S.A. Visit- Clare
Posted: Fri May 07, 2004 9:25 pm
Headed out to the Clare early,had a full day in front of me.....
First appointment 9-30am at Mt Horrocks..
MT HORROCKS
It had been suggested to me that Stephanie Toole was a bit of a feisty character; on the contrary,she was charm personified,and a really thoughtful and passionate winemaker. I really enjoyed my time with her,and the Mt Horrocks wines were impressive right across the board.
2003 Watervale Reisling $27
Pale yellow/green,lifted floral and citrus notes in the typical lemon/lime spectrum,clean,spotless palate of citrus,some spice and a pure clean finish. Quality.
2003 Semillon $27
A slightly different take on semillon,with batches fermented in older French oak. Its youthful,dry and tight,and definitely needs time to develop,but it has plenty of length and a light creaminess to the mouthfeel. It will compliment food nicely,heaps of potential.
2001 Shiraz $38
Stephanie thinks this is the best shiraz she has made. It is very good, and deserves a little more attention as one usually only thinks about whites in relation to this winery. Violets,dark plums and spice,a hint of liquorice. Restrained,with a touch of elegance. Should age gracefully,really a very nice wine.
2001 Cabernet $38
Concentrated and ripe,pure berry fruit with hints of chocolate. Good persistence and length. Lovely clean finish. Another classy wine, fully priced though.
2003 Cordon Cut Riesling $32
Non botrytised dessert wine. Apricots,pear,sweet and concentrated. Plenty of acid,balances out the sweetness. Unique style,quite delicious.
TAYLORS
Tasted the whole range,but I won't bore you with the full details of the lower range stuff. This is a winery on the rise though,churning out big volumes of quality wine across a wide choice of price points.
Of the whites,I liked the (all 03's) Riesling and Semillon; the White Burgundy was a bit too fruit salad,sweet and directionless,and the chardonnay quite basic, but it needs to be remembