Bindi Tasting 2004

An impressive tasting was put on by my local wine storage facility in Brisbane. Young winemaker, Michael Dhillon was there to address, excite, and give no-BS answers to the 50 or so tasters seated upstairs in the dedicated tasting room. 14 wines were tasted on the night; 12 of them formally, and the other two before and after. The wines in question? All of them Bindi.

The wines were tasted in 4 sets of 3. Each set demonstrating the aging (or evolution of style??) of a particular wine.

Before the tasting proper, the 1994 Sparkling Chardonnay was served. No formal notes taken, but it was pretty impressive stuff.

• 1994 Bindi Chardonnay Extended Lees Aged Macedon

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges

  One of the better Aus sparklings for sure. On lees for something like 6 years, and the last few under cork, it was still lovely and fresh, with excellent complexity and mouthfeel. This wine could be cellared for at least 5 more years.

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The room favourite from set 2 was probably the '91 Bindi Chardonnay, with the '94 second. I went '94, '91, '03.

• 1991 Bindi Chardonnay

  Australia, Victoria

  Pale yellow, not as much colour as I had expected given the age. Quite powerful butterscotch and tropical friut aromas dominating the toasty French oak. A bit sauternes-like. On the palate, the wine exhibited a lovely creamy texture again with the butterscotch, quince and pear flavours. Lovely sweetness, acidity, and balance. This is right in its prime.

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• 1994 Bindi Chardonnay

  Australia, Victoria

  Similar colour to the '91 - similarly advanced?? A funky (but lovely) sharpness on the nose. Musk and lemon? No, more like passionfruit. Not as dominating in the mouth as the '91, but much more elegant with very impressive length. Impressive chard.

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• 2003 Bindi Chardonnay

  Australia, Victoria

  Very pale straw. Lovely floral and pear aromas. Piercing acidity and honey dew melon flavours abound. Is this a new direction for the label, or simply a cooler vintage? Needs time to come together.

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Newer vines planted on soil with a lot of quartz.
In comparison with the second flight, the Quartz chardonnays seemed too acidic, too alcoholic, and with perfume that was too powerful for my taste. Not as elegant or refined as the '94 and '03 Bindi label.
According to the winemaker, they played around with various levels of malo in the Quartz in the late '90's, with the '98 going 100% malo.
For the third set, my ranking was '95, '98, '03.

• 1995 Bindi Chardonnay Quartz

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges

  About as dark as the 91 Bindi label. Quite perfumed and aromatic with apricot on the nose. Too much alcohol. A bit of malo here. Similar on the palate with some toasty flavours creeping in. Mouth filling, but finishes with a bit of tartness. Reminded me of Penfolds Bin00 chard, but with less finesse and structure.

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• 1998 Bindi Chardonnay Quartz

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges

  Honey, strawberries and cream. More malolactic fermentation adopted than previous wine. Over oaked, but enjoyable nonetheless.

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• 2003 Bindi Chardonnay Quartz

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges

  Very pale. Perfumed like the '95. These last 3 have some creaminess to them. More intense than the '03 Bindi. Again, the wisteria flower perfume abounds. Not my favourite, prefer the '03 Bindi label.

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• 1996 Bindi Pinot Noir Original Vineyard

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges

  Deep red with orange edges. Lost a lot of fruitiness on the nose, with damp forest floor and compost aromas dominating. On the palate, the earthy flavours were in control, with some plummy notes starting to soften. A little charry. Quite drying and tannic. Too much oak. Drink soon.

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• 2001 Bindi Pinot Noir Original Vineyard

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges

  Red purple. Ripe raspberry and plum on nose. Much more alive than the '96 and more alcohol. Warmer vintage? Lovely balanced Pinot with impressive depth and length.

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• 2003 Bindi Pinot Noir Original Vineyard

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges

  Bright red/pink. Strawberry and cream aromas. Starts off light, but finishes with concentration and power. Interesting to see where this one is going. My choice of the Originals before the '01 then '96.

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All up, the Block 5 pinots were more consistent to style than the Originals. Perhaps they were all from a similar style of vintage, not sure.

• 1997 Bindi Pinot Noir Block 5

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges

  Dark red purple. Powerful strawberry, plum and earth aromas continue on palate. Finishes a little short without as much tannin as the '96 Original. Well balanced and lovely drinking.

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• 2000 Bindi Pinot Noir Block 5

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges

  Dark inky red. More austere style than the '97. Strong plum and more oak. More gritty tannin than the '97 resulting in finer structure. Quite intense on the tongue with dark plum and cinnamon obvious. This will last a while. My favourite on the night.

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• 2003 Bindi Pinot Noir Block 5

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges

  Much darker than the Original '03. A little hot and acidic. Nice long clean finish, but prefer the '03 Original.

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Following the tasting, the 2003 Bundaleer Heathcote Shiraz was presented. Not a Bindi grown wine, but crafted by the winemakers. An experimental wine. This was a pretty decent “muck around” wine as the winemaker put it. I have no idea what it retails for, but I would guess $40. Not my style of Shiraz, but a good wine nonetheless.

• 2003 Bindi Shiraz Bundaleer

  Australia, Victoria, Central Victoria, Heathcote

  Quite densely flavoured and structured with nice balance.

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The 1994 Sparkling Chardonnay, 2000 Block 5, 2000 Original, and the 1994 Bindi Chardonnay the wines of the night for me, and the only ones I would consider buying.