Following on from here, these are my tasting notes from the Public and Exhibitors tasting at the 2009 Sydney Wine Show – where every one of the 2,300 odd wines in the show was available for tasting (a full list of the wines here).
From two days of tasting wine, at wine show speed (ie no time to ponder) the 100 odd wines here (broken down into reds and whites) are a very meagre representation of what was on offer. I could have spent the days tasting just Shiraz and Cabernet (and very, very good ones at that) and notched up 200+ wines. Instead I took a ruthless approach and went for the wines that I either a)like and wanted to try new/other vintages or b)am just plain interested in. So below is a large swathe of notes on Riesling, Sem, Hunter stuff & pinots….
As for grand generalisations I found the young Shiraz and red classes quite unenjoyable – quite a few off balance 07 South Australian reds, middling Barossan, Hunter & Margaret River 06’s and overoaked blockbusters. You could also safely a add or subtract a point off the scores depending on how much patience you have (many wines tasted where 2 yrs old at most) and how grumpy you are. I was particularly surly by the end of the second day after drinking far too many free beers at the Trophy Lunch and then following it up with a million vodkas at the Casino. Still got up and tasted for 5 hours on Day 2 though. Commitment plus.
I’ve broken the tasting notes into reds and whites mainly due to size (I’ll put a link in here when I post the reds)
As you will see I’ve also separated the notes by variety and also put them in alphabetical order for simplicity. Multiple vintages of the same wine go from oldest to youngest. I apologise in advance for some of the attenuated notes and lack of detail.
Finally, I would like to reinforce just how good Hunter Semillon can be. I counted at least 4 examples that I think could represent Australia in the white wine world, they are simply that good, competing with Montrachets, TBAs, Gruners, Sauternes etc as the great white wines of the world. Plus they will live forever, are low in alcohol and are distinctly Australian. What more do we need?
Sparkling
Hardys Arras 2002
Tasted halfway through day two, I struggled to do this justice. Suffice to say it tastes like the goods – crisper than the 01, I think it will get even better with age. 18.0+
Riesling
Annie’s Lane Coppertrail Riesling 2008
Disappointing. Pure & crisp but all too simple. Lacks expression, intensity & fruit. 16.9
Capel Vale Whispering Hill Riesling 2008
Larry Cherubino’s Whispering Hill Riesling 08 was a standout tried last yr, so interesting to see how Capel Vale’s version stacks up. Light, floral, bath salt nose thats very attractive and pretty. The palate is nicely soft and rich with sweet fruit that moves into the spicy apricot flavour realm. A soft finish with underplayed natural acidity finishes it off. Very pretty if just slightly flabby. 18.3
Heggies Riesling 2004
Distinctly Eden lime & slate nose. Open knit, lightly toasty, gracefully ageing but lacking the intensity of the Contours.
Heggies Riesling 2008
Lovely typically slatey, regional nose, leading to a bright, tight and quite intense palate. Classic Eden Riesling. 18.5
Leasingham Classic Clare Riesling 2008
Crisp talc nose. Long, tight, slightly spritzy palate of lime juice, real freshness and length. Classic stuff. 18.0
Leo Buring Tasmanian Riesling 2008
Cut grass & lemon nose that is quite Germanic in its grapefruit & melon cool clime style. Palate is pure and long, but somehow missing something. Almost great. 17.4
Pewsey Vale Contours Riesling 2004
Interestingly I actually preferred the 04 Heggies Riesling, but I think this will overtake it in time. Ripe and quite advanced nose, nicely intense acidity though. Good not amazing but the acid is there. 17.0+
Pewsey Vale Contours Riesling 2005
Tasted after the 06 this was noticeable toastier and open knit on the nose. Definitely a riper, fleshier vintage, but this also seemed slightly flabby after the 06. Could be an awkward stage.17.2+
Pewsey Vale Contours Riesling 2006
In the groove (already). Just lightly toasty on the nose, just beginning to develop. Brilliantly powerful, limey palate. Dense, linear. Already great. 18.4+
Pikes Traditionale Riesling 2008
Somewhat toasty already on the nose, leading to its trademark limey palate. Its brightly acidic but still a little too developed compared to its peers. 16.5
Pipers Brook Riesling 2008
Gee its been a while since I tried some Pipers Brook gear and I’ve been really missing out. This has a softly spicy, floral nose that leads on to a just sweet palate of real freshness and lovely style. Great stuff.18.1
Wilson Vineyard Polish Hill Riesling 2008
Did they have a rough time up around Polish Hill River in 08? I still have mixed feelings about the 08 Grosset Polish Hill (though the other bottle might come good) and both this and the Pikes seem quite forward and flat. A nothing, just limey and teensy tiny toasty nose with a rather bland, ‘no mans land’ palate with quite blunt acidity. 15.
