NobleRottersSydney - Hunter Valley (+Steliano Cusmiani, Bimbadgen)
Lucio's, Paddington
Tasted Monday, April 5, 2004 by graemeg with 596 views
Introduction
The Noble Rotters April dinner was ostensibly themed “Hunter Valley – 1996 and earlier”, but the usual few exceptions made their appearance. Special guest Steliano Cusmiani from Bimbadgen wines brought us some starters:
2001 Bimbadgen Estate Sémillon
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley, Pokolbin
Pale straw. A little sweet lemon on the nose, with some melon notes. The palate is quite luscious, in a light style. There’s a little honey (its quite sweetish - 5g/l of residual sugar). The acid is soft yet still fresh, but I find the cumulative sweetness grows which tends to reduce enjoyment as further glasses are consumed. So-so
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
2000 Bimbadgen Estate Sémillon
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley, Pokolbin
Straw colour. A very different aroma [than 01] – almost has a fishy smell, with toasty overtones. Lots of acid. In an awkward stage. The primary fruit flavours are subsiding, but little in the way of secondary development has occurred. The texture is across most of the palate, yet the body is still quite light. Leave for a while.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
1999 Bimbadgen Estate Sémillon
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley, Pokolbin
Pale straw. A bit watery at first, this wine showed quite a flat dumb nose. The flavours are developed but muted – fruit is reticent. It’s either very dumb or slightly oxidized. Difficult to say much here, & we think this wine’s not quite right.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
1991 Tyrrell's Sémillon Vat 1
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
Mid yellow. There is some development of secondary toasty quasi-oaky notes, although the wine seems in something of a hole. Some soft lemon fruit remains but this wine is all about structure at the moment. The acid is very strong still, but not unless you look for it – something of a paradox! And the long finish bodes well. I think this wine needs another 5 years to build fully, although it’s not at all bad now.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
1992 Tyrrell's Sémillon Vat 1
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
2 bottles of this. The first is a straw yellow, yet presents soapy vanillan flavours, and seems to have rather lost interest. Appears to be a wine in decline. The Aged Release, this spent it’s first 5 years in Tyrrells own cellars. The 2nd bottle’s label suggests a private bin wine which lived who-knows-where until I bought it in 98. This is a much darker yellow, yet has lovely toasty honey flavours and aromas. It’s still fresh, yet developed, and with super palate length. Weird!
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
1996 Tyrrell's Sémillon Vat 1
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
Straw-coloured. A very raw green nose compared to the two older wines, this even displays distinct asparagus aromas. Very much at an awkward age, there’s acid a–plenty, but everything’s rather unintegrated at the moment. Good wine, but come back later.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
1989 Tyrrell's Chardonnay Vat 47 Flawed
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
Utterly and irretrievably overwhelmed by TCA
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
1994 Tyrrell's Chardonnay Vat 47
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
Mid yellow. Lovely rich nose, with mango and lanolin notes. The fruit is ripe yet taut, with understated oak nuances peering through. Wonderfully balanced palate from front to back, and nice medium weight finish. Lovely wine indeed.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
2002 Bimbadgen Estate Shiraz
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley, Pokolbin
Subdued nose of sour cherries, graphite, & smoky French oak. [An all-Hunter blend of 36 different old-vine plots throughout the valley.] The palate is quite unholstered, with a rich sweetness to the fruit. Minimal grape tannins. Oak is submerged.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
2000 Bimbadgen Estate Shiraz
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley, Pokolbin
The nose here is warmer, riper [than 02], with rich, slightly earthier Hunter notes. A good even palate with a moderate length and a nice finish. Elegant, sweet fruit – very good.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
1999 Bimbadgen Estate Shiraz
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley, Pokolbin
Very subdued nose here, and apparently the product of a cooler harvest. There’s some earthiness, with a tinge of a vegetal nature about it. Lots of tannins here – a bit green perhaps, suggesting that fruit ripeness was something of an issue? Hard to peg this wine – perhaps it’ll lift with more time, but I fear it’ll just become increasingly skeletal.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
1987 Lake's Folly Cabernet
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
Fresh from 10 years of non-climate-controlled storage! There’s some distinct onion-skin colour at the rim. The bouquet presents lovely leathery old-fruit aromas. The palate is balanced very much towards the front and centre, and there’s almost no tannin left now – the back palate gets a bit of an easy ride here. Perhaps it’s sowing a little volatility now, but I think it’s very good. And it’s all of 11.8% abv. But if you don’t like the style…
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
2000 Peter Lehmann Shiraz Eight Songs
Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
Older Hunters. How did this get here? Crimson red. After the last wine it’s hugely jammy & confected, with almost a porty sweetness. Such rich fruit. Good wine, but a fish out of water tonight.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
1997 Lindeman's Shiraz Bin 9403
Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley
Mid red. Lots of varnish, sweaty saddle, faint VA, Hunter nose. The palate’s quite slippery, somewhat astringent, yet still manages to have a front-palate, tip-of-the-tongue weight bias. Will still hold, but I don’t know that it will develop particularly well. I think the glory days are well gone for this label unless they change their vineyard sources…
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
1983 Hardys Vintage Port
Australia
Lots of warm brandy spirit here, with warm black fruits and dark chocolate aromas. A front palate wine, with plenty of warm spirity falvours. Good for an Oz VP, but rather hard to appraise properly at this late stage of the night…
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue