Indholdsfortegnelse for December 2020 i Winestate Magazine

SOMETHING HAS BEEN HAPPENING OVER THE PAST FEW ISSUES, indeed over the next one, and back over the past few years. Wine Judges have been selecting more mid-weight wines than the blockbusters of the past. The number of so called alternative varietals has increased exponentially over the past few years, maybe not in volume, but certainly in the number of labels out there. Organic and biodynamic wines are growing rapidly as sustainability and environment are the new buzzwords and in some groups unless you support these you are considered a bad person. We support the trend with Australasia’s biggest blind judging of Organic & Biodynamic wines each year in Winestate, but don’t judge others who choose not to do so, or are in micro-climates where the procedure is too difficult…

BROWN Marmorated Stink Bug (BMSB) and the Glassy Winged Sharpshooter might not be names familiar with wine lovers, but they could stop you enjoying your favourite drops in the future. The fight to keep Australian and New Zealand vineyards safe from international pests and diseases has never been harder, possibly since Phylloxera terrorised the vinous world in the late 19th century. Biosecurity is an item on every annual report and SWOT analysis. “It’s a booming business, unfortunately,” comments Wine Australia’s Program Manager Craig Elliott and whilst 2020 has seen a lull in the fight against these invaders the threat level is still high. In fact, the New Zealand Winegrowers have published a Most Unwanted flyer listing the top 10 pest and diseases to stop at the borders. BMSB is at…

THERE are those that love big oaky wines and those who hate them – I think I am safe in saying the majority of wine consumers fall into the latter category. But oak isn’t the enemy here it is how it is used. Oak ageing smoothes out a wine and balances the flavours - when it’s done well, but with inept use it can smother everything, leaving you with nothing but a mouthful of splinters! Oak can’t be all bad, after all it has been a couple of hundred years now that French winemakers have been maturing their premium wines in oak. The First Growth wines of Bordeaux and Grand Crus of Burgundy may spend anything up to two years in small barrels creating unsurpassed examples of wines with both…

RIESLING UNDER $20 15 TASTED 7 AWARDED A very mixed lot here. There are good wines offering value for money but there are some that show lack of freshness and others with the acidity out of balance. Kirrihill Regional Selection Clare Valley Riesling 2020 ★★★★½ Nose shows grassy herbaceous esters with delicate floral notes followed by a crisp concentration of lemon balm–like fruit flavours with steely acidity. $19 Rockridge Estate Wines Clare Valley Riesling 2020 Quite a closed nose with a gentle line of citrus and more citrus on the succulent palate with great sugar/acid balance. $15 Giesen Estate New Zealand Riesling 2018 ★★★★ Developed toasty floral characters on the nose and a pretty palate of lush, sweet fruit flavours with a “clipped” acid line. $16.99 Freya and Jules Watervale…

PINOT NOIR UNDER $20 11 TASTED 4 AWARDED The judges were disappointed with this group. “Too many forced, rather than varietal, wines here,” said one judge. “Natural ferment creates problems for this lightly structured variety – whilst some others added an element of artifact that didn’t work!” Mike Press Single Vineyard Adelaide Hills Pinot Noir 2018 ★★★★ Perfumed rose petal aromas with cherry flavours, hints of forest floor characters and some complexity developing. $17.99 Pete's Pure Murray Darling Pinot Noir 2020 ★★★ A soft, simple and juicy young wine with raspberry fruit characters. $15 Yealands Marlborough Pinot Noir 2019 ★★★ Floral fragrances with a strawberry lift and a spicy tannic palate. $18.95 NZ Ara Single Estate Marlborough Pinot Noir 2019 ★★★ Ripe sweet cherry nose and a big tannic palate…

WINESTATE MAGAZINE TASTING CRITERIA OUR STAR RATING SYSTEM A wide selection of wines Wines are invited from any producer, provided that they meet the criteria of the class being judged. The class may be a regional, style or new release tasting and generally the wines must be available for consumers to purchase, although we have museum and rare wine tastings as well. Awarding scores Winestate carries out the judging using Australian capital city wine show procedures; the wines are not known to the judges. The three judges taste the wines blind and assign a score without reference to each other. Once this is done, only then do they compare scores, and if there is dissension they re-taste the wines and come to an agreement. Scores are compiled using the 20-point…

THERE'S a reason today's singers do covers of decades-old songs. Their message and appeal is enduring and crosses multiple generations. Take Summer Wine, a hit for Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood in the 1960s. Artists as diverse as The Corrs and Bono and Lana Del Rey have warbled their own versions. In July, Alex Kapronos, ex-rock band Franz Ferdinand, and French chanteuse, Clara Luciani, released a beguiling reprise in English and French. Watch any rendition on YouTube and it’s hard not to feel inspired or wax nostalgic during the opening lines – ‘Strawberries, cherries and an angel's kiss in Spring; My summer wine is really made from all these things’. A quick search on the Internet throws up thousands of articles offering advice on the best wines to choose when…

