Michele Chiarlo Nivole Moscato D'Asti DOCG 2005

And on home for some dessert in the garden under the beautiful stars, this wine I have had occasionally over the past several years. Always popular with friends, it has a superb bouquet of pink grapefruit, orange, lemon and pink musk. On the palate it has a wonderful superfine carbonation, which balances the sweetness of the moscato, giving a lovely soft velvety dry finish. This has to be one of my favourite dessert wines, which is not overly sweet or cloying like other moscatos I have tried, and is very refreshing and goes with pretty much any dessert you care to mention. Definitely worth $30 for a half-bottle.
50+4+13+18+8 = 93/100

Château Pierre-Bise Cabernet D'Anjou 2005

As soon as we saw this in the bottle shop we grabbed if for dinner, as Anjou is a little thin on the ground in this part of the world. The colour was much deeper than the other Anjou we have had in the past. The bouquet was quite sweet, with toffee-apple dominating, with a little strawberry and biscuit in the background. On the palate it was quite rich, sweet, but soft and balance. Acidity was confident, and finished off-dry. Caramel dominated the palate, with some berry fruits in the background. It was a little sweet for our entrees, but did match very well with a tamarind rich satay sauce. Still a lovely rose, but perhaps not as sofisticated as the Reserve Des Vignerons we love so well. A little overpriced at $30.
50+4+13+17+7 = 91/100

SHW 'Altitude 676' Classic Dry White 2006

At my local they had a new shipment of SHW wines, of which I find the Rose the best value. So decided to give the Classic Dry White a go. Made from 60% Colombard and 40% Chardonnay, the nose was fairly rustic and fruity, with ripe grape, melon and a little citruss. On the palate again it was quite rustic, with a big round fruity mouthfeel, a little runaway acid and a fairly flabby finish. Unfortunately this doesnt cut the mustard, like the rose does, and for around $10 it is a little overpriced for its quality. Best well chilled.
50+4+12+14+6 = 86/100

Devils Lair Fifth Leg White 2006

This white blend of Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay had quite a fruity aroma of citrus, passionfruit, melon and a touch of herbs. On the plate again very fruity, with tropical fruits dominating, and quite a crisp acidity. Decent length and a sour finish, this wine was your classic tropical blend, and while I think would be popular, it does bore me somewhat with its tropicalness. A bit overpriced at $18 too.
50+4+12+15+6 = 87/100

Wolf Blass Eaglehawk Riesling 2006

A new vintage of this wine, of which I have had the 2004 some time ago. The bouquet was characteristically Australian, with lime, lemon, petroleum and a touch of musk at the back. On the palate it was quite well balanced, with lime juice and some flowers. Length was a little short, but a good robust finish. Again this is a classic Australian riesling, and good value at $8.
50+4+12+15+7 = 88/100

De Bortoli Windy Peak Pinot Noir 2006

Picked this up on speacial for $10 as well as the great Sangiovese, hoping to get a bit of a bargain. Good aroma of cherries, strawberries, spice, sap and a little earth. On the palate it was on the lighter end of a pinot, with fairly bright fruit, sap and decent sourish finish. No great complexity or distinction, but definitely a bargain priced pinot, which doesn't confuse or fail. Probably worth cellaring for a couple of years.
50+4+12+15+7 = 88/100

Wolf Blass Eaglehawk Cuvée Brut NV

Needing a cheap sparkling aperitif, decided to give this $7 one a go. The bouquet was fairly light and citrussy, with nominal fruit and quite a dose of yeast. On the palate the beading was competant and reasonably persistent, with a very dry mouthfeel and finish. It had a beerish character, due to the dryness and yeast, which in a strange way made it quite drinkable. Not one to impress friends with, but maybe at home with a bowl of beer nuts and a remote.
50+4+11+14+6 = 85/100

