Innocent Bystander Moscato 2009

Victoria, Australia. Muscat (Gordo and Black). 5.5%. Crown seal. Approx $A14.

This gets 10/10 for fun. The colour is suitably vibrant and the scent is a combination of rose petals, raspberry jelly and grapes. Tart, zippy and beautiful in its simplicity and refreshment. It seems slimmer and drier than the last one I tried.

Brookland Valley Reserve Cabernet sauvignon 2001

Margaret River, Western Australia. Cabernet sauvignon. 14.5%. Cork. Source: Cellar.

A beautiful wine, bold and pure. Black. Cassis scented with a note eucalyptus and cedar. Later on, a trace of earth, soy sauce and ground ginger. Big and soft to begin, there is sweetness and concentration together with a sense of envelopment and expansion.

Very good - excelent.
94.
Now - 2019.

Bindi Original Vineyard Pinot Noir 2008

Macedon, Victoria, Australia. Pinot noir. 14%. Diam. Half bottle.

I love half bottles and these from Bindi are particularly welcome.

Vibrant, sappy and unresolved. Cherry and raspberry with a hint of ginger spice and creamy oak. Bigger and warmer than expected, the weight slightly overwhelms the Turkish delight and fleshy softness.

Very good.
91+
2011 - 2016

Somewhat related post.

Postcard: Boatshed 73 Crawley

It's been a while since my last postcard. The days lengthen and though there has been rain there is no more cold. This is surely Perth's most photographed boat shed, captured here at speed and with minimal thought or planning. Mounts Bay road (from where the photo was taken), nestled as it is between the river and cliffs of Kings Park is equally therapeutic and functional. I can't think of a better drive in the City, generous curves, a beautiful and changing view of the river and no stop signs. . .

Borie de Maurel Belle de Nuit 2007

Minervois, Languedoc, France. Grenache. 14.5%. Cork. Approx $A35.

I went wine shopping last week and found this hidden amongst the expensive bottles at the back of the shop. I picked it up on spec, thinking it would be rustic and honest. It's quite delicious. A wine with a pretty nose and suntanned body. Vibrant and fresh to start, with boiled lollies and raspberry. By nights end it has a more herbal note (dried oregano and bay) along with a trace of tar. Round and fleshy in attack, it is mouth-filling and warming. Languid and uncoiled, it eventually tightens and finishes with a streak of chalk and slightly inky tannins.

Very good.
90.
Now - 2012+

technorati tags: wine

Moss Wood Mornington Peninsula Pinot noir 2008

Dromana, Mornington Peninsula, Victoria, Australia. Pinot noir. 13.5%. Screwcap. Approx $A60 (though currently available for $A42 through one particular national retailer).

Whilst this is a competent and enjoyable wine, I am not so sure about the marketing. In my simple mind Moss Wood = Margaret River = Cabernet. If there had to be a extension in the range I would have thought a better fit would have been a Moss Wood Coonawarra Cabernet. . .

The oak is notable, it's sweetly toasted, spiced, creamy and slightly clunky. Earth and stewed berries complete the olfactory profile, while in the mouth this is sappy, focused and slightly stern.

Very Good.
88+
2011 - 2015.

technorati tags: wine

Helm Riesling 2008

Murrumbateman, Canberra, Australia. Riesling. 12%. Screwcap. Approx $35

Two interesting things on the back label. First the choice of preservatives - this contains 224 and 300. Potassium metabisulphate and Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C). I'm pretty sure this is the first time I have noticed a bottle with something other than Sulphur dioxide. The second thing that caught my eye was the story. Helm wines was established in 1973 on the site of the Toual Public school - hence the school bell on the label. The building, once used for Temperance meetings, now serves as the tasting room. . .

Clear and vibrant, there can be no mistaking the signal, it's kaffir lime, musk and fresh cut fennel. Electric and pulsating, this is wonderfully simple, direct and affirming.

Very good.
91.
Now - 2015+

Petaluma Hanlin Hill Riesling 2008

It would seem that I was too harsh on this when I last tried it. I thought it short and unworthy. One year on I can see how wrong and impatient I was. The flavours are similar, but the striking thing now is the step up in intensity. It's like sucking on a slice of lime crusted in salt. Full of impact, zest and life. Wiser heads could see the charm and appeal much earlier, I could not. While I could reasonably hide behind the idea of a youthful bottle needing time to settle, I think I was just wrong with my assessment last time. . .

