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Cooks Lot Orange Trio Review

Posted in Wine Reviews, tagged , , , , , , , , , on October 1, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

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2012 Orange Sauvignon Blanc, Lot 689 – 12.9% al/vol

First cab off the rank is invitingly true to its varietal characters, with intense passion fruit and citrus qualities. Zest of orange, pineapple and green mango climb out of the glass. The colour is clean, pale and has high clarity.

Appearances can be deceiving? Oh what fun! Is this a hint of oak I sense when mid-palate stirs soft, toasty and mellowy? Excellent length of palate is supported by ripe citrus right to the tip of the tongue. It is well balanced by fruitful acidity and lee-sy roundness.

There is nothing more I want to do on this Monday of the long weekend than sit in the sun with a glass of this, slightly fuller than it should be by etiquette standards! I would love to serve as an accompaniment to a chicken, Thai basil and mango salad.

2012 Orange Semillon Sauvignon Blanc, Lot 589- 12.0% al/vol

Startlingly bright, this wine’s bouquet proves it is spring and sugar snap peas are in season, and mingling with freshly shucked sweet baby broad beans. Honeydew melon shows more fiercely when allowed to gather more air in the glass. This aromatic beauty also shows kiwi and lime. Delightful!

Sauvignon Blanc qualities shine through with herbal undertones. Passion fruits drive youthful citrusy acidity, clean swept off the palate by elegant minerality.
Semillon is the dominant varietal and this is evident in the steely, citrus backbone of the wine.

2012 Orange Pinot Gris, Lot 666 – 12.9% al/vol

The growing conditions must be devishly good in Lot 666! Not dark, but taking a more golden tone than the previous pair, this wine has a tremendous bouquet of ripe pink lady apples, with fresh cut juicy Nashi pears. But there’s more depth than this, hints of allspice and cinnamon waft from an apple crumble cooling on some faraway windowsill.

The roundness of palate is lent by another sneaky introduction of delicate oak, which accentuates the high notes of the wine. This could linger on the palate for days, the length is incredible, with slight sweet nutty characters as reminders.

I’m really craving to match this wine with roasted chicken Maryland with a creamy mustard and brandy sauce.

Thanks again to Duncan for ushering me samples to review. Cooks Lot wines are consistently high quality, individually defined and yet indicative of the passion of which they are made. Cool climate wines are already fashionable, so follow the trend and seek out these examples. You won’t be disappointed as they are well made, affordable and accessible. It is an absolute credit to this family.

Each wine RRP’s at $19.99  http://www.cookslot.com.au/

If you would like to have your wines reviewed, or have any requests, please email me at Rhiannon.Stevens86@gmail.com.

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Facebook and De Bortoli 2009 Chardonnay

Posted in Wine Knowledge, Wine Reviews, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 15, 2010 | Leave a Comment »

I was so excited this week. I’ll get to this in a second.

I am a huge supporter of Facebook for Business marketing. I started Petersons Wines off when I worked there and it now is in the thousands in both friends and fans. Its been brilliant with lots of rewards for wine drinkers including notification of events, novelty of applications, new releases and general interaction with your favourite winery INSTANTLY.

When I started the use of Facebook I was hit with criticism. From other colleagues ( to whom I am blowing a big fat raspberry of phooey); other wineries (who ironically now also “have” to use it to remain competitive which I lOVE), from marketers and from others. But overall the response what beyond expectations, so much so other wineries and businesses followed suit. I even did some consultancy work to establish the same for other wineries. FIGJAM.

But enough on this. I WAS SO EXCITED THIS WEEK… because last week I was able to offer a winery advice on how they could increase hits to their Facebook page. They posted asking for advice from consumers and I thought… I can do this…

So I rattled off some quick (but extensive) list of what I know all about social networking marketing.

