A near textbook example of the variety and of the winery style, which leaves the grape to speak for itself, something I always applaud. There is the trademark honeysuckle, some lemon and toast and the acid avoids the hard, sour, malic character of so many otherwise promising whites from this vintage.
Yes, I got burnt by some Oz Rieslings from 2011, which offered a lot of cut and I liked their steely character combined with some nice fruit at the time, but I paid too little attention to the searing, sour acid. Unlike this wine, 10-12 years on their acid lives, like the malevolent Smeagol, whilst everything else has faded and all one gets is the wine equivalent of 'Baggins, we hates you!'
This Marsanne, by contrast, is the good Smeagol; it loves us, yes it does, it is kind and loving to us, my precious.
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Tahbilk rate this vintage very highly for Marsanne, whereas it was a swine for almost anything else - rain, rain and more rain. I well recall the year as I suffered perpetual crack gravel as I cycled to work each day, looking like some kind of Viking with dysentery.
The wine is under screwcap and is very close to other bottles I have enjoyed from this generally benighted year.
The colour is green gold and very bright. It speaks of some development but not a wine near the end of its slamming.
The nose speaks of more development that the colour - honeysuckle, a twist of kero/petrol, a hint of marmalade.
The palate is fresh and very alive, flavours as per the nose but this has a long life ahead of it, though I think it is now where it needs to be and from here it is hold, more than looking for more development. Great intensity and length, though if I wanted to be critical, I would note that the finish trails off slightly. Extremely good value and simply a world class wine. My father introduced me to this maker in the 1970's and I can only be grateful to him for that and so much more.
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Not the best I've had over the years but still pretty handy as a near 10yr old. Fading bitter lemon, some honey on the nose but not really evident in palate. Soft acid lines suggest it might live for some time but won't get any better.
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Deep gold colour, moving towards yellow but still a small green tinge. Light Aroma of dry wood, grapefruit pineapple, straw. Underlying sweetness against a dry backbone. Taste is a bit bland to start with, but this is straight from opening, I’m expecting it will improve with a little time. Medium to low acidity, some underlying citrus but more evident in the aroma than taste. Peach, nectarine, lemon. I will see how it goes over the next hour or so and update the note if necessary.
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Not in the least tired, nor are there any off-putting aromas which are sometimes present in aged wines. This is just lovely, complex and fresh at the same time. QPR off the scale.
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Lovely golden colour, almost bright golden. Dry aroma with citrus and peach. Lemon, peach, pineapple, some green apple. Citrus at the front and finishes with a touch of sweetness. Light and easy to drink. I have been working my way through a dozen of the 11 vintage for a couple of years and this definitely the best bottle so far. Clearly needs to be drunk at the right time. Finally looking forward to the last 2 bottles.
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Deep Yellow golden colour. Dry aroma, straw, oak. Light honey, peach, honeydew. Smooth sweet flavour. Requires some air and medium temperature 12 degrees. Lose the sweetness at low temperature. I do find this wine to be sporadic. Enjoying it today.
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Expected more richness, but ended up more grassy. To be fair, I don’t know much about Australian marsannes so I don’t know if I had this too early or late.
Not a bad steely nose. Looks quite light and has a whiff of dry Riesling about it. Then the taste. Not great. Lime, lemon and thinness. No rich Rhine Marsanne here. Maybe should have given more time in glass but I can’t - life’s too short. Won’t be trying again.
Very golden colour. A wiff of oak at first, although I realise it doesn't go into oak, disappears quickly, also perseved lemon and lime. Light acidicity, although still noticeable. Lemon butter, green apple, citrus, light honey. Needs to be drunk outside of fridge temp, I find the citrus flavours come out at 12 degrees, very plain and not particularly pleasant at fridge temp, similar to Semillon. Took me a few bottles to realise.
My experience from this wine was that it could age with grace for a long time. Is this a weak vintage or have they changed the production somehow because this bottle felt kinda over the top and declining? Nose was a bit weak with lots of floral notes and some sweetness (honey?) and lemon. Taste brought some acidity, lemon, apricotes and again honey but almost bone-dry, but very restrained and better day2. Nevertheless, still a bargain at its price, just gotta drink them a bit sooner from now on I guess.
