Hewitson Barossa Valley Miss Harry Shiraz Grenache 2007

The regular readers of this blog are well aware of my constant avoision of anything starting with Shiraz and ending with Barossa on the label. Yes, I am a lush when it comes to Pinot Noir, aren’t we all? And then there is Champagne; am I not human, do I not bleed when cut? It is true that I have been called a lot of things over the journey, but Shylock is not one of them.

It was a conversation I had a few weeks ago with a friend in Brisbane who told me that I should not pay you too much bias to a particular variety and style and judge all wines on their merits. This is all true of course, but its coming from someone who is paid for their contributions on wine. Me, I just love Pinot Noir and Champagne, but to appease my tropical natured friend, I have started trolling the aisles of Dan’s, Blackhearts and other wine outlets in search of the Barossa Shiraz that is going to leave me smiling. This one, however, did not leave me running around my backyard with my shirt covering my face ala celebrating soccer players.

The Hewitson Barossa Valley Miss Harry Shiraz Grenache 2007 is an OK wine with no great surprises. Deep, deep red with a purple pinkish the in the glass, this wine automatically gives me the cue that there will not be too much acid. The nose is all sweat ripe fruit with oak also abound. The palate delivers similar to the nose with more ripe fruit and a hint of spice with no real acid to drive it through to the end. It reminds of the late Anna Nicole Smith; all flesh with no real substance. A definite JABS.

Drink with meat and three veg
Drink till 2011
84
Screwcap 14%v/v (??) $20 from Dan Murphy’s in Coburg

Bindi Macedon Ranges Block 5 Pinot Noir 2006

It was such a lovely day today. It wasn’t too hot, Henry had two really good sleeps and went down without (sort of) a peep, and Erin got her travel itinerary for her Asian trip - a lot shorter than first expected. So with all of this good news, something good had to be opened. The Bindi Block 5 Pinot Noir 2006 was exactly that wine – you can almost hear Bruce McAvaney whisper ‘Special’ can’t you?

Such a great wine. In the glass the wine has a very dirty plummy red colour to it due no fining throughout the 17-18 months it has in barrel, with maybe 2-3 times it being racked off it lees by yours truly. This is not a simple wine on the nose with plenty of complexity abounding – lots of soft spice and earthy characters coming through. The palate engages with firm savoury tannins and wonderful minerality coming through in the acid; the length is tight and almost endless. There is an almost delicate addition of red fruit with tart cranberry and raspberry being an unlikely, yet affective duo. Great now but fantastic with 5-15 years and even more. Mucho Fantastico!!!!!!!!!!!!

Super, Super, Super!

Drink with thrice cooked duck
Drink till 2021
99 - I had to score this one, too good not to!
Diam 13.5%v/v, expect to pay plenty at auction sites such as Langton’s and MW Wines:
http://www.langtons.com.au/; http://www.mwwines.com.au/

Chandon Yarra Valley ZD Blanc de Blanc 2005

Another hot one in Melbourne and another hot wine to drink when said day is, well, hot! The Chandon Yarra Valley ZD Blanc de Blanc 2005 has got hot weather written all over it with its clean bone dry feel making it a monty for your next aperitif.

Now ZD is an acronym for zero disgorged. This is when a sparkling wine has the crown seal – its initial closure – released to remove any dislodged yeast sediment. There is generally a little wine lost so a dosage (minus sugar in Australia) is added before it gets its cork and cage. This does not happen with the ZD, hence the crown seal. What you get is a very dry sparkling wine with clean acid, which as I said, is perfect for an aperitif.

The 2005 ZD is fantastic; pale straw in the glass with a very fine bead. The nose is all green apple – very Blanc de Blanc because of the low v/v and 100% Chardonnay; more malic acid than lactic acid. The palate has up-right acid with a lead pencil taste to it, for those who remember lead pencils that is. This is a great wine.

Drink with freshly shucked oysters, a fair dinkum Susan!
Drink till 2012
94
Crown seal 12.5%v/v $35 from Rathdowne Cellars, Carlton North

Woodside Valley Estate Margaret River ‘Les Bas’ Chardonnay 2007

Plenty to like about his Chardonnay. The Woodside Valley Estate Margaret River ‘Les Bas’ Chardonnay 2007 was dropped off to me at The Point Albert Park just prior to me resigning, so I am pretty sure that it did not make the cut. If I had stayed on however, it definitely would have been in the Chardonnay column, probably pouring as well.

