello’ to supportive plum characters on the abundant palate (but not rich if you know what I mean).  Definitely not shy on flavour that’s for sure.  It has a fairly long finish where some earthiness and tannin poke through but did not take anything away from the excellent fruit.

It is a very well made, flavoursome and balanced wine with the structure to age very well.  I’m going to go out on a limb and say, if my memory serves me correctly, this is probably the best Mattock out of the 4 vintages released and I’ve been lucky enough to try them all.

Grey Sands Website

Region: Glengarry, Tasmania     Price: $45     Source: Sample thanks to Grey Sands

Grey-Sands-The-Mattock-Tasmania-82-1507540747

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2017 Bailey Wine Co Watervale Riesling

Posted on October 11, 2019 by Tony Peters

I poured this Riesling for a mate recently and he was impressed.  It prompted him to say that he couldn’t understand why Riesling is among the lowest for sales of white wine in Australia.  I won’t go into what his role is in the industry but he has been a part of it for most, if not all, of his working life so he knows his stuff.  I was a bit surprised but, more so, felt sad hearing that statement.  Just my opinion of course, but it is one of the most versatile varieties in the world and so food friendly.  You really can’t go wrong when buying a bottle of this noble of white grape varieties.

Lovely perfumed citrusy nose to this wine that spoke so proudly of Watervale.  Plenty of flavour for all and sundry for sure.  Now, I could give you the usual descriptors when it comes to Riesling, and most of them are in this wine, but what has to be mentioned is the unmistakable attractiveness and downright deliciousness of the wine.  I can’t speak enough about that.  Add delicate soft acid to the plenty of flavour I mentioned earlier and the persistence on the finish, and you have a ripper Riesling for a ripper price.

Bailey Wine Co Website

Region: Watervale, SA     Price: $25     Source: Online purchase (of sorts)

Bailey Wine Co Rizza

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2019 Bailey Wine Co Mount Gambier Rosé

Posted on September 28, 2019 by Tony Peters

Hands up if you like rosé.  Hands up if you like Pinot Noir rosé.  You lot are going to love this wine.  For those of you who did not put your hand up, you need to pay attention.  This is another Pinot Noir rosé that is going to change your mind.

Now, I’m the first to admit to being a bit skeptical about rosé being made from the Pinot Noir grape variety.  I just wasn’t so sure about the body and flavour it could present in a rosé style of wine (not that there should be a lot of body in a rosé but it definitely needs to have flavour).  Among some others I’ve tried in this category, this one is an ‘all hands up’ type of rosé that needs to be in your fridge ready for summer.

It’s pale pink in colour which, I have to say, didn’t excite me to start with.  That trepidation was soon quashed when I smelt it.  Great nose I have to say.  Strawberries and cream and we even detected a hint of kiwi fruit in there too.  A delicious, delicate, creamy, flavoursome palate to get the ball rolling.  Those strawberry notes showing up again, citrusy characters adding a nice acidic dimension to the fruit, texture to boot and a pretty good, dry finish too.  At the end of the day, without question, it’s a delightful rosé.

Bailey Wine Co Website

Region: Mount Gambier, SA    Price: $22 (bargain)   Source: Online purchase..sort of. 🙂

Bailey Wine Co rose

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2017 Castle Rock Estate Porongurup Shiraz

Posted on September 22, 2019 by Tony Peters

“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” Now, I don’t know when Eleanor Roosevelt said this but I think there is some correlation between it and West Australian Shiraz.  You see, West Australia is a bit like another wine region in Australia when it comes to Cabernet Sauvignon getting all the attention.  Shiraz does just as well in the biggest state of Australia so I’m hoping it is not seen as inferior by those outside of WA.  My new saying for Shiraz from way out west is, “It may not be superior but it certainly is not inferior“.

It’s a very inviting nose to kick things off.  Pepper and spice and all things berry nice.

