Another Bargainhttp://www.quaff.com.au/another-bargain/en-AU2012-02-14T22:04:36ZSquarespace Site Server v5.11.81 (http://www.squarespace.com/)2010 Gemtree ‘Moonstone’ Savagninhttp://www.quaff.com.au/another-bargain/2010/9/7/2010-gemtree-moonstone-savagnin.htmlPeter Forrestal2010-09-07T08:28:06ZUntil DNA showed us differently, we thought the French grape savagnin was the sexy Spanish albarino. While the latter might have been easier to sell, especially given the quiet popularity on restaurant lists of albarino from Gallica in north-western Spain, savagnin makes excellent, easy-drinking wines like this. This Gemtree white has an alluring, almost ethereal floral bouquet and vibrant fruity flavours that are dry, tangy and zesty.

 The Other White Varietials chapter in Quaff is a ripper with lots of fascinating and delicious wines recommended. The Gemtree is one of those ranked in the Quaff 2011's Top 20 wines of the year.

 

Rating: Bloody Good

Cost: $ 14.95

Winemaker: Mike Brown.   

Limited availability in all Australian states. www.gemtreevineyards.com.au

Reviewed 8th September 2010

]]>2008 Littore Tempranillohttp://www.quaff.com.au/another-bargain/2010/9/7/2008-littore-tempranillo.htmlPeter Forrestal2010-09-07T08:17:15ZThree generations of the Littore family have been growing grapes and making wines from their family property on the Murray near Mildura. They purchased the Idyll winery near Geelong and established Jindalee. You may have seen some of those wines in Quaff. They’ve now established Littore Family Wines and this is their first appearance in Quaff under that label. What a debut! This medium-bodied red is sourced from Heathcote and the Murray–Darling and is sensational. There’s riotous floral fragrances with a hint of violets and lavender, and ripe plummy, redcurranty flavours. It’s juicy, fleshy and succulent in the mid-palate, neatly balanced, finishing fresh and clean. Delicious.

 Just a note in case you are checking this out on the Littore website: they call this the Paisley Series. Don't ask me why. There's no mention of this on the bottle.

 Still, the wine is amazing.

 

Rating: Bloody Good

Cost: $ 9.95

Winemaker: David Thompson and the team.   

Wide availability in all Australian states.  www.littorewines.com.au

Reviewed: 8 September 2010

]]>2010 Angove ‘Nine Vines’ Roséhttp://www.quaff.com.au/another-bargain/2010/9/7/2010-angove-nine-vines-rose.htmlPeter Forrestal2010-09-07T08:06:03ZThis is well up there with Australia’s finest rosés and is rated Bloody Good for the fourth year in a row. This is restrained, fresh, pristine and vibrant, with intense ripe red cherry and red plum flavours, smooth texture, and a long, dryish finish that is crisp and refreshing. I expect it to pick up some savoury, earthy, gravelly complexity over the next six months.

 

Check it out when Quaff 2011 hits the bookshops and see exactly how well this has done.

 

Rating: Bloody Good

Cost: $ 13.95

Winemaker: Tony Ingle and the team.

Wide availability in all Australian states. www.angoves.com.au

Reviewed: 8 September 2010

]]>2009 De Bortoli 'Montage' Semillon Sauvignonhttp://www.quaff.com.au/another-bargain/2010/7/2/2009-de-bortoli-montage-semillon-sauvignon.htmlPeter Forrestal2010-07-02T03:00:47ZFollowers of Quaff will know what I think about the remarkably priced wines of De Bortoli. These guys are amazing. The Montage label is small – so it's not mentioned on the De Bortoli website – with just three blends; a Semillon Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay Semillon and Cabernet Merlot. Occasionally, they are amazing value for money as this is.

The 2009 De Bortoli 'Montage' Semillon Sauvignon Blanc is clean, fresh and vibrant and has some interesting minerally, sea shell complexities. You may well think this is silly or daft but have a sniff, it's a bit like the smell you get from freshly shucked oyster. It's usually only found in in expensive chardonnays. Anyway, I tasted this with three other experienced members of the panel and we all rated it a strong silver medal, which for a white that costs less that $10 is remarkable. Enjoy.

 

Rating: Bloody Good

Cost: $ 9.50

Wide availability in all Australian states.  www.debortoli.com.au

Reviewed: 2 July 2010

]]>2009 Chapel Hill 'Parsons Nose' Shirazhttp://www.quaff.com.au/another-bargain/2010/6/23/2009-chapel-hill-parsons-nose-shiraz.htmlPeter Forrestal2010-06-23T03:28:58ZChapel Hill is another of McLaren Vale's star performers. Their Gourmet Retreat is a great place to stay while in the Vale and their reds, especially, continue to please, even thrill. I remember loving their current vintage Sangiovese much more than most examples of the variety in Australia. Here's an entry level shiraz that is both well-priced and bloody good value. In the tricky 2009 vintage, it is soft, round and fleshy, has dark plum and redcurrant flavours that are ripe, clean, fresh and concentrated. There's that McLaren Vale lush quality that gives the wines velvety texture while the balance between fruit weight, oak and tannin make the wine immediately approachable.

 

Rating: Bloody Good

Cost: $ 14.95

Winemaker: Michael Fragos, Bryn Richards.

Wide availability in all Australian states. www.chapelhillwine.com.au

Reviewed: 23 June 2010

]]>2008 Moppity 'Lock & Key' Shirazhttp://www.quaff.com.au/another-bargain/2010/5/12/2008-moppity-lock-key-shiraz.htmlPeter Forrestal2010-05-12T03:29:54ZI wrote up the 'Lock and Key' Riesling five weeks ago and mentioned that I was looking forward to tasting the Shiraz which had been enthusiastically reviewed. I have: and it came up well in one of our recent New Release tastings. It's from Moppity Vineyards in the Hilltops region near the town of Young in southern New South Wales, a bit more than an hour's drive from Canberra. Moppity is Jason and Alecia Brown's vineyard with 35 year old vines on Moppity Road at 600 metres on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range. The quality of the shiraz vines was underlined when last year's Jimmy Watson Trophy was sourced in large part from the vineyard. The Moppity Reserve Shiraz has also performed well in wine shows. 

