Bowen Estate Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 $28.49–$35
Doug Bowen tends the vines and daughter Emma makes the wines. The much-loved, distinctive reds sit at the burly end of Coonawarra’s generally elegant style. In the warm 2013 vintage, that means an inky deep, ripe expression of cabernet. Remarkably, despite the wine’s power and richness, it retains pure cabernet varietal flavours, reminiscent of cassis, with no sign of porty, over-ripe character. It’s saturated with deep, luscious fruit flavour and, despite its 15.5-per-cent alcohol content, retains Coonawarra’s distinguishing elegant structure. Provided the cork seal holds, it should evolve for many years in a cool cellar. Dear Doug and Emma, please switch to screw cap.

Following publication of this review, I received this note about corks and screw caps from Joy Bowen, wife of Doug, mother of Emma:

Dear Chris,
 
Thank you for the write up in the Sunday Canberra Times.
 
We are perhaps remiss in not letting you know that we have been
bottling our red wines with cork or screw cap closures for
at least the last ten years.  Members of our mailing list and cellar door
tasters can purchase there preference – and to date cork closure sales are winning.
We also have found that the cork closure has stood above the screw cap in all of our tastings,
that is not just our preference but with trade and consumers tasters.
 
The once seemingly inherent and prolific problems with cork is being
addressed in earnest by cork producers and as the quality of cork improves we
feel that the prevalence of ‘cork taint’ is decreasing.  Cork producers are
very conscious of their market share loss and are actively pursuing a ‘clean
green and best’ closure.  
 
Hope this helps and in future we will send you our wine with screw cap closures only
 
Yours in wine
 
Joy Bowen

Zeppelin Eden Valley Riesling 2014 $17–$21
Typical of the 2014 vintage, Zeppelin riesling offers loads of upfront fruit flavour. The floral and citrus aroma suggests a wine of great richness, and the palate obliges. Here the citrus element of riesling’s varietal character takes over, both in its lemon–lime flavour and a sharp, thrilling cut and bite, like fresh-squeezed lemon juice. The lemony twist, however, never descends into sourness. Rather, it creates a delicious tension with the sweet, juicy, grape flavours. Like most Eden Valley rieslings of this caliber, Zeppelin should evolve in bottle for four or five years in the right conditions.

Heartland Langhorne Creek Shiraz 2013 $18–$20
Heartland’s owners, Ben Glaetzer, Grant Tilbrook and Scott Collett acknowledge the influence of Glaetzer’s uncle, John Glaetzer, in drawing most of their fruit from Langhorne. As long-time Wolf Blass winemaker, John Glaetzer exploited the clear varietal character and plush mid-palate of the region’s red varieties. John now assesses and buys grapes for Heartland and nephew Ben makes the wines. In the warm 2013 vintage, Heartland shiraz shows rich, ripe and soft side of shiraz, with sufficient tannin to give structure and drinking satisfaction.

Copyright © Chris Shanahan 2015
First published 23 and 24 May 2015 in goodfood.com.au and the Canberra Times

Ross Hill Pinnacle Series Shiraz 2013
Ross Hill Griffin Road vineyard, Orange, NSW
$40
A year ago, as the 2014 bubbled along in its small, open fermenter, winemaker Phil Kerney drew samples of the 2013 from the French oak barriques they were resting in. A year on, and in bottle, the wine blended from all those barrels impresses even more than any of the individual samples did. Dazzling, aromatic fruit and a buoyant, youthful palate headline a much deeper wine. Gamey notes and a hint of stalkiness (from the inclusion of whole bunches in the ferment) build on the vibrant fruit. Finally, silky tannins, derived from the skins, stalks and oak give the wine texture and a solid backbone. This is an exceptional, medium bodied, cool-climate shiraz, requiring another year or two in bottle to blossom. I suspect it’ll continue to evolve in lovely ways for many years.

