Battle of the Bordeaux Blends

3 guys. 2 bottles. Both my friends were blind tasting. I had decanted the wines earlier and brought the bottles to dinner in black cloth bags.
So it was the underdog 12 year old Aussie Bordeaux blend from Yarra Valley versus the mighty 10 year old Chilean king Almaviva from Maipo Valley.

Amuse bouche, Appetiser, Main course of Wagyu beef, and Dessert. Excellent food.

• 2003 Viña Almaviva S.A. Almaviva 90 Points

  Chile, Maipo Valley, Puente Alto

  Soft cork came out intact. Dark inky black wine. Poured through Vinturi into decanter.
  Wafts of intense sweetness and oak attacked my nose. You could smell this wine from across the room! I let it sit in the decanter for an hour before pouring it back into the bottle for transport to the dinner venue.
  At dinner:
  Powerful oaky nose. On the palate, smooth and creamy initially but totally overwhelms after that with alcohol heat all the way down a long finish.
  Paired well with wagyu steak. Over the course of the night, the wine opened up a bit more to reveal notes of dark chocolate, graphite, and mineral salts. I can't say this wine is not complex, but the alcohol intensity just distracts the palate from everything else. I employed the Clef du Vin on a glass of this wine for 40 secs. All it did was smoothen the tannins out slightly, but the overwhelming alcohol remained.
  This wine could go on for decades more. But I have my doubts whether this alcoholic beast could ever be tamed. The EPU I tried in the past was a much more approachable version of this at a fraction of the price.

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• 2001 Yarra Yering Dry Red N°1 94 Points

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley

  Cork cracked but still managed to get it out in one piece using a Sommelier's knife and extreme caution.
  Reddish brown colour. Poured into decanter and left to air for 1 hour.
  Nose initially muted. Poured back into bottle for transport to the dinner venue.
  At dinner:
  Greeted by a zesty citrusy nose. Hints of sun-dried flowers.
  Interesting tangy sourish-sweet citrus fruits on the palate. My friends who were blind tasting this were convinced this was an aged French Bordeaux wine. Aha little did they know this was an Aussie!
  As the night went on, the wine revealed more complexities. Some herbaceous notes, probably from the Cabernet. Flavours of cranberries and strawberries came to the fore.
  Medium finish. Overall, a very refined wine. Clearly French Bordeaux style. I remember tasting a young vintage of this before and it was so different though. The power of time.

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Before the wines were revealed, my friends had already correctly identified the Almaviva, but had made up their minds that the other wine was the clear winner. They were shocked to find out it was an Aussie wine rather than a French Bordeaux. Yarra Yering Dry Red No.1 - the wine of the night. Tasted quite a few wines from Yarra Yering before. It is indeed a consistent performer.