Metala Cabernet Shiraz 2005

An old favourite of mine, although the last vintage was quite dissapointing, decided to give the 2005 vintage a go. Initially the bouquet was big and boofy, but did blow off to show a puree of berrifruits, pepper, spice and some violet flower. On the palate it was very cabernet with pureed blackberry and spice over cedary oak. Acidity was resonable and balanced and the finish decent. This vintage was quite Bordeaux-ish in character, and I think there is good cellaring potential here. Not the 2003, but certainly an improvement on the 2004.
50+4+12+15+7 = 88/100

Lillydale Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Having liked their chardonnay, decided to try the Sav Blanc. On the bouquet big gooseberries, passionfruit aromas with some tropical fruit, a little spice and cream. On the palate it had quite a zingy acidity, which was just balanced, with citruss dominant. The length was reasonable and the finish a little harsh. Overall confidently made, but lacked a little character and finesse.
50+4+12+15+7 = 88/100

Louis Eschenauer Bordeaux

Had this as a valentine's day treat at Casa cu Flori. Medium bodied wine, could have been left to decant somewhat. Light ruby in colour with a rich bouquet of berries.

Reasonably smooth though could have sat for a bit longer, perhaps was drier than we would normally prefer but a good depth of flavour and nice long finish.

Went well with the goose liver in coffee sauce and roe deer medallions.

Sparkling wine tasting results

Thankfully the weather did hold for the first wine tasting for 2007, and ended up being quite an enjoyable evening. My thanks to everyone who participated, Deb, Mark, Simon, Heike, and Greg.
Special thanks too for Heike and her amazing Fleur de Marquis cheese, which dissapeared quite quickly.

Following are the wines in order, with votes divided between white and red sparkling. I hope the votes are correct.

Suggestions for the next tasting seem to be for Riesling, probably international with perhaps a fondue. I look forward to that one.

Cheers
Brett

1. Segura Viudas Brut Reserva NV

To start off, this wine from Spain had aromas of citrus, green apple with touches of nuts and bread and flowers. Palate wise very dry, yet soft with quite fine beading. More citrus and apple with decent length made for quite pleasant drinking. A great sparkling wine, and quite cheap as well at $13 or so.
3 votes white

2 . Cattier Chigny-les-Roses Brut Premier Cru NV

The first and only Champagne, this NV had a rather elusive bouquet, which did open to reveal nectarine, apple, pear and some strawberry. On the palate it again was fairly light, with good citruss and cream flavours, very smooth beading and nice dry finish. Reminded me a little of Pol Roger in style in its structure and weight. Good value at around $40.
2 votes white

3. Leeuwin Estate Pinot Noir Chardonnay Brut 2002

With fruit from the Margaret River and Denmark WA, this wine had a big floral bouquet of strawberries, apple nuts, bread and oak. Beading was quite smooth and long, with good blanaced flavours of citrus and yeast. Slightly creamy and good dry finish, this was quite a rich and stylish wine.
1 vote white

4. Henkell Troken Dry-Sec NV

From Germany, this white sparkling wine made from a potential cuvée of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Blanc de Noir from French Pinot Noir and Chenin from Saumur. On the nose it was fairly light, with various light white fruits with apple dominant, and a slight nut-candied note on the back. Beading was fairly nominal, and did dissapate somewhat. On the palate it had fairly pronounced acidity, and was a little cloying on the gullet. No great length, and finished a little insipidly, it didn't really impress that much if at all.
0 votes white

5. Woop Woop The Black Chook Sparkling Shiraz NV

And on to the first red sparkling. This shiraz from McLaren Vale SA, had a moreish bouquet of berries, plum, chocolate and some spice. The palate was quite soft, round and rich with everything balanced and in control. Beading was quite fine adding to soften the texture. A little sweet on the finish, but a pretty attractive wine, and would please nearly all palates.
2 votes red

6. Seppelt Original Sparkling Shiraz 2002

And to the final wine, this sparkling shiraz held aromas of blackberries, chocolate, spice and light leather notes. Palate wise it showed good weight and balance, with rich but not sweet fruit, nice tannins and quite a dry finish. Beading a little larger than the previous red. Slightly old fashioned in style.
4 votes red