Flat pineapple juice. No that sounds pleasant, this has lost all freshness and vibrancy turning into something better poured down the sink. Makes me wonder about my cellaring conditions given the review below was made only a month earlier. 2011 was a shocking vintage and maybe the winemaker's magic has finally succumbed to this. Remaining bottle is buried somewhere, hiding like some lurker in the dark. I WILL FIND YOU...
Very good wine. I was pleasantly surprised by the Marsanne grape, as it was the first time I had a Marsanne wine. Different, fresh, melon. Will definitely by again.
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PnP. Bright brassy yellow colour. Melon rind lanolin and hay on the nose. Light(+) with a touch of viscosity. Melon rind peach pit canned grapefruit and lemon pith on the palate.
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{screwcap, 11.5%} Mid-yellow. initially faint sweet note (bottle opened 8 hours earlier and in fridge since) gives way to the usual lanolin/wax aromas. The palate is similar, but little wafts of smokiness, and slightly rotting vegetables flit across the nose and palate. There's not a great deal of flavour really; it's all about fleeting, vanilla, even glue-tinged impressions. Although it avoids tasting overtly unripe, there's a certain damp character to it, as befits the vintage: in this context the fairly early pick and resulting low alcohol works in the wine's favour. I'd still never call it more than a good save from a poor year; the finish is fairly short, although the acid shores up the light/medium weight quite well. Might hold a few more years; no reason to push it beyond that.
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I remember this wine (different vintages) as being more concentrated, more energy, more varietal character. It is still good, and even very good value, but I did not get any real joy out of it this time.
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Nose and mouth of yellow apples, yellow plumes and exotic fruit. Low in acidity but with some length. A fubby hint of red sallad at the end. worked very well to halibut with mashed sweet potato.
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{screwcap, 11.5%} Faint lemon colour. Looks very young. Soft nose of honeydew melon, a touch of wax and lanolin. Certainly in the tradition of Tahbilk's Marsanne. But the palate here has a wonderful zingy freshness; a chiselled acid cut; probably not unrelated to the lower alcohol level than any vintage I can recall. Let's hope this represents a shift in philosphy by Tahbilk, because this is terrific. The freshness doesn't preculde the usual medium-weight palate; there's still a solid density to the peach/melon/wax flavours, but it doesn't sag at all. Long, light-ish finish; a triumph on all counts. Ought to sail through 15 years in a cool cellar with aplomb, and turn into something really wonderful.
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I agree, put some in a time capsule. But drink some now, it's lovely young. Subtle honeyed floral nose. Great texture and balance. Peach, pear, and citrus. Don't drink this too cold, far better at cellar temp than fridge temp.
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7/30/2023 - Rote Kappelle Likes this wine: 93 Points
A near textbook example of the variety and of the winery style, which leaves the grape to speak for itself, something I always applaud. There is the trademark honeysuckle, some lemon and toast and the acid avoids the hard, sour, malic character of so many otherwise promising whites from this vintage.
Yes, I got burnt by some Oz Rieslings from 2011, which offered a lot of cut and I liked their steely character combined with some nice fruit at the time, but I paid too little attention to the searing, sour acid. Unlike this wine, 10-12 years on their acid lives, like the malevolent Smeagol, whilst everything else has faded and all one gets is the wine equivalent of 'Baggins, we hates you!'
This Marsanne, by contrast, is the good Smeagol; it loves us, yes it does, it is kind and loving to us, my precious.
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12/24/2022 - Rote Kappelle Likes this wine: 93 Points
Tahbilk rate this vintage very highly for Marsanne, whereas it was a swine for almost anything else - rain, rain and more rain. I well recall the year as I suffered perpetual crack gravel as I cycled to work each day, looking like some kind of Viking with dysentery.
The wine is under screwcap and is very close to other bottles I have enjoyed from this generally benighted year.
The colour is green gold and very bright. It speaks of some development but not a wine near the end of its slamming.
The nose speaks of more development that the colour - honeysuckle, a twist of kero/petrol, a hint of marmalade.
