Category: Victoria

Carlei Wines (Various) – The winemaker Sergio Carlei is clearly very passionate about his wines. I also review the Carlei 2004 Pinot Noir in the previous post on the Pinot Tutorial and there will be a note on their Heathcote Shiraz when I post about that tutorial. “Single Vineyard” Chardonnay 2003 – Some nice hints […]

Buller Wines (Rutherglen) – A winery that is renowned for its superb Fortified wines and is now making moves to create better awareness of their improving table wines. “Caspia” Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc 2005 – 73% Semillon with the remainder Sauvignon Blanc. This is well blended with the two varieties balanced rather than one dominating. Some lemon […]

Brown Brothers (Milawa) – Brown Brothers is one the largest and oldest family owned wineries in Australia. The wines that were being shown are generally aimed at the under $10 price point and a specific market segment. They do have higher quality wines but these were not available for tasting. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Pinot Meunier […]

Blue Pyrenees Estate (Pyrenees) – Quite a (almost overwhelmingly) large number of wines on offer here, with five sparkling wines alone. Some good quality, especially amongst some of the sparkling wines and some of the Reserve wines. Midnight Cuvee 2000 – 100% Chardonnay. Lots of toast and apples. Good acid structure. 88/100 Vintage Brut 2000 […]

Balgownie Estate (Bendigo) – This winery has been around since 1969 and it is known for its full flavoured red wines that have excellent aging abilities. The two “Estate” red wines that I tried are going to live for a long time. “Estate” Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 – Like the Shiraz, quite concentrated and full flavoured […]

Austin’s Barrabool Wines (Geelong) – Some good wines here from an up and coming region. I also take a look at the 2004 Pinot Noir in the Pinot Tutorial here “Ellyse” Chardonnay 2004 – Named after the winemakers grand-daughter. Some good complexity and “funkiness” here along with roasted nuts on the nose. 89/100 Riesling 2005 […]

This is the final update from the Victorian Winemakers Exhibition 2006. This master class looked at seven Shiraz based wines from the Heathcote region. The wines are listed below in order of preference. Heathcote Estate Shiraz 2003 – Nose is fairly tight at this stage, but after some vigorous swirling I got some dark chocolate, […]

Eight Pinot Noirs tasted as part of the recent Victorian Winemakers Exhibition tutorials in order of preference. Paringa Estate “Estate” Pinot Noir 2004 – (Mornington Peninsula): Quite an unyielding nose – cherry and some well blended oak. Nice textured mouthfeel – length is great. Just needs some time to develop some complexity and open up. […]

Earlier this week I attended this event at the Menzies Hotel in Sydney. In the coming days I’m going to have writeups on the Pinot and Heathcote Shiraz masterclasses and some (very) brief notes and ratings for the numerous wines tried. Some themes that I saw emerging at the show were the use of both […]

All wines were tasted blind at dinner with some friends from the Winestar Forum with the exception of my bottles which were the Bindi, Sorrenberg and the Elk Cove. Bollinger R.D 1988 – (Champagne, France): Disgorged May 2000. Tarnished gold in colour. Toast, walnut, yeasty dough, pears and slightly oxidative nose. Palate is intense but […]