Australia & New Zealand
January 30, 2010Saturday 4:00pm until 7:00pm (or until it's gone)
$5 per person
2008 Pikes 'TRADITIONALE' RIESLING $19.95
Australia, Clare Valley
Colour: Brilliant pale green colour.
Aroma: Spotlessly clean and a restrained, displaying delicately perfumed citrus blossom and subtle notes of bath powder, green apple and slate.
Palate: Crisp, fresh and dry, loaded with zesty lemon and grapefruit flavours wrapped around a spine of crunchy, mineral acidity.
Summary: Another lovely Pikes Riesling from what could turn out to be one of the great recent vintages – certainly the best since 2005. Makes a fantastic drink as a crisp, young white, but will take 7-10 years in the bottle for those who like bottle aged Riesling
Technical Information:
Region: 100% Clare Valley, South Australia
Variety: 100% Riesling — Harvested Late February / early March
Alcohol / Vol: 12%
Acidity: 7.65g/L grams/litre TA
pH: 2.94
Residual Sugar: 4.2g/L
Fermentation: Inoculated with pure yeast culture, 100% Stainless Steel, temp. controlled 12-15°C approx 25 days.
Nick Stock, Penguin Good Australian Wine Guide 2010, Dec-09: 91 — 93 Points
"Made from 60% estate fruit, the rest selected from around the region. This has a complete and complex set of aromas, ranging from floral sweet perfume to citrus, peach and green mango. The palate has texture and flavour in spades with an acid line that holds it all tidy through the back. Lingering lime and white nectarine finish."
Michael Franz — Winereviewonline.com — October 2009:
"Some of the world's most interesting and age worthy Rieslings come from Australia, and many of those bottlings really require five years to show their stuff. I would guess that this wine will need that much time to really come into its own, as it is extremely austere now when first opened. However, once permitted to warm a bit and breathe for an hour, it already shows wonderful lemon/lime fruit and an engaging minerality that makes it very attractive. Slow ageing of fine Rieslings from the Clare will bring delightful secondary aromas into play, so you'd be well advised to buy a few bottles of this for the long term, or to decant the wine if your now."
2009 Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc $29.95
New Zealand, MarlboroughThe Marlborough region is blessed with a unique terroir where a cool, maritime South Pacific climate produces wines of great fruit intensity. Widely regarded as the quintessential expression of the acclaimed Marlborough wine region, Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc is an international benchmark wine noted for its vibrant aromatics, layers of pure fruit flavours, and fine structure.
Meticulous viticulture combined with modern technology and traditional vinification methods, consistently produces a style that has become the reference for this remote southern wine region.
2009 Tasting Notes: Generosity is the defining word for the 2009 Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc. Its aromatics encapsulate a broad spectrum of varietal flavours; tropical fragrances of guava and mango to ripe lime/ citrus and sweet herbs. The palate also is juicy and voluminous, combining concentrated flavours with a mineral acidity that leaves a long, fresh, intense finish.
Food Matches: Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc combines beautifully with fresh, light flavours. Asian-inspired cuisine is ideal, in particular lemongrass, mild chilli, fresh coriander, and basil, support the wine's pure fruit flavours. The quintessential regional match is with Marlborough greenshell mussels.
2007 Jim Barry 'The Lodge Hill' Shiraz $21.95
Australia, Clare ValleyIn 1977 when Jim Barry first purchased the Lodge Hill property, his intention was to devote the entire area to Riesling. However, there was a small area which had a gentle slope facing north, capturing the warmer conditions of the elevated site and he decided that it was an ideal place to grow a premium Shiraz.
Winemaking Notes:
This wine is a deep purple with intense hue. Aromatic and complex on the nose with a combination
of fruit and spice. Lifted aromas of cinnamon, white pepper, Cajun spices, mocha, liquorice and
blackberry.
The palate shows finely balanced powerhouse with immensely approachable menthol, spearmint, violets and boysenberry with soft supple tannins providing a solid foundation.
A wine that is ready for immediate enjoyment with a view to cellaring for 7 to 10 years from vintage.
Specifications
Variety: 100% Shiraz
Vintage: 2007
Region: Clare Valley, South Australia
Estate Grown: 100%
Harvested: Late February 2007
Alc/Vol: 14.9%
Total Acid: 7.00g/l
pH: 3.43
Oak Treatment: Aged for 14 months in 81%
2006 Jim Barry 'The Cover Drive' Cabernet Sauvignon $21.95
Australia, CoonawarraOn the southern boundary of Coonawarra is the old Penola cricket ground, which first saw a ball bowled in anger and the flashing cover drives of the local champions in 1950.
Winemaking Notes:
This wine is ruby/crimson in colour, with purple tints. The nose shows intensely complex characters of
rosemary, mint and coffee. This is followed up on the palate by an eruption of fruit flavours — primarily black cherry and blackberry, with hints of mocha and dried herbs.
The tannins are fine grained and supple and the wine has a long, integrated finish. As with previous releases of "The Cover Drive', the wine displays harmonious balance and can be enjoyed now or will reward cellaring for 2-3 years.
Specifications
Variety: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Vintage: 2006
Region: Coonawarra, South Australia
Estate Grown: 100%
Oak Treatment: Aged for 12 months in 50% American
and 50% French oak.
Alc/Vol: 15.0%
Total Acid: 6.70g/l
