Wine review — Tim Smith Wines, Dr Loosen, John Duval, Domain Day, Ashton Hills and Redbank

4 September 2013Wine reviewChris Shanahan

Tim Smith Wines Mataro 2012 $36
Greenock and Light Pass, Barossa Valley, South Australia
Tim Smith made wine at Yalumba for 15 years, but now produces his own delicious reds, like this one, discovered at Tanunda’s exciting FermentAsian restaurant. Smith says he loves mataro (aka mourvedre) and sees good cellaring potential in the variety, thanks largely to its firm tannic structure. However, he likes mataro’s fruit unadorned with oak, though the variety takes some taming in older, larger oak vessels before bottling. In the outstanding 2012 vintage, the beautiful, sweet, tender fruit makes for joyous drinking, though there’s sufficient tannin structure to see the wine through perhaps a decade in the cellar. (Available at timsmithwines.com.au).

Bernkasteler Lay Riesling Kabinett 2011 (Dr Loosen) $33–$36
Lay vineyard, Bernkastel, Mosel River, Germany
Ernie Loosen’s house and office, a stroll downstream from Bernkastel, sit just below the Lay vineyard. Loosen owns part of the vineyard and wines he makes from it carry the village, vineyard and grape varietal names. We bought the wine at Vintage Cellars, Adelaide markets, to accompany the outstanding food of Star of Siam, in Gouger Street. It’s a medium sweet wine of dazzling freshness, with the lightness, intense flavour, delicacy, high acid and rich texture typical of the vineyard. Australian versions of this style face an uphill battle in our warm climate. And few, if any, can match the class of this German original, from one of the great producers of the Mosel River.

John Duval Plexus 2012 $25–$30
Barossa Valley, South Australia
A warm area like the Barossa floor is seldom going to make riesling to match the quality of those from the high, cooler Eden Valley in the hills to the Barossa’s east. If any white styles are to match the region’s reds in quality in future, I’d put my money where John Duval does with Plexus. He uses the Rhone valley varieties, marsanne (55 per cent), roussanne (35 per cent) and viognier (10 per cent), sourced, respectively from Marananga and Seppeltsfield, Kalimna and the Eden Valley. A combination of fermentation regimes, including both tank and barrel, created a full, fresh, richly textured dry white with a distinctive flavour, reminiscent of that sweet-tart area between the flesh and rind of rockmelon. It’s delightful, different and in 2012, particularly rich and sweet fruited.

Domain Day One Serious Sangiovese 2009 $30
Domain Day vineyard, Mount Crawford, Barossa Valley, South Australia
One of Tuscany’s great sangioveses, Brunello di Montelcino, inspired Robin Day to plant the variety at Mount Crawford, a comparatively cool site at 450 metres, on the border of the Barossa and Eden Valleys. Day’s is an earthy, savoury expression of the variety – the savouriness wrestling with its core of ripe, sweet and sour cherry flavour. In the 2009 vintage, the savouriness and earthiness seem even more pronounced than usual, setting the wine apart from tamer beasts like shiraz, cabernet and pint noir.

Ashton Hills Piccadilly Valley Pinot Noir 2012 $30
Piccadilly Valley, Adelaide Hills, South Australia
In a good season, Stephen George makes three pinot noirs – estate and reserve from his own vineyards, and a lighter, fruitier style under the Piccadilly Valley label. In 2012, he sourced the latter 70 per cent from his own vineyards with the remainder coming from a nearby Piccadilly Valley neighbour. In such a good season, however, “lighter and fruitier” takes on a new meaning, as this is far richer and more concentrated than usual ¬¬– though nothing compared to the reserve version reviewed last week. This is way above average pinot, offering really satisfying drinking.