Peter Lehmann Portrait Riesling 2014
Eden Valley, South Australia
$12.95–$18
The last few years have been a tumultuous time for Peter Lehmann wines. Founder Peter Lehmann died in June 2013. A year later his son Doug, a former managing director and current non-executive chairman, died. Then in November 2014, Casella Wines, owners of Yellow Tail, bought Lehmann from the Hess Group Australia and minority shareholders, including Peter Lehmann’s widow, Margaret. However, under the new ownership, we’ll continue to enjoy Peter Lehmann wines, including this zesty, dry riesling from the Eden Valley. It’s full flavoured, light bodied (at only 11 per-cent alcohol) and should drink well over the next four or five years.

El Toro Macho Tempranillo 2013
Utiel Requena, Valencia, Spain
$4.99
Aldi’s el cheapo red comes from Spain, home of tempranillo. It’s a clean, fresh version of the variety, with all the focus on fruit flavour, and no sign of oak or other winemaking add-ons. Grape tannins give a gentle bite to the finish of this medium-bodied, easy drinking red. Aldi shows its understanding of the Australian market by importing stock sealed with screw caps – a quality standard rival retailer Costco might emulate for its Australian customers.

Howard Park Abercrombie Cabernet Sauvignon 2012
Great Southern and Margaret River, Western Australia
$90.25–$113
Owner Jeff Burch notes a connection between Howard Park’s first cabernet, made from Great Southern fruit in 1986, and his company’s flagship Abercrombie. The early wines, made by John Wade (maker, too, of the legendary Wynns John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon 1982), came from Great Southern vines planted in the mid seventies. Burch now owns those old vines, which join Margaret River material in Abercrombie. It’s a class act from the first sniff: seductively floral cabernet marries seamlessly with sweet oak in the aroma and on the extraordinarily concentrated but harmonious and elegant palate.

Lark Hill Riesling 2014
Lark Hill vineyard, Lake George escarpment, Canberra District, NSW
$35
Lark Hill’s riesling vines, planted in 1978, sit a couple of hundred metres higher than most of their Canberra district peers. The higher altitude means cooler, later ripening and, for the resultant wine, subtle flavour and structural differences to those grown on lower, warmer sites. This shows, to my taste, as an apple-like tartness and flavour mingling with the otherwise lemon- and –lime-like varietal characters. A year after vintage, the fruit really sings and, combined, with the racy acidity, gives a thrilling drink.

Penfolds Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon 2012
Limestone Coast, McLaren Vale and Langhorne Creek, South Australia
$71.30–$80
Penfolds introduced Bin 407 as a cheaper cellar mate to its $350 flagship Bin 707 cabernet. Bin 707, like its shiraz counterpart, Grange, offers enormous depth, power and very long term cellaring potential. Bin 407, on the other hand, shows a more approachable and purely varietal face of cabernet – albeit in the sturdy Penfolds mould. The 2012 vintage combines the variety’s ripe, cassis-like flavours with subtle herbaceous notes, reminiscent of tomato leaf. Deep, strong tannins intersect with the fruit, giving layered, multi-dimensional flavours and textures and firm finish.

Copyright © Chris Shanahan 2015
First published 19 and 20 May in goodfood.com.au and the Canberra Times

Coriole McLaren Vale Sangiovese 2013 $22–$25
What to drink with Tuesday night pizza? Tongue and Groove’s short wine list offered several tempting drops. But we settled for Coriole sangiovese, the Italian variety grown and made in McLaren Vale by the Lloyd family. They planted sangiovese in 1985 and over the years, they’ve polished it to a high standard. In the excellent 2013 vintage, the wine offers delicious plush, juicy fruit flavours, with an underlying savouriness, but softer tannins than we expect from the variety. The fruity softness made it appealing even before the food arrived. And the savouriness sat well with the rich pizza flavours.