HOME to Hollywood and home-grown movie stars, smart restaurants and luxury rentals, Byron Bay is also the Wellness Capital of Australia. But there's more to the NSW tourism mecca for keen beer and spirits fans and those yearning for some of the best seaside bars in the country. In fact, you could spend a week visiting local breweries and distilleries on a DIY basis or with leading tour companies to sample top class craft beers and artisanal spirits. Located on the 39-hectare Brook Farm, Cape Byron Distillery was once a rundown dairy farm. Pam and Martin Brook took over the property in 1988 and planted 35,000 subtropical trees. Today's lush rainforest is a haven for wildlife and birds and produces most of the botanicals used to make the distillery's signature…

FOR chef and business owner Andrew Baturo and his wife Jaimee, Thai cuisine has always been a favourite. Their first holiday together was to Thailand and their chef at their French-Vietnamese inspired restaurant, Libertine in the Barracks complex at Petrie Terrace in Brisbane’s inner west, Suwisa Phoonsang is Thai. So, it made sense to bring Suwisa on board when they made the decision to open an extended pop-up called Naga in the heart of the CBD complete with a colourful fit out and a mouth-wateringly vibrant Thai-inspired menu. It is quite a shift away from the Baturo’s other venues, apart from Libertine they are also co-founders of the popular Gresham Bar in the CBD, Walter’s Steakhouse, also in the CBD and Popolo Italian Kitchen overlooking the river in Southbank. Naga…

SAUVIGNON BLANC UNDER $20 31 TASTED 16 AWARDED The general consensus across the board was that this is a very mixed group with the best being great and the worst the worst! “The good wines here are what the consumers want; fresh and well made,” noted one judge. Spinyback Nelson Sauvignon Blanc 2020 ★★★★★ Excellent concentration of varietal fruit pungency on the nose and a lovely tight, slightly sherbety, palate that is fresh and zingy with a good line of acid. $13.95 Mount Riley Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2020 ★★★★★ A lovely, elegant and seamlessly balanced sauvignon blanc. Good varietal lift to the nose and expresses zingy citrus flavours with fine phenolics adding complexity. $15 Giesen Estate Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2020 ★★★★★ Complex bouquet with great concentration and lift of gooseberry-like…

SEMILLON & BLENDS UNDER $20 7 TASTED 7 AWARDED A consistent group of no fault, good drinking, wines. “A pleasure to taste and offering good value for your money,” said one judge. Midnight's Promise Hunter Valley Semillon 2017 ★★★★★ A very well-made, pale-yellow wine with green tints. It has delicate lemon curd-like characters on the nose and palate with a subtlety of buttery/toasty age nuances. $18 Midnight's Promise Hunter Valley Semillon 2014 ★★★★★ “A great example of a semillon – very classy,” thought one judge. There is an abundance of lemon sherbet-like characters with beautiful buttery toast maturity coming through. $18 De Bortoli Sacred Hill Semillon Sauvignon Blanc 2020 ★★★★ A clean refreshing style with passionfruit and citrus aromas, tasty tropical fruit flavours and a good line of acid. $7.50…

Prices shown are approximate New Zealand retail. Wines available in export markets are shown as (A) Australia, (UK) and (US). Winestate’s New Zealand editor is author of the internationally acclaimed Wine Atlas of New Zealand and the annual New Zealand Wines: Michael Cooper’s Buyer’s Guide. In the 2004 New Year Honours, Michael was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to wine writing. CHARDONNAY 27 TASTED 27 RECOMMENDED A stunning line-up of youthful wines, all from the warm, humid 2018 season or warm and notably dry 2019 vintage. Weighty, rich, ripe and complex, with obvious cellaring potential, many of the wines are high-priced, but the tasting also uncovered some impressive, great value chardonnays in the $20 price category. Askerne The Archer Hawke's Bay Chardonnay 2018 ★★★★★…

SPARKLING 8 TASTED 5 AWARDED A nice bunch of quaffers with a couple of wines showing more complexity. Buller Wines The Nook King Valley Prosecco NV ★★★★ A well-made wine with elegant peach driven aromas, zesty lemon notes and a clean, bright and refreshing palate. $23 Carmine's The Henry SEA Sparkling Shiraz NV ★★★½ Smells of blackcurrants and licorice with obvious sweetness and vanilla oak on the smooth dark fruit palate. $20 Jansz Premium Tasmania Sparkling Rosé NV ★★★½ Light aromas reminiscent of green strawberries with a pleasant and well-balanced fresh strawberry palate. $30 Buller Wines RLB Victoria Sparkling Rosé 2020 ★★★ Perfumed floral fragrances and a pleasant pretty off-dry, fruit driven, palate. $17 Champagne J. De Telmont Grand Couronnement Champagne 2006 ★★★ Toasty nutty bouquet and tasting of apple…