Bone straw to look at, the nose is a wonderful marriage of stonefruit – peach primarily, and oak. The wine really hits its straps in the mouth with a punch of grapefruit, more stonefruit of peach and nectarine with spine tingling acid which tells me this wine will develop very nicely over the next 10 years.

Wonderful balance and length with its complexity spelling out what Margaret River Chardonnay should taste like.

Drink with pan seared scallops
Drink till 2018
95
Diam 13.1%v/v $40 from http://www.woodsidevalleyestate.com.au/

Yalumba Y Series South Australian Pinot Grigio 2008

I don’t k now why, but when I first had this wine I instantly thought of this song:

“Hey you, stare at the sun,
You’re not gunna see anyone
Lost my nerve I didn’t know what to say
The weakness may have gone away...

I might sit on a beach
Where the waves are out of reach
Watch the ocean as it rolls on the wave
My weakness may have gone away.”

Losin’ it – Underground Lovers

With the Celsius more than likely hovering around the low 30’s here in Melbourne today, the idea of twisting a few screwcaps around the BBQ and picnic rug is spot on. One such wine, the Yalumba 'Y Series' South Australian Pinot Grigio 2008, will I think lose many lids today.

There is nothing pretentious or humdrum about this wine. The colour is bone straw with an almost sparkle to it. The nose instantly has a freshness of white pear and the prelude of piercing acid.... and it was with more freshness coming in the way of clean acid and more white pear with a touch of Granny Smith apple to boot.

This is a short wine with not much complexity, but when you are sitting around with friends deciding when to pull out the back yard cricket set, this wine is the perfect companion.

Drink now
Drink with picnic basket contents
89
Screwcap 12.5%v/v $10ish at most Dan Murphy stores

E. Guigal Côte Rôtie Brune et Blond 2000

This is a stellar wine! The E. Guigal Côte Rôtie Brune et Blond 2000 was absolutely pure joy to drink and unfortunately my last one.

E. Guigal has been described as the ‘Locomotive’ of the Rhone and the ‘Pirate of the Valley’ in the way they forage out the best fruit year after year. I would describe them as the Penfolds of the Rhone with parcels of fruit from Côte Rôtie up in the north to Châteauneuf-du-Pape in the south and everything in between.

From an average year, this wine still has all the hallmarks of a great Côte Rôtie wine. There is still plenty of brightness in the colour with no signs of an orange rusty hue. The nose is the winner here with layers of complex aromas; savoury cherry, herbs - bay leaf sticks out massively, and the prickly spice of tobacco. The palate still has a wonderful acid hit that is not astringent but clean and sharp with more savoury flavours dominating and finishing with subtle dusty tannins. Pure joy this was!

Drink with Roast Chicken
Drink till 2020
96
Quality cork 13%v/v $130 Langton’s online auctions www.langtons.com.au

Summer BBQ Time! - Cookbooks Part 2: Ross Dobson's Chinatown: sweet sour spicy salty

Home from hospital – it’s a good feeling! The stay at North Park Private to try and get Henry to sleep has sort of worked, cos’ I have come home with some better strategies for him to sleep longer – fingers crossed!! Home from hospital also means no more hospital food. I can categorically say that I will not miss their cooking! Sitting down and filling out my meal orders was probably one of the hardest things I did in the last week. All I could think about was my BBQ - pork, beef, crabs and prawns sizzling away while I sip a frosty beer.

It is going to be a bit tough to get organised for a feast tonight with not much in the fridge or pantry, so it will have to wait until tomorrow night for our gourmet spectacular. So to continue my series on summer cookbooks, tomorrow I will be using Ross Dobson’s Chinatown: sweet sour spicy salty.

A couple of weeks ago I had a massive hankering for some home cooked Chinese food. My cookbook range on the subject was very thin, so instead of spending mucho $$ on some new glossy from Kylie Kwong, I borrowed one of the many cookbooks my sister has on the subject, with Ross’ definitely looking the best.

So, in no particular order of what’s going on the BBQ this summer, here are some of the dishes that will get a decent circulation; and yes, I know I have two tofu recipes here carnivores, but they are both delicious so get used to it you meat lovers out there.

Salt and Pepper Tofu – this is such an easy and cheap dish to prepare. It will only work on the BBQ if you have a side wok attachment.
• 600 grams of silken tofu, cut in cubes
• 750 mL vegetable oil
• Half a cup of cornflour
• 1-2 teaspoons of Sichuan pepper and salt mix – one tbsp Sichuan peppercorns, two teaspoons and two tbsp salt
• One lemon, cut into wedges
Cut up tofu in to cubes and carefully place onto a plate lined with paper towels. Place a couple more paper towels on top and leave for about 30 minutes so the water may be absorbed; roll in cornflour. Heat oil in wok and gently slide/place tofu cubes in wok two at a time for about a minute or golden brown. Remove and place on a paper towel to drain then toss in salt and pepper mix. Serve with Peter Lehman Barossa Semillon 2006.

Char Siu rack of Lamb - another super dish for the BBQ with fantastic sweet and spicy flavours from the marinade combining with the juices of the lamb.
• Third of a cup of Chinese BBQ sauce – Char Siu
• Two tbsp honey
• Third of a cup lemon juice
• One teaspoon sesame oil
• One tbsp peanut oil
• Rack of lamb, about 750 grams
Combine Char Siu, honey, lemon juice and sesame oil and rub marinade in to lamb rack and refrigerate for at least eight hours. Char the rack on the BBQ for about 30-45 seconds to burn a little; this gives a really good flavour hit from the Char Siu. Place in a baking dish and cook for a further 20 minutes in BBQ. Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes and carve up. Serve with Penfolds Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 or De Bortoli Estate Yarra Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2007.

Chilli Blue Swimmer Crab or Singapore Chilli Mud Crab - this will get messy so don’t forget finger bowls and not your children’s wading pool!
• Four blue swimmer crabs/mud crabs
• Three tbsp Chinese chilli sauce
• Three good glugs of tomato sauce, not ketchup – we are in Australia people!
• 200mL chicken stock
• One teaspoon castor sugar
• Half a cup of vegetable oil
• Two garlic cloves, roughly chopped
• One tbsp grated ginger
• Two spring onions, white bit chopped and green bit sliced diagonally
• Two large red chillies, not birds-eye, thinly sliced diagonally
• One egg, lightly beaten
Combine chilli sauce, tomato sauce, stock and sugar in a mixing bowl and dissolve the sugar; set aside. If the crabs are still alive, put them in the freezer for about an hour. Using a cleaver or a heavy bladed knife, make and incision through the head of the crab, put the crabs on their back and lift the tail apron and using your thumb, lever off the top of the shell. Remove the spongy grey gunk and rinse. Cut the crab in half and half again and refrigerate until ready.

Heat the oil in the wok to very high heat. When it reaches smoking point, toss half of the crab contents in and give a good toss for about 3-4 minutes or until coloured. Remove from wok.

Drain almost all of the oil from the wok and add garlic, ginger, spring onion whites and half of the chillies and cook for about 7 seconds then toss in crab and sauce mixture and bring to the boil – keep the kids away at this time cos’ it gets really hot! Keep tossing for a while then slowly pour the egg in as you keep stirring. Cook for another minute. Serve with green spring onion and remaining chilli as garnish. Serve with Provenance Geelong Pinot Noir 2007 or Pepper Tree Hunter Valley Semillon Sauvignon Blanc 2008 – this has a lovely tang to it!

Tofu with soy and ginger – this is a great appetiser for something like the last recipe.
• 600 grams of silken tofu, cut in cubes
• 750 mL vegetable oil
• Two tbsp light soy sauce
• One tbsp fish sauce
• Two teaspoons grated ginger
• 40 grams tapioca flour
• Half a teaspoon of fine ground white pepper
• Two spring onions, green part only thinly sliced, diagonally
Prepare the tofu the same way as the first recipe. Simmer fish sauce and ginger in a small bowl to soften ginger. Remove from heat. Heat the oil in the wok to very high. Toss the tofu in flour and cook until golden brown and drain on paper towels. Reheat the sauce mix and pour over tofu with spring onions to garnish. Serve with Bloodwood Orange Riesling 2009.