Kirrihill Vineyard Selection Watervale Riesling 2014 $20
Kirribilli offers a range of wines sourced from vineyards in the Clare Valley and Adelaide Hills. Their riesling comes from two vineyards at Watervale, at the southern end of the Clare Valley. For a fair price it delivers the region’s floral and citrus-like aromas, intense, lime-like flavour and racy, dry finish. Despite its flavour intensity, the wine remains light-bodied, at 11 per-cent alcohol, and pleasingly delicate. The fruit purity, aromatics and delicacy come down to gentle grape handling and protective winemaking techniques.

Gallagher Canberra District Riesling 2014 $22
Good on the Hellenic Club for offering a local wine of this calibre by the glass. Like other Canberra 2014 vintage rieslings, Gallagher offers highly perfumed, floral aromas, with generous, juicy, citrus-like varietal flavours. However, there’s a gentle delicacy to the palate and a zingy acidity that makes it impressively vibrant and fresh. A modest alcohol content of 11.4 per cent adds to its drinking appeal. Based on many earlier vintages, you can enjoy this wine for its youthful fruitiness now, or follow its flavour evolution over the next four or five years – perhaps longer in a cool, dark cellar.

Copyright © Chris Shanahan 2015
First published 16 and 17 May in goodfood.com.au and the Canberra Times

Clonakilla Pinot Noir 2014 $55
Clonakilla vineyard, Murrumbateman, Canberra District, NSW
“Pinot’s the holy grail”, says Clonakilla’s Tim Kirk, “and the general wisdom is you can’t make great pinot noir in Canberra”. But after producing pinot for decades, only to blend it into the flagship shiraz-viognier, Kirk made small, separate batches from 2011. He used fruit from vines planted in 1978 by his father, John Kirk, and two plots he planted in 2007 and 2008. “They were always good and interesting wines but not great”, says Kirk, though they improved a little with each vintage. However, the 2014 stands convincingly on its own – an exciting, irresistible wine, displaying the many dimensions of good pinot: sweet fragrance, layers of fruit, deep savoury characters (reminiscent of olive tapenade), silky texture and elegant structure. Kirk produced just two barrels, or around 80 dozen bottles.

Clonakilla Ballinderry 2013 $55
Clonakilla vineyard, Murrumbateman, Canberra District, NSW
In 1971, John Kirk planted cabernet sauvignon at Clonakilla. In 1985 and 1987 he added the related varieties cabernet franc and merlot. But in the mid nineties shiraz emerged as Clonakilla’s (and later the district’s) red specialty, forcing the cabernet blend into the background. Then along came the outstanding 2013 vintage and, to me, the best cabernet blend yet made at Clonakilla, or in Canberra. It comprises cabernet franc (42 per cent), merlot (35 per cent) and cabernet sauvignon (23 per cent) in a taut, elegant, tannic style. Only after hours of air exposure does the absolutely beautiful fruit reveal itself. And when it does, it’s irresistible, though tightly bound up in those fine tannins. It’ll probably evolve for decades. Tim Kirk believes a serendipitous extra 10 months in oak contributed to its great dimension. Disease ruled out harvesting of cabernet varieties in 2014, meaning there was no call on the barrels containing the 2013 wine.

Quarry Hill Shiraz 2013 $21
Quarry Hill vineyard, Murrumbateman, Canberra District, NSW
Hardys are long gone from Canberra, but the company left a rich legacy of high quality small vineyards inspired by their presence. Dean Terrell’s Quarry Hill vineyard, planted during the Hardy era in 1999, now sells fruit to other winemakers and makes small quantities of wine under its own label. This shiraz, made by former Hardy winemaker, Alex McKay, captures the delicious berry-and-spice character of Canberra shiraz. It’s medium bodied, in the district style, and shows a teasing, stalky twist, probably a result of including whole bunches in the ferment.

Four Winds Tom’s Block Shiraz 2013 $45
Four Winds vineyard, Murrumbateman, Canberra District, NSW
Four Winds vineyard made two very good shirazes in the outstanding 2013 vintage. Their standard shiraz, reviewed last year, offers a particularly aromatic expression of Canberra’s shiraz style. Tom’s Block, on the other hand, heads in a deeper, sturdier direction. As a selection of Four Winds’ best shiraz, it shows richer, deeper fruit flavour than the standard version. Maturation for a year in French oak barrels also built extra weight into the mid-palate, while adding its own sympathetic spicy, charry aromas and flavours.