Redbank The Long Paddock Shiraz 2012 $9.50–$13
Victoria
Redbank won’t let us in on the regional sourcing secrets. But there’s no doubting, even at the price, that it includes pretty good material. Its fragrant, ripe and supple, with medium body and spicy, peppery notes derived from cool climate components of the wine. The winemakers added sangiovese to the blend (six per cent of the total) – injecting savour and grip to the otherwise soft tannins. Redbank is a Victorian based brand belonging to the Hill-Smith family’s Yalumba group.

Beer can be just peachy

4 September 2013Beer, Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Brewers infuse specialty beers with many ingredients other than hops. The list, potentially as long as the number of edible plants, includes cherries, fig, banana, chilli, chocolate, coffee, cinnamon, truffle and cardamon.

The latest across the tasting bench, infused with peach and tea, comes under David Burns and Elly Meltzer’s Kwencher label, brewed to their recipe at Southern Bay Brewery, Geelong.

Burns and Meltzer got the idea while travelling in Morocco, drinking peach tea and local beer.

They make two beers – a pale ale, broadly in the malty, hoppy American style and the peach and tea infused lager.

The beers are available at beerstore.com.au, though it should be in Canberra outlets before long. Burns and Meltzer will release draught versions of the beers during spring.

Kwencher Pale Ale 24X330ml $81.99
Kwencher Pale Ale, brewed in Geelong, begins and ends with hops – although, rich, smooth smalt flavours feature on the way through. Fruity, citrusy hops aromas lead to the rich palate. Then the hops kick in again, giving resiny flavours and a firm, intensely bitter finish.

Kwencher Clingstone Peach Lager 16X330ml $59.99
Brewers infuse beer with many things, in this instance with Darjeeling tea and peach. Sweet, peach aromas suggest a sweet drink to follow. On the brisk, lean palate, peach flavours rise above the maltiness, but the palate remains dry and fresh, with a pleasantly tart grip – derived from tea tannins, the brewer’s notes suggest.

Wine review — Taittinger, Corte Carista and Tscharke

1 September 2013Wine reviewChris Shanahan

Champagne Taittinger Brut Resérve NV $50–$60
With a little more chardonnay in the blend than most NV’s (40 per cent versus about 33 – the remainder pinot noir and pinot meunier), good old Taitts giggles on the light and cheery side of Champagne, with seemingly little lees-aged character. Nevertheless, it’s a lovely, delicate aperitif style with the lightness of chardonnay and yummy brioche-like nuances of pinot meunier, the lesser of the two pinots, but indispensable nevertheless. Pinot meunier tends to fill the frost-prone dips in the Champagne region and is more fruitful than pinot noir in this situation as it buds later, giving it better odds of missing the chill.

Chianti Classico (Corte Carista) 2009 $10
Aldi’s Tuscan import takes us well away in style from Australian wines made from the same grape variety, sangiovese. It’s light to medium bodied, taut, bone-dry, earthy and savoury with its cherry-like fruit flavour buried well inside the fine, firm tannins. Like all the Aldi wines I’ve tried to date, it fits the specification, offering very good value for money. The withered little cork snapped in half as we coaxed it from the bottle. But at least the wine emerged clean, fresh and untainted by the cork – something drinkers always risk with this outmoded seal.

Tscharke Barossa Valley The Potter Garnacha 2011 $24
Barossa winemaker Damien Tscharke favours the Spanish ‘garnacha’ over the French ‘grenache’. But call it what you will, it’s a variety long established in the Barossa’s Marananga sub-region where it works as well in fortified wine as it does in table wine. We tasted the 2011 at cellar door in July, where the staff told us Tscharke had “picked it [the fruit] early in this shitty season”. Indeed, miserably cold, wet weather destroyed much of the Barossa’s crop that year. Tscharke, however, succeed in making an attractive, spicy, peppery red, albeit lighter, more savoury and less fleshy than usual, but one we enjoyed.

