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+--- Thread: A Fistful of TN's (/thread-8602.html)
- Skeeter - 08-20-2007
Hey, all. Hope you've got a few minutes, as my new winestore job has resulted in a longish list of TN's for y'all. Mainly kiwi/aussie wines, with a couple of outsiders and one not-a-wine-but-let's-TN-it-anyhoo.
And so without further ado:
2005 Rippon Jeunesse Pinot Noir: Smooth, young-vine pinot. Big ripe nose, nice balance between its sweet cherry/berryfruits flavours and its fine-grained tannins. Great structure to it, too. On a second tasting a day later it smelled like rhubarb and cloves. (Well, to me anyway. My mental vocabulary is expanding, but as always, your results will probably vary.)
2006 Delta Pinot Noir: Funky, herbal aromas. Savoury spiced cherries, with a good acidic spine. Decent, if not the blockbuster the previous year apparently was.
2005 Red Rock “The Underarm†Syrah: Quite a drying syrah, with plenty of pepperyness. I like syrah, but this one has never really leapt out at me. I’ll keep on trying it, though.
2006 Delta Sauvignon Blanc: My first note is an underlined “Goodâ€. That’s a good start. Typically Marlborough savvie, big, citric and sweaty. Fruit forward sav that’s ready to drink.
2005 Wolfblass Gold Label Shiraz: Very peppery, with a n ice smoky character. Great ripe berryfruit. Gotta give the Aussies their due, they know their shairz.
2005 Annies Lane Shiraz: And here’s more proof. Mellower than the last time I tried this one, but still mouth-filling and chewy. Nicely balanced and rounded, with good oak backing up the fruit. Very nice indeed.
2007 Lake Chalice Sauvignon Blanc: Interesting… much less acidity than I was expecting from on ’07. It’s no shrinking violet, though, as my notes mention nice passionfruit and apple flavours. (Plus an indecipherable scribble that could be anything from “violets†to “vealâ€â€¦ and probably isn’t either of those.) A lemon-drop
Aftertaste rounds this one off nicely.
2006 Rockburn Pinot Gris: Fairly full, creamy and with a little touch of residual sweetness. Not bad for a pinot gris, but as always, it left me wanting more. I’m hard to please with PGs.
2006 Roaring Meg Pinot Noir: Here’s one I was very interested in. I tried the 2004 debut, and gave it a big thumbs down. This time? Better. Much better. Not such a harsh finish, if still a little tannic for my taste. Another vintage or two, and we might be good friends.
2004 Wither Hills Chardonnay: Excellent yeasty/creamy body to the wine, but for the first time, it seemed to fade on me a little faster than I’d have liked. It was fairly late in the day at the tasting I tried it at, so maybe it had been open a little long. Either that or I’ve been spoiled my Mr. Marris for too long and set the bar too high. Regardless, I’m guessing it’d still be a stunning food wine.
2006 Chanarmuyo Petit Verdot: To Argentina we briefly go! “Petit†means “smallâ€, right? Not this one. Inky black, deep woodsmoke nose. Huge and tannic. Give it a little time, methinks.
2005 Chunarmuyo Tannat: Woof! I’d never tried a tannat before. It’s no exaggeration to say I recoiled. Super-flinty nose that reminded me of wet concrete. (It was easier to take on the second whiff.) Big in every sense of the word, uber-dry and austere. (Yeah, I went there. But I looked up “austere†after hearing too many people mis-use and abuse the word. And this fits the bill.) There’s a little plum juice on the finish, but it’s pretty well buried right now.
2006 Sacred Hill Sauvignon Blanc: Pungent nose that screams “Marlborough. Excellent fruit flavours are melding together well, with really good mid-palate weight. (Great, my TN’s are veering dangerously into Wine Snob territory.) This is a good wine. And in New Zealand at least, excellent value for money.
2006 Akarua “The Gullies†Pinot Noir: Light ruby colour, nose-filling bouquet. Smoked plums and cherries, with fine tannic structure. Didn’t make me want to shout its name for the rooftops, but I’d happily drink a glass or two if you brought it over.
