Simple palates, seriously - June & July 2010 archive

Very few notes over the June and July months because of my trip to Paris, Amsterdam and Burgundy. The tasting notes will be typed up under the August section.

Henri Boillot Bourgogne Blanc 2008
A blend comprised primarily of Meursault fruit, this wine is aromatically restrained, floral notes with light citrus flavours that delicately teeter with the moderately high acidity. 88/100. $40. Tasted at Prince Wine Store.

Henri Boillot Meursault 2008
A good effort at representing the simple pleasures of fruity Meursault Chardonnay. Pale lemon colour with a green tinge, Somehow I got a huge block of oak on the initial nose, but that gave way to aromas of lemon and lime. Nice generous citrus flavours, slightly fat and could be fresher if the flavours were more focussed. Perhaps hint of lingering malolactic acid remaining in this young wine at present? 87/100. $75-90. Tasted at Prince Wine Store.

Henri Boillot Puligny Montrachet Perrieres 2008 1er cru
This pale yellow wine has a clean, restrained nose of peach flesh and stone, smattering of minerality. Nice, fresh acidity propping up ripe, fleshy lemon flavours but overall remains somewhat linear. 90/100. $135-160. Tasted at Prince Wine Store.

Henri Boillot Meursault Charmes 2008
Musky lemon-lime nose with lovely citrus and mineral flavours that are well-proportioned. Good soft finish. $135-160. 90/100. Tasted at Prince Wine Store.

Bizantino Primitivo del Tarantino 2006 IGT, Puglia, Italy
$40. The Italian twin of Californian Zinfandel, this had a brilliant black garnet colour, boasting a very fruity, sweet nose of blackcurrant pastilles, smoky black oolong tea wheels. Firm youthful tannins provide good support for the sweet black fruit flavours. The acidity is not overly present and is sufficient to keep the wine fresh as it pans out into a soft lingering finish. 89/100. Tasted April 2010 as part of WSET level 2 course.

Campo Burgo 2008, Rioja DOC
13.5% alc. Clear, medium ruby colour with notes of dusty hot soil, dark red berry fruit and hint of rose petal. A very astringent wine with reductive properties that confound the wine. $9.90. 84/100.

Ata Rangi Crimson 2008, Martinborough
Clear, light crimson/ruby colour, 14% alc. Ripe plum skins, cherry, raspberry aromas. A dry, medium-bodied pinot noir with medium- tannins and acidity with flavours of sour plum flesh. Drink NOW. 87-88/100.

Christian Moueix Merlot 2005, Bordeaux DOC
Clear, medium ruby colour, 13% alc, a lively and focussed perfumed nose of ripening berries, ripe medium+ tannins, lowish acidity, dry 70% dark chocolate-like grainy tanins. An easy drink for the next 3 years. 88/100.

Cullen Red Blend 2008, Margaret River
A blend of 35% cabernet sauvignon, 27% Malbec, 25% merlot, 12% petit verdot and 1% cabernet franc. 13mths in 43% new French oak and with 12% alc. Medium+ crimson colour with a darker core, aromas of dark berry fruit, blackberry, orange capsicum, tomato leaf, tex-mex bean dip. This is a ripe and youthful wine with flavours of dark currants and blackberry. Dry, medium-full bodied wine with a fairly high level of tannins and accomodating acidity. Drink now - 2015(7). 90-91/100.

Longhop 2007 Shiraz, Adelaide Hills
This spent 13mths in seasoned American and French oak and rings in at 14.5% alc. Dark ruby colour with a lovely perfume of warm earth, dark berry fruit and a hint sour plum. Soft flavours of plum, purple berries and sweet spice. Easy oaky tannins will ease up over the next 3 years and this will drink will over the next 5-7 years. 91/100.

Chris Ringland Shiraz 2008, Barossa Valley
$20. Intense black ruby colour with a heady perfume of purple berry fruit, hint of white pepper, vanillin oak and savoury herb stalks. Rich intense dark berry flavours, a sweet wine with loads of blueberry, blackberry, plum skins. Moderately high levels of tannins with smart acidity, a long finish. This is value for money. Drink now - 2020. 92-93/100.

29th July 2010
A couple of interesting snippets making the news this week.

The first, an article in the Sydney Morning Herald by Huon Hooke with Michael Fragos (Chapel Hill, McLaren Vale) featuring in the title picture. Titled 'To filter or not to filter', it goes beyond a discussion of one option in the process of winemaking. Also mentioned is the effects of reverse osmosis aka the removal of alcohol on the taste and balance on wines. Michael has probably performed a study that any scientist would be proud of, by producing samples of the same wine treated to different levels of alcohol. Similarly, he has also trialled three different extraction techniques namely pumping over, hand plunging and the mechanised rota-fermenting. Importantly, he was stringent in his scientific approach by conducting this study on a single batch of 2010 McLaren Vale shiraz grapes. No guessing which method produced the superior wine. A good read.

The second newsfeed that caught my attention was Decanter's announcement of their masterclass line-ups for the annual Decanter Fine Wine Encounter in London. Imagine all five first growths in the same session with all five directors present. Yup, that's right. It's Lafite, Marguax, Mouton-Rothschild, Haut-Brion and Latour, two wines per chateau. What an incredible experience that would be! Other masterclasses include ten vintages of La Mission Haut-Brion and eight vintages of Opus One with winemaker Michael Silacci. Read article here.

And as if the world didn't need more wine already, Champagne has declared that the 2010 harvest will be increased by ~10%. Despite consumption falling in 2009, exports are up in 1Q this year giving the houses perhaps some pre-mature optimism. Speaking of which, would you fork over 40€ for some Spanish World Cup-winning champion wine? It's the wine of champions, or so I'm told.