Wine review — Antinori, Ashton Hills, Tscharke, Guigal, Reichgraf von Kesselstatt and Redbank

28 August 2013Wine reviewChris Shanahan

Chianti Classico Peppoli (Antinori) 2009 $22.90–$25
Chianti Classico zone, Tuscany, Italy
At the Food and Wine truffle dinner (10 Yards restaurant), we compared Peppoli 2009, an Italian sangiovese, with Ravensworth Le Querce Canberra Sangiovese 2012. The pairing highlighted Ravensworth’s bright and fruity Australian character, albeit with sangiovese’s signature tannic bite. Peppoli, from the 600-year-old producer, Antinori, revealed the elegant structure, savouriness and fine, persistent tannins seen in the best reds of Tuscany’s Chianti Classico region. A touch of merlot and shiraz in the blend adds a little flesh to the bone. And maturation of a small portion of the blend in American oak barrels contributes subtly to the aroma and mid palate. It proved irresistible and I confess to nicking editor, Kirsten Lawson’s, glass.

Ashton Hills Reserve Pinot Noir 2012 $65–$75
Piccadilly Valley, Adelaide Hills, South Australia
For all the talk of “terroir”, the best wines, in any region, come from those making the fewest compromises in every little step through vineyard, harvest, grape transport, winemaking, maturation, bottling and storage. Stephen George’s wines show these perfectionist traits year after year. So, on a recent visit to the cellar, it was no surprise to taste pinots probably as good as they’ll ever be out of the Adelaide Hills – each showing the character of its vintage. George’s Estate Pinot Noir 2011 ($30) showed the edgy, just-ripe flavours of the cold season, albeit with pinot’s slick texture and fine tannins. The reserve 2012 revealed the beauty of an exceptional year – pinot with extra fruity depth, flesh, power and layers of flavour; all without losing its “pinosity”, that hard-to-describe character separating pinot from other varieties.

Tscharke Barossa Grounds Collection Grenache Shiraz Mourvedre 2012 $22
Marananga, Barossa Valley, South Australia
At Damien Tscharke’s cellar door we tasted a range of reds from the 2011 and 2012 vintages. Tscharke made decent, though lighter reds in the cold 2011. But the 2012s offer riper, fleshier, more satisfying drinking. His grenache-shiraz-mourvedre appealed for its bright, spicy aroma, medium body and delicious, sweet, juicy fruit flavours. Typically Barossa in its generosity and soft, easy tannins, it’s ready to drink right now.

Cotes du Rhone Blanc (Guigal) 2009 $20–$25
Rhone Valley, France
At the Food and Wine truffle dinner we paired Guigal’s Rhone blend with Alex McKay’s Collector Canberra District Lamplit Marsanne 2011. Overall, diners preferred the livelier, younger, oak-fermented Canberra wine, made principally of marsanne with a little viognier and roussanne. But the French wine had its admirers, too. It’s a tank-fermented blend of viognier (55 per cent), roussanne (20 per cent), marsanne (10 per cent), clairette (10 per cent) and bourboulenc. Viognier leads the blend, giving it weight and viscosity and a touch of apricot-like flavour. It’s not a wine to drink on its own, nor would the flavours and texture familiar to the Australian palate. But its weight and texture worked well with the lovely, sweet pumpkin and goat curd ravioli.

Piesporter Goldtropfchen Riesling Auslese 2005 $85–$90
(Reichgraf von Kesselstatt)
Piesport, Mosel valley, Germany
For some, this wine proved the highlight of our truffle dinner – enjoyed not necessarily with the excellent dessert, but after it as a meal in its own right. The shimmering, pale, lemon-lime colour and equally shimmering, intense fruit and dazzling, fresh acidity make it unique among sweet wines. This is a classic Mosel wine with decades of cellaring ahead of it. It comes from the ancient Goldtropfchen vineyard, located on the steep slopes opposite the village of Piesport. Wine has been grown on the vineyard since at least Roman times and the riesling grape has dominated plantings since the 1760s.

Redbank The Long Paddock Merlot 2012 $12.95
Predominantly Ovens Valley, Victoria
Redbank is part of the Hill-Smith family portfolio, which also includes well-known brands such as Yalumba, Heggies and Pewsey Vale. The Redbank brand is Victorian based, drawing fruit from the King and Ovens Valleys and, for some of its lower priced wines, from warmer Victorian regions as well. This merlot comes primarily from a cool site in the Ovens Valley and contains about five per cent sangiovese from the King Valley. The latter presumably explains the savouriness and quite firm, tannic grip in an otherwise bright and fruity, medium bodied red wine.

Beer review — Wig & Pen and Aguila

28 August 2013Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Wig and Pen Smokey Olde Spice Ale $7 half pint
SOS starts as a strong (7.2 per cent alcohol) barrel-aged beer, made from beechwood-smoked barley malt. The brew percolates through a container of fresh truffles, figs, cinnamon and vanilla en route to the tap. It emerges lively, opulent, smokey, spicy, malty and fruity with a teasing, tart, tannic bite to the finish.

Aguila Beer of Columbia 330ml $7 on-premise
Carlton and United Breweries recently launched Columbian-brewed Aguila into the on-premise market. Brewed from malted barley, and rice and seasoned with perle and nugget hop varieties, it fits our two-star rating perfectly. It’s a good, basic, fault-free quaffer, at a modest four per cent alcohol.

Coopers makes waves in a flat beer market

28 August 2013BeerChris Shanahan

In the dark days of the 1992–93 recession, South Australian based Coopers sold just 10.8 million litres of beer, “our lowest level since 1985”, says Managing Director, Dr Tim Cooper.

But the company exploded out of the recession, averaging 9.8 per cent annual growth for the next 20 years. Dr Cooper says the company sold 69.7 million litres of beer in 2012–13, “accounting for around 4.5 per cent of the total Australian beer market”. He expects to gain more market share in coming years.

Despite the introduction of lagers in recent years, and contract brewing of Sapporo and Carlsberg beers, Coopers success continues to rely largely on its traditional ales.

These, including Pale Ale, Sparkling Ale, Mild Ale and Stout make up around 80 per cent of production, says Dr Cooper.

Wine review– Riposte, Tscharke and Redbank

25 August 2013People, Wine reviewChris Shanahan

Riposte The Dagger Adelaide Hills Pinot Noir 2012 $20–$22
A visit to the Adelaide Hills in late July turned up some lovely reds and whites from the 2012 vintage – a very favourable season following the cold, wet 2011 season. Winemaker Tim Knappstein sources fruit from various parts of the hills and makes his wine at Wicks Estate – where we tasted Wicks 2012 alongside Knappstein’s Riposte 2012. They’re similarly priced and both offer clear varietal flavour and satisfying, ripe, juicy fruit. The unoaked Knappstein wine, however, seems a little tighter on the palate with attractive savoury character as well as fruit.

Tscharke Matching Socks Barossa Valley Touriga Nacional 2012 $21
Sixth generation Barossa vigneron, Damien Tscharke, recently opened a unique cellar door in the Barossa’s Marananga sub-region. Tscharke and his German wife, Eva, imported pre-cut timber from Germany then assembled the building, comprising cellar door, mezzanine pottery gallery (Eva makes the pots on site), four-metre underground cellar and bed and breakfast facility. Tscharke makes traditional Barossa styles but also works with less well-known varieties, including savagnin, montepulciano and this pretty red, made from the port variety, touriga nacional. It’s a rich, soft red with flavours reminiscent of summer berries and Christmas cake.

Redbank The Long Paddock Victoria Chardonnay 2012 $9.50–$12.95
Redbank is part of the Hill-Smith family portfolio, which also includes well-known brands such as Yalumba, Heggies and Pewsey Vale. The Redbank brand is Victorian based, drawing fruit from the King and Ovens Valleys and, for lower priced wines like The Long Paddock, from warmer Victorian regions as well. In Yalumba’s hands the cross-regional blend delivers high quality at a fair price – especially when the retailers chop into it. The 2012 offers attractive melon and peach varietal flavours in a full-bodied, smooth textured style.

