Wine tasting, Annadale

Went wine tasting yesterday at Annandale Cellars. About 40 wines on offer, with a mix of Australian, Spanish, New Zealand, French and Austrian/German.

Highlights for me were:

Mas des Bressades Blanc 2004 - Great floral/mineral white blend from the Costieres des Nimes. Very good value - A great summer wine.


Albert Mann Pinot Blanc 2004 - A good and cheap Mann with all the hallmarks of the Mann style. Honey-dry, fresh and very pleasurable.


Pichot Vourvary Peu de la Mouriette 2004 - A nice fresh and young demi-sec Vouvray with a great bouquet. Getting towards the quality of a Bourillon 2004 vouvray but a bit cheaper. Yum.


Burklin-Wolf Dry Riesling 2004 - Wonderfull floral aromatics on this riesling. Softer than the Salomon - Superb.


Salomon Gruner Veltliner Undhof Wieden 2004 - A steely dry wine in the German style with great freshness on the palate - This really stuck out the most for me - and excellent value.

Pewsey Vale Riesling

Tried this and is a great value riesling - 2004 Pewsey Vale Eden Valley Riesling. Wonderful bouquet on this, herbaceous spicy, musk, citruss, and a touch of petrol. Length could be longer but gets close to the Leo Buring Leonay in quality, but at half the price - worth getting a case or 2 for summer!

Metala Cabernet Shiraz 2003

Quick note about the 2003 Metala Cabernet Shiraz - Great bouquet on this wine, initially nougat, then violets, touch of eucalypt and some spice. On the palate liquorice, plums, berries. Not as long and heavy as I would like but the bouquet makes up for it.

50+4+13+15+7 = 89/100

Also see Metala tasting festival notes

Langmeil, Klipfel, Forester

Dinner - Phil and I touched base with our friend Nick at Thai Pathong. Started as always with the Langmeil Semillion (Barossa) which is a great, consistent mid-priced wine. Then to something different off the wine list, the 2004 Forester Estated Chardonnay (Margaret River). Very sweet grapey/melon bouquet, which I think children or young adults would enjoy, but quite dry oak on the palate. Not bad, not great, but complemented the spicy sauce with our Snapper.



Home for some cheese and fruit, and a bottle of 1999 Domain Klipfel Tokay Pinot Gris Freiberg, which was quite lovely. Soft spicey mysterious bouquet, with hints of honey and amonnia, crisp apple on palate, with subtle oak and a warm finish. Suited blue cheese well I thought.