86 points
This Tuscan wine has nice weight, doesn’t seem 14% alcohol.
Unfortunately the oak is over-the-top. Dry sawdusty, not sweet. Like chewing on a plank. Oak and fruit tannins coat the mouth, though this aftertaste is quite grapey.
Still, disappointing.
Needs food. And age…. but will it ever come right?
91 & 92 points
Hunter Valley, NSW, Australia. 13.5% & 12.4%
Both flavoursome Shiraz unadorned with new oak flavours. Both mid-weight although the 98 is darker, more dense and ripe. The 91 is all the more fascinating for its low alcohol. A lovely complete wine. A good bottle.
Clean modern wines but characterful reflections of terroir (without any “sweaty saddle”). Ahead of their time.
89 points
Margaret River, WA. 13%
Full flavoured chardonnay. Oak well integrated. Good early drinking restaurant wine. Almost oily texture. Says only 13% on the label, thank goodness, this wine would be unbalanced if it were any higher. Although this is a lucious forward wine it does have nice balancing acidity – for now.
90+ points
Saint-Emilion, Bordeaux. 13.5%
Dark colour. Complex, savoury nose rather than pretty. A bit funky. Touch mercapten.
Rich but not weighty, nor the least bit extracted. Thankfully not a souped up St Emilion. Has some development ahead of it, enjoyable but still a tad closed. I’m pleased I bought this wine that was quite unknown to me.
89+ points
Clare Valley, South Australia. 12.4%
Savoury passionfruit. Characterful wine once you get past the considerable trapped CO2. Good naturalacidity.
A long future ahead.
88+ points
Crozes-Hermitage, France. 13%
From Maxime Graillot, son of Alan, famous Crozes-Hermitage producer. This vintage is quite a confronting wine. It’s not green but it reeks of stalky floral flavour. And black pepper.
It’s been near impossible to drink until now when it’s starting to calm down and put on some flesh. I find it hard to believe this wine will ever be more than characterful, but I’m optimistic.
Interesting to give to someone used to warm climate shiraz. I don’t think they would ever guess it is the same grape.
88 points
Barolo, Italy. 14%
One of the more accessible Barolos I’ve tried. Roses acid and oak with savoury tannic finish.
Lacks intensity of flavour though compared to French varietals.
80 points
Pauillac, Bordeaux. 13%
The most disappointing vintage of Lynch-Moussas I’ve ever tasted. Let’s just hope this is an ackward closed stage in its development.
Currently hard, no fruit core sweetness, quite robust, acidic too. Completely not the charming red fruits style Pauillac that it is usually.
80 points
Cotes de Francs, Bordeaux, France. 13.5%
An interesting wine 35% Cab Franc, 10 % Cab, 35% Malbec (which really shows) and only 20% Merlot. But in this vintage it hasn’t been able to age. Prune characters are dustracting. Low acid. Lacks vivacity.
Drink your 2003 Bordeaux now.
91 points
Clare Valley, South Australia. 13.6%
Whoa. There is still obvious, very fine, new oak. Still fresh with youthful acidity.
Fine fruit, not cool climate but far from heavy or sweet.
Strange wine in that some elements are built for the very long term, but also a touch of aged oxidation.
That’s why some bottles of Wendouree are sublime and others so so. Thank goodness they are using screwcap now because corks just aren’t up to wines with this longevity.
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