Amberley First Selection Semillon 2004

This wine, which Simon and Heike brought along to the sparkling tasting, opened to a lovely bouquet of lemon butter, fig, toast and savoury herbs. On the palate it was quite creamy, soapy but also had a lovely balanced acidity with soft citruss. Oak was very well integrated into the fruit, and had quite a long lingering finish. This was quite an elegant semillon, distinctly West Australian, but very well handled. Thank you Simon and Heike.
50+4+13+17+7 = 91/100

Hungerford Hill Tumbarumba Chardonnay 2006

This chardonnay from Tumbarumba in NSW, had quite a refined bouquet of grapefruit, melon, cinnamon, cream and soft confected nutty notes in the background, not dissimilar to a Chablis. On the palate it had quite robust acidity, with grapefruit dominant, integrated confidently into French oak. Quite a long and dry finish this was quite a fine chardonnay, with a great bouquet. Good value at $25, although I suspect it is only an introductory/sale price.
50+4+13+17+7 = 91/100

De Bortoli Sero Merlot Sangiovese 2005

Another from my free samples, this red blend from the King Valley had quite a sweet bouquet of plums, cherries, spices and dare I say marzipan. The sweetness did continue into the palate, which was very soft and rounded, with big sweet, almost sickly fruit. There was a slight savouryness lurking, but not enough to detract the sweetness. I am not sure about this wine, with its use of raisins in the crush, but certainly if you like your reds with marzipan, then this is your wine.
50+4+12+15+5 = 86/100

Pizzazz Special Cuvée NV

Having had the rose version a few months ago, which offered no offense, we decided to try out the (apparently) blanc de blancs version of this sparkling wine. Again a light bouquet, with soft citruss, bread and slight confected notes. On the palate was quite fine and persistent beading, with light fruit and acidity. Not much depth or length, but again this is very easy drinking wine, with no pretension or volitility. Again a small bargain at $6.
50+4+11+15+7 = 87/100

De Bortoli Sero Syrah Tempranillo 2005

Another from the Sero King Valley range, this red had aromas of cherries, currants, olives, earth and a bit of leather. On the palate were soft fruits, with again a bright but balanced acidity, dry to soft tannins and a reasonably pleasing savoury finish. There was also a sweetness in the fruit, which may be due to the use of dried fruit in the making of this wine, which added a little further complexity. Again, I think a wine blended to please most drinkers palates, and succeeds to a degree to be quite approachable and friendly. Worked quite well with our Maroccan lamb dinner.
50+4+13+16+7 = 90/100

De Bortoli Sero Cabernet Rosato 2006

Part of 5 free bottles of the Sero range, this rose from from the King Valley Victoria had a candied bouquet of red berries, rose petals and a touch of white pepper. On the palate it was less sweet, (to my relief), with a pretty racy acidity which did threaten volitility, but managed to hold its balanced. Fairly rounded and soft mouthfeel, with a good dry savoury edge and finish. Overall this was a bit of a split-personality rose, with a sweeter style evident on the nose, and a drier savoury style on the palate, so on the up-side would please more drinkers preferences, but on the downside suggest indecision and schizophrenia. Thus a very contemporary wine.
50+4+13+16+6 = 89/100

Ramón Bilbao Tempranillo Rioja 2003

Getting a tast for Rioja, and decided to try something new. Nice flowery aromas of berries and plums, with some licorice, vanilla and nougat. On the palate medium bodied, with rich berries, chocolate and mint, evoking a cab sav almost. A little racy but well balanced acidity and balsamic-dry finish. This was definitely a fruit driven Rioja, and a little sweet for me. It was a nicely made wine, but have had better Rioja.
50+4+13+16+6 = 89/100

Domaine du Château d'eau Viognier 2004

Another wine in my quest for a good cheap French white. Rich gold in colour, the bouquet was relatively light, with apricots, honey, nougat and a bit of stone. On the palate it was light to medium in body, with sweet fruit and a chewey slatey texture, which didn't work that well. There was obvious residual sugar and not a lot of length with this wine, and while fairly cheap, I don't think it makes the grade.
50+4+12+14+6 = 86/100