I reckon I've had this wine about 20 times. I thought I had blogged about it before but you know what, nothing. Sorry Owen. The Appellation Ballarat Pinot Noir 2010 comes from one of the nicest blokes in the wine industry - Owen Latta - and is just so bloody good. Plenty of spice on the nose with toasted cardamon dominant. The palate is similar with once again toasted cardamon at the fore with further layers of master stock, soy sauce all held together with delicate supple tannins and funky pan juices. A ripping drop.
Drink with medium rare rib eye
Drink till 2017 96
Screwcap 13%v/v $32
You can throw all the cliches you want at this one, but finally I am releasing my best of 2013. But hey, if James Halliday can release the Wine Companion in August with the following year's title on it with current release wines then, 'what the heckity heck bang chuck', as my five year old son Henry would say. Sorry James.
There is also a new moniker to add to the blog: The Paul Keating Wine, '...the recession we had to have' here becomes, 'the wine you have to have'. Yeah, what are you going to do hey.
So, 2013 hey. For me it was dominated by reds and a few steamy imports. So without further adieu and the blah blahs, here we have the best of 2013.
Mac Forbes Strathbogie Ranges RS16 Riesling 2013 - a most beautiful wine with the RS16 effectively telling the drinker that it has 16 grams per litre of residual sugar. But you wouldn't know. Sexy as nuts this one.
Man O' War Waiheke Island Dreadnought 2009 - pretty much the perfect Right bank blend you can have; from the Right bank or for anywhere for that matter. Stunning balance of fruit weight and minerality and an early club house leader.
BK Adelaide Hills Cult Syrah 2012 - the 2011 of this was my fave for 2012 and an example of certain wine experts going far to fucking early in writing off 2011 (Just today sampled a Geelong 2011 Pinot Noir that was simply singing!!!). Superb balance of cool climate Syrah - blackberry, soy sauce and black olive tapanade. Will not be the last time you see those tasting notes typed. Sorry no pic, must have deleted.
Sutton Grange Bendigo Fairbank Rose 2013 - Not only the best Rose's of last year but almost the top dog. A blend of Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and a squirt of Merlot (yes Merlot you dilettantes), this wine got me with its classic onion skin colour and funky fermier cider mid palate. Oink oink!!!
Precipice Yarra Valley Syrah 2012 - Pipped at the post for wine in show at the Yarra Valley Wine Show. Not bad for a bloke making his first wine on his own. And the bloke is Marty Singh. Watch this name.
Cavallotto Piedmont Dolceto d'Alba 2011 - I love Dolcetto and so should you: tart, crunchy, little tickle of herbs, earth, sex and other wicked stuff. Just get it.
The Melbourne Gin Company - Save the World - drink Gin. This one. Go on. Nice one Marksy!!!
Il Borghetto Toscana Montigiano Sangiovese 2011 - This is the wine that stopped me dead in my tracks. Seriously. What a wine. Seriously (again), this wine could be confused with a rootin-tootin red Burgundy. It is that good.
Giovanni Almondo Piedmont Roero Arneis 2010 - A wine that delivers an uncanny balance of tart bitter lemon and grapefruit with beautiful ripe pear and quince. A stunner.
Vinea Marson Heathcote Syrah 2008 - Only the Bard can do this justice. A near perfect wine, but 100/100 really.
So there you have it. There were definitely some wines that are unlucky not to feature; Stoney Vineyard, Abbazia Di Novacella and Wickhams Road. But hey, 2014 is a big year, or 10 months to go anyway.
But the Paul Keating wine for 2013 - Il Borghetto Toscana Montigiano Sangiovese 2011. Twas the clubhouse leader back in September and kept the lead all the way to midnight December 31, 2013.
Special thanks and recognition to John, Paul, George and Ringo and the all time classic 'Revolver' playing throughout my banging of keys. xxooxx
Ernest Hemingway wrote the classic WWI novel, 'A Farewell to Arms' where he chronicled his time as an ambulance driver in the Italian army. It is one of my favourite books. Early in the book Hemingway, in great, detail describes and then mocks the many beautiful army uniforms that the Italians were famous for, but not their fighting. If only Hemingway got a load of the is.
The Renato Ratti Piedmont Dolcetto D'Alba Colombe DOCG 2010, with the splendid army uniform circa the Napoleonic War, is all finesse and style but still has the mongrel and grunt to hold it s own on any front. Dusty garnet in the glass, the nose throws up earth and spice, tart dark fruit with as hint of bitter chocolate. The palate is pretty much more of the nose with tart dark fruit - think prickly plums, spice and earth all kept in tune with seamless acid and tannin balance. I love it!!!
Drink with bloody lamb
Drink till 2018 97
Quality cork 13%v/v $35 Seddon Wine Store
A very New World Old World this wine. The Lucien Muzard & Fils Bourgogne 2010 is one of the most generous Bourgogne's I have had ever I think with plenty of fruit forward red and black fruit aka Central Otago, and seamless earth and spice all held check by effortless acid balance. Geez, just got a bit glossy mag on you didn't I. In short (like me) a super impressive Pinot with all the bells and whistles for Burgundy's entry level tipple.
Drink with rare beef steak sanga
Drink till 2016 95
Screwcap - finally France, well done; 12.5%v/v $33 Seddon Wine Store
A couple of Mondays I shuffled on down to the Imbibo annual everything-on-show day at the Fitzroy Bowls Club. I got there early so I could get away earlyish. Yeah-Nah. After all was said and done I was the last one to leave at 7.30 where a group of us went down to The Builders Arms on Gertrude Street and well, you know - dusty the next day.
Anywhoo, there were wines aplenty and this was one of my picks; the Punch Bannockburn Friends of Punch Syrah 2010. Everything about this wine rocks, and I'm loathe to say it cos Bannockburn has its own terroir, but this is very Cornas; slate, earth, blackberry, black olive tapanade and soy sauce. Yep, soy sauce. Its delish!!!
A beautiful wine this one. The Robert Johnson Alan Veitch Adelaide Hills Merlot 2010 is a wonderfully structured wine with layers of blue fruit, terracotta and tilled earth on the nose. The palate follows suit with blueberries having a very cooling effect on the primary palate which is then followed by subtle tannins with more blue fruit at the back. Not just a super wine, a super Merlot.
Drink with lamb and rosemary sausages
Drink till 2018 96
Screwcap 14%v/v $29 Seddon Wine Store
Its October. This year is going sop fast. And this year has also been a year of some amazing wine. From this post until the end of the year I will write only about super-sexy stuff. So on that note people, we have a new club house leader. The Azienda Agricola il Borghetto Tuscany Montigiano IGT Sangiovese 2010.
What a wine!!!! A serious wine that in a blind tasting could easily be mistaken for a Burgundy (the winemaker worked at Dujac in Burgundy I was told at the tasting) with plenty of game, earth and funk. The nose starts out with supple spice and tart red fruit, but it is the palate that picks it up with mouth watering acid and fine tannins all holding sway with wet terracotta, toasted spice and more tart red fruit singing singing and singing. Seriously well made wine and a label definitely to look out for down at the Brunswick East Wine Store next year. An Icona Pop wine if ever there was one!!!
Drink with crispy duck breast
Drink till 2018 98
Screwcap 13.5%v/v $32 at Seddon Wine Store
Sometimes you can stick your nose in a glass and wonder and ponder on what you are smelling; citrus, honey, butterscotch, chocolate. Yep, the olfactory is a mysterious thing. But sometimes the aroma just goes bang. The Giovanni Almondo Piedmont Roero Arneis 2010 is such a wine with a wackity-wack-wack of spiced quince; quince baby, where's the cheese I say. But don't drink with cheese, its gotta be pork. That's whats on the menu tonight. Just get it.
Drink with pork - that's a Susan!!!
Drink till 2015
95
Quality cork 13%v/v $35 Seddon Wine Store
Its crazy weather out there today and Erin wants me to clip the hedge at the side of the house. Its too windy and I just want to drink this and listen to Paul Weller. The Warner Glen Estate Margaret River Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 has got cassis, mocha, acid, chewy tannins and is just a real drinkable wine on a day like this one - a little warm hug in a bottle. And it's just $16!!!
Drink with left over roast beef and Paul Weller on the tunes
Drink till 2015 95
Screwcap 14%v/v $16 Seddon Wine Store
Its lean and tight. It has savoury and ironstone notes with plenty of spice tones too. Its simply fantastic. Its one of the wines of the year for me. Simple. Castelli Frankland River Shiraz 2010. Just get it.
Drink with beef short ribs
Drink till 2018 97
Screwcap 14.3%v/v $28 Seddon Wine Store
Ever bet on a horse because of thew colours or the name? If you have you have also chosen your wine because of the label. This label is one of those labels.
Perched just out of reach of the kids at Seddon Wine Store, the Matthieu Barret Côtes du Rhône Petit Ours Gris (little grey bear) 2010 Syrah and Grenache blend is in prime view of us big kids and am happy to say is a constant mover. The nose is full of bright red fruit with sweet raspberry pronounced. The palate has an almost cooling feel about it with more fruit; raspberry, blackberry and licorice allsorts. The mid palate pushes most of the fruit aside with balanced acid and soft chewy tannins cleaning up all and sundry. A good wine and maybe just as fun as putting $2 each way on the jockey wearing the pretty silks.
Drink with lamb casserole
Drink till 2015 90
Quality cork 13.5%v/v $29 Seddon Wine Store
A good wine speaks for itself. I rather speak for great ones. The Fighting Gully Road Beechworth Shiraz 2010 is super sexy. Soft blackberry notes on the nose are followed with savoury black olive and peppery notes. The palate is a wash with more black fruit and subtle black licorice, but it was the spice and savoury undertones that made it all work; white pepper, cassia bark and earth are all present, but not just present, dominant and full. As Ray 'Rabb's' Warren would say, its all about 'lifting and extending'.
If you're going to drink a wine watching the NRL State of Origin, drink this.
Drink with soy and honey chicken wingettes
Drink till 2019 96
Screwcap 13.9%v/v $30 Seddon Wine Store
I love winter for its bountiful harvest of root veggies, shrooms and slow roasting meats. I also love winter for deep flavoured and concentrated reds. This is one of those stories.
The Kate Hill Tasmanian Pinot Noir 2010 is dark and brooding and stacked with flavour in all of the right places. Dark ripe cherries on the nose are combined with prickly spice and and a touch of game. The palate starts similar to the nose with heady dark cherries followed instantly with seamless and checked acid. The palate moves along effortlessly with toasted spice notes of cinnamon and cloves. A racy wine this one and drinking stonkingly well right now that's we're in the cool months.
Drink with mushroom risotto
Drink till 2018 95
Screwcap 13.5%v/v $34 Seddon Wine Store
I cannot sleep tonight. Woke up at about 2.30am and have been stuck ever since. So here I am in the study listening to the wine and also watching a stream of Tottenham Hotspurs cracking come from behind win against Cashchester City - Go you Spurs!!!
But we are here for the wine right. The Pipoli Campania Aglianico 2010 is one of those wines that cannot be likened to anything from the new world. Its not shiraz fruit forward.; its not Cabernet tannins and its not Pinot Noir gamey. Its Aglianico. You just gotta try some.
The nose is a combination of dusty black fruit, olive tapanade and ironstone iodine. The palate follows suit with dusty tannins up front which are quickly followed by a big wash of blackberries while all being held tight by an iodine like acid strip. Real complex but real enjoyable, not to mention a bargain to boot!!!
Drink till 2015
Drink with lamb rago 93
Cork 13.5%v/v $19 Seddon Wine Store
A slap and a kick for being so quick. The result? Savaterre Beechworth Chardonnay 2010.
A fantastic wine. A fantastic chardonnay. Colour is developing quick with a pale yellow coming through; must add that I had this 6 months ago and the colour was still pale straw with a green hue. The nose is a mix of white peach, supple citrus with funky burnt match and white licorice powder. The palate has an instant hit of rich stone fruit of peach and locuts. Citrus acid ties more white peach and licorice powder at the end. All in all, it was a nice stuff up - not by Keppell though.
It;'s still tight and it's got plenty left in the tank.
Drink with braised ling and pancetta
Drink till 2020 95
Screwcap 13.5%v/v $80 Seddon Wine Store
There are some wines which come out of the blue and go whack to the senses. There are wines that come out of the blue that are projected into cult status because they excite the masses. This is such a wine. The Heathcote II Heathcote Shiraz 2010. Stunning.
I'm going to call it. Heathcote II will enter cult status. Be it this wine or the premium shiraz or the Right Bank Blend Myola, Heathcote II's star is on the rise. I have no doubt. I also have no doubt that the two guys involved, Peder and Lionel, will be spoken of in the same light as Tim Kirk, Michael Dhillon and Rick Kinzbrunner for the immaculate way they treat the fruit from go to woe.
Anywhoo, enough back slapping for the time being. Broodingly dark in the glass, the wine has a lovely perfumed nose up front of soft white pepper and brown spices. The palate is lifted with instant juicy tart blackberry and firm tannins. I will admit here that it wasn't till the second day of this being opened that I tasted the wine for the first time. You see on the day Peder and Lionel came through to show me the wine I was just coming off a bout of food poisoning and my tummy was still quite grumbly, so no wine and a third consecutive AFD if you don't mind!! So more of the second day palate; marzipan, black olives and seamless acid complement the blackberries and tannins that were up front. Stunning length. Stunning.
Drink with medium rare chateaubriand
Drink till 2025+ 99
Quality cork 13.5%v/v $42 Seddon Wine Store
When you work in the wine retail game, you need to be open
to all and sundry who want to show you wine or discuss potential opportunity to
grab a cracking deal; unlike the restaurant trade, there is no such thing as
being in a 'meeting', you are always available. This wine is proof of just such an example - Paul Blanck
Pinot D'Alsace 2010
Now I have been familiar with the Paul Blanck wines for some
time, but it has been actually that - some time since I have had a look at
them, so when Jonathon mentioned that this wine was looking peachy, well that
was enough for me and within a week Jeremy and I were going through samples and
this one got a massive tick. The nose is all minerality and quinine - think
tonic water. The palate is a gentle wave of stone fruit -subtle white peach, more plentiful minerality
in the form of river stone and lingering leesy goodness. Delicious.
So there you go. The next phone call may just be that
something special, and instead of fobbing it off, take the time and be surprised
to find that wine is there to enjoy, not to avoid.
A dirty dirty wine; you sexy beast Muddy Water Waipara Pinot
Noir 2010. This is exactly the type of wine why I am falling on love again with
Kiwi Pinot Noir's.
This one is just a blaze with spice, earth and rich dark
fruit on the nose - its all about the power you would think straight up. Good
thinking if you got that too. The palate is singing the same tune as the nose
with burly dark fruit melded wonderfully together with brown spices and
achingly balanced acid. Such a dirty little number this one.
Its getting harder and harder to find a crappy wine these days; this is not one of them. The Rusden Barossa Valley Driftsand GSM 2010 is floating my boat in a big way right now cos its so hard to put a finger on what it is. From the get go this wine to me is put in the 'Pinot Noir drinkers GSM' with a lovely earthy and floral nose stemming from 42% Grenache, 41% Shiraz and 17% Mataro. The palate continues on that line with an almost wet terracotta feel in the mouth - I know, sounds pretty wankie - and prickly 5 spice , dates and currents. All in all a great wine and a bit of a demystification for me on GSM. A ripper a ripper a ripper.
Sorry about the crappy image though.
Drink with beef short ribs
Drink till 2017
96
Quality cork 13.5%v/v $23 Seddon Wine Store
The Domaine Anne Gros Bourgogne 2010. Based in Vosne Romanee, Domaine Anne Gros consistantly producers exquisite wines from Flagey-Echezeaux, Chambolle-Musigny, Clos Vougeot and as mentioned Vosne Romanee where she produces about three wines. This wine was a treat and I could not wait to get it home.
Being a Bourgogne, I was expecting something very entry level; not top be. What we got was a wonderfully crafted wine with power and effeminate beauty. Dark ared in the glass, the nose was full of dark cherries, earth and succulaent bacon fat. The mouth had an instant hit of acid and tartness coming through as soft cranberries. The mid palate went to a new level with full dark cherries followed by more tart expressions of raspberry and cranberry. Great finish indeed. I loved it.
Drink with crispy skinned duck breast - a Susan
Drink till 2018 96
Quality cork 12.5%v/v