Sauvignon Blanc
Clairault Sauvignon Blanc 2008
Much more MR in shape this was tasted directly after the Logan and suffered as a result. Sour lemongrass nose with just a bit of pea like development, the palate is slightly sour, but clearly varietal. Its good but needs some Sem to flesh it out. 17.2
Dalrymple Sauvignon Blanc 2008
My first Vino lok! I rather like them. They are actual quite basic in design – a glass stopper with a rubber seal. This one had a screwcap looking metal cap over the end. I think the glass stopper alone would be the goer -it looks pretty sophisticated. Anyway, the wine is also pretty smart too. Fine, subtly aromatic nose thats nice and pristine, if slightly de-Savvied in character. The palate is similarly clean & crisp with a textural element that I reckon comes from some yeast & barrel work. Whatever they did, it worked a treat and this quite French style is very drinkable. If you hate the overt Logan style, then this would be the perfect drink. Go Tassie again! 18.2
Logan Sauvignon Blanc 2008
Trophy winner (Best Sauvignon Blanc) and very impressive. Bursting with clear, grassy, pristine aromatics in the herbaceous, slightly citrussy and less overtly tropical Orange style. The palate is cleverly dry and perfectly delineated with herbs, woody notes and general definition. If you dig aromatic Savvies then this is an excellent example. 18.7
Semillon
Brokenwood Stanleigh Park Semillon 2007
Muted nose, grassy & crisply acidic, grassy linear palate. Excellent structure & grapefruity dry, but just a little backward and awkward right now. 17.6
Mcwilliams Mt Pleasant Lovedale Semillon 2003
Cork. Slightly volatile, honeyed nose. Creamy fat developing around the mid palate. Nice but I want more crispness. 17.3
Mcwilliams Mt Pleasant Lovedale Semillon 2005
Firstly, I am a Vat 1 man, Lovedale comes second in my world. Very green colour. Green apple, custard development. Palate is just a little toasty & quite fleshy, but the tail end is almost bluntly acidic. In a bit of a developmental mid station. 16.5++
Mcwilliams Mt Pleasant Lovedale Semillon 2008
A masochistic move trying this at such a young age. Very green, quite grassy & really just a bucketful of appley acid. Forget for five yrs, then revisit for proper score. 16.0++
Meerea Park Alexander Munro Semillon 2004
This followed the wine below (and was narrowly beaten by it). I think in time the scores will be reversed, but for the moment its a fair assessment. Much more lemony & traditional than the Terracotta on the nose, with some hay & dried grass Sem aged characters too. The palate is long, but with much more to give, slightly awkward but at the same time there is that glint of absolute greatness.
Meerea Park Terracotta Semillon 2004
Truly brilliant. Big, overt, mildly toasty nose in a quite expressive frameset. Layered, quite classic palate of bewildering complexity. More red than green apples. Such balance & perfection! We need more wines like this. 19.1
Thomas Braemore Semillon 2004
Nice to try one of Andrew Thomas’s Sem’s with some age on it. Big, intense, medium toast & lime nose, high acid, intense dry palate. A bit big for the present but real potential plus. 17.7+
Tyrrells Belford Semillon 2008
Carries a bit of the Stevens runny cheese (see 08 Tyrrells Stevens Semillon below) but backed up with more typical Granny Smith fruit. Very tight, very primary palate. Needs years. 17.1++
Tyrrells HVD Semillon 2004
Trophy winner (Best White Wine over Premium Classes, Previous Vintage and Older). I am not much of a fan of the 04 vintage Tyrrells Sems – they just seem a little dull. Quite green nose but the toast sits on top. Peas, grass & more – its still good Sem, but there is a soapy element here that ruins it. 16.3
Tyrrells Stevens Semillon 2005
Stuck. Neither primary, nor developed, just nothing right now. Nothing nose, nothing palate. Craving time. 16.0++
Tyrrells Stevens Semillon 2008
The 08 Tyrrells sems showed up very strangely here. This had a very unusual soft runny Brie character throughout, after that it was surprisingly big, broad and generous. Did someone stick Chardy into the Sem bottle? Sulphur? What’s going on here? 15.5
Tyrrells Vat 1 Semillon 1999