And this week I got a message from that winery saying I’d won a twin pack of wine for offering advice. I would have done it for free! So in return I’ve decided to give them a plug on my blog. (I hope they don’t mind)

I received in the post today, a bottle of Deen De Bortoli Vat 7 Chardonnay (and a Durif TBA). I believe “South Eastern Australia” is a euphemism for Griffith (Australia’s largest chunk of wine growing).  This is also obvious because De Bortoli are also known for their Noble One (very very good) and Griffith is perfect locale for growing Botrytised fruit. But could indicate anywhere else within the vicinity of South Eastern Australia.

I was provided with tasting notes but chucked these out. Wine is subjective and this is what I thought of it:

A bright, yet pale lemony straw colour without that heavy oaky colour.  An oaked Chardonnay with a nice leaness about it. Its there but if you weren’t totally looking for it you might forget you don’t drink oaked chardonnay. Its definately NOT new oak. But its got a nice rounded palate with full display of peach, and mandarin and a hint of rock melon. True varietal characters. A nice level of residual sugar remains on the palate – something sure to please the masses, and works really quite well  for this wine as its backed up by pleasant acidity.

I enjoy the complexity of the bouquet here – again Yellow Peach, almonds/nuttiness, and really reminicent of… Chardonnay. Its suffice, exactly what I would expect. Very pleasant. Enjoyable.

I ideally, would match with spicy seafood including Thai Chilli Prawns, or something with an Asian  spicy slant. Anything kind of fruity goes great with spice – and as a solid wineo, this is why I don’t totally reject fruity wines. Don’t get me wrong – its not fruity for a supermarket wine, its fruity for a cellar door wine. I also LOVE spicy foods. BUT… for me Anything Goes with Chardonnay. If I had a movie about my life, that would be the title.

13% al/vol, screw cap. http://www.debortoli.com.au/our-wines/our-brands/deen-vat-series/listing/view/deen-vat-7-chardonnay-2009.html 

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Fabulous Night in Sydney

Posted in Half Full or Half Empty?, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 10, 2010 | 1 Comment »

 

Not really a wine focused blog entry, but thought I would share it with you anyways… We just took a night off from everything and spent a lovely night in North Sydney. The Views from our room were spectacular.

We started in the afternoon with a complimentary easy drinking Charmat “Cuvee” Bubbles provided by the Hotel, shared a few great oaked Chardies (and one bad one) at dinner and finished it off with some more lovely Petersons 2005 Mudgee Durif that we brought from home. A night of eating, drinking and relaxation.

 

How good are the views?

Had a great time, wished you were there!

BUT Great to be home – back in the Hunter Valley and relieved I only have to face 2 sets of traffic lights on the way to work!!    :p

Cheers!

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Petersons Wines 2005 Mudgee Region Durif

Posted in Wine Knowledge, Wine Reviews, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 5, 2010 | Leave a Comment »

Durif… A hybridised variety, named after the gentleman who founded this cross pollination of Syrah (Shiraz) and Peloursin. I know about Shiraz so Peloursin must be some damned dark black grape with a super thick skin and it’s own theme song. Also known by the pseudonym of Petite Sirah. If you want to know more about hybrids, see my previous article “What’s in a Name? Mules of the Wine World.“

Most Durif’s are  intense to say the least. Most widespreadly planted in Victoria and most revered from Rutherglen, Durif is one of the few varietals that absolutely benefits from 10 Years  + cellaring in Australia. Say what you like about Australian red wine, but Australia is hot. (Duh.) Heat ripens fruit, ripe fruit is full of sugar. Sugar converts to alcohol when a yeast gets involved. And in Australia we have no problem ripening unless we have a freak hail storm and leaves get damaged. So – quite often, because of the riper fruit and in-turn softer tannins/ less acidity, our red wines are generally more approachable at a younger age – with Durif being an exception.

Petersons Wines have been producing a Mudgee grown Durif since the early 2000′s. Don’t think Rutherglen – Glass of Cherries here. Whilst these characters are underlying, the “Mudgee Mud” seeps through nicely – often lending to an earthier and interestingly intense style. I love Mudgee for reds and for many years, Mudgee has been underrated.

