6/6/2010 - Simon wrote:

Still quite young. Heavy on the alcohol. Bags of fruit, spice and not too tannic.

4/8/2010 - Simon wrote:

Great value. Well balanced with plenty of fruit

3/20/2010 - Simon Likes this wine:

The wine looks Straw colored with medium legs.
It smells and tastes like Grapefruit, and Lemon, with well balanced alcohol, acid and fruit. Light/medium bodied.
Good apperetif wine, but also excellent with food. Good value for the price.

2/20/2010 - Simon wrote:

Bit bland

2/18/2010 - Simon wrote:

Threw some sediment, so would stand for longer next time. Drinking beautifully. Very nice and elegant. Well balanced oak, fruit, acid and alcohol.

2/13/2010 - Simon wrote:

Pale lemon colour despite the age. Wrong glass to get a good nose, but some mineral notes and some subtle buttery oak. Well balanced acidity, oak and still some fruit. Not as full bodied as before. On the palate a lemony sharpness with a petrol note, nicely integrated oak and hints of gooseberry, apple and pear. Good long finish.
Improved with some time and drinking nicely on it's own. I don't think it will keep improving much, so is ready for drinking up.

1/16/2010 - Simon wrote:

Wine was not delivered. Grant Brurge Filsell delivered instead.

12/31/2009 - Simon wrote:

Drinking beautifully now though with enough structure to last longer. Slightly earthy nose with lots of black fruit. On the palate leather, loads of spice and some black cherry. Very nice wine. Drank on it's own, but would be nice with good rare steak.

12/30/2009 - Simon wrote:

Really improving with age. Buttery nose with nicely integrated oak. On the palate, it has lost the harshness it had when younger and developed into a smooth well balanced wine. Buttery caramel, some tropical fruit, herbascious plants with a little steely minerality on the finish. Drinking nicely on it's own, but would go well with roast chicken or some robust fish like turbot, monkfish or barbequed prawns.

Went OK with dinner (chargrilled chicken breast marinated in thyme & lemon with a Sherry jus, spanish style patatas baked in the oven with pepper, red onion and lemon; and a green salad). Meal was a little too acidic for the wine and overpowered some of the body and richness, though it complemented the chicken well.

12/29/2009 - Simon wrote:

For the price this is an excellent everyday drinking wine

12/29/2009 - Simon wrote:

Nice fresh sauvingnon that is excellent value for an everyday drinking wine.

1/24/2009 - Simon wrote:

This has bags of black and red fruit, hints of mint and liquorice. It still tastes quite young, being full bodied with lots of fruit, acidity and alcohol in good balance. Went well with a garlicky steak, but is also pretty fine on its own. It's drinking well now, but feels like there is a long way to go.

1/24/2009 - Simon wrote:

Clear, rich gold colour. Some delicate and aromatic fruit on the nose (lychee?), and a powerful palate with honey, elderflower, some spice and hints of caramel. It is well balanced, with the oak well integrated and still packs a powerful alcohol punch. It has matured well and stands up on its own, but would probably shine more with the right food (perhaps a creamy chicken dish or a meaty fish)

1/23/2009 - Simon wrote:

When first opened had bags of red and black fruit, bursting with flavour. As it breathed it deepened with liquorice and spice coming through with more subdued fruit. Good balance of acidity, tannins and fruit. Drinking nicely now.

1/22/2009 - Simon wrote:

Pale appearance with good legs. Citrus and minerality on the nose. Well balanced on the palate, with a clean freshness, tones of butter and richness, with citrus and minerality that prevail to the finish. Oak is subtle. This wine is drinking really well now with enough acidity and balance to last a few more years.

1/18/2009 - Simon wrote:

Still got bags of fruit ans a great finish.

1/20/2008 - Simon wrote:

Needed plenty of air, but even then was a little flat and uninspiring. Let's hope it improves with some more time.

1/19/2008 - Simon wrote:

Full of blackberries; smooth and good finish. Drinking really well now, but will still keep.

8/20/2007 - Simon wrote:

Excellent wine, and drinking very well now. Beautiful bouquet: rich, ripe fruit and floral. Good weight and structure. The kind of wine that you drink at half the pace because it tastes so nice. We drank it with aged organic beef and it was a great match.

4/23/2007 - Simon wrote:

It is losing some of the more obvious fruit and developing more complex tastes that remind me of leather and steak. It's great on it's own, but would also complement food well.

3/22/2007 - Simon wrote:

Really nice, fruity Rioja. Soft tannins, smoky, woody notes and a really nice mouthfeel. Great by the fire!

3/22/2007 - Simon wrote:

Very nice. Packs quite a punch, but still bursting with fruit. Good on its own, but also went well with food.

2/20/2007 - Simon wrote:

Still full of fruit, with a balance of oak. Very pleasant, and surprisingly good. It still tastes as I remember it from the tasting and would have lasted longer.

12/24/2006 - Simon wrote:

Beautiful with fois gras pate. Good on its own, but definitely better with food.

10/8/2006 - Simon wrote:

This is a fantastic wine, and very good value. We drank 7 bottles at a Christening and had lots and lots of people commenting on how much they enjoyed it. Very good value too.

9/23/2006 - Simon wrote:

Excellent, smooth rioja. Just enough oak. Not overpowering. Drinking very well just now and even discounted a little from the Wine Society.

