NobleRottersSydney - Revisiting the '98 cellar

So, the 1998 cellar in which we invested a grand a head, and comprised of 36 dozen bottles at the outset, has whittled down to just the ten labels. Of the remnants (half dozen bottles or less) of the 26 different wines we eventually dispersed among the group, perhaps only with one or two did we make a premature call (Orlando’s St Hugo, for instance). But most of them – priced around the $20-$30 time at acquisition – had clearly peaked, and in one or two cases were evidently deconstructing at quite a pace.
These ten were judged to be the pick of the stayers – some on aspiration/reputation rather than established performance – and so at the 13 year mark it’s worth seeing how things stand. All wines (except the fizz & sweeties) were double-decanted (ie. back to the original bottle) prior to our arrival at 7.30.

• 1999 Dehours Champagne Extra Brut Brisefer

  France, Champagne

  [cork, 12%] {Graeme} With just 100 cases produced, this must be one of the rarest, most obscure champagnes I’ve ever drunk. From the village of Mareuil le-Port, to the west of Epernay. Apparently all chardonnay, and disgorged in 2003. Mid yellow. Developed, slightly cheesy, chardonnay-rich nose. The palate adds a degree of lemon tang; not too acidic but lending some freshness to what is clearly an aging wine. The creamy bubbles add to the general impression of softness; it’s a light-bodied wine with a medium-length finish. Lacks ultimate complexity, but it’s quite satisfying. Ready to drink now – no need to hold longer.

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• 1998 Penfolds Shiraz Bin 128

  Australia, South Australia, Limestone Coast, Coonawarra

  [cork, 14%] Garnet. Developing nose of spice and white pepper. About what you expect from this wine. The palate is nicely balanced; soft if slightly gritty tannins don’t doninate some aging cherry/cranberry flavours. It’s a little musty for me, but I expect time in a decanter would fix this. About light-medium bodied in weight, with a medium length finish; the worst you could say is that the flavours are a bit four-square. Ought to hold another 5 years quite happily; I doubt there’s a lot more pleasure to be had here with more cellaring. In fairness, a very good effort for a sub-$20 wine on release. Interesting also to compare it to the following Bin 28 and be aware of the lighter spiciness of all-Coonawarra shiraz in this wine.

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• 1998 Penfolds Shiraz Bin 28 Kalimna

  Australia, South Australia

  [cork, 14%] Traditionally aged Penfolds shiraz nose of meaty oak, a touch of tar, and sweet raspberry. This is a remarkably dense palate even at this age, with vanilla touches, medium grainy tannins, and medium-full body. Nice balance; oak is controlled, acid unobtrusive, there’s weight on the mid-palate and a medium-length finish. Perhaps the modest pedigree is revealed in a slight sullenness of flavour; it’s a bit hard to extract a lot of complexity from the palate here, but there’s a case to make that it needs more time, or at least air. Again, for well under $20 on release this was ridiculously good value, and a tribute to Penfolds winemaking. On this showing, will happily age another ten years, and may develop further in that time.

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• 1998 Saltram Cabernet Sauvignon Mamre Brook

  Australia, South Australia, Barossa

  [cork, 14.5%] An aged red wine nose of of raisins and porty aromas. Hmmm. The palate even tastes black, with rather burnt, boney black fruits shot through with bitter tannins and carried along by pronounced alcoholic heat. Vigorous swirling helps tame it a little; it’s medium-bodied with a medium length finish, but it’s not especially cabernet-like. Was very impressive as a youngster, but I think it’s starting to show its components - extra-ripe fruit, oak - one after another now and the view isn’t nearly as pretty as it was. The make-up is starting to run… Technically it might age further, but I think it’ll just taste worse as time passes. Drink now with something strongly flavoured.

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• 1998 Katnook Estate Shiraz Prodigy

  Australia, South Australia, Limestone Coast, Coonawarra

  [cork, 14.5%] This was right in the vanguard of the ‘premium-cuvee-slathered-in-new-oak-and-asking-big-$$$’ movement of the 90s, in an attempt to catch the palate of influential American critics. Now looking its age, this is garnet with a dark orange rim. The nose is aging with a mix of raisings, spicy pepper and an odd cabbage-greenish note to it. Under- and over-ripe grapes, perhaps? There’s little of this greenness on the palate, it being comprised mostly of sweetly ripe blueberry fruits with a ribena character to them. Medium and simple powdery tannins give spine to the medium-full bodied weight; the texture is quite velvety and rich; and most parts of the palate get some attention. There’s plenty of time left to drink this – another 5 years at least – although I doubt it’ll become a lot more interesting. It’s a good wine, although I doubt there’s the dimension here to justify the very high asking price when new.

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• 1998 Saltram Shiraz No.1

  Australia, South Australia, Barossa

  [cork, 14.5%] A polarising wine. I wrote that is was stewed and spirity, with a bacterial touch on the nose. Astringent with gritty tannins on a hollow palate, largely devoid of fruit development. Assaults the tongue evenly enough, but like a zombie; it’s a vacuous shell of a wine marching along with a baked, short finish and nowhere to go. Now, it had some supporters at the table; I checked other glasses but it smelt the same to me. A bit of post-dinner research leads me to conclude that there’s some kind of age-related brettanomyces effect going on here; perhaps something I’m more susceptable to in older wines than younger. To me, this was distinctly bacterial, rather than horsey or medicinal. I’d love to know what the pH of this is. My notes read just a little more catastrophically than the wine was; even I’d concede a glass was drinkable, but I certainly didn’t want any more. Saltram give it 10-12 years aging on the back label; don’t push it is my advice.