Looking at the colour, its dark and brooding. The wine sticks to the glass with these sexy long legs that look like they go on forever. Even though it is 2005 Vintage the colour still displays a hint of youth with this purple tint amongst the black. In the light, it shines luminous ruby. Gary Reed’s reds are always dark,  full fruit flavoured, lovely textured and carry a signature of cedary oak. This is no exception.

On first approach, the palate is rich and grippy. I am loving the saturated berry/ plummy fruits that coat the palate. There is a spiciness seeping through on the palate, and black pepper on the nose. The texture is of chalky tannins dancing with American Oak. The bouquet is vibrant with Black Cherries (fresh and tinned!) and Black Forest crumble. The biscuity feel is definately there -  and the whole wine is reminicient of Cherry Ripe: cherries, dark chocolate and sweet coconut.

What to eat it with? Well the peppery value means any kind of beef would definately work, but there is enough tannin alongside intense flavoured fruit that it could cut through the fattiness of lamb. Durif also works tremendously with Vintage Cheddar or strong flavoured cheeses.

This is the kind of big red that rules out brushing the teeth, I can feel the red wine tattoo coming on! Let it set for 2 hours before brushing! But even my hubby thinks that this Durif is worth fuzzy teeth for one night!!

14.5% al/vol, Cork seal. Cellar door and online sales. $26 per bottle.

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What’s in a Name? Mules of the Wine World.

Posted in Half Full or Half Empty?, Wine Knowledge, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 20, 2010 | 4 Comments »

Hybrids. What do we know about them?

Cheap to run, fuel saving, energy efficient… Disease Resistant?!

Hybrids of the wine world are those single varieties which are genetic result of two or more other grape varieties. But how prominent are hybridised varieties in the Australian Market? They might be more common than you think.

Is Chambourcin the mule of the wine world? A favourite amongst hybridised wine producing grape varieties, Chambourcin has held its own through being a deep coloured wine with intense aromatic flavour, and not having any “foxy” flavour carried by many hybrids. Along with its intense colour it is interestingly one of the worlds only Pink-Pulped varieties. It is also favourably resistant to fungal diseases – a reason it has become popular to the Australian climate. It also makes a fabulous sparkling wine – and we all know how much Australia loves Sparkling Red. So what’s wrong with a mule if it pulls the cart the same… if not better than a horse?

But would a wine by any other name still taste as… sweet? Chambourcin has only been available since 1963, and was developed by Johannes Seyve. Once upon a time, Chambourcin was named Johannes Seyve 26-205 and I once read, “Chambourcin” is also the name of a cheese. Perhaps its excellent pairing with cheese lead to the naming? Unfortunately for us, Johannes never wrote anything down when he was cross-pollinating with his paintbrush (forcing flowers to fornicate can really be a distracting process). Johannes defiled up to 8 vitis ancestries to produce Chambourcin and unfortunately for us, later died with no records of the official parentage (and we do hope it was of natural causes and not owed to Chambourcin). Mystery is not always romantic, but the grape was born from a native North American grape, and French vines in the Loire Valley. Chambourcin still remains a bastard of sorts not knowing who its many fathers are.

Perhaps it comes back to the naming of the grape. If its pseudonym sounds traditional - a hybrid is more easily accepted by the Old World. Take for example Durif. In Australia more often than not – we call it by the name of the man that invented it. The Durif variety originated in 1880 when François Durif (a botanist) founded a cross of Syrah and Peloursin. Egotistically he named it after himself – but hey who’s judging? – I had a wine named after me too. The point of the story, is that the majority of Petite Sirah plantings can be DNA proven to be Durif. Same Diff huh? Apparently this happens alot.

Of  course Zinfandel‘s fairy tale story arouses the continual arguement of nature versus nurture. Zinfandel has been genetically proven to be the same grape as Primitivo of Italy and Crljenak Kaštelanski of Croatia. (yeah dont ask me how to say that last one). So what happened? Separated at birth, given different names, regional terroir and traditons change the style of wine produced and we just forgot that it went on a holiday under an alias? Did they not check the passport? Keep in mind, this example is not a hybrid, but each is a clone of the same variety. Which one is Molly?

