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Quinta do Portal - Portugal:
coming soon...
 Heritage
- Lebanon
I was fortunate enough to visit
Heritage and other
Lebanese wineries in 2005 (well, I did pay for my flight at least): click on the former highlighted link to
read a brief profile of Heritage and notes on a few previous vintages, and the
latter takes you to the beginning of my full report. Owner and winemaker Dr. Dargham Elias Touma (not a medical doctor but PhD in food and beverage science)
is the latest in the family line, since its creation in 1888 to run the Heritage
vineyards, winery and distillery. Talking about 'combining tradition and technology' in the same
sentence has become a bit of a cliché in wine-speak. However, their wines
do seem to express an appealing mix of 'modern' and 'traditional' in style, with plenty
of rich fruit (ripe grapes shouldn't be too difficult in the Bekaa Valley with its
hot dry summers balanced by high altitude vineyards) while the reds retain some
kind of old-fashioned charm and complexity. It's also a bit unusual, and a
pleasure, to be able to taste and find on sale almost mature vintages of an estate's top
red wines, as you'll see below. Tried and tested March 2008:
2007 Blanc de Blancs (Sauvignon Blanc Chardonnay Ugni
Blanc 13%) - attractive combo of zesty and aromatic, lightly exotic peachy
fruit and oily aniseed notes; quite full yet very crisp with a tangy finish.
85
2005 Le Fleuron (40% Cinsault 10%
Mourvèdre 10% Carignan 10%
Tempranillo 10% Syrah 10%
Cabernet Sauvignon 10%
Grenache 13.5%) - colourful cocktail of grape varieties gives this nice
ripe prune v peppery black cherry/olive fruit with tobacco and savoury maturing
edges; fair weight with 'sweet' liquorice fruit v lightly dry bite and rustic
finish. 85-87
2000 Grand Vin Bourgeois (40% Syrah 30%
Cabernet Sauvignon 30% Mourvèdre) -
smoky cassis and black cherry with pepper and resin/raisin liquorice notes;
enticing rich dark fruit palate v savoury maturing fruit v quite firm yet
sweet-textured tannins, good balance of power (14% alcohol) and still fresh
acidity; lingering tasty savoury v sweet flavours v bitter twist makes it a nice
match for 'boudin noir aux oignons' (black pudding with onion).
89+
2000 Heritage Chateau (Syrah Cabernet Sauvignon
14.5%) - complex smoky v herbal black cherry and cassis, developing meaty
notes with liquorice edges; concentrated and lush showing tasty ripe raisin and
tangy plum fruit v savoury leather, firm bite and power yet well-balanced with
lovely depth and length. 92+
More info at
www.vinheritage.com.
 Viña Ventisquero &
Pangea - Chile
A tutored tasting led by Ventisquero's head winemaker Felipe Tosso Bruna and John
Duval, slightly well-known consultant for their Pangea "icon wine" (to use the marketing babble-speak),
proved to be a laid-back and educational medium for launching the 2005 vintage. John's name
may be familiar: he
was Penfold's Grange winemaker for 29 years before setting up his own label in
2003. Ventisquero is baptized after a
glacier, and apparently there's a particularly grey one (probably all that
pollution drifting down from North America): hence the name of three
of these wines.
Grapes are sourced from the company's "coastal vineyards" -
relatively, then again Chile is essentially one very long coastline quickly
followed by small mountains, narrow valleys then big mountains - in Maipo,
Rapel, Casablanca and Apalta (Colchagua region, 160 km/100 miles southwest of
Santiago). The latter valley (pic.) houses the
Syrah for making Pangea, more specifically a selection from two main blocks at
250m/800 feet altitude, where
vine age is only 8 years (bodes well for future quality looking at what they're
already getting). Otherwise it's
a high-tech viticulture, oak (new, French, longer) and bottle-age thing (they
say 12 months before release).
These wines are mostly listed in restaurants in London and certain posh wine
shops like Roberson (Kensington) and Harrods, for about £25-£30 (ambitious, then
again owner Gonzalo Vial has sunk $50 million into the brand I'm told).
Anyway, here are my (rather long-winded) notes and scores on the half-dozen premium reds tasted at London's Vinopolis on 26/6/07:
2004 Ventisquero Grey Merlot - plus a touch
of Cab Sauv; 04 was a cool vintage for the area. Perfumed and floral with
light red pepper complexity, plum and rhubarb fruit tones; nice texture with
chocolate oak backdrop, ripe v tart fruit, quite elegant and well balanced; also
shows subtle intensity with fresh acidity, fine choc tannins, weight of
alcohol and slightly bitter blackcurrant and plum twist.
87+
2005 Ventisquero Grey Carmenère - plus a touch
of Syrah and Cab Sauv; 05 was a more generous vintage. Richer black
cherry and olive even with soy sauce and leafy red pepper notes, more powerful
alcohol and again the oak's not too obvious; bigger mouth-feel, a little more
choc and spice in fact, fresh bite v fuller alcohol but not over the top; sweet
v sour fruit, attractively textured tannins and elegant length.
87+
2005 Ventisquero Grey Cabernet Sauvignon - plus
15% Syrah. Enticing blackcurrant raisin and plum fruit, a tad of wood spice and
perhaps the Syrah comes through too; a little more vanilla than choc oak, adding
sweet texture v blackcurrant and blueberry fruit, again has that herbal
dimension; oakier style yet shows more concentration, alcohol weight comes
through although still has fresh bite, firmer but rounded tannins; nice finish
although the oak is a little intrusive, however this wine has vibrancy and depth of
fruit. 88+
2005 Ventisquero Vertice Carmenère Syrah -
herbal notes on fragrant black cherry and olive fruit, light choc and coco oak;
tastes more toasted on the palate yet concentrated and weighty, chunky sweet
fruit v compact tannins; a little hot and toasty at the mo, should come
together better as structure and depth are present.
89+
2004 Pangea Syrah - plus 5% Cab Sauv. Fairly
charred coco oak with herbal spicy black cherry underneath, quite complex
nose actually; juicier fuller palate, nice fruit purity v choc oak texture,
again sweet v sour character; quite punchy but fresh, moving towards delicate on
its length; tightens up on the finish, promising: hopefully that oak will integrate
successfully. Tasted again a bit later, a currant sweetness is already developing.
88-90
2005 Pangea Syrah - richer black cherry and
olive fruit with peppery wild herb edges, aromatic and pure, the oak sits better
in the background; attractive cherry fruit v solid dry tannins with
mouth-coating texture, the alcohol kicks a little but this certainly has depth
and concentration. Ripe v fresh v toast v alcohol, it needs to come together but
should go further than the 04; similarly coming back to it, there's a sweetness
and vibrancy beginning to show. 90+
 Caves Aliança -
Portugal
Part-owned and headed up by the indefatigable Mario Neves, Aliança is a big
winery and distribution operation (they also represent some leading brands in
Portugal) based in Sangalhos, between the lively coastal town of Aveiro and the
rugged Bairrada hinterland. Neves has been busy buying and
developing a handful of quality wine estates in other regions of Portugal such as Alentejo, Dão
and Douro; as well as churning out their Casal Mendes volume brand and some good
sparkling wines too. Winemakers Arminda Ferreira
and Francisco Antunes are aided by hotly demanded (and paid I'd imagine) French consultant Pascal Chatonnet.
Tasted at Boutinot's trade tasting in the Tower of London (mind your
head) Feb 07, posted Aug 07:
2004 Quinta da Garrida, Dão - smoky fruit on a firm backdrop, still a
little raw but nice mouthful of wine. 85+
2003 Quinta da Garrida Reserva Touriga Nacional, Dão
- peppery tones with nice liquorice and black fruit, tight firm concentrated
finish. UK retail approx £12 89
2004 Quinta dos Quatro Ventos, Douro - chunky meaty wine, black fruit
with leather tones, lightly bitter twist v rounded with 'sweet' fruit. £12
89-91
2003 Quinta das Baceladas, Beiras - savoury cassis with herbal red pepper
notes, maturing fruit v firm fresh and powerful; ripe & rounded though on the
finish. £10 90
Waterkloof Estate -
Stellenbosch, South Africa
British importer/exporter/producer Boutinot (they also have offices in France
and the States) purchased the 122 hectare (300 acre) Waterkloof estate
in 2004. The plan, according to their website, is "to create a new flagship wine
for South Africa, and one of the world’s great Sauvignon Blancs." Sounds like
Paul Boutinot's words himself, not one to make modest claims or lacking
ambition! They have some good Merlot as well and planted quite a bit of
Mourvèdre,
which looks promising in
South Africa's best
coastal sites.
Waterkloof vineyard is located 3km from the sea in one of the country’s best
known 'cool climate' regions. It lies on Schaapenberg Mountain in Somerset West
and "benefits from the moderating effects of coastal breezes off the cool
Atlantic currents flowing through False Bay," apparently. Winemaking and viticulture is
headed up by Werner Engelbrecht "following natural winemaking methods," such as
wild yeast fermentation and extra lees contact (light yeast deposits, standard
practice for making quality white wines). The Waterkloof wines are sourced from
the upper slopes (up to 400m/1250 feet altitude) and Peacock Ridge from the main body of
the estate (200-290m/750 feet).
Tasted at their trade tasting in the Tower of London (mind your head) Feb 07,
posted Aug 07. To find stockists of these wines, and those above and below,
check out the
Boutinot website.
2005 Peacock Ridge Merlot - herb v plum
aromas lead to a quite lush palate with fresh firm finish. UK retail approx
£7.50 87-89
2006 Circumstance Sauvignon Blanc - citrus
fruit with green pepper notes, intense mineral mouth-feel with zesty length. £10
87+
2006 Circumstance
Mourvèdre rosé
- zesty and elegant Bandol rosé style, mineral v oily palate, long and fresh. £9
87
2005
Circumstance Merlot
- spicier and rounder than the PR Merlot with more oak showing at the moment;
however, has good balance and classy length. £12 88-90
2005 Waterkloof Sauvignon Blanc - grassier
incisive style, fatter fruit palate v eye-watering acidity, steely elegant
length. £15 90+
Australia
A few assorted favourites from around Oz, all tasted at Boutinot's trade bash
in the Tower of London (mind your head) Feb 2007, posted Aug 07:
Cascabel - McLaren Vale, South Australia
2003 Shiraz, Fleurieu region - smoky bacon
notes mingle with peppery tangy fruit on the palate, quite powerful finish. UK
retail approx £15 87
 Taltarni
- Pyrenees, Victoria
2004 T Series Shiraz/Cabernet
- nice spicy fruit, quite serious at this price. £6.50-£7
85-87
2002 Pyrenees Shiraz - complex maturing
berry fruit with savoury edges, elegant soft palate and length. £12
90
2004 Heathcote Shiraz - more intense spice
and black cherry fruit, tight palate with fresh finish. £16
90
2002 Cephas (Shiraz Cabernet) - more
chocolate oak and concentration, tighter firmer finish. £17
90
The Lane - Adelaide Hills, South Australia
2001 Reunion Shiraz - quite meaty v dark
fruit backdrop, maturing and soft v attractive dry tannins and powerful finish.
Pricey £20-£22 89+
Tallarook - Upper Goulburn, Victoria
An exciting discovery, Luis Riebl's 'natural' wines are refined yet
occasionally approach 'extreme' in winemaking style; and pretty good value too
considering the quality.
2004 Chardonnay - milky v peachy, intense
with creamy yet fresh and powerful mouth-feel. £9-£10
88-90
2004 Marsanne - quite yeasty and lactic
nose, fat hazelnut fruit, oxidising yet complex and lingering; different. £9-£10
90-92
2005 Roussanne - intense herby tones with
creamy white peach backdrop, quite delicate and fresh. £9-£10
88-90
2006 Viognier - delicate apricot and flowers
on the nose, attractively lively v weighty palate. £9-£10
90-92
2004 Shiraz/Viognier
- attractive herbal tones on perfumed black cherry fruit, elegant and soft v
light grip and power. £9-£10 90-92
Keith Tulloch - Hunter Valley, NSW
2005 Semillon - a bit
reduced/funky on the nose, leads on to a tight
closed up palate then subtle waxier finish, not very revealing at the mo. £9.75
87
2002 Kester Shiraz - very smoked
bacon, savoury v peppery, tangy fruit with fresh finish. Expensive though at £18.50
a bottle.