2005 Chateau Roustang: Whoa, French wine? That’s in the wrong place. Never mind, let’s run with it. It’s from Bordeaux, and for me was a little harsh. Grippy tannins overwhelmed the fruit, leading to a very drying finish. And then it copped out by dying on me too fast. Overly tannic AND short. Impressive, in all the wrong ways. Non, merci!
2004 Chapel Hill Shiraz/Grenache: Off to the McLaren Vale region we go. Sweet ripe fruit, supple, spiced and smooth as silk. (Alliteration rules!) Very drinkable. Just don’t read that TN out loud after a bottle, you’ll be wiping spittle off your monitor.
2006 Sacred Hill Riesling: Almost smells a little botrytised, but oddly, not on the palate. Oily texture, honeysuckle notes. Sacred Hill keeps on delivering the goods. That night I also sampled their syrah (Which was good) and their merlot. (Which was vaguely disappointing)
2006 Clearview Reserve Chardonnay: We got old-school styles going on here! Big oaky butterscotch bomb of a wine. Full-bodied, nutty and rich. Great stuff. (Not least for the fact it reminded me of their Unoaked chardy in my closet.)
2006 Pegasus Bay Sauvignon/Semillon: And coincidently, a bottle of this resides there too. Ripe and acidic, with a more vegetal style than your typical savvie. Crisp acids and a nice funky nose. Bring that along to dinner and you’ll go home happy.
2005 Chapel Hill Sangiovese: Not a grape I’ve had a lot of experience with, but this seemed like a good start. Ripe, fruit-driven Aussie red, a little pepper in the mix. Very juicy, drinking well.
2004 Chapel Hill Cabernet Sauvignon: There’s an Aussie cab sav for ya. Too dark to read a newspaper through, and still with enough tannic afterburn to pucker your cheeks like a lemon. If only I had the patience to open this bruisers up a little.
2001 Chapel Hill Cabernet Sauvignon: Like, for instance, this pre-aged version. It’s Big Tick o’ Approval time! Still huge, but mellowing beautifully. I even enthused about it’s “palate-caressing secondary development†in my notes. I’m not sure if I should be proud or embarrassed by that line. It’s a stunner, anyhoo.
Chapel Hill “The Devil†Port: Oh, my word. The Devil doesn’t just get the best tunes, it appears. He also gets a damn fine post-dinner beverage. Gorgeous, long and to die for. Just a perfect balance between fruit sweetness and cask structure. My only disappointment… our tax departments influence has pushed the price of this one to NZ$60+ for a bottle. I think it’s worth the splurge.
Finlandia Grapefruit Vodka: Yep, I’m coming from way out of left-field now. But I think it’s worth the TN. Crystal clear, with a very Cointreau-like citrus aroma. Very smooth, with a very likeable citric aftertaste. Not too hot, despite the 40% alcohol content. I wouldn’t knock it back straight, but should make an excellent mixer.
- Innkeeper - 08-20-2007
Great notes as usual Skeets. We've been enjoying a half box of 2006 Wild Rock Vin Gris, Pinot Noir Rose’, Central Otago this summer. Fantastic!
- winoweenie - 08-20-2007
Great notes as usual there Skeets! Will try to find some of the culprits. WW
- TheEngineer - 08-20-2007
holytoledo...I hope you spit....that's a lotta tasting for a day!! Even if its for work!
- Skeeter - 08-21-2007
Well, those notes were from a couple of tastings... but yeah, you taste more than a dozen wines in a row, you'd better be spitting.
Doubly so if there's a selection of spirits in the mix.
I paid a little penance for trying all these high-quality wines tonight, though. A use-it-or-lose-it bottle of non-vintage Aussie sauvignon left over from a family party. i probably should have left it.
I think I might have to marinate something in white wine tomorrow... [img]http://wines.com/ubb/tongue.gif[/img]