Hunter Valley - 6 Cellar Doors
Hunter Valley
Tasted Saturday, January 17, 2015 by graemeg with 849 views
Introduction
Family is away in Tasmania; I attempt to make up for all the Apple Isle wineries I’m missing by spending a day in the Hunter as I’ve done occasionally in the past. The usual group of wineries, pretty much, although I couldn’t face the Tempus Two facility to taste Meerea Park, and substituted Tower Estate instead. Tyrrells Private Bin room I organized ahead of time, as you must; but my best-ever experiences at Brokenwood and Mount Pleasant were just serendipitous I suspect.
Flight 1 - Brokenwood (17 Notes)
First in the door at 9.30. Mandi was enthusiastic, knowledgeable, friendly; everything you’d want in a CD person. Terrific range of wines to try; if you’re obviously interested and serious about your wines then anything they’ve got was available to taste. In line with release policy though; so no Graveyard, Mistress or Verona shiraz, but only due to timing factors I suspect. Go back in May for those!
Flight 2 - Tyrrell's (18 Notes)
I guess the best time to visit Tyrrell’s is in May/June, when they’ve released the previous vintage reds, and might even still have some of them to sell. In January it’s pretty much just the whites released the previous September. The sit-down style is much better for comparing the subtleties between the semillons from the same vintage, especially if you’re not so familiar with them. Wish I could have done that at the other wineries. It’s nice that they usually throw in a couple of older vintage wines as a comparison too.
Flight 3 - Small Winemakers Centre (8 Notes)
I dropped in here to taste Andrew Thomas specifically; got talked into a couple of other Hunter shirazes which were OK, but not quite exciting enough to make me plonk down my hard-earned…
Flight 4 - Lakes Folly (2 Notes)
Bottles just sit on an upended barrel in the little antechamber room at Lakes; in January this makes them just a bit warm at ambient temperature to show at their best. The sign of a winery that’s only open for a few weeks until everything is sold I guess…
Flight 5 - Tower Estate (6 Notes)
Long time no visit for me. Place is deserted; one couple come in while I’m there. Weird set-up, yet another grandiose scheme of Len Evans’ which in the end has amounted to…what…something that should have been more than it is? Gotta know your strengths I s’pose… Wines are not so overpriced as you might expect, however.
Flight 6 - Mount Pleasant (15 Notes)
There’s a thorough revamp under way of the Mount Pleasant range of wines. Strictly Hunter now, they’ re cutting production of the retail flagship Lovedale and O’Shea wines (to bolster pricing and contribute to an image overhaul). Also, they’re spotlighting other parcels of fruit from some of their valuable heritage vineyards to give a bunch of price and release-date options. It’s going to be rather baffling label-wise, but also exciting for winelovers who appreciate Hunter styles and the ability of historic vines to present fascinating and absorbing wines. McWilliams claim some 110ha of vineyard in the Hunter Valley, of which five are the best-known; the three exclusively shiraz vineyards are: Rosehill 27ha (planted 1946), Old Paddock just .75ha ( 1920s), and the Old Hill 3ha (1880). Lovedale’s 31ha (planted 1946) is three-quarters Semillon, most of the rest is chardonnay presumably planted later. The Estate Vineyard (29ha) is two-thirds shiraz, with 20% merlot and some smaller random plots, including ancient pinot noir. A lot of these presumably limited-release wines will be vintage-dependent; so the quality of the minor labels (the royal pair of Elizabeth and Phillip for example) may actually improve in the lesser vintages if they get enough declassified fruit. Confusing, but possibly rewarding days are ahead. It’s worth joining the mailing list; there’s 20% discount on offer against the prices below, and the limited release new labels won’t be available otherwise. Young James at the CD was outstanding; one of the most engaging winery experiences I’ve had. No apparent sign at the CD of the Evans, Lillydale or Brands arms of the McWilliams family business either. Interesting and…, even noble, somehow; to be promoting just the Hunter in the Hunter.
Closing
The biggest makers in the valley are turning out very good wines these days.
It's also good to see not a single red above 13.5%, which is what the valley should be doing.
Always worth a visit, but more so these days.
Prices aren't stupid either, tastings are usually free, and they pour the good stuff if you're obviously interested and not just on a bar tour...
Thoroughly recommended.
2014 Brokenwood Sémillon
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
{screwcap, 11%, A$25} Youthful grass & hay. Dry and crisp, with some density and weight, emphasized by fairly soft acid. Medium length finish of typical hunter Semillon fruit. Best within 5 years. Much better than the 2013 effort.
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2013 Brokenwood Sémillon Oakey Creek Vineyard
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
{screwcap, 11%, A$40} Fragrantly perfumed and grassy. Polished grass and hay flavours. Light/medium-bodiy, but lively medium/high acidity gives this much greater presence, depth and persistence than the standard offering. Medium/long finish. Good.
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2009 Brokenwood Sémillon Latara
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
{screwcap, 11%, A$55} At five, showing real toasty notes on the nose. Despite that, it’s still pretty youthful on the palate, with lots of acidity framing the toast and lemony flavours. Medium-bodied now, with a medium/long finish.
