The Vinsomniac - Stuart Robinson

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This Australian wine blog was formerly known as thewinewankers.com

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Monday, 14 February 2011

De Bortoli Riesling Kabinett 2010

  12:40    

I'm loving what De Bortoli is doing at the minute.  They seem to be at the cutting edge of many good vinous happenings in Australia at present.  To me its like a three engined beast, purring perfectly on all of its many cylinders.

De Bortoli Chief Winemaker Steve Webber is widely regarded for establishing an excellent culture of innovation.  Sarah Fagan, Winemaker with responsibility for Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Pinot Grigio and Riesling - worked the 2009 vintage in the Rheingau, at Weingut Josef Leitz.  Fagan is on the record as calling out Germany as a vintage experience destination for its attention to detail.  With the limited experience I have with Riesling and the Kabinett style, I can only comment that this is an excellent quality wine.

It opens with aromas of peach, pear and apple - seemingly in turn.  The entry brings some textural crunch of the said apple and pear.  It struck me as a wine of some substance, filling the mouth.  A sweet burst hits the roof of the mouth then morphs into a glorious acidic hit.  

The wine has a finish that envelopes and fills the back of the mouth, delivering some excellent persistent length.  Each time I went back to it, it presented another dimension.

In the Gourmet Traveller article where I gleaned some of the info here, there's a telling comment from Fagan: "I think Australia has focused too much on acid, not balance, in Riesling. I’d like to see a little more generosity.” And if that means leaving a little residual sugar, that’s okay."  A little RS there is, and that too is OK with me.

Source: Retail, Cru Bar
Price: $24
Closure: Screwcap

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Thursday, 10 February 2011

Symphony Hill Tempranillo 2007

  13:22    

Opens brightly with a fruit laden profile; raspberry and a touch of violet, with some supporting oak and slight earthen note.  Little presence in the palate, leading to drying tannins and a hint of cloves. 

It delivered little beyond this except a fairly lengthy finish, which then faded......

Source: Retail, The Wine Emporium
Price: $23
Closure: Screwcap

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Wednesday, 9 February 2011

Thomas Wines Sweetwater Shiraz 2006

  10:51    

Andrew "Thommo" Thomas is a McLaren Vale boy who now calls the Hunter Valley home, specialising in Semillon and Shiraz it is only the latter that I have had the pleasure of passing between my lips.

Boy, this wine is a beaut.  The lead in is at once fruit laden, a heady presentation of aroma juxtasposed against a solid background of some creamy notes.

The palate is where the magic happens: beautifully integrated fruit profile.  It's rich, warm (not warmth) - a baked fruit pudding with a tail of spice.  There's structure, its amazingly crafted, and good length.  The finish shows a hint of cola, not in the sweet treacly sense, but the almost coffee-ish cedary touch.  Going back to the fruit pudding, there's also a hint of slight-caramelised brown sugar on the top with a touch of cinnamon.

Man alive it is good.  It has me on the night tweeting that it was "a parcel of silken, structured sexiness".  You beauty.

Source: Retail, Stewart's Wine Co.
Price: $29.99 (sale) 
Closure: Cork

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Tuesday, 8 February 2011

Bathe Wines Moscato 2010

  13:27    

Moscato always strikes me as a 'fun' wine.  This particular example from new kid on the block Bathe Wines is a blend of Orange Muscat, White Frontenac and a dash of Chardonnay.  

Pale straw in colour, the aroma is redolent of a bellini, lovely peach on the nose.  Entry brings youthful spritz onto the tongue that transforms into more of the peach.

Leading to the finish, more of the sparkly spritz re-presents itself to its natural conclusion.

In short: simple, fun and refreshing.

Source: Sample
Price: $18
Closure: Screwcap

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Monday, 7 February 2011

Riesling: The Wine Everyone Loves But Nobody Buys*

  09:05    

This was originally meant to appear in a local wine newsletter.  That didn't happen so I thought I'd use it for my own benefit.  The brief was 300 words on a wine related topic that could appeal to both consumers and those in the wine community.
 - ~ -
Yes, Riesling, the sweet German white - favoured tipple of Aunts the world over during the 70’s. The same wine that many, in and around the wine trade, wax lyrical over. And the same wine that isn’t really sweet at all

The Australian wine community is doing some wonderful things with the Riesling grape: the wonderful aromatic Rieslings of the Canberra region such as Capital Wines “The Whip”, Clonakilla Riesling and Nick O’Leary Riesling; or the soft lime presence typical in many Eden Valley Rieslings such as Pewsey Vale; or the lifted floral bouquet so renowned in Clare Valley Watervale Rieslings such as Grosset Watervale or Vinteloper Watervale Riesling.

Each of these regions is doing its own thing, contributing to the Australian Riesling story, bringing Riesling back into the spotlight after it conceded top billing to Chardonnay in the 80’s. For “going back...to 1980, bottled wine sales of Riesling, exceeded those of all other white wines combined” (source: James Halliday Wine Companion 2010).

Riesling will have its day in the spotlight again, but it is up to us as consumers to challenge our perceptions of the varietal. To me, the Riesling being produced in Australia is suited to so many aspects of our lifestyle. Riesling is wonderful when young, fresh and fine with many exhibiting great acidity - a perfect accompaniment to the Asian, modern Australian, or fusion cuisine so prevalent.

Riesling also has the ability to age, developing wonderful complex characteristics. As a varietal it is said that no other white wine can produce such a variety of styles.

So next time you’re in your local wine store or merchant, do yourself a favour, give the Sauvignon Blanc a wide berth and head for the rocket-shaped bottle of a great Australian Rizza!

* Thanks to David Bowley of Vinteloper for the title and inspiration.

Follow me: twitter.com/TheVinsomniac

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Friday, 4 February 2011

Australian Wine Trade Flood Relief Raffle

  08:16    

Well respected Queensland wine scribe Tyson Stelzer, with the generous support of the Australian wine community, has put together an amazing raffle to raise funds for those hit by recent tragedies.

The prize lists reads like a who's who of the Australian Wine Community.  The aim is to try and raise over $1m through sales of raffle tickets.

Tickets are $30 each and can be purchased via www.winefloodrelief.com.au, the prize tally is approximately $240,000 worth of wine over 200 prize lots. 

Do it!  Be in for a chance to win some awesome wine AND help raise funds for a good cause.

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Tuesday, 1 February 2011

Quattro Mano Duende 2009

  08:55    

Beautiful label.  Reminds me of Portuguese tiling, a country where I spent many a summer as a youth.  Sadly I wasn't quite into wine in the manner which I am now, so I never got the opportunity to sample some of its vinous goodnesss.

The wine is a blend of what I would consider Iberian grapes: Touriga (37%), Tinta Amarela (22%), Tinta Cão (22%) and Cinsault (19%).  It is borne of the Barossa, but you wouldn't really know it.

The aroma has a slight plummy note that gives a hint of the medium bodied wine within.  The palate sees more of the same, good mixed fruit, it gave me the impression of a baked fruit pudding.  It really didn't strike me as Barossan at all.

The wine concludes with more of the same, it is just a really consistent fruit driven wine with a touch of spice in there somewhere, minimal, not borne of oak.

It isn't a complex wine that will blow you away, or a cerebral wine that will challenge, rather it is a fairly simple wine whose fruit driven charms are likely to delight.  For me, its good to see something like this coming out of the Barossa, an effective blend from some lesser known varietals.

Source: Retail, Spiros Toowong
Price: $22
Closure: Screwcap

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