Wine review — Paxton, Rockford, Turkey Flat, Penfolds and Holm Oak

21 August 2013People, WineChris Shanahan

Paxton Quandong Farm Shiraz 2011 $30
Paxton’s Quandong farm vineyard, McLaren Vale, South Australia
David Paxton changed from almond growing and processing to grape growing in the early eighties. He established his own vineyard in McLaren Vale and later consulted to vineyards around Australia, including at Plantagenet, Western Australia, Coldstream and Hoddles Creek in the Yarra Valley, Victoria, and on Kangaroo Island. After attending a 2004 biodynamic workshop at Beechworth, Paxton began converting his own McLaren Vale vineyards, starting with Quandong Farm. The vineyard, source of this lovely red is now certified biodynamic. I tasted the wine at cellar door with David on 24 July. It appeals for its lively, generous fruit, taut structure, hints of stalk from the whole bunches included in the ferment, and lingering, savoury finish. It combines intensity with elegance.

Rockford Rod and Spur Shiraz Cabernet 2010 $32
Barossa Valley, South Australia
The Barossa accommodates winemaking of every scale, from the vast tank farm cum city of Jacob’s Creek, at Roland Flat, to small-scale, hands-on producers like Rockford, at Krondorf. Rockford’s elegant reds capture the ripe, earthy flavours and soft tannins of this warm region. The wines age well and invariable give great drinking satisfaction. On a recent cold weekend in the Barossa, Rod and Spur, tasted by the fireplace in the stone cellar door, appealed very strongly. Though a near 50:50 blend of cabernet and shiraz, cabernet character dominated the exuberant aroma. But on the buoyant, generous, sweet-berry palate the two varieties became inseparable –until the cabernet tannins tightened up and dried out the finish.

Turkey Flat Mourvedre 2010 $32
Turkey Flat vineyard, Barossa Valley, South Australia
I reviewed this wine about a year ago and tasted it again in late July at cellar door with Turkey Flat owner, Christie Schulz. The conversation turned to the tongue-twisting varietal name. When visitors struggle with “mourvedre”, Schulz turns discomfort to a smile with, “move over dear”. It seems English customers prefer “mourvedre”, while in the Barossa it’s more widely known as “mataro” (though one producer opts for the Spanish “monastrell”). Schulz says the vines produce very small, thick-skinned berries. These make a unique red, in this instance with blackberry-like fruit, with a dusting of spice and loads of fine, grippy tannins from those thick skins.

Turkey Flat Butchers Block Red 2012 $19
Turkey Flat vineyard, Barossa Valley, South Australia
Butchers Block combines the three classic Barossa red varieties, shiraz (45 per cent), grenache (30 per cent) and mourvedre (25 per cent). Mark Bulman’s light hand in the winery unleashed the ripe and gentle beauty of these varieties in an excellent Barossa vintage. The high-toned aroma reveals the vitality of the fruit – the musk-like grenache being particularly seductive. The palate’s all fleshy, juicy, vibrant fruit flavour cut through with fine, gentle tannins.

Penfolds Cellar Reserve Pinot Noir 2012 $50
Adelaide Hills, South Australia
Peter Gago made Penfolds’ first Cellar Reserve Pinot Noir in 1997. Since then it’s evolved considerably in style from sturdy Penfolds red to a fine, deeply layered, top-shelf pinot. It’s made in the original open fermenters at Magill Estate – the same ones Max Schubert used for Grange. In this case they’re cradle to a substantial pinot – highly aromatic and varietal, intensely flavoured, fleshy, vibrant, silky textured with an exotic undertone of “stalkiness”, derived from whole grape bunches included in the ferment. Tasted at cellar door, Magill, 28 July. Available direct from Penfolds.

