Wine review and journal (c) 2009
Château Cantermele is one of the more affordable of the Bordeaux cru classés and this wine from the 2004 vintage is ready to drink. I more or less buy it most years for this reason. The 2004 vintage, tasted in 2022 and cellared since purchase, is medium bodied with aromas and flavours of smoke and... Continue Reading →
This is a very even, edgeless expression of Margaret River cabernet sauvignon from Moss Wood’s Ribbon Vale vineyard. It has typical cabernet sauvignon aromas of blackcurrant and leaf. The palate is medium to full bodied, the tannins are moderate and fine grained and the finish is graceful and smooth. Refined smokey oak and pencils complete the... Continue Reading →
This is a refined, St Julien like expression of Château Clerc Milon from Pauillac and the 2012 vintage. In all respects, this is classic left bank Bordeaux and an edge free experience. Every corner has been polished. It has textbook aromas of blackcurrant and cedar. The palate is medium bodied, has firm fine tannins and... Continue Reading →
The stronger 2005s from Bordeaux should be starting to drink well and the lesser wines revealing whether they had sufficient stuffing to last the distance. The Marquis d'Alesme Becker grand cru classé sits somewhere in between. It could be a little tired, offer glimpses of excellence or provide excellent drinking with the promise of more.... Continue Reading →
From Moss Wood's Ribbon Vale vineyard, the 2010 vintage is a blend of 75% cabernet sauvignon, 18% merlot and 7% cabernet franc. A deep ruby in colour, the wine has taken on some tertiary characters of earth and has savoury red and dark fruits. It is bottled under screwcap; the argument that screw capped reds... Continue Reading →
This wine review is of the 2002 vintage of Château Grand Puy Lacoste from Pauillac in Bordeaux. The wine initially presents as mature and fully evolved with tertiary soy, leather and earthy characters. A touch of blackcurrant is there, but only for the particularly diligent searcher. With time in the glass, however, a metamorphosis take... Continue Reading →
Introduction Yarra Yering is one of the three leading, long standing wineries in the Yarra Valley. The other two are Mount Mary and Yeringberg. A case also might be made on quality and longevity grounds for Wantirna Estate and more recently, Oakridge. In an international sense, Yarra Yering's wines - all produced from varieties grown... Continue Reading →
Introduction With covid-19 restrictions holding their unhappy swathe over the Melbourne region for timeframes inconsistent with sense or proportion in 2021, two of the Yarra Valley’s leading producers, Mount Mary and Yeringberg, each opted to present their wines to a virtual audience in lieu of their in person release tastings. This proved to be a... Continue Reading →
Moss Wood is probably the most consistent producer of benchmark Australian cabernet sauvignon. It is aided by both climate and producer intent. The Margaret River climate is similar to warm to hot vintage Bordeaux, and its style sees generally higher contributions from later ripening cabernet sauvignon. The Moss Wood blend in 2009 is 88% cabernet... Continue Reading →
This is an interesting wine from Greenock Creek in the Barossa Valley. This producer is known for its high octane wines, the alcohols running in the 16s or even higher. These fruit first, second and third styles have their moments and I am not part of the crew that dismisses such styles per se for... Continue Reading →