Very good - Excellent.
92.
Now - 2018.

technorati tags: wine

Shaw and Smith M3 Chardonnay 2008

Adelaide Hills, South Australia. Chardonnay. 13.5%. SCrewcap. Approx $A40.

As I sip, my head is pounding and my concentration is elsewhere. Is it any wonder I find this slightly less compelling than the previous vintage? The spectrum of flavours is similar with melon, fig and butterscotch. I can smell and taste grilled pineapple, which is not always a positive. Creamy and sappy at once, all the components are present, but it still seems a little too diffuse and blurred around the edges for higher marks.

Very good.
92.
Now - 2012.

Turkey Flat Shiraz 2006

A lazy lunch in the City and the most notable thing is the ongoing construction. Little by little Perth is being remade. It's paradoxical then that there seems to be such debate about whether to extend retail trading hours.

I had a spicy calzone stuffed with spinach, scrambled egg and Italian sausage and a tasting glass of slightly top heavy shiraz. Not a match made in heaven, so it was fortunate the wine arrived well ahead of the food.

A whiff and prickle of acetic acid and varnish before a more inviting note of raisins and creamy chocolate. The oak is notable, but stained with crushed berries. Lush, concentrated and flooding. This is unlikely to make old bones, but the combination of ripeness, intensity and the faintest suggestion of Port won me over.

Very good.
90.
Now - 2012.

Orlando Steingarten Riesling 2001

I had the idea of cooking a recipe from David Thompson's peerless book and drinking a middle aged riesling. I did both, but as it turned out, not on the same day. My Tom yam was a mild disappointment, I could not get the balance of hot, salty and sour.

Likewise, my Steingarten epiphany will have to wait. I opened this to find the inside thread of the screwcap partly stained and crusted. The foam and foil disk which provides the hermetic seal was itself stuck down and any attempts at lifting it only revealed more stain. All of this suggests this is an atypical bottle with an imperfect seal. Despite the signs of leakage, I could find no particular suggestion of oxidation, indeed I thought this needed air. . . The wine is most peculiar, the nose is identifiably Barossa, with a whiff of wax, lime and kerosene. Like a previous encounter I found it blunt, dull and lifeless to begin, a strange and unnatural combination of mouse, mushroom and blue veined cheese. By nights end, there is more zest, texture and length. I feel more favourably inclined, but remain unimpressed.

Bindi Original Vineyard Pinot Noir 2005

Macedon, Victoria. Pinot noir. 13.5%. Diam. Source: Cellar.

The fruit of Ficus macrophylla (The Moreton Bay Fig) are edible, but unrewardingly dry and gritty. I spent a lazy afternoon with my children collecting them from Hyde park, along with discarded feathers and oddly shaped seed pods.

The bottle in the image is a heavy weight (approx 1kg) La Baronne, imported from France. Pleasingly, the latest Bindi newsletter mentions that they will no longer use such bottles.

The wine has become more savoury and perfumed since my last encounter almost three years ago. I keep sniffing and returning to the image of dried porcini mushrooms. A beautiful and slippery wine, which manages to suggest all at once - plump abundance, umani and satin.

Excellent.
95.
Now - 2012.

Dr Loosen Bernkaster Lay Kabinett 2007

Mosel, Germany. Riesling. 7.5%. Screwcap. Approx $A35.

There is nothing particularly complex or intriguing about this, the pleasure lies in the simplicity and balance. It's apple puree cut with lime juice, with an initial spritzig and the obligatory suggestion of slate and brimstone.

Very good.
90.
Now - 2017+

Voyager Estate Cabernet Merlot 2001

Margaret River, Western Australia. Cabernet sauvignon, Merlot. 14.5%. Screwcap. Source: Cellar.

I've started reading Nick Hornby's latest book - Juliet Naked. I'd strongly recommend it to all my fellow bloggers. One of the main characters, Duncan, maintains a website devoted to his obsession. . .

Tobacco, tomato leaf, earth and smoke. Bay leaf, dried rosemary and eucalyptus. The oak is notable to begin and gives an inviting, but fleeting, creamy sweetness to the nose and palate. Big boned and vigourous, the concentrated and dark chocolate flavours give plenty of impact.

Though my previous note is not quite the same, I suspect the wine has changed little in the intervening years.

Very very good.
91.
Now - 2019+

Flametree Cabernet Merlot 2008

I thought I'd try a slightly different way of presenting my tasting notes (click on the image). Please let me know what you think.