Domaine J.Confuron-Cotetidot Vosne Romanee 2005
I have only had one other wine from this producer so others might enlighten me on how they age? Certainly this looks like a wine made to last and appears to have a high proportion of whole bunch and prolonged skin contact. Oh and I checked in the mirror this morning, and no, I have not turned into Lincoln…
Dark in colour with a beautifully perfumed nose of rich raspberry and sweet dark cherry and a whole swag of other interesting things such as smoke, peat moss and iodine (like Talisker), rose petal and vanilla, bark and spices. A wonderful wine to smell. On the palate medium to full bodied and full flavoured with dark cherry and raspberry fruit, earthy peaty flavours, vanilla spice and some stalks. It has quite phenomenal extract with mouth gripping black tea tannin and a touch of bitterness on exit. The tannins settled down somewhat on the second day of tasting but still dominated the (excellent) fruit. Absolutely not for drinking now although I am betting it will come good.
Tasted : Dec07Alcohol : 12.5%
Price : $85
Closure : Cork
Drink : 2014 - 2020+
Source : Domaine Wine Shippers
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Mongeard-Mugneret Nuits-St-Georges “Les Plateaux” 2005
Writing tasting notes with a baby strapped to my front is a new and interesting experience and occasionally it can feel like having a backpack full of explosives instead… At the moment I am composing this work standing up at the computer, Kraftwerk style. Now I just need to nip into the bathroom, slip on a red shirt, apply some Brylcreem and fix my hair with a severe side parting to complete the picture..
High toned raspberry, cherry, earth and spice aromatics lead into a light to medium bodied palate with flavours of raspberry, cherry, mineral and undergrowth with subtle oak. Ripe but not fruity with light firm tannins and fairly strong backbone of clean fresh acidity. Good clean finish of fair length. A youthful wine of some delicacy and restraint that should blossom with bottle age. I’m pleased to have a few to pop away in the cellar.
Tasted : Dec07Alcohol : 13%
Price : $90
Closure : Cork
Drink : 2010 - 2015+
Source : Domaine Wine Shippers
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Jim Barry “McRae Wood” Shiraz 2004
I don’t get round to drinking (or tasting) much Clare Valley red one way or another. Not sure why.
Jumps out of the glass with cassis, blackberry, raspberry, liquorice allsorts, mint and some spicy toasty oak. Beautiful smelling wine. On the palate full bodied and intense with flavours of raspberry coulis, cassis, blackberry, mint and licorice. Really good vibrant fruit with some leather/bitter chocolate characters adding interest and spicy toasty vanilla oak in support. It has fine grained tannin, a nice fresh mouthfeel and some warmth from alcohol that’s a bit intrusive but not over-bearing. Finishes with spice and liquorice flavours. Packs a magnum of flavour into 750ml without looking clumsy.
Tasted : Dec07Alcohol : 15%
Price : $45
Closure : Cork
Drink : 2012 - 2020
Source : Winery Sample
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Bruno Colin Chassagne-Montrachet “Morgeot” 1er Cru 2005
Are New World wines becoming more Old World or are those of the Old World becoming more like the New? I think the answer may be, much like David Bowie, that it goes both ways…
Golden in colour with a open floral come-hither nose of peach, melon rind, honey nougat and mineral with quite a bit of spicy oak showing. On the palate medium to full bodied with flavours of melon, peach, citrus, hazelnut and spice. It is full flavoured and has a creamy texture but with dry flinty characters to tighten things up and plenty of fresh acidity. There is a slight warmth too but nothing intrusive. Good length of flavour finishing dry and flinty. Highly enjoyable. It reminds me of Leeuwin Art Series a fair bit.
Tasted : Dec07Alcohol : 13.5%
Price : $90
Closure : Cork
Drink : 2007 - 2011+
Source : Domaine Wine Shippers
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Epis Chardonnay 2006
Righto then, time for a bit of content. I tasted this on the old Enomatic at North Sydney Cellars and liked it enough to purchase a bottle for further investigation. It is a dangerous machine that one….
At this juvenille stage of its life it smells much like a banana split topped with whipped cream and custard but peeking underneath you can see more adult flavours of peach, lemon, oatmeal and a little spice from oak. On the medium bodied palate plenty of flavour with green banana, whipped cream, peach, mineral and more savoury yeasty flavours. It has beautiful refreshing bell clear acidity threaded through a rich creamy texture and drinks well from start to finish. Excellent wine with a bright future.
Tasted : Dec07Alcohol : 12.9%
Price : $45
Closure : Diam
Drink : 2009 - 2011+
Source : North Sydney Cellars
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Hoddles Creek Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2006
You don’t hear much about the other members of the Hoddles Creek family; it’s the Burgundy sisters that get all the attention. The quieter members are Merlot (self confidence problems), Pinot Gris (obnoxious, boring, alcoholic, takes perverse pleasure in getting into the best restaurants..), Sauvignon Blanc (weedy and simple with a slight BO problem yet strangely popular) and Cabernet Sauvignon (muscular, sophisticated, intellectual and serious).
Aromas of blackcurrant, dark chocolate, violet, dried herbs and light dusty oak. On the palate medium bodied with flavours of blackcurrant, cherry, black olive and dried herb. Fairly dense with good intensity and firm acid and tannin providing pleasing shape and structure. It’s on the olive and herb side of the cabernet spectrum but still good and ripe for my tastes. A bargain at under twenty dollars too.
Tasted : Dec07Alcohol : 13.0%
Price : $18.99
Closure : Screwcap
Drink : 2008 - 2014
Source : Winery Sample
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Mount Majura Canberra District Merlot 2005 ($16) screwcap:
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Chateau de Dauphine Fronsac 2005
By Gary Walsh
This is a blend of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc from the outstanding 2005 vintage (which for some reason I decided to skip buying on indent..cutting off my nose to spite my face no doubt). Enquiries to marcus@cesoirwine.com
Nice and rich with cassis, cherry and currant fruit, licorice, camphor and some floral notes. Beautiful aromatics. On the palate medium bodied with cassis, cherry, mineral and black olive flavours backed with subtle mocha oak. Ripe but just staying this side of being over. It has smooth tannins, good extract and fresh balanced acidity. Nice and light in the mouth with good length of flavour. This is a great success. A thoroughly delicious wine.
Tasted : Dec07Alcohol : 14.5%
Price : $59
Closure : Cork
Drink : 2007 - 2017
Source : Importer Sample
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Cullen Mangan Red 2006
I have a few bottles of the 2001 Mangan floating about in the cellar somewhere. I tasted one on release and found it to be a formidable wine. Dense and tannic. I must grab one soon and see what is happening. Anyway, previous vintages have been Malbec dominant but the 2006 is a little more approachable due to a higher Merlot component (50%) with the remainder being made up by Petit Verdot (36%) and Malbec (14%). This is a great result for such a difficult red vintage.
Aromas of dark fruit, chocolate, meat and violet with a touch of mint. On the palate medium to full bodied with plum and sweet cassis fruit, dark chocolate, violet, dried herb and meaty flavours. Pretty dense and compact but not heavy at all. It has ripe powdery mouth coating tannins and good freshness with a clean long finish. An excellent wine that is full of interest. It almost tastes intelligent (yet sadly had no osmotic effect on this particular taster) and looked great over a couple of days.
Tasted : Dec07Alcohol : 14%
Price : $45
Closure : Screwcap
Drink : 2009 - 2020+
Source : Winery Sample
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A super-quick guide to sparklers …
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Double Take
Next Double Take :
Howard Park Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2005