87-89
 Viña Tabalí - Limarí Valley, Chile
Their website says: "At 30º29’ latitude South, Limarí is currently Chile’s
northernmost wine-producing region, although this is likely to change quickly as
pioneering winemakers continue to push northward in search of new viticultural
frontier." Indeed, according to
Wines
of Chile the Elqui Valley is the most northerly, although relatively recent
for quality grape growing (there's only one major winery so far). Limarí is 400 km (250 miles) north of Santiago and close to the sea.
Fascinating, I hear you say, but there must be something special about the
place, as I've now tasted a few very good wines from here. So, over to Tabalí
(who, it has to be said, appear to have boosted their prices since winning a
load of awards), tasted at Boutinot's bash
in the Tower of London (mind your head again) in Feb 2007, posted Aug 07:
2005 Special Reserve Chardonnay - peachy and
fresh v lightly buttered toast, nice acidity and elegant length. £17
87-89
2005 Special Reserve Pinot Noir - attractive
herbal 'sweet and savoury' Pinot style with light creamy vanilla backdrop, soft
v tangy mouth-feel. £17 87
2005 Special Reserve Shiraz - enticing
smoked bacon and white pepper notes, firm and tangy v ripe and rounded finish.
£17 87-89
2004 Special Reserve Blend (50% Cabernet Sauvignon,
15% Merlot and 35% Syrah) - a bit reduced/funky
on the nose? Piquant cassis and blackberry fruit, more concentrated than above
with solid tannins and fresh bite too, needs a bit of time to come together.
£20+ 88-90
Viña Casa Marín - San
Antonio, Chile
Continuing the geeky 'Chile's xxx-est' extreme location theme, the Casa Marín
winery and vineyards are found in the San Antonio region "only 4 km from the
coast... currently Chile's closest vineyard to the Pacific Ocean," as their
website duly informs us. This new-ish wine area is west of Santiago and south of
the more established Casablanca valley. Anyway, enough of the geographical blah
blah; here's a few of Casa Marín's tasty wines, sampled at Boutinot's tasting
in the Tower of London (mind your head once again) in Feb 2007 (notes posted Aug 07):
2006 Cipresses Sauvignon Blanc - piercing
grapefruit and green pepper aromas set the scene for good weight on a rounded,
off-dry leaning yet still fairly intense finish. £12.50
87-89
2005 Estero Sauvignon Gris - oilier showing
fatter citrus fruit, quite rich with creamy edges, nice bite on its entertaining
finish. £13.50 87-89
2004 Lo Abarca Pinot Noir - a bit oaky to
start but soon reveals quite sexy 'sweet and savoury' Pinot style, freshness v
gentle fruit. Not a bargain though at £18.50. 89-91
 Clos
du Val - Napa, California
Hardly a new discovery - at the grand age of 35, CDV is almost an old timer by
Californian standards (well, I mean relative to the many new new wineries rather
than the handful of 19th Century candidates) - but their wines retain a nice
European-esque charm and elegance (not that I'm biased towards Euro wines). They
also have extensive vineyards in Carneros (pic. above), source of some very
enticing Pinot. Mind you, I didn't like their 04 Zinfandel though. Wines below
sampled at Boutinot's tasting
in the Tower of London (mind your head once again) in Feb 2007 (notes posted Aug 07):
2004 Pinot Noir - delicate perfumed morello
cherry aromas with savoury edges, lovely fruit intensity v tight fresh length.
£15.50 92
2003 Merlot (plus a little of both
Cabernets) - gamey nose with light red pepper
tones, chunky tannins and power v herbal fruit finish. £14.50
87-89
2003 Cabernet Sauvignon - inky herbal edges
to its rich chunky palate, again shows light cedar and leaf characters on a
riper rounder whole with very firm tannins. £16.50 90
1996 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon - mature
savoury leather-tinged fruit, dry grip set on nice developing fruit finish.
£31.50 90-92
 Domaine
de Lauroux - Gascony
It's one of those 'realised a dream moving to France for good' stories. Even
more so in British couple
Nicolas and Karen Kitchener's
case, as they took the unenviable plunge of buying a vineyard near Manciet,
Gascony, in 2004. Romantic yet brave idea, as vineyards and wineries can eat
money for some time before seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, if at all
even. So I wish them well.
