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- Skeeter - 03-11-2008
Monthly staff tastings are a beautiful thing… when they don’t clash with the stores closing hours, that is. Two months ago I had a lingering last-minute customer, which necessitated a cross-town power walk and cut my sampling time down. This month, a super-quick close and a late start gave me a more relaxed night. Subsequently, I found more wines to my taste that night. (Big Ticks o’ Approval can be affected by the tastee’s stress levels, it seems.)
I’ll start with the Feburary tasting.
2007 Villa Maria Gravel Lane Sauvignon Blanc: Quite subtle and refined after the big, acidic savvies I’ve been trying this year. (Yes, Rockburn, I’m looking fondly at you.) Good length and depth, with flavours more in the melon/capsicum spectrum. Quite a nice wine.
2007 Waipara Hills Pinot Gris: Delicate, fruit-driven style with some slightly funky notes. But there was a slightly harsh character on the finish. I even rinsed out and went back for a second taste, in case that was just residual bitterness from the dawdling customer. Nope, still there. Not me. Maybe a little bottle time might sand off the rough edges.
2004 Nga Waka Home Block Chardonnay: A tangy, nutty chardy, with a creamy smooth body. Nicely balanced between the oak and the primary fruit, rich and mouthfilling. I still like the old-schoolers. Yum!
2005 Okahu Estate Pinotage: On to the only Big Tick O’ Approval wine of this tasting. Medium-bodied red, but with a great depth of plum and currant, some spiciness and firm tannins, leading to a very dry finish. May not be for everyone, of course… Shirley, my boss found it too dry for her palate. More for me, I guess.
2007 Cable Bay Gewürztraminer: Light and delicate aromatics, more floral than fruity. A little off-dry, medium-bodied. Okay, but didn’t make me turn backflips or anything.
I then tried a selection of mid-priced French vino. A Chardonnay/Viognier garnered an “interestingâ€, two reds didn’t rate a mention and a 2006 G/S/M from Jaboulet was my pick of the bunch. Very drinkable.
2005 Weeping Sands Merlot/Cabernet: I was undecided here. I’m thinking it either needed a little more time or food to show it at its best. However the fast-paced tasting was probably playing merry hell with my palate by this stage.
I finished off an a high note, with a spicy and dry Spanish red. (2004 Solar Viejo Crianza) That one pushed the right buttons, especially with the hummus I was snacking on.
Before we head to the March event, let’s pause for a few “at-home†and “at-work†wines.
2007 Oyster Bay Chardonnay: I have no idea why, but Oyster Bay Chardonnay has never been my type of wine. It’s probably been five years since I last tried it, and it still did nothing for me. Admittedly, I tried it at my mothers house as we finished off a bottle that could have been open for a couple of days too long. But regardless, it’s just not me.
2007 Jules Taylor Sauvignon Blanc: A staff-discount purchase, having sold cases of it by its reputation and track record (2 golds and a trophy) alone. I’ll be happy to keep pushing it… it’s everything you could hope for in a good Marlborough savvie. Big nose, a real double-barrel nostril-filler, full of fruit with a little minerally character in the background. Great body, citrus, gooseberry, layered and intense. Excellent stuff.
2007 Lake Chalice “The Raptor†Sauvignon Blanc: And then I tried this one, opened as a weekly in-store tasting bottle following a gold medal win at the Easter Wine Show. Oh. My. God. Probably the most intense ’07 Sauvignon I’ve tried so far. Mammoth nose, tons of acidity that’s balanced by the ripe fruit. Top stuff.
2007 Wither Hills Sauvignon Blanc: Times may change, cities may fall, winemakers may leave the company… but Wither Hills will always be good. I hope. No longer made by Brett Marris, it’s still a excellent drop, which went well with the Japanese food I scarfed on my break at the Comedy Club. (No notes, seeing as I was talking to one of the other comedians at the time. Well, listening. Paul can crank up the words-per-minute when he wants to. And he usually wants to.)
All righty, then. March! After a very nice palate cleanser with some Dellamote Champagne we cracked right back into the savs.
2007 Brightwater Sauvignon Blanc: To Nelson we go… about 100km west of Savvie Central. And guess what? The neighbours are doing pretty well! Subtler on the nose than your typical Marlborough sav, but beautiful ripe fruit, lime notes and a really long finish. First wine, first Big Tick! An excellent start.
2006 Sleeping Giant Chardonnay: No blockbuster chard, more elegant and restrained than some. A nice oaky tang, too.
2006 Composite Pinot Noir: I was able to pick this as hailing from Marlborough, thanks to the cherry-ish nose. (Although with further sniffing, I became convinced that the aroma was almost that of a Pacific Rose Apple. Weird, but I have to trust my instincts.) Medium-bodied, slightly spiced. Drinking nicely now.
2006 Lake Hayes Pinot Noir: This one knocked the Composite out of the park, though. Very spicy, great sweet cherry/berry fruit, almost peppery on the palate. Very nice indeed. Big Tick for this Central Otago beauty.
There was a quick break from the Kiwi vino to hit the Spanish tasting table… I’m rapidly becoming quite a fan. The ’06 Solar Viejo Cosecha was a tasty, temperillo-based red, bright and summery. A 2006 Granacha with a badly-scribbled brand name didn’t really light my fire. The 2004 Ada Minotauro Azul did, however. Big tannic grab upfront, fruit lurking in the background. Put a blindfold on the cow and give him a last cigarette, we need steak here! And finally a big grippy syrah, from Heurta de Albala, labeled as “Taberno†due to local laws supposedly preventing the company from growing syrah in the region. Smelt like rain on hot concrete (Yes, that’s what I wrote) and bandaids. (Look, I’m just quoting myself here. Stop looking at me like that.) Very warming, liquorice and spice. My rather over-the-top notes fortunately end with a more prosaic “Yumâ€.
Back to the local stuff, with the chains’ “Winery of the Monthâ€. Let’s check out the Kim Crawford “Small Parcel†range.
2005 Kim Crawford “The Mistress†Riesling: Beautifully minerally nose, dry style… and then my notes stop abruptly. I must have gotten talking to someone. Will have to re-visit this one.
2006 Kim Crawford “Flowers†Sauvignon Blanc: A “spiced sav� If you believe my notes, this is one. Long, graceful, layered savvie full of capsicum and citrus. Delicious.
2007 Kim Crawford Tietjen Vineyard Pinot Gris: We got this in the wrong order, didn’t we. The Flowers absolutely killed it. Pretty decent after a quick H2O rinse, pears and confectionary notes. Pretty delicate, though. Might need a little time to blossom.
2007 Kim Crawford Viognier: The oak comes through strongly on the nose, mealy and full of interest. Delicious funky body, slightly oily, great mouthfell, very clean finishing. Big Tick!
2007 Kim Crawford Gisborne Gewürztraminer: Floral, rose-y nose, tasting of crisp Gala apples. Just a tiny sliver of sweetness to complement the acidity. Great stuff. Another Big Tick!
And to finish on a high note, I headed over to sample the 2004 Cloudy Bay Riesling.
It was empty.
To make a bad wine-related pun, I was crushed. I settled on the 2007 Camshorn Riesling instead. It was too sweet for me. Oh, well. Maybe next time.
- wondersofwine - 03-11-2008
Great notes, Skeeter. I really enjoyed them.