Australia (and many new world wine producing countries) tend to be kinder to hybridised varietals than the old wine world. I have heard that the European Union has prohibited Chambourcin to be blended with traditional varieties. This seems to be a bit “variety racist”. But is it ironic considering the origins of many of Europe’s “traditonal” grape’s ancestry. As well as the fact that many “traditional” varieties are grafted onto American root stocks in order to be disease resistant.

Speaking of “traditional” grape varieties…. Merlot, Chardonnay, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon… BUZZ Epic Fail. What most people DON’T know is that Cabernet Sauvignon (although naturally occuring) is a hybrid… of sorts. Originally from Bordeaux, and considered the noblest of grape varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon has long lived a lie. OOh I feel like a gossip columnist…Ever wondered why Cabernet Franc has blackcurrant , cassis, tabacco and raspberry flavours and so does Cabernet Sauvignon? Also, Cabernet Sauvignon sometimes has herbaceous greeness, and what other “Sauvignon” carries these green grassy flavours? You betcha! Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Franc had a dirty weekend in the 1600′s. And Cabernet Sauvignon is in fact a love child. And I blame the French. Well – they obviously knew all this time… they NAMED the grape. Perverts, probably set them up on a blind date. This grape family is truely dysfunctional with all this DNA testing.

Apparently Humans share up to a third of our DNA with a Lettuce, and in my reasoning, a lettuce and a grapevine can’t be that far apart genetically. Perhaps we have a close affiliation to wine because we share DNA. You can’t choose your family hey? But I admit… I am another Chardonnay Clone.

Cheers!

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Allandale 2004 McLaren Vale Shiraz

Posted in Wine Reviews, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 18, 2010 | Leave a Comment »

A darker maroon coloured wine, which is showing some maturation with rosewood reflections. Rich and almost jammy, the palate displays stewed fruits including plums and rhubarb. Blackcurrants mingle with spice and its all a bit like Christmas mince pies. Tannins have lightly settled with bottle maturation and even for me – careful cellaring.  Although I daresay it should go down longer. But what can I say? I like the kick in the teeth of a younger wine.

On the nose – layers of oak reminiscent of pencil shavings and sawdust. These mingle with spicy savoury herbaceous expressions a bit like green capsicum. The last whiff comes across with more oxygenation and this time its sweet. I want to say plums, but really it reminds me of poached pears, kind of aromatic.

Developing into a lovely, approachable wine – attenuated yet agreeable in structure. The finish is long, fleshy yet mellowed. Cellar for a further 3+ years if you can wait that long.

14% al/vol, screw seal, I acquired this after a Christmas time wine swap a few years back. 2008 McLaren Vale Shiraz is currently listed as $25 per bottle.

I really appreciate vineyards that source from out of region. Some people are quite offended by breaking the old fashioned laws of appelation but I think its sensible – especially for the Hunter Valley where every second red crop is blatantly ruined by being too close to the coast. More than half of the wine produced in the Hunter Valley is grown out of region and most people wouldn’t know. Some find it hard to accept this.  EMBRACE REGIONALITY but dont be a regional snob!

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Why did they leave all the hard-to-pronounce ones til last?

Posted in Half Full or Half Empty?, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 14, 2010 | Leave a Comment »

The wine industry is forever chortling about all the Verd-del-hoes, Mossel’s,  “Semillon”-Blancs, Card-on-nays and the occasional discussion on Cabernet Sauvignon as being a blend between the “two” grapes.  Once of my favourites has been the ever faithful “Can I please try the… V..Vi..Vo.. Voyager?”