Plenty of flavour to take in that’s for sure.  Plums and spicy dark cherries with a touch of blackberry.  Savouriness with the addition of pepper in both ebony and ivory form on the medium bodied palate.  It’s quite an elegant style of Shiraz with a bit of finesse about it too, and while the tannins are evident, they are complimentary to the smooth lingering finish.  Maybe this is superior (wink, wink)?

Castle Rock Estate Website

Region: Porongurup, WA     Price: $30 (bargain buying)     Source: Sample courtesy of Castle Rock Estate and Define Wine

Castle Rock Porongurup shiraz

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2016 Angullong Orange Region Cabernet Sauvignon

Posted on September 18, 2019 by Tony Peters

After tasting this wine from the Orange region of New South Wales, it got me thinking.  Is it getting to the point where the list of the more well known Cabernet Sauvignon regions of Australia is becoming longer?  I say this because I have been lucky enough to try a number of wines made from this variety that were from the lesser known areas.  I won’t go into them all but I would like you to think about the place this wine comes from.  Orange, New South Wales.  It’s not the first Cabernet I’ve tried from Orange but it is certainly one of the best.  That’s my opinion only of course, so I strongly suggest you find this wine and try it.

The bold nose is Cabernet Sauvignon for sure.  Helloooooo blackberries!

Better than medium bodied, the palate has dense and rich black fruits (but not rich rich if you know what I mean) of blackberries and currants and juicy dark cherries.  It is so smooth and has a creamy texture on the medium length finish with just a delicate spice hit as well to add to the moreishness of this wine.  I really liked it and loved the price even more!

Angullong. Website

Region: Orange, NSW     Price: $22 (bargain)     Source: Sample courtesy of Angullong Wines and Define Wine

Angullong_Cabernet

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2014 Grey Sands Pinot Noir

Posted on September 17, 2019 by Tony Peters

The words ‘Pinot Noir’ are pretty much part of the Tasmanian vernacular these days.  When Tasmanian wine comes up in a conversation, no matter who I speak with, Pinot Noir gets quite a bit of the attention over the other popular varieties.  There is so much good quality pinot coming out of the ‘Island State’ that even wineries on the big island are purchasing fruit to make a Tassie Pinot, buying vineyards or buying land and planting vines.  That’s a good sign don’t you think?

Well, Bob & Rita Richter saw the potential in planting a vineyard and growing grapes for wine production way back in 1989.  Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but foresight is what pays off.  Well done Bob & Rita I say.

It may well be five years old but it still has a lovely deep colour.  Now, the colour  may have you questioning its varietalness (I don’t think that’s a word) and origin.  Look past that and onto the aromas and the taste.  It is most definitely Pinot Noir, and Tassie.  No question.

Plums, dark cherries with a sweet red fruit influence sort of thing (sorry, I know this sounds odd) that adds a freshness or youthfulness if you like.  It’s quite mouthfilling, not in a rich or full bodied way but more of a plenty-of-flavour sort of way without taking away from that varietalness I mentioned earlier.  It’s lovely and smooth and little bit vanilla like on the finish that lingers very nicely indeed.  Tannins have almost integrated at this point of its development meaning you can tell they are present but don’t impinge on the enjoyment of drinking the wine.  To finish off, I’m going to sum this wine up in five words. Balanced with a bright future.

Grey Sands Website

Region: Glengarry, Northern Tasmania     Price: $55     Source: Sample thanks to Grey Sands

Grey Sands Pinot_Noir 2014

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2019 Castle Rock Porongurup ‘Skywalk’ Riesling

Posted on September 15, 2019 by Tony Peters

Riesling; described by Jancis Robinson MW in her Oxford Companion to Wine as “arguably the world’s most undervalued, misspelt, mispronounced variety … and could claim to be the finest white grape variety in the world on the basis of the longevity of its wines and their ability to transmit the characteristics of their vineyard”.  So apt when it comes to this wine, except the part that is more likely to be mispronounced would be Porongurup!

To get things started, it’s quite floral without being too much to be off-putting (I’m not sure I can explain it better than that but I hope you know what I mean) but it it has some lovely limey, citrusy aromas balancing it out perfectly.