The palate is fresh and very alive, flavours as per the nose but this has a long life ahead of it, though I think it is now where it needs to be and from here it is hold, more than looking for more development. Great intensity and length, though if I wanted to be critical, I would note that the finish trails off slightly. Extremely good value and simply a world class wine. My father introduced me to this maker in the 1970's and I can only be grateful to him for that and so much more.
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11/27/2022 - Hilzi Likes this wine: 91 Points
Nice to drink now. Round, good flavour depth. Still lively
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11/28/2021 - GAT wrote: 93 Points
As older vintages of this wine should be, if a little lighter in style. And that might change tomorrow when I look again.
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12/25/2020 - StewartWent wrote: 88 Points
Not the best I've had over the years but still pretty handy as a near 10yr old. Fading bitter lemon, some honey on the nose but not really evident in palate. Soft acid lines suggest it might live for some time but won't get any better.
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11/21/2020 - Bsmith457 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Deep gold colour, moving towards yellow but still a small green tinge. Light Aroma of dry wood, grapefruit pineapple, straw. Underlying sweetness against a dry backbone. Taste is a bit bland to start with, but this is straight from opening, I’m expecting it will improve with a little time. Medium to low acidity, some underlying citrus but more evident in the aroma than taste. Peach, nectarine, lemon. I will see how it goes over the next hour or so and update the note if necessary.
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7/24/2020 - ShirazTrain wrote: 90 Points
Floral, grapefruit, linseed, oil viscosity holding the wine together
consistent value for money
drink now.
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3/20/2020 - UrbanGrill Likes this wine:
Not in the least tired, nor are there any off-putting aromas which are sometimes present in aged wines. This is just lovely, complex and fresh at the same time. QPR off the scale.
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11/1/2019 - Bsmith457 wrote: 95 Points
Lovely golden colour, almost bright golden. Dry aroma with citrus and peach. Lemon, peach, pineapple, some green apple. Citrus at the front and finishes with a touch of sweetness. Light and easy to drink. I have been working my way through a dozen of the 11 vintage for a couple of years and this definitely the best bottle so far. Clearly needs to be drunk at the right time. Finally looking forward to the last 2 bottles.
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6/28/2019 - Bsmith457 wrote: 93 Points
Deep Yellow golden colour. Dry aroma, straw, oak. Light honey, peach, honeydew. Smooth sweet flavour. Requires some air and medium temperature 12 degrees. Lose the sweetness at low temperature. I do find this wine to be sporadic. Enjoying it today.
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3/4/2019 - Baylorwine wrote: 87 Points
Expected more richness, but ended up more grassy. To be fair, I don’t know much about Australian marsannes so I don’t know if I had this too early or late.
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12/21/2018 - Mbad77 Does not like this wine: 85 Points
Not a bad steely nose. Looks quite light and has a whiff of dry Riesling about it.
Then the taste. Not great. Lime, lemon and thinness.
No rich Rhine Marsanne here. Maybe should have given more time in glass but I can’t - life’s too short. Won’t be trying again.
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10/5/2018 - Bsmith457 wrote: 93 Points
Very golden colour. A wiff of oak at first, although I realise it doesn't go into oak, disappears quickly, also perseved lemon and lime. Light acidicity, although still noticeable. Lemon butter, green apple, citrus, light honey.
Needs to be drunk outside of fridge temp, I find the citrus flavours come out at 12 degrees, very plain and not particularly pleasant at fridge temp, similar to Semillon. Took me a few bottles to realise.
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4/22/2018 - Lars1974 wrote: 85 Points
My experience from this wine was that it could age with grace for a long time. Is this a weak vintage or have they changed the production somehow because this bottle felt kinda over the top and declining?
Nose was a bit weak with lots of floral notes and some sweetness (honey?) and lemon.
Taste brought some acidity, lemon, apricotes and again honey but almost bone-dry, but very restrained and better day2.
Nevertheless, still a bargain at its price, just gotta drink them a bit sooner from now on I guess.