The 2008 'Lock & Key' Shiraz is vibrantly perfumed, supple, round and velvety, has ripe, redcurrant, dark plum and black cherry flavours and juicy, fleshy texture. There's weight in the mid-palate and balance between the fruit, oak and tannins which make it attractive current drinking.

 

Rating: Bloody Good

Cost: $ 14.95

Winemaker: Nick Spencer at Coffman & Lawson, Canberra.  

Limited availability.  www.moppity.com.au

Reviewed: 12 May 2010

]]>2008 Tatachilla 'Partners' Cabernet Shirazhttp://www.quaff.com.au/another-bargain/2010/5/5/2008-tatachilla-partners-cabernet-shiraz.htmlPeter Forrestal2010-05-04T21:24:19ZThis is very much in the mould of what you've come to expect from the McLaren Vale: rich, lush and easy drinking. There's ripe sweet concentrated redcurrant and dark plum flavours, texture that is almost velvety, a bit of an alcoholic kick, and pleasing approachability. A decent quaffer to warm a mid-week night in winter.

 

Rating: Good

Cost: $ 12

Wide availability in all Australian states.  www.tatachillawinery.com.au

Reviewed: 5 May 2010

]]>2008 Logan 'Apple Tree Flat' Shirazhttp://www.quaff.com.au/another-bargain/2010/4/28/2008-logan-apple-tree-flat-shiraz.htmlPeter Forrestal2010-04-28T03:01:39ZI must confess to being a fan of Logan. There's always a warm welcome at their stunningly attractive cellar door (one of the country's finest) on the Sydney side of Mudgee; and Peter Logan makes some very good to sublime wines, especially from Orange, under the Logan, Weemala and Apple Tree Flat labels.

This shiraz is sourced from a vineyard at 800 metres on the slopes of Mt Canobolas in Orange, so it's a pretty cool spot for growing shiraz. As a result, the flavour profile of the wine is very different from most quaffing shiraz – which are bursting with ripeness and have lush blackberry, black cherry flavours and are juicy and succulent. This is much more restained, more in the savoury (rather than fruity) spectrum: plummy, dark plum, even satsuma plum. So expect it to be different, and celebrate that difference.

The 2008  Logan 'Apple Tree Flat' Shiraz is rich and concentrated with some soft nutmeg, and black pepper spices, restrained plummy flavours, lovely smooth texture and gentle ripe tannins. It's well priced!

 

Rating: Good

Cost: $ 11

Winemaker: Peter Logan

Limited availability in all Australian states.   www.loganwines.com.au

Reviewed: 28 April 2010

]]>2008 Craftsman Shirazhttp://www.quaff.com.au/another-bargain/2010/4/21/2008-craftsman-shiraz.htmlPeter Forrestal2010-04-20T23:17:25ZAfter 27 years at Petaluma, Shane Virgo has established his own label with a cabernet from Coonawarra and a shiraz from the Clare Valley both of which sell at $14.95 and a available exclusively through Woolworths. Looking back at my notes, I've tasted both reds twice (blind). Neither I nor any of my panel have liked the 2008 Craftsman Coonawarra Cabernet, which won a gold medal at the Perth Show, but on both occasions I liked this wine.

 The 2008 Craftsman Shiraz has been sourced from six vineyards from the northern end of Clare Valley and has been matured in American and French oak. It is soft, round and fleshy, rich, concentrated and powerful, with ripe sweet blackberry and dark plum flavours and substantial grainy tannins.

 It needs a robust dish to accompany it: perhaps sausages with onions and a dash of the wine in its rich gravy or a lusty beef stew also incorporating some of the wine in the dish.

 

Rating: Bloody Good

Cost: $ 14.95

Winemaker: Shane Virgo

Exclusive to BWS, Woolworths Liquor, and Dan Murphy's.

Reviewed: 21 April 2010

]]>2008 Altos Las Hormigas Malbechttp://www.quaff.com.au/another-bargain/2010/4/14/2008-altos-las-hormigas-malbec.htmlPeter Forrestal2010-04-14T04:18:49ZI've reviewed the previous vintage of this wine and others from the estate in the previous two editions of Quaff so there's some consistency there. This is a better red than the 2007. Altos Las Hormigas was set up in Argentina by a group of Italian wine professionals, including Tuscan winemaker Alberto Antonini, and is specialising in the red varieties, malbec and bonarda both of which have featured in Quaff. The 2008 vintage in Mendoza was ideal especially with a long sunny dry spell in March to finish off the growing season.

The 2008 Altos Las Hormigas Malbec is rich and full-bodied with savoury satsuma plum aromas, soft, fleshy texture, finishing savoury and dry. It's a neatly balanced approachable malbec that is less fruity than similarly-priced Australian red and has good depth and length. Satisfying.

 

Rating: Bloody Good

Cost: $ 18

Winemakers: Alberto Antonini and Attilio Pagli   

Limited availability.   www.altoslashormigas.com

It is available in plenty of restaurants and liquor stores in Western Australia; the Prince Wine Store, Nick's and Rockpool Bar and Grill in Melbourne; Ultimo Wine Centre and Porters (Chatswood) in Sydney; and Cru Bar & Cellar in Brisbane. For questions about availability: Gerard Horgan gerard@grapeexp.com.au

Reviewed: 14 April 2010

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