I am sure the French are not so arrogant to expect the rest of the world to speak French. Afterall they do tolerate the Italian pronunciation of the “t” in Merlot. (But only barely) LOL

One of the more obscure queries in Cellar Door about the once rare Viognier’s origins came from a Frenchman. He had the gall to ask an Aussie whether Australia had named the grape? Her reply was said with the finest roll of the tongue she could afford: “Why on Earth would an Australian name a grape Viognier?” Wouldn’t an Aussie take the easier path? the Frenchman saw himself as somewhat an expert on French wine. He had no idea that the Rhone region uses Viognier and that his people had ignorantly almost sent the grape extinct in the past. Australia had only “borrowed” their Shiraz Viognier co-fermenting technique, and I am proud to name that Australian winemakers have conquerered the technique such as Clonakilla.

It makes me fantasise as to whether the romance and allure of all the fancy enunciations of wine terms would be lost if Australian slang took over more than a “Cab Sauv” or “Chardy”. Does the way we say a word value-add it in any way? Do we drink  “Sauv Blanc” because it makes our life better, out of convenience, fashion or for the plain cultural value?

Would we still appreciate the plonk if thats all it is? I believe there are great implications of this in the Australian market. Many consumers from what I know drink what they like or what market trends subconsciously tell them they like. But sometimes consumers are too afraid or intimidated to order the “Voyager”  in case they embarrass themselves. Many consumers have the money, the drive, the interest, the motive but lack some simple information – the key to ordering what they want. How on earth is that pronounced? Would the sommelier judge them if they didnt say Viognier right?

High praise goes to Yalumba here. Why? Not because they had the first commercial plantings of Viognier in Australia, and not because they were some of the first Viognier’s on the Supermarket Shelves. In an effort to improve the profile of Viognier as a variety, Yalumba drove a major Australian Campaign only a few years ago. On Billboards across Australia and in Magazines and other Print media, Viognier sprawled into the wine marketplace. Their efforts were noteworthy – their campaign simply read VEE-ON-YAY! Can I give three cheers to Yalumba’s marketing team? Hooray! They educated the consumer in a way the consumer wouldn’t even know. Yet, next time you see it on a wine list you can proudly ask for the “Vee-on-yay”.

I was once asked by a customer as to why they had never seen straight varietals like Petit Verdot, Chambourcin, or Viognier before. Plain and simple. Australia is a product of its motherlands and we are very traditional in our ways. If we didn’t mimic the old world wine countries in their styles, the market may not have bought our wines. It is only recently over the past decade or so that Australian Winemakers have taken themselves seriously enough to tackle entrepreneurial styles. Sparkling Red MUMMAH! Straight Petit Verdot OOHH! What is the wine world coming to? There are varietals coming out of the woodworks that I have not even tried before. I was very fond of Lowe Wine’s Tinja Roussanne, and I am very keen to get my hands on the mysteries of unknown varietals.

Cheers!

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Rosey Perspectives

Posted in Wine Knowledge, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 14, 2010 | 2 Comments »

Why do they plant roses at the end of each Vineyard row post?


This is a common question I recieved from customers when I was working the cellar door. There are various reasons that I know of that I will share with you.

Roses and Grape Vines tend to be very compatible:

  • Grapevines can live a long life and in some cases up to 100 years. Standard Roses can also live especially long, to several hundred years old.
  • Roses and Grapevines can suffer some the same fungi including powdery mildew.

Disease Indicator

  • Roses are often more sensitive to diseases and fungi than grapevines.
  • The common belief is that when it is noticed the Rose is being affected by powdery mildew (for example), that the viticulturalist could take this as an indication that their vineyard could also suffer from the same and they could spray.

I believe this is where the theory is at fault. Sulphur is commonly used as the spray. Sulphur can only be used as a preventative measure as it won’t “cure” powdery mildew, it can only prevent it. If by chance you notice your Rose is affected, I think it is likely it is too late for the vineyard.