A slightly creamy, whipped butter on citrus nose. The palate has creamy Chardonnay like richness, but with a citrus backbone – toasty generosity meets green apple acidity. It’s like what you have always wanted a Chardonnay to be like, but drier, greener and much more linear in its structure. Fantastic stuff. 18.9
Tyrrells Vat 1 Semillon 2005
Another worthy trophy winner (Two trophies: Best Semillon & White Wine of Show). I am so glad to have some of this in the cellar – its delicious. Glowing colour, a full, just toasty nose, the palate shows sour limes, granny smiths and some toasty richness. Its a mere toddler, but gee its full and delicious Hunter Sem. Pure brilliance. 18.9
Vasse Felix Semillon 2008
Grassy, tinned pea nose, bright, ultra clean palate, late hit of subtle vanilla oak. Its quite a complete and delicious wine. I really like this cleverly oak influenced, pristinely fruit driven style – it just works. 18.0
Other White Varietals
Bay of Fires Pinot Gris 2008
Very light green fruit nose, palate is light, primary and almost a little washed out. Great acidity but I’d be waiting to see where it goes. 16.5+
Pipers Brook Gewürztraminer 2008
Lightly aromatic (compared to so many Gewurtz’s) the palate is well poised and nicely spicy with quite graceful, subtle flavours. Commendably good. 17.5
Pipers Brook Pinot Gris 2008
Not a bad effort for this varietal. Soapy nose, moderately rich, textural palate with some surprising creamy oak/yeast work on the palate. Bit of barrel work? Anyway its a pretty drinkable wine. 17.1
Tahbilk 1827 vines Marsanne 1999
I think this really suffered being put into this sort of lineup – it just looked exposed and chubby, like a naked fat bloke accidentally locked out of his apartment.
Honey & beeswax nose, nicely intense but quite broad honeycomb palate. Lacks a little freshness but still interesting (would be twice the wine if under screwcap). 16.9
Yalumba Eden Valley Viognier 2007
I think I would score this higher with food. Apricot skin varietal Viognier nose, big, broad and quite dense musky palate. Vanillan oak very cleverly integrated into the mid palate. Nice but just a little hot & syrupy. 17.4
White Blends
Cape Mentelle Wallcliffe SBS 2007
Tasted after the 2008 below and clearly showing the vintage characteristics. Lovely aromatic spicy nose with herbaceousness on lemon lime ripe fruit. Much more creamy, tropical fruity, open knit and richer than the 2008 but also appreciably generous and more complex. Really tasty. 18.5
Cape Mentelle Wallcliffe SBS 2008
Geez I love this style. When done well it’s got nearly everything you want in a dry white and this is a boomer.
Delicious nose of herbs, white pepper and vanilla with citrus in support. The palate is perfectly judged, very tight, cleverly worked & just plain yum with real refreshment and texture. Very well handled oak. Bravo! 18.7
Houghtons Museum White Classic 2002
An interesting wine, but all together too chunky. Rich, ripe yellow fruit & honey nose. Palate is big & broad with distinctive citrus & custard apple fruit. Intriguing nonetheless. 16.9
Chardonnay
Clairault Estate Chardonnay 2006
Trophy winner (Best exhibit in named vineyard class). Big dense & chewy. Oaky nose & rather oak dominated palate. Too much sawdusty oak for me. 16.8
Lenton Brae Chardonnay 2006
Mealy but quite subtle Chardonnay, oaky mid palate but tightens up on the finish. Needs a year, but attractive (& ok value) in the meantime. 17.4
Seppelt Drumborg Chardonnay 2007
Very tight, minerally Chardonnay, just touched by oak. Subdued at present but I like the mineral characters underpinning the wine. 17.0+
Stonier KBS Chardonnay 2006
Complex, worked, lees stirred/barrel ferment/everything bar the kitchen sink nose, leesy, cheesy rich palate. Its all big and winey and somehow pretty tasty, but not for everyone. 17.8
Tyrrells Vat 47 Chardonnay 2004
Predictably great. Slightly flat, neutral nose, lovely rich just honeyed palate & the trademark Vat 47 acidity. So sprightly and vat 47ish. A hit for the Hunterista. 18
Sweet Whites
De Bortoli Deen Bortrytis Semillon 2006
Trophy Winner (Best Sweet White) Another bargain under this label. Apricot & honey nose of medium intensity (definitely ‘Noble One Lite’) with the Bortrytis element quite nicely handled. Palate is suitably toffeed, rich & typically nice, without becoming too heavy. Good stuff. 17.8
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