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2008 Brokenwood Sémillon Maxwell Vineyard
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
{screwcap, 10%, A$55} Earth and toast. Dusty and smoky. Soft mouthfeel, medium acid. Seems very advanced. Perhaps they should have picked it even earlier to minimize further the effects of the rain. Light/medium body. There really is a wet-vintage feel to this.
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2007 Brokenwood Sémillon
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
{screwcap, 11%, A$40} The standard hunter offering with some years on it now offers a honeyed nose, with a touch of glue. The way they used to make them; this has aged nicely, with medium acid and body, and aged citric and honey flavours. At peak.
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2013 Brokenwood Chardonnay Beechworth, Bathurst, McLaren Vale
Australia, Victoria, North East, Beechworth
{screwcap, 11%, A$28} Soft nutty nose. Peach and nut flavours. Medium-bodied, with some serious oak presence here. Dry, medium length finish. Decent shorter-term chardonnay.
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2013 Brokenwood Chardonnay Indigo Vineyard
Australia, Victoria, North East, Beechworth
{screwcap, 11%, A$55} An acidic, spice-and-grapefruit chardonnay, with lively acidity (30% malo only), medium/high acid, medium/full-body and a medium+ length. Polished, plenty of mid-palate weight; should age nicely for a decade.
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2012 Brokenwood Pinot Noir Beechworth
Australia, Victoria, North East, Beechworth
{screwcap, 13%, A$35} Bright stalky cherries. Raspberry fruit flavours. Fresh enough. Light/medium-body. Soft gritty tannins. Plenty of acid, little oak, short-medium dry finish. About right for the price.
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2012 Brokenwood Pinot Noir Indigo Vineyard
Australia, Victoria, North East, Beechworth
{screwcap, 13%, A$55} Black cherries, a touch of cedary oak. Sweet red fruits, translucent sort of texture. Soft oak, dusty fine tannins. Medium-bodied, good presence of fruit on the mid-palate. Medium length finish. Tidy wine.
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2012 Brokenwood Pinot Noir IV-MV6
Australia, Victoria, North East, Beechworth
{screwcap, 12.5%, A$75} Sweet strawberry fruits on the nose, almost with a medicinal touch. Juicy and spicy palate, classy, dry and savoury. Medium-weight, with a medium/long finish. Plenty of acid to maintain freshness. Judicious oak. Should see a decade easy.
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2013 Brokenwood Nebbiolo Indigo Vineyard
Australia, Victoria, North East, Beechworth
{screwcap, 13%, A$40} Young vines have produced this Turkish-delight infused wine, with maybe a nod to the classic violets and tar. There are plenty of tannins, but they’re coarse and open, and not the solid wall of Langhe. Medium/full-bodied, with spicy red flavours. Medium/long finish. Should last a decade. Impressive, although pricey.
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2013 Brokenwood Shiraz 7 Acre
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley, Pokolbin
{screwcap, 12.5%, A$75} Spices, soft red fruit. Less about fruit than structure; lots of acid, medium/high dusty tannins. The red fruit turns savoury and earthy on the palate. Medium-bodied. Medium/long finish. Good for 15 years to develop some real dimension. Seemed easily the most acidic of the five shirazes I tried at Brokenwood. Spends just 9 months in oak; so it is fruit-driven in the true sense. A block selection from the graveyard vineyard I believe.
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2013 Brokenwood Shiraz
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
{screwcap, 13%, A$50} Spice, earth, dust, red fruit. There’s a bit of black pepper and currant on the palate too. Mainstream modern hunter. Even and savoury, with medium tannins and body, and a medium-length finish. Nice wine, but the price is getting a bit scary.
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2013 Brokenwood Shiraz Four Winds
Australia, New South Wales, Southern New South Wales, Canberra District
{screwcap, 13.5%, A$65} White pepper and pure blackberry fruit. Instantly announces its cool-climate origin. There’s a dark chocolate aspect to the fruit too. Medium weight, with medium dusty tannins. Subtle oak. Doesn’t lack a really juicy quality though. Medium acid and a medium/long dry finish. I liked this; it should age for an age.
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2013 Brokenwood Shiraz Indigo Vineyard
Australia, Victoria, North East, Beechworth
{screwcap, 13.5%, A$65} Earth and iron. Dark and inky in appearance and flavour. Blackberries, minimal oak; low/medium tannins. Medium body and length. Not terribly characterful, but a decent mouthful of flavour. Wants plenty of time.
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2010 Brokenwood Shiraz Wade Block 2
Australia, South Australia, Fleurieu, McLaren Vale
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$65} Big youthful mouthful of chocolate and liquorice. Plush velvety palate; highlighting the big rich McLaren Vale characteristics. Lowish acid, medium/full body, medium tannins. Not too hot, despite 14.5%. A potential bruiser, but behaving itself. Best before ten years, most likely.
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2008 Brokenwood Sémillon Sticky Wicket
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
{375ml, screwcap, 10.5%, A$35} Hay and quince. Purely sweet honeyed essence on the palate; plenty of sugar sweetness; has just enough acid to hold it all together. No real botrytis noticeable. Perhaps it would be more interesting as a younger wine? The extra freshness of youth might make it shine a bit brighter. But this is pretty good, although definitely ready to drink.
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