Historical ‘Prick’

  • Historically, before the time of tractors and modern machinery, man used horses or mules to cart what was needed.
  • Horses and carts do not have excellent turning circles
  • Horses are not dumb animals
  • Roses are prickly

A rose at the end of the row gave the horse extra incentive to take the turn wide. If they were lazy it was easy for the cart to wipe out the last Grape Vine in the row, or snag on the wires that support the Vines. With the tall and prickly Rose, the horse knew better to turn widely as to avoid the thorns.

I also remember flicking through the South Australian family history books and seeing rose bushes at the end of rows that were more like great towering trees, very intimidating to a horse if you ask me.

Aesthetics

  • Roses are very beautiful

Due to the lifespan of the Rose in similiarity to the Grape Vine, and also that they suffer from similar diseases and the vineyard sprays will not hurt the Rose, it is an excellent plant to have to increase the aesthetics of the vineyard. They also require to be pruned the same as a Grape Vine and go into a similar state of dormancy so they aren’t an exceptionally “needy” plant.

This theory also sits well with me because every vineyard I have ever seen (oh and I’ve seen many) only had Roses planted on the row ends that are visible to the public – around carparks, tasting rooms, driveways.

Cheers!

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Chip off the Old Block?

Posted in Wine Knowledge, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 14, 2010 | 2 Comments »

Grape vines can live a very long lifespan – Australia does boast some of the world’s oldest grape vines. This is owing to disease including phylloxera that swept through Europe in the 1800′s. There are vines still producing in South Australia that were known to be planted in the 1860′s. Thus, with tender love and care, grape vines will live longer than the average human.

I like to think of Grape vines as a lot like people.  In youth, we are rebellious, inconsistent. The older we are the more personality, concentration, and “flavour” we gain. We become middle-aged and we’ve hit our peak of productivity and perhaps become fuller bodied and less vigorous with better balance. Gradually as we head into old age we become fragile, and less fruitful. Lower yielding.

(Here come the abusive comments and emails from middle-aged people sledging me for my analogy.)

Of course some will argue it is not so much the age of the vines that produces a better crop. It’s the low yields. To put it simply – the same amount of flavour resides in 5 tonne of fruit, as does 25 tonne. It’s just the concentrations that reflect the quality and the richness of the finished wine. The smaller the crop, normally the higher the quality. Although from my experience, the more established the vines – the better the wine. But this theory doesn’t take into account weather conditions, terroir (geography of soil), varietal, level of pruning, winemaker, and many other factors.

Although the Hunter Valley has been credited as Australia’s first wine region, the original “Hunter Valley” vines were planted somewhere near the side of Gresford (up to 40 minutes away in the hinterland) and no longer exist. The Hunter Valley as we know it today was only really starting in around the 1860′s and only really started being mass planted between 1900 and 1970′s.

South Australia would be somewhere that I identify with some of the oldest producing vines in Australia. This is being threatened by the “Big Boys” of the wine industry. Because, as I stated the older the vines, the lower yielding. It is becoming ever tempting for contract growers to rip out established aged vines in order to replant fashionable varieties that will produce copious amounts more with improved trellising and better irrigation. As they are selling their crops – often for use in export or supermarket wines, and they are paid by the tonne – the more fruit they can produce the more economically viable their monoculture is.

So should we pay more for old vine wines? Well yes. I believe on the most part, wines made from older vines’ fruit are often made in “Reserve” styles. What does this mean? Well they cost more to produce than your average wine. New oak, barriques versus oak chips, different techniques, super yeasts, expensive packaging… the list goes on. And thus for most of us $40> wines are not everyday quaffers!

If there is an ongoing Market for the Back Blocks, the Old Blocks, the Graveyards, and the Hill of Grace, “styles” of wines, less aged vines will be uplifted for fickle market trends such as Sauvignon Blanc (here she upsets the masses again!)

I believe part of Australia’s credibility on the world wine market also comes from our ability to produce wines of this calibre and it is important to protect our industry.

But of course my only rule of wine is to drink what you like. If you like Sauvignon Blanc – by all means drink Australian. If you have a special occasion and you love aged vine Shiraz, by all means spend your hard-earned cash and savour every mouthfeel.

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