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7/29/2017 - Moloko Does not like this wine: 65 Points
Flat pineapple juice. No that sounds pleasant, this has lost all freshness and vibrancy turning into something better poured down the sink. Makes me wonder about my cellaring conditions given the review below was made only a month earlier. 2011 was a shocking vintage and maybe the winemaker's magic has finally succumbed to this. Remaining bottle is buried somewhere, hiding like some lurker in the dark. I WILL FIND YOU...
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2/29/2016 - Aldi wrote: 89 Points
Very good wine. I was pleasantly surprised by the Marsanne grape, as it was the first time I had a Marsanne wine. Different, fresh, melon. Will definitely by again.
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11/27/2015 - df1962 wrote: 88 Points
PnP. Bright brassy yellow colour. Melon rind lanolin and hay on the nose. Light(+) with a touch of viscosity. Melon rind peach pit canned grapefruit and lemon pith on the palate.
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11/23/2015 - JohnRMurdoch wrote: 70 Points
Quite harsh and bitter. Didn't like this. 2003 vintage very good.
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11/9/2015 - henrygjeffreys Likes this wine:
Very toasty nose, lovely lemony fruit
Very fresh tangy, sharp, very little development on palate
Some length
Clearly not the ripest vintage
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7/24/2015 - graemeg wrote:
{screwcap, 11.5%} Mid-yellow. initially faint sweet note (bottle opened 8 hours earlier and in fridge since) gives way to the usual lanolin/wax aromas. The palate is similar, but little wafts of smokiness, and slightly rotting vegetables flit across the nose and palate. There's not a great deal of flavour really; it's all about fleeting, vanilla, even glue-tinged impressions. Although it avoids tasting overtly unripe, there's a certain damp character to it, as befits the vintage: in this context the fairly early pick and resulting low alcohol works in the wine's favour. I'd still never call it more than a good save from a poor year; the finish is fairly short, although the acid shores up the light/medium weight quite well. Might hold a few more years; no reason to push it beyond that.
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3/29/2015 - Omar Khayyam wrote: 83 Points
I remember this wine (different vintages) as being more concentrated, more energy, more varietal character. It is still good, and even very good value, but I did not get any real joy out of it this time.
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4/3/2014 - Conde Likes this wine: 85 Points
Nose: quite round and rich with sweet yellow plums and pears.
Palate: sharper, but still with good body, yellow, rich fruit with notes of wax, honey and nuts. Worked very well with my Basque fish casserole.
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12/6/2013 - Puteljen! wrote: 85 Points
Ok but nothing special. Fairly good value. This wine is said to age well, so it could be fun to cellar a few bottles 5-10 years as an experiment.
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11/24/2013 - jerkerdelsing wrote:
Nose and mouth of yellow apples, yellow plumes and exotic fruit. Low in acidity but with some length. A fubby hint of red sallad at the end. worked very well to halibut with mashed sweet potato.
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4/16/2013 - henrygjeffreys Likes this wine:
honeysuckle, quite full-bodied
roundness at the end
nutty
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1/16/2013 - affordableCollector wrote: 88 Points
clear, slight yellow in color. lemon, grass, stone fruit on the nose. citrus, lemon peel, mineral, apricot on the palate. crisp enjoyable finish.
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7/30/2012 - graemeg wrote:
{screwcap, 11.5%} Faint lemon colour. Looks very young. Soft nose of honeydew melon, a touch of wax and lanolin. Certainly in the tradition of Tahbilk's Marsanne. But the palate here has a wonderful zingy freshness; a chiselled acid cut; probably not unrelated to the lower alcohol level than any vintage I can recall. Let's hope this represents a shift in philosphy by Tahbilk, because this is terrific. The freshness doesn't preculde the usual medium-weight palate; there's still a solid density to the peach/melon/wax flavours, but it doesn't sag at all. Long, light-ish finish; a triumph on all counts. Ought to sail through 15 years in a cool cellar with aplomb, and turn into something really wonderful.
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4/22/2012 - Avid Wino wrote: 90 Points
I agree, put some in a time capsule. But drink some now, it's lovely young. Subtle honeyed floral nose. Great texture and balance. Peach, pear, and citrus. Don't drink this too cold, far better at cellar temp than fridge temp.
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