Freeman Rondinella Corvina Secco 2010 $35
Freeman vineyard, Hilltops, NSW
Brian Freeman’s blend emulates the Amarone reds made in Valpolicella, near Verona, Italy. There, vignerons co-ferment fresh-picked and dehydrated grapes to produce distinctive reds of intense sour-cherry, prune- and port-like flavours. The best are remarkable. Freeman planted the Veronese varieties rondinella and corvina for this purpose. He sends part of the crop to a neighbour’s prune dehydrator, then ferments the dried fruit with fresh-picked material. Freeman’s 2010 presents very strong, sour-cherry- and port-like flavours, meshed with the distinct aromas and flavours of oak, on a potent and tannic palate that some will love and others will hate.

Ross Hill Pinnacle Series Chardonnay 2014 $35
Ross Hill Griffin Road vineyard, Orange, NSW
The Robson Family’s Ross Hill has emerged as the one of the hot producers of the cool Orange district. The varied altitudes (and climates) of the family’s vineyard (750 to 1000 metres) gives winemakers Phil and Rochelle Kerney an extraordinary palate of varieties to work with. Chardonnay, for example, comes from the family’s Griffin Road vineyard at 750 metres. Handpicked, whole-bunch pressed and fermented spontaneously in French oak barrels, it’s about as natural as wine gets. It showed great promise tasted from barrel about a year ago and now delivers on that promise: a seamless, plush, vibrant chardonnay, combining cool-climate, grapefruit-and-nectarine varietal flavour with the textural richness and flavour nuances derived from fermentation and maturation in barrel.

Copyright © Chris Shanahan 2015
First published 12 and 13 May 2015 in goodfood.com.au and the canberratimes.com.au

Logan Weemala Central Ranges Shiraz Viognier 2013 $19
Peter Logan’s shiraz-viognier blend combines grapes from two distinct points on the NSW Great Dividing Range – Mudgee and Orange. Lower, warmer Mudgee makes strong, tannic shiraz; higher, cooler Orange makes lighter, spicier, softer styles. Logan says the wine is basically Mudgee shiraz (70 per cent of the blend), mollified by the Orange component. It’s a pleasing result from a very good season, the best in his 20-year career, says Logan. The wine shows ripe, cherry-like fruit flavours, with a spicy lift and firm tannins that give a dry, savoury finish.

Angullong Orange Sauvignon Blanc 2014 $19
The 220-hectare Angullong vineyard, 35-kilometres south of Orange, rolls in and out of the Orange wine-district boundary, which is defined partly on altitude. The vineyard’s altitude varies by only 40 metres, from 580-metres to 620-metres. But only the vines above the 600-metre mark lie within Orange. Those below it qualify for the Central Ranges appellation, which must make harvesting and separating the fruit quite a challenge for the managers. Fortunately they grow very good grapes – and it shows in this bright and zesty, clearly varietal dry white. It’s a drink-now style from a region well suited to the variety.

Tudor Central Victorian Shiraz (Aldi) 2013 $12.99
Few wines at this price win gold medals and trophies. But Aldi’s blend shiraz–mourvedre blend earned one trophy at the 2014 National Wine Show of Australia and two in the 2015 Sydney International Wine Competition. That’s on top of two gold, two silver and two bronze medals. The brilliant crimson-rimmed colour; cheerful, fruity aroma, reflected on the juicy palate, are easy to love. Little wonder the judges rated it so highly. Gentle tannins mingle with the fruit, though there’s a savoury note and a little bite to the finish, courtesy no doubt of the mourvedre.

Copyright © Chris Shanahan 2015
First published 10 May 2015 in the Canberra Times

Sevenhill Cellars Inigo Riesling 2014 $18.80–$20
Sevenhill Cellars vineyards, Clare Valley, South Australia
In 1851 the Society of Jesus established Sevenhill Cellars, the Clare Valley’s first winery. The Jesuits still run Sevenhill from magnificent stone cellars where they make amazingly concentrated wines from their own extensive vineyards. Inigo – the cheaper of their two rieslings (the other, St Francis Xavier, sells for $35) – seduces the palate with a sensuous, drink-now opulence. Seduction begins with the pure citrus-and-floral varietal aroma. But it’s the slick and slippery palate that makes the earth move. More please.

Bowen Estate Shiraz 2013 $28.50–$33
Bowen vineyards, Coonawarra, South Australia
For a cool-climate Coonawarra shiraz, Bowen’s is of heroic proportions: high in alcohol at 15.5 per cent, pulsing with rich, very ripe fruit flavours, made even more succulent by a mother-load of soft tannins. If these descriptors seem at odds with Coonawarra’s demure template, they come with a few caveats. Despite the wine’s size and power, the fruit flavours remain in the regional ripe-berry spectrum and there’s an elegance to the structure, albeit obscured slightly by the high alcohol.

Yalumba FDR 1A Cabernet Shiraz 2010 $36.10–$43
Eden Valley, South Australia
“We have a new deal on FDR”, announced the sales rep in nineteen seventy something. Undeterred by collective groans in Farmer Brothers’ buying office, he poured samples. We duly applauded what was to be one of the few successes of the Barossa’s appalling 1974 vintage. That was the first vintage of a blend that, on the strength of the Eden Valley cabernet component, became 100-per-cent Eden from the 2010 vintage. At five years’, it tastes young and fresh, with the deep berry, mint and firm tannin character of Eden cabernet, rounded and softened by shiraz. It’s an outstanding red with decades of slow evolution ahead of it.

Penfolds Bin 311 Chardonnay 2013 $34.80–$40
Tumbarumba, NSW
In the early nineties Penfolds put its mind to making a white flagship – a white equivalent to Grange, eventually released as Yattarna, from the 1995 vintage. Though the search began with semillon, riesling and chardonnay, the latter fairly quickly became the sole focus. During this search, Tumbarumba chardonnay made the initial cut, but soon bowed out to components from the Adelaide Hills and, later, Tasmania. However, Penfolds didn’t abandon Tumbarumba altogether and the region generally contributes partly or solely to the brilliant Bin 311 – a rich, fine and sophisticated chardonnay. It has immediate drinking appeal and potential to evolve in the cellar for several years.

d’Arenberg High Trellis Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 $18–$20
d’Arenberg High Trellis vineyard, McLaren Vale South Australia
Only a comparatively small proportion of under-$20 reds have the stuffing to cellar well. But an earthy, fruity, richness and savoury, rustic tannins give High Trellis cellarability as well as grippy, drink-now appeal. The wine, produced from a nineteenth-century vineyard, shows clear varietal cassis- and mint-like varietal flavours and firm but friendly tannins. The chewy, richly textured palate has a wholemeal goodness, partly because winemaker Chester Osborne doesn’t fine of filter the wine before bottling.

Sassafras Gamay Ancestral 2014 $24
Johansen vineyard, Tumbarumba, NSW
In 2014, Quarry Hill’s Paul Starr branched out and produced a sparkling rose by applying the ancestral method to red gamay grapes. The method involves a standard fermentation, with just enough skin contact to extract the pink colour. The maker refrigerates the wine to arrest the fermentation while it retains a small amount of residual sugar. After bottling, the sugars undergo a secondary fermentation, creating carbon dioxide and a very fine haze from the spent yeast cells. Starr’s wine, sealed with a stainless steel crown, offers an attractive pink colour, a modest level of effervescence and gamay’s alluring strawberry-like aroma and flavour. The zippy, fresh, fruit-sweet palate finishes pleasantly tart and dry.

Copyright © Chris Shanahan 2015
First published 5 and 6 May 2015 in goodfood.com.au and the Canberra Times