February 24, 2021 - First had this from a different vintage a couple years ago so thought I’d try these. Originally really liked it but after trying a second bottle more recently. The alcohol is overpowering. Not sure if time can help this one
September 15, 2013 - Asher's 1st Birthday (Alex's place): Decently good, but I liked this rather more the last time I tried it. It has softened somewhat in the intervening couple of years, but I am not sure the wine has actually improved. The nose practically screamed "Aussie Shiraz", with black fruit aromas of plums and blackberries, followed by lifted notes of mint, eucalyptus and a typical whiff crushed cockroach twang of formic acid. Like the RL Buller Durif that preceded it, the palate here was rich and thick, with round, fleshy notes of plums and blackberries at the forefront and briary notes of herb and eucalyptus running behind. I found this really fruity, and somewhat lacking in complexity. To its credit though, it had a nice juicy freshness to it that lent the wine very decent balance in spite of its thickness. It was all very plush and mellow at the finish, with soft, velvety tannins and more black fruit leading away. A good enough wine; well-crafted, but a bit boring. It will certainly hold at this level for a few years yet, but I am not sure it will actually improve.
July 17, 2013 - Needed about 2 hours to decant before you could really taste the flavor. Overall not a wow Shiraz but was good with steak and cheese.
May 7, 2010 - Black Glass Society: Above 15% Dinner - Great Sherries and Big Aussie Reds (Jade Palace, Forum Galleria): I actually really enjoyed this. Very interesting nose, with sweet cherries, some tobacco, sundried tomatoes and earth and some briary, bramble hints. On the nose at least, it bore more than a passing resemblance to the Cargo Road Zin a few bottles back. The palate though was more like an Amarone than anything else. A Rutherglen Muscat maker's Shiraz, someone commented. It attack with rich dried grape and ripe plum flavours, very appasimento like and quite delicious, along with more bramble, a touch of eucalyptus and some telltale aged-Aussie Shiraz crushed beetle flavours. Yummy, but what really impressed me was how the wine was both structured and well-balanced in spite of its rich weight. Finish was decent, with more fruit and bramble. Really nice.
October 11, 2009 - B-day party/limited notes. Hedonistic, yet relatively one dimensional. Loads of ripe plums and raisins.
February 11, 2008 - Very very rich wine. The 16% alc is extremely well hidden, and the mouthfeel is the full-blast version of silky soft. It isn't as fruity as it was 2 years ago, seems more complex. If you ever want to understand what some tasting notes mean by 'chocolate', try this. It is overwhelming initially, and slowly fades away to background levels after three hours. Amazing.
Thank you Andrew Buller for making this wonderful wine! I only have one bottle left, and I can only source the '02 durif on this island...
December 3, 2006 - Massive wine, jammy as anything, high alcohol