Enough of the grim business talk. Nick and Karen are making a range of Côtes de
Gascogne wines - red, white, rosé and sweet - as well as distilling and ageing
several styles of Armagnac, with stocks of old ones
available too. They kindly sampled me with their rather delicious 1986 (vintage
dated 'brandies' are more the norm here compared to Cognac - apologies for
mentioning the C word): tasting note and info below. Domaine de Lauroux has a
self-catering gîte, and Nick and Karen also do B&B: check out their website
www.lauroux.com.
1986 Bas Armagnac (bottled in March 2007, 42%) - comes across as quite
powerful and fiery at first, but its 'sweet' aged fruit and vanilla oak
undertones quickly mellow it out in the mouth; delicious pruney caramel fruit
lingers on its punchy lively finish. A small measure works nicely after an
overindulgent meal, soothing the palate and stomach. But remember it has 42%
alcohol! Cellar door prices: 50cl bottle €30.40, 70cl €42.50 or magnum
(!) €91.20. UK retail price £39-£45. Tasted May 07.
 Weingut
Pfaffl - Weinviertel, Austria
Pfaffl (Pe-faff-el) is yet another groovy-looking (those Austrians are rather
good at designing wine-making and selling 'spaces') family-run estate, located about 15km
north of Vienna; so within easy striking distance of Austria's fine capital city.
Their wines - see snapshot below with my tasting notes and comments - are available from
Astrum Wine Cellars in London SW18 (020
8870 5252), but don't appear to have US distribution at the moment, although
certain
lucky Canadians can find them in the
Liquor
Control Board of Ontario shops. These three gems were tasted in May 2007:
2006 Hundsleiten
Grüner Veltliner
(13.5%) - spicy pear with tangy yeast edges and powerful aromatic floral baked
apple notes; full rounded mouth-feel v juicy peppery fruit, cider and creamy
roast nut flavours v zingy and fresh; powerful finish v zesty mineral bite.
88-90
2005
Riesling
am Berg (13.5%) - powerfully
aromatic linseed oil, honey, citrus and mineral notes with almost a touch of
botrytis? (noble rot character), intense and complex; powerful (again the
alcohol certainly adds weight) with rich concentrated peach fruit and some
sweetness v very fresh, mineral length v oily texture; lingering maturing
Riesling fruit v medium dry finish although clean thanks to that acidity.
90-92
2004 'Excellent' (Blauer
Zweigelt Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot
14.5%) - this modestly named red shows fragrant Black Forest gateau fruit - plum
cherry and choc with light vanilla tones, commanding palate with fresh bite and
nice depth of minty fruit; the oak is quite well integrated (often a fault with
Austrian reds) set against bitter/sweet fruit and dry finish. Would perhaps rate
it higher but the alcohol's a bit heavy, although with food it's fine.
88
 Domaine du Grand Cros
- Provence
Difficult to resist an email worded like this: "Sturdy
young British winemaker, Julian Faulkner, is not afraid to show his feminine
side with his 2006 rosé release. In fact this year he is pinker than ever with 6
different rosés on offer. You might think his feminine side (or his big ego) got
the better of him, but he wants to take you on a journey of exploration of
different styles and tastes for this hot and growing wine colour..." Julian's
estate can be found in Carnoules located in the Var 'département' (that's the
curved, sticking out bit between Marseille and the French Riviera), which is Côtes de Provence country wine-wise. Check out their site for more info:
www.grandcros.fr (which even allows you
to choose a Flash - which I find very irritating - or non-Flash experience).
When I examined the samples they sent more
closely (2 of each one), there was something odd about the shades of rosé colour. So I asked the
question: "Is it my eyesight or are the two different bottles of Jules and L'Esprit a slightly different shade of pink (one of each appears a little
deeper)? But I can't see any difference on the labels - an alternative approach
perhaps for those who prefer lighter or richer coloured rosé?!" And their reply
was: "That’s
exactly it! There’s more Syrah & Grenache, less Cinsault in the deeper colored
rosé, whereas there’s more Cinsault and Grenache and less Syrah in the paler
rosé. We distinguish them by the Lot Number, which you can spot on the neck
of the bottle: LF for the paler and LM for the richer. We reckon the lighter is
more aperitif and the other one more food rosé. Locally our clients tend to
prefer a lighter rosé." So now you know: commendably quirky if not a tad
confusing winemaking
ideas... Tasted March/April 07.
La Maîtresse Brut,
sparkling rosé (traditional method 12%) - attractively red-fruity
with light almond undertones, appley plus a touch of biscuit; refreshing off-dry
finish. 87+
2006 Jules,
Côtes de Provence
rosé (paler,
Syrah
Grenache
Carignan
Cinsault
13%) - zingy rose petal and redcurrant, light almond and cream v juicy fruit, tight crisp finish.
85-87
2006 Jules,
Côtes de Provence
rosé (deeper) - very similar, can you tell the difference apart from
the colour?
Perhaps slightly fruitier and richer with fuller texture; otherwise dry, tight
and zingy. 85-87
2006 L'Esprit de Provence
rosé
(paler,
Cinsault
Grenache
Syrah
13%) - juicy yet quite weighty and round v zesty tight finish; fuller, less
'fruity' & oily rose petal palate, seems a tiny tad less dry perhaps?
87
2006 L'Esprit de Provence
rosé
(deeper) - zippier with redcurrant and raspberry fruit, oily and weighty v fresh
and crisp; more cherry fruit and light tannin too, nice length and mineral
texture. 87-89
2005 Nectar rosé (Mourvèdre
Carignan Syrah
13%) - a bit strange,
very deep colour; lightly oaky backdrop v rich fruit, dry and crisp v toasty
notes; not for everyone, better with food e.g. a spicy fish dish.
87
 Peter
Lehmann Wines - Barossa
Perhaps better known for classic Shiraz and Cabernet, South Australia's Peter Lehmann
hogged the limelight in 2006 for their white wines, especially Riesling
(although I've always rather liked the Barossa Semillon too). In the
International Wine Challenge, their 2001 Reserve Riesling was awarded Australian
White Wine Trophy and Australian Riesling Trophy (how many trophies do you need
in a competition like this by the way?); and 2005 Eden Valley Riesling a gold
medal. If that wasn't enough, PLW then scooped IWC White Winemaker of the Year
plus the International Wine & Spirit Competition's worldwide Riesling trophy.
“Not bad for a traditional red winemaker from a traditional red wine district!”
chief winemaker Andrew Wigan commented wryly. Anyway, I find the elegant pure
style of their Rieslings very appealing, and these two, sampled in Dec 06, have
around 12% alcohol by volume:
2005 Riesling, Barossa Valley - floral with
oily citrus notes, chalky texture and freshness v maturing fruit roundness.
87+
2006 Riesling, Eden Valley - surprisingly
soft and delicate with nicely intense flowery white peach fruit, zesty extract
and subtle fresh acidity; a little closed up at the moment, yet it's underlying
fine structure and length bode well. 89-91
And this red duo was originally featured under
Previous Wines of the Moment, tasted October 2004:
2002 Barossa Shiraz (14.5%) - classic traditional style showing rich colour,
viscosity and extract; spicy coconut nose enhanced by lovely ripe black
cherry and currant fruit, complex earthy notes and lightly developing liquorice
& 'tar' nuances too; good concentration and depth of 'sweet' fruit, nice bite of
rounded tannins, smoky finish and long fruity flavour, making the big 14.5%
alcohol not so noticeable. Great if you like this kind of wine: I do but only
with hearty food! 90
2002 Clancy's Shiraz/Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot/Cabernet Franc, Barossa Valley
(14%) - touch of complex volatile earthy notes, also
mint with ripe black
fruits, a hint of spice and a meaty edge too; nice rich cassis fruit supported
by cinnamon oak, powerful firm finish yet also has 'sweetness', then gets tighter
closing up a little. 87+
 Palacio de la Vega - Navarra
One
of the leading Bodegas in northeast Spain, Palacio de
la Vega has been a personal favourite for many years; although I was surprised
to find out from their annoying 'Flash' website that it's only been going since
1991. The winery's now owned by mega giant Pernod Ricard, which isn't
necessarily a bad thing when you look at some of their other wine brands
(Champagne Mumm, Etchart in Argentina, Australia's Wyndham Estate as well as the
slightly better-known Jacobs Creek). Anyway, I haven't yet visited PDLV's
vineyards and cellars - must pop down to Navarra one of these days - but thought
the wines below, bought in various Spanish supermarkets, were worth sharing (if you can
still get the 99 Reserva in the UK or US?). They also show that a mix of Spanish and
so-called international varieties can work well together when grown in a
suitable environment, which seems to be the case in Navarra.
Tasted Sept-Dec 2006:
2002 Crianza (Tempranillo
Cabernet Sauvignon, 13.5%) - slight sulphide (?) aromas when first opened but
it develops nice smoky cassis notes underpinned with cedar oak; full, quite rich
& rustic mouth-feel v tangy tight length, quite powerful yet balanced, firm
tannins v maturing fruit. 87-89
2005 Rosado (Garnacha
Cabernet Sauvignon, 13%) - full-on chunky raspberry and strawberry fruit,
ripe and rounded v subtle acidity and tight length. 87+
1999 Reserva Tempranillo (13%) - enticing
developed earthy peppery notes v light vanilla and black cherry; concentrated
blueberry fruit with background layer of oak, nice texture and maturity v still
firm-ish tannins and fresh bite. A complete wine showing balance and style,
drinking now yet I think will improve for another couple of years; try with
pasta in a cépes & aioli sauce. €6-7 90-92
 Golden Kaan
- South Africa
The Golden Kaan brand was created by German multinational drinks company Racke
in partnership with Cape winery KWV. Typically there are different tiers of
quality, wine style and packaging: varietal range, Reserve Selection and Winemaker's
Reserve. The basic spread isn't up to much apart from the two Pinotages - you
have to ask why they sent samples of 2004 vintage southern hemisphere whites? - but it
gets a bit better as you go up; although in some cases 'reserve' appears to mean
more oak. However, a couple of them are pretty good and show where their
strengths lie. Tasted September-November 2006:
2004 Pinotage, Western Cape - attractive smoky style showing rustic
lushness v tangy plum, red fruits and burnt spices; fair weight and rounded
tannins. Better with hearty food such as pork and garlic sausages, as it's a
little bitter on the finish on its own. 80-85
2005 Pinotage rosé - plenty of
vibrant red fruit notes, quite rich then tangy and spicy, juicy and ripe v crisp
and dry. 85-87
2004 Chardonnay - a bit flat and fading with hard acidity.
2004 Sauvignon Blanc - too old otherwise not bad.
2004 Merlot - a bit rough and thin; softer the next day but it's just the
alcohol holding it together.
2004 Shiraz - vanilla and smoked bacon
essence; fruitier the next day although a bit boring with clumsy oak chip character and 14% alcohol keeping it alive.
2004 Cabernet Sauvignon - OK, better than the Merlot or Shiraz with ripe
cassis v herbal red pepper style and soft-ish mouth-feel; still at basic vin de
pays level though.
2005 Sauvignon Blanc Reserve Selection (12%) - the first bottle was a bit
sulphide on the nose, but it goes with some air; develops a nicer mix of
tropical fruit v gooseberry zing, quite mineral and long actually.
87
2003 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Selection (13.5%) - mature minty berry fruit,
quite soft liquorice palate finishing with dry bite; nice enough but lacks a bit
of substance and depth of flavour. 83-85
2003 Shiraz Reserve Selection (14%) -
appealing mature rustic v herbal peppery & smoky bacon notes, combines with
liquorice and black cherry fruit, quite firm with punch of alcohol; not so
complex, again went well with fried liver but less attractive on its own.
85
2003 Chardonnay Winemaker's Reserve, Coastal
Region (14%) - pretty oaky start yet has plenty of rich tropical pineapple and
buttery yeast-lees complexity, developed fruit supported by quite powerful
alcohol v touch of fresh acidity and aniseed bite; try with guinea fowl,
mushroom & gruyere risotto or trout in a rich sauce?
87-89
2003 Cabernet Sauvignon
Winemaker's Reserve, Stellenbosch (13.5%) - better after one day open: at
first it's all vanilla coconut oak then develops gamey cassis and plum notes,
lusher palate v that coco oak (although remains pretty toasty); quite firm yet
fresh finish goes some way towards countering the coating of chocolate tannins.
87-89
Auntsfield Estate
- Marlborough, New Zealand
Graeme and Linda Cowley are renovating and replanting this vineyard in the upper
Wairau Valley, which had been abandoned for 100
years. The fruit for the Sauvignon, International Wine Challenge 2006 gold medal
winner, was grown near "the long cow paddock." The Hawk Hill Pinot is named
after magnificent harrier hawks riding the thermal currents over Auntsfield’s
north facing slopes, and was awarded two silver medals (IWC and Decanter World
Wine Awards 2006). Their full range is available in the UK direct from
www.thecellaret.com Tasted June 06:
2005 Long Cow Sauvignon Blanc - lovely classic style capturing the best
of Marlborough's climate: purity and intensity of green yet tropical edged
fruit, nice elegance and length v concentration and power.
90+
2005 Hawk Hill Pinot Noir - I found this a bit clumsy when first opened
with charred oak and high alcohol (at least 14.5% from memory) dominating; the
next day it better expressed those hoped-for floral 'sweet and savoury' Pinot
characters, which pulled in the reins a little. Perhaps just too young at the
moment, but I'd prefer much less toasted new oak a wine like this...
87
Mount Donnybrook - Western Australia
Three wines from Western Oz made by Michael Hope for ALDI stores
in the UK and I guess Ireland too, given that the prices are quoted at £6.99 or
€11.99 a bottle? Overall pretty good value for money, although I found the
Shiraz the least interesting (too oaky). Tasted May 06:
2003 Shiraz (13.5%) - dominated by vanilla oak at first, the day after
opening it showed more savoury characters v spicy black plum fruit, quite
restrained style yet still fairly rich v soft tannins; would be better with less
oak though. 85+
2003 Cabernet Sauvignon (14%) - much less oaky than the Shiraz offering
attractive earthy cassis fruit, ripe soft palate v quite powerful alcohol;
nevertheless, it's also fairly elegant and fine. 88+
2005 Chardonnay (13.5%) - light mealy creamy oak notes with ripe peach
and pineapple; nice 'sweet' fruit v subtle toast and yeast-lees characters, fair
power yet fresh and dry finish. 87+
 Raimat
- Catalonia
Raimat, owned by the Cava group Codorníu, practically invented the Costers del Segre DO zone in Catalonia.
The adventure began back in 1914, when the Raventós family bought 3200 hectares
of barren land in Lleida...
Tasted between
Oct 2005 and Jan 2006:
2001 Clamor red (Cabernet Sauvignon &
Tempranillo, 13%) - smooth maturing
style that nicely mixes traditional Rioja and Bordeaux, smoky silky Pinot
Noir-like fruit with firmer, leather-tinged yet vanilla-rounded finish.
€5-6
89
2004 Rosado (Chardonnay,
Cabernet Sauvignon & Pinot Noir, 12.5%) -
unusual and superb rosé, with full bodied quite fat strawberry palate leading to
balanced classy finish. 89
Brut Nature Mètode Tradicional (Pinot Noir,
Chardonnay & Xarello, 12%) -
this really quite fine and flavoursome sparkling wine, shaped by similar
production methods to Champagne, comes from outside the Cava area. Fairly rich,
buttery and tropical fruit gives way to developing yeasty complexity with fresh,
dry and elegant length. Brut Nature means no added dosage, i.e. not sweetened
with less than 5 grams natural residual sugar; so pretty dry to you and me.
90+
Tasted
June 2006:
2005
rosado/rosat Casal Raimat (Cabernet Sauvignon &
Merlot, 13%) - not sure if this is just the new
vintage with change of name and packaging, or a different wine. Anyway, it's
good stuff as usual, quite rich and full yet aromatic and fresh.
87+
2005 Casal Raimat blanco - distinctive white, nice mix of juicy
fat fruit with yeast-lees intensity and crisp length.
87+
Tasted
July 2006:
2003
Clamor crianza (Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot
Tempranillo 13.5%) - again shows that subtle mix of
smoky rustic tones and complex berry fruit, silky mouthfeel, although firmer and
bigger than the 2001; all layered with not too much vanilla oak flavour. €5+
89+
Tasted
October 2007:
2006
Casal Raimat rosado
(Cabernet
Sauvignon
& Merlot,
13%) - vibrant raspberry and blueberry fruit, weighty with light
grip even v fresh and zesty. 87+
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Winery snapshots: Roussillon
Winery
snapshots:
Languedoc
Wines of the
mo
Mini-profiles
2005
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