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• 1998 Hardys Shiraz Eileen Hardy

  Australia, South Australia, Fleurieu, McLaren Vale

  [cork, 14%] Darkish sort of garnet. The bouquet is aged; sweet old raspberry fruits, vanilla/coconut oak. Very McLaren Vale. No surprises on the palate; ripe blackberry fruits swaddled in powerful chalky oak tannins and flavours. Medium-full bodied, with a medium-length finish, and plenty of weight in the middle of the tongue. Sweetly flavoured, this is a pretty sybaritic wine for wallowing in, rather than pontificating over. Ready now, but could hold another 5-8 years quite happily.

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• 1998 Penfolds Bin 389

  Australia, South Australia

  [cork, 14%] Still with elements of ruby about the colour, ol’ faithful is in fine form tonight. The classic 389 nose of meat, earth, raspberries, blackberries, coconut, chocolate & vanilla is all on show. It’s no longer young, but there’s still great tightness to the powdery tannins, great vibrancy to the fruit, and presence along the palate. Medium-full body, with a long finish, and everything is so nicely balanced here. There’s a real sense that its peak is quite some way off yet; there’s little true secondary development to the flavours; but everything promises to turn out well. Doesn’t need to be touched for another 5 years at least. Has also been brilliantly consistent over the last few years. Triumphant.

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• 1998 Wynns Coonawarra Estate Cabernet Sauvignon John Riddoch

  Australia, South Australia, Limestone Coast, Coonawarra

  [cork, 13.5%] Little to add to last month’s note. Ruby. A little development. Massive nose of dill and coconut, blackcurrants fruits too, but mostly oak, oak, oak. Full-bodied, not quite as tannic as those oak aromas might lead you to expect; and in fact does retain a touch of authentic cabernet herbacousness about the flavours. But that vanilla is everywhere… Leave it, in the hope it will come together and mature. But I think even Wynns have toned down the oak in more recent vintages.

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• 1998 Penfolds Cabernet Sauvignon Bin 707

  Australia, South Australia

  [cork, 13.5%] Bottle 125235. Some development on the nose, but there’s no shortage of coconut, ripe red fruits, and liquorice/chocolate notes. The palate is dry, still chalkily tannic, full-bodied and powerful. There are lashings of sweet coconutty oak, and a not-especially-cabernet bent to the flavours. This is house-style writ large. There’s plenty of presence right along the palate; the finish is medium-long. Tricky to judge; the wine is certainly moderating from its earliest incantations, but doesn’t really seem to be evolving in any way yet. True to the traditional style of 707, but will it hit the heights of 90 & 96 for instance? I think it’s still better to wait on this one, despite the oak being pushed right to the limit. Try again in 5 years.

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• 1998 Houghton Cabernet Sauvignon Jack Mann

  Australia, Western Australia, South West Australia, Frankland River

  [cork, 13%] Grapes sourced from Frankland River & Mt Barker. Interesting that this is the lowest alcohol wine on offer tonight, and it’s in just about the best condition. A developing and authentic cabernet nose which makes a huge contrast to the preceding Bin 707. Herb and twig aromas, cassis notes, but always ripe and rich. Very, very good. The palate is dense, twiggy and curranty. Great depth of palate coverage – great mid-palate, long finish. On a spectacular aging curve, with true secondary notes only just emerging. No heat on the dry finish; overall it’s a quite stunning wine. Drinking beautifully now, should be glorious for another ten years at least.

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• 1964 Hardys Vintage Port

  Australia

  [cork] {Graeme} Decanted just prior to serving. Murky brown; this could be from the Yarra river. No hint of red anywhere in the glass. Ancient oxidising nose of caramel, butterscotch and brandy spirit. The palate is much the same; that brandy really dominates, and the part-oxidised cold tea and butterscotch flavours can’t really keep up. An interesting curio but not more than that.

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• 2008 Cantine San Marzano Aleatico di Puglia Liatico

  Italy, Puglia, Aleatico di Puglia DOC

  [cork, 13%] {Graeme} The Hardy’s being a little oxidised, we broached the back-up. ‘Dolce Naturale’ says the label, and that’s the requirement of this DOC from the heel of Italy. Initially bears a passing resemblance to spritz-free lambrusco, with its perfumed sweet currants and ribena fruit nose. This is really sweet, it must be said. ‘Medium-sweet’ as the term has it? Blueberry fruit on the palate, riven with sweetness; gosh, it’s hard to reconcile this much sugar with this colour of wine. Certainly holds its own among the desserts. Alcohol seems rather low for what purports to be a dried-grape style of wine; this tastes like a kind of medium-bodied red muscat style of wine. Interesting and fairly enjoyable. If you like the style…

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For admin reasons (losing Andrew’s storage) this will likely be the last formal tasting of the 98s as a group, apart from some random bottles at this year's Christmas lunch. At this point, only the last 3 cabernet-based wines really seem to be in need of more time, although the lesser Penfolds bins are travelling quite healthily. And nothing is clearly dead, some personal reservations about the Saltrams notwithstanding.