Holm Oak Vineyards Ilex Pinot Noir 2012 $22
Holm Oak vineyard, Tamar Valley, Tasmania
Rebecca Duffy recently released three very good pinot noirs, Holm Oak Ilex 2012 $22, Holm Oak Vineyard 2012 $32 and Holm Oak The Wizard 2010. There’s a family resemblance, but the quality lifts more or less in proportion to the prices and the styles vary. The entry level Ilex offers a true pinot experience focusing on fruity fragrance and bright raspberry-strawberry-like flavours, though with adequate tannin structure. The $32 offers more concentration and quite lush, slippery texture. And The Wizard steps up again, delivering more intense fruit flavour, firmer tannins, savouriness and the beginnings of secondary, age-derived flavours.

Tap King a beauty, but why pay more for the same beer?

21 August 2013Beer, Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Sales of Lion’s Tap King home draught beer dispenser got off to a roaring start. But, in the long run, will beer drinkers continue paying a premium for draught versions of existing packaged products?

At Dan Murphys, for example, James Squire Golden Ale costs $7.97 a litre in Tap King 3.2 litre kegs – an eight per cent premium over the $7.37 a litre price of 345ml bottles.

The unit works well. In a recent test, a friend assembled the unit and poured the first beer within 90 seconds. We then compared draught and stubby versions, noting a better head and slightly fresher taste of the keg beer. Otherwise, the flavours were identical.

A former Vintage Cellars colleague believes Lion risks disaffection when users realise they’re paying more for the same beer. Lion missed the opportunity to hang their hat on a better product, he says.

James Squire The Chancer Golden Ale 345ml 6-pack $18.99
We recently compared Squire Gold Ale from stubby and the new 3.2 litre Tap King keg version. They’re identical beers, but the keg version held a better head and tasted slightly fresher. Amarillo hops adds apricot-like notes to the aroma and flavour of a lively beer designed for easy drinking.

Wine review — Wicks Estate, Ad Hoc and Xanadu

18 August 2013Wine reviewChris Shanahan

Wicks Estate Adelaide Hills Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 $18–$20
I tasted this in July at the winery with Tim Wicks and his three winemakers, Tim Knappstein, Leigh Ratzmer and Chris Parsons. The winery, on the edge of the 40-hectare vineyard, puts out good volumes of tasty, medium-bodied wines you can usually pick up for less than $20 a bottle. The 2012 reds impressed across the range – pinot noir, shiraz and this appealing cabernet sauvignon. All three deliver ripe, juicy fruit flavours with well-defined varietal character. The aromatic, drink-now cabernet combines cassis-like fruit flavour with just a touch of leafiness and a backbone of ripe and assertive but soft tannins.

Ad Hoc Avant Gardening
Frankland River Cabernet Sauvignon Malbec 2012 $21
I’m even more drawn to the wine by winemaker Larry Cherubino’s suggested food companion – wild mushroom ravioli with sautéed chantarelles and cabernet butter. I can imagine the chewy, sweet, earthy richness of the fungi with the bright, sweet, ripe-berry flavours of this appealing blend. A little malbec modifies the flavour and structure of cabernet in a pleasing way, adding a plummy, leafy fragrance and sturdy tannins to balance the sweet-berry flavours. Cherubino sourced the fruit from the Riversdale vineyard, planted in the Frankland River region in 1997. Though matured in new and older oak barrels, the wine’s focus is all on the delicious fruit.

Xanadu Next of Kin Margaret River Shiraz 2011 $18
Xanadu is the Margaret River arm of the Rathbone Group, comprising, as well, Yering Station (Yarra Valley), Mount Langi Ghiran (Grampians) and Parker Estate (Coonawarra). Xanadu’s Next of Kin range offers really good, drink-now regional wines at prices well below the premium offerings. The shiraz, though 14.5 per cent alcohol, seems more medium than full-bodied. Vibrant berry flavours drive the wine, but these are satisfying layered with spicy and savoury notes and soft, easy tannins. Vintage 2011 was very good in the west, unlike the cold, wet season experienced in eastern Australia.