The palate’s the place to be though.  Fresh with lots of flavour, those lovely lime characters appear again, and I just had to gently swish it around my mouth.  Not like it was a mouthwash, more to get the wine into every crevice possible.  Hello to crispy, mouthwatering acidity on the finish adding to the delightful length.  Beautifully balanced already and has a terrific mouthfeel too.  I could easily drink a lot of this Riesling.  Easily!

Castle Rock Estate Website

Region: Porongurup, WA     Price: $20 (An absolute bargain)     Source: Sample courtesy of Castle Rock Estate and Define Wine

Castle-Rock_2018_Porongurup-Riesling_180x

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2015 Gartelmann ‘Jonathon’ Mudgee Cabernet Sauvignon

Posted on September 10, 2019 by Tony Peters

Worldwide there are apparently 341,000 hectares planted with Cabernet Sauvignon.  In Australia there are approximately 25,000 hectares of vines.  Clearly, when it comes to both of these figures, I have only tasted the tip of the Cabernet Sauvignon wine iceberg, around the world and, more so, in Australia.  I need to lift my game!

I couldn’t find out how many hectares there are in Mudgee, but it appears to be the most favoured variety, so I assume, the most planted.  I’ve been lucky enough to try a few over the last couple of years and there’s some impressive buggers coming out of the area.  I can see why they proudly put the ‘Mudgee’ stamp on the front label.

It’s a terrific colour this wine but then I took in the aromas.  It smells rich, robust, juicy and delicious.  It got me grinning.

Still plenty of fruit in this four year old, full bodied, Mudgee Cabernet.  Blackberries and blackcurrants play a major part in the flavour arena (gee these flavours turn up a lot in a the wines I’ve been lucky enough to try lately. It seems to be a full time job for them!).

Delicate herbs (those dried ones in a jar that everyone has in their pantry) are in and about as well and there’s a slight Chocolately note I liked too.

Drying tannins are present but by no means offensive. They add the ‘potential-to-age’ factor in a nice supportive role.

A good long finish is helped along by the abundant fruit which brings it home nicely.  This goes very well it has to be said.

Region: Mudgee, NSW     Price: $35     Source: Sample courtesy of Gartelmann Wines and Define Wine

Gartelmann Website

2015 Gart Jon Mu Cab Sav

Posted in Cabernet Sauvignon | 1 Comment

2015 Levantine Hill Estate Mélange Traditionnel Blanc

Posted on September 7, 2019 by Tony Peters

Different, and many things make people happy regardless of their age.  My grandson smiles and loses his ability to speak when his mum buys him his favourite ice cream, my nephew wears a grin from ear to ear when he kicks a goal at footy and then there’s me.  Tasting and sharing a bottle of wine with family or friends is something that continues to make me happy.

My mother is getting on a bit in years and has some ailments that come with those years. Yet when I speak with her and visit her, she always seems happy with her lot regardless.  One of the pleasures she gets out of life these days is a glass of wine (or two) of a night.  Her circumstances are such that the quality of that wine can vary from one week to the next.  Each and every Sunday afternoon as part of our ‘family tradition’ (that I spoke about in this review) I take a bottle of bubbles and a white wine of which we share.

I had the pleasure of sharing a bottle of this wine with my mum.  The circumstances of doing so are quite interesting in itself I must say, but I’ll keep that to myself, sorry.  But her reaction was priceless.  With raised eyebrows, a bit of a cheeky grin and then the smile appeared followed by the words, “This has lots of flavour.  Oh mate, I like this.”

Great aromatic nose of tropical fruits and struck match.  The palate is rich yet delicate and fancy-like but not in a pretentious way, more of a you-deserve-this way, if you know what I mean.  There’s stonefruit (peaches and apricots) characters with subtle lemon influence as well.   It’s lovely and viscous, oily and creamy on the palate too as it eases its way to a slightly spicy, terrific, silky smooth and long finish.

Levantine Hill Website

Region: Yarra Valley     Price: $80 (Hurry, there’s not much left)     Source: Generous gift to my mum

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