AS parts of Europe looked, from an October perspective, as though they are were heading towards a second Covid-19 wave, and a winter of partial, and possibly even national, lockdown, a saving grace, of sorts, for the wine industry is that harvest is all but over, and vines are heading into their dormant phase. At top line level, European Union (EU) figures suggest that things might have been even worse. Data for the EU-27 nations from Eurostat (the statistical office of the EU) show that by August total retail trade, including the category ‘food, drinks, tobacco’ had recovered relative to their February levels. Textiles, clothing and footwear, and fuel consumption are categories still only at 90-95% of February levels. Nonetheless it has been, and remains, a rocky ride for agriculture,…

CALIFORNIAN winemaker Robert Mondavi invented the term in the 1960’s. He needed a new term to disassociate his wine from the poor reputation sauvignon blanc had at the time. He got his idea from the Loire Valley region of Pouilly Fumé. Mondavi Fumé Blanc was released in 1968 and became so famous that other wineries around the globe copied it. In Australia Fumé Blanc is officially a synonym for sauvignon blanc. But the term can be used for a number of different styles. In most cases, it indicates an oak matured sauvignon blanc, but, it can equally apply to a stainless steel or neutral oak fermented lees contact driven style. Whilst the name was a reference to Pouilly Fumé, it could also mimic the wine style of Bordeaux Blanc where…

BONDI Junction has seen a blizzard of new developments in recent years, including a spate of residential apartments. Walking past soaring blocks such as Bondi Central, you are left in no doubt that the suburb has transitioned to a sub-regional centre full of penthouses, luxury units and even more upscale shopping. On the corner of Denison and Oxford Streets, the NewLife Bondi Junction development fills the space once occupied by the old Mill Hill Hotel and at its base is The Mill. A decidedly more upmarket food and entertainment venue than its vintage predecessor. Only a week after opening in early October, The Mill was buzzing on the night of our visit. An even split of bright young things, professionals and older, well-heeled Eastern Suburbs residents. The high-end fit-out includes…

SPARKLING 4 TASTED 3 AWARDED Three quality examples of approachable sparklings showing some complexity. Syn Coonawarra Sparkling Rosé NV ★★★★½ A very refreshing style with a fine bead and a pretty strawberry bouquet with a hint of Turkish Delight. The palate is creamy and fruity with toasty notes and crisp acid. $20 Syn Cuvée Blanc Coonawarra Sparkling Chardonnay Pinot Noir NV ★★★★ Fresh, vibrant and youthful with attractive tropical complexity. Creamy in the mouth with good sugar/acid balance. $18.50 Syn Rouge Coonawarra Sparkling Shiraz NV ★★★ A rich, bold, fruit driven “celebratory” style with hints of blackberries and chocolate. $18.50 SAUVIGNON BLANC 5 TASTED 4 AWARDED Small solid group of cool climate, fresh and lively examples. Raidis Estate 'The Kelpie' Coonawarra Sauvignon Blanc 2020 ★★★★½ Very punchy varietal with lovely…

PINOT GRIS/GRIGIO UNDER $20 13 TASTED 7 AWARDED A mixed bag of wines not surprising at this level. However, there were some nice examples of the styles. “Why would you make wines that stick out at this price,” said one judge. “You would still need to have balanced wines and not grippy flavours.” Babydoll Marlborough Pinot Gris 2020 ★★★★ Elegant and somewhat restrained pear-like aromatics and a delicately flavoured palate with a zesty finish. $17.95 NZ Celso Vento Pinot Grigio 2019 ★★★½ Pears and citrus on the nose with musky floral notes and a nicely focused, lovely, lemony palate. $12 Jacob's Creek 1847 SA Pinot Gris 2019 ★★★½ Reserved citrus aromas and quite a dry palate with flavours of lemons and pears. Good acidity. $18 Lake Chalice The Falcon Marlborough…

ROSÉ UNDER $20 29 TASTED 23 AWARDED Some good results here for the price. The 2020s were a touch above the 19s because of freshness however there were good 2019s with age development a factor. “There has been a lot of work with rosé lately as a designated style rather than an after thought as was the case in the past,” said one judge. A comment from a winemaker, “don’t pick too green!” The Ned Marlborough Rosé 2020 ★★★★½ Very pretty rose petal bouquet with a raspberry lift. Has lots of red berry fruit flavours on the seamlessly balanced palate with nice level of tannins and mineral acidity. $18.99 Giesen Blush Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2019 ★★★★½ Spicy and floral on the nose with a slight leafy green edge. Very attractive…

Prices shown are approximate New Zealand retail. Wines available in export markets are shown as (A) Australia, (UK) and (US). Saint Clair Omaka Reserve Marlborough Pinot Noir 2019 ★★★★★ Full of youthful promise, this powerful, single vineyard red was grown in the Southern Valleys and matured for 11 months in French oak barrels (25% new). Deep ruby, it is mouthfilling and weighty, with concentrated cherry, plum, spice and nut flavours, complex, savoury and finely structured. Best drinking 2023+. $44 (A, UK) The Landing Bay of Islands Chardonnay 2019 ★★★★★ This classy wine was estate grown in Northland, hand-picked and fermented and matured for 11 months in French oak barriques. Bright, light lemon/green, it is refined and full-bodied, with deep, vibrant peach and grapefruit flavours, mealy and toasty notes adding complexity,…

Preece King Valley Pinot Grigio 2020 Subtle estery nose and a clean, refined and refreshing palate with a lingering zesty end. $20 Mitchelton Wines - Nagambie Wine Corporation Phone: 03 5736 2222 Email: mitchelton@mitchelton.com.au Web: www.mitchelton.com.au Grandeur Wellington Artisan Adelaide Pinot Gris 2020 Nose in the tropical spectrum and a long warming palate with a sweet finish. $20 Grandeur Wellington Phone: 08 8383 0866 Email: peter@gwellington.com.au Web: www.grandeurwellington.com.au Mitchelton The Bend King Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2019 Interesting aromas – quite spicy and perfumed with generous preserved lemon flavours. $15 Mitchelton Wines - Nagambie Wine Corporation Phone: 03 5736 2222 Email: mitchelton@mitchelton.com.au Web: www.mitchelton.com.au Oakover Wines Western Australia Rose 2020 Nose is a freshness of rose petals and spices with fleshy fruit on the mid-palate and slight spritzig note. $16 Oakover…

Leefield Station Marlborough Pinot Noir Rosé 2019 Confectionery green berry bouquet with chalky tannins on the palate, some savoury development and “Perfect phenolics!” $19.99 Marisco Vineyards Phone: +64 9 522 9684 Email: georgia@marisco.co.nz Web: www.marisco.co.nz Watkins Core Langhorne Creek Grenache Rosé 2020 Gorgeous sherbet/fairy flosslike bouquet and an elegant and creamy palate with some great acidity and a long finish. $20 Watkins Family Wine Phone: 0415 571 574 Email: ben@watkins.wine Web: www.watkins.wine Watkins Alternatives Directed Intensity Langhorne Creek G.S.M. 2019 The nose is a delightful compote of spicy earthy berry fruit and has delicious fruit flavours laced with vanilla oak. $20 Watkins Family Wine Phone: 0415 571 574 Email:ben@watkins.wine Web: www.watkins.wine Taylors Hotelier Wrattonbully Shiraz 2019 A rich and opulent wine. “Everything you look for in a shiraz,” said one…

BEST BUYS Grandeur Wellington Phone: 08 8383 0866 Email: peter@gwellington.com.au Web: www.grandeurwellington.com.au Marisco Vineyards Phone: +64 9 522 9684 Email: georgia@marisco.co.nz Web: www.marisco.co.nz Mitchelton Wines - Nagambie Wine Corporation Phone: 03 5736 2222 Email: mitchelton@mitchelton.com.au Web: www.mitchelton.com.au Oakover Wines Phone: 08 9374 8000 Email: info@oakover.com Web: www.oakovergrounds.com. au/wines Taylors Wines Pty Ltd Phone: 08 8849 1115 Email: info@taylorswines.com.au Web: www.taylorswines.com.au Watkins Family Wine Phone: 0415 571 574 Email: ben@watkins.wine HAWKES BAY Bish Wines NZ Phone: +64 (0) 21 584 515 Email: tony@tonybishwines.co.nz Web: www.tonybishwines.co.nz Black Barn Vineyards NZ Phone: +64 6 877 7985 Email: francis@blackbarn.com Web: www.blackbarn.com Radburnd Cellars NZ Phone: +64 6 651 1815 Email: hello@radburndcellars.co.nz Web: www.radburndcellars.co.nz Squawking Magpie NZ Phone: +64 6 878 1800 Email: info@squawkingmagpie.co.nz Web: www.sqawkingmagpie.co.nz LIMESTONE COAST CW Wines Phone: 08 8736 5160 Email:…