Dinner with Mervyn and Jerming

Great meet-up with Merv after more than 20 years

• 2006 Lake's Folly Chardonnay 92 Points

  Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley

  It has been 14 years since the last bottle I had. It has certainly developed nicely with an intriguing and quite yummy maturity. Golden hued, almost old Sauternes in colour, it had a very expressive nose of golden honey, some bits of caramel and the ripest apple aromas, with just a little shade of spice at the sides. Very attractive. The palate was really interesting too. A little mute when served too chilled, it unfolded nicely to show a quietly complex mouthful of red apples lined with a really nice spine of spice and mineral and lemon zesty acidity, all trailing away into a long, fresh finish that had that tiniest bit of bitter-sweetness that gave it a really nice length. There was a lovely savoury note that came out with time too - reminded a bit of preserved lime. I do not think it is qualitatively better now than it was in its youth, but it is definitely very different. While maybe just starting to thin out at the edges, this was still really lovely on the night.

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• 2006 Pirramimma Petit Verdot 91 Points

  Australia, South Australia, Fleurieu, McLaren Vale

  A really interesting bottle. This was surprisingly nice - and drinking beautifully at 16 years of age. I liked the nose - it was bright and breezy, with pretty notes of blackcurrants, violets and spice dancing together on the bouquet. The palate was yummy too. Nothing mind-blowing, but just very pleasant, with yummy flavours of blackcurrants and back cherries lined with a nice bit of spice and a little sprinkle of earth and bramble, all backed by a little shade of savoury meatiness. Yummy, and not altogether simple either - there was a sneaky complexity to this at the end. A nice wine, drinking nicely now, but with plenty of life ahead of it yet.

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• 2014 Klein Constantia Vin de Constance 94 Points

  South Africa, Coastal Region, Cape Peninsula, Constantia

  Always a lovely wine, especially when it has a smidgen of age on it. This is easily a couple of decades or more away from its peak, but boy was it enjoyable even now. The nose was classic VdC, with white tea, chamomile and honey notes floating like a halo around a core of white peach aromas. Just lovely - a beautiful nose tea-like bouquet. The palate was delicious too. Fresh, crisp, juicy and complex, with flavours of honeysuckle, chamomile and white tea dancing around a subtle core of yellow fruit, All perfectly balanced, round and succulent, with a delicious long finish trailing away with a tiny hint of spice. This to me has always been one of the singular wines of the wine world, and always worth seeking out, especially given how the prices are still fairly manageable.

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