8/24/2006 - Simon wrote:

Drinking beautifully now. Much smoother and richer than a few months ago. Very moreish!

6/6/2006 - Simon wrote:

Very soft and fruit, even when just opened. Notes of liquorice and a nice, dry finish. We've just had a curry and it works beautifully with the spices still on my palate.

5/14/2006 - Simon wrote:

Smells fabulous. Tastes good too, though the nose promised more than was delivered. However, it was still a lovely wine: creamy, subtle oak, warm, smooth flavours though not a great finish. I only had one bottle of this, but Ithink if I had more, I would be drinking them up in the nexy year or so.

4/16/2006 - Simon wrote:

I wasn't expecting too much of this, but was very pleasantly surprised. The wine has aged extremely well, the oak mellowing the flavours resulting in a smooth, honeyed wine, yet still with the semillon characteristics. Drank with chinese food and it proved a good match; also good on its own

3/27/2006 - Simon wrote:

Left open for a couple of hours to breath and it really made a difference. The flavours opened out and it tasted less harsh and there was more too it. Good, ripe fruit flavours, with good depth and stucture.

3/13/2006 - Simon wrote:

Well worth keeping the past few years. Quite brown-red colour and thin looking. Smells quite like Burgundy pinots, rather than Aussie ones and tastes that way too. Initially, tasted a little thin and acidic. As it breathed and warmed a little, it improved greatly. The next day, the nose was much more fruity and deep, without the harsher alcohol notes present yesterday. On the palate, it's now much fuller, deeper and richer, with cherry, spice and stewed fruit. It's a much nicer wine, so if you have a bottle, decant and leave a while before trying it!

In an email, the wine maker suggested that the bottle was probably oxidised, explaining the lack of fruit flavours...so even though I still enjoyed it, it could have been much better...oh well, never mind!

2/26/2006 - Simon wrote:

This bottle wasn't as good as the others. Taste was a little flat and turned slightly sour after being open a few hours. Not bad enough to throw away, though!

2/26/2006 - Simon wrote:

Nice, well-balanced oak with no acidity. Went really well with roast chicken.

2/23/2006 - Simon wrote:

Rich creamy chardonnay. Complex fruit flavours shine through from the lack of oak. Good mouthfeel and finish makes it an easy wine to savour, rather than quaff. Lovely!

2/18/2006 - Simon wrote:

Very smooth, easy drinking syrah. Ripe blackberry and cherry with a hint of earthiness. Great finish. Drinking very well now.

2/11/2006 - Simon wrote:

This is lovely. Rich and well balanced, it's drinking like it's a far more expensive bottle. Rich fruit and plenty of depth. One to keep in stock!

2/5/2006 - Simon wrote:

Much better when it has breathed a little and warmed up.

2/3/2006 - Simon wrote:

I was worried this might be a little past its best, but it's definitely not. Full of fruit, with the depth and body of a good pinot noir. Good finish, with a nice, thick mouthfeel. Very nice.

8/2/2005 - Simon wrote:

This is a fantastic wine. It tsates exactly as you would expect a Shiraz to taste, yet it is more than 20 years old. It has great finish, is bursting with subtle fruit and is definitely a memorable wine. I am writing this note about 5 months later and I can almost still taste it! The best wine I have ever drunk. Drinking very well now, but this may be its peak. I'd certainly be surprised of if it got very much better. If I could afford it, I would have some more of this to drink in the next couple of years. As it is, I'll have to wait for my 1999 to mature for the next 15 years.

2/2/2006 - Simon wrote:

Excellent wine. I'll have to buy some more.

2/2/2006 - Simon wrote:

This bottle was much better than earlier ones - it must be on the verge of being over with some bottles lasting and others not. This one is very bright and fruity with a great finish of red fruit: cherries and strawberries. Very nice; I have high hopes for the rest of the case!

1/27/2006 - Simon wrote:

Smells creamy with vanilla and leather. Nice deep red colour. Taste is full and rich, with a burst of alcohol and a fruity finish. This is a really nice wine, with good length and still still improving. Even better in front of an open fire with beautuful organic lamb for dinner! I may have to buy some more of this before I run out...

1/26/2006 - Simon wrote:

Nice, light and still fruity, though tastes like it should be drunk up. A little vinegarey on the finish, but still a nice drop. Would also be excellent to use in a daube or casserole, with a second bottle to enjoy while it's cooking!

1/18/2006 - Simon wrote:

On the nose, like fresh melons and mango on a market stall (no, really!). Not as tart and sharp as some chablis, but more mellow and buttery on the finish. A really good, classy chablis with good acidity, some citrus and a refreshing finish.

1/17/2006 - Simon wrote:

Drank one of these in a vertical against the 1998 and 1994. It definitely improved with age, with the muddy, confused tones giving way to clearer fruit and great depth. This 2002 is still great on its own, but compared to the older vintages it was slightly disappointing. However, given time, the flavours should start to shine through. Right now, it is still high in alcohol, slightly muddy, but with deep fruit coming through on the finish.

1/22/2005 - Simon wrote:

Tasted great. Well balanced, smooth and very easy to drink. Complemented proscuitto wrapped beef well, though was also good on its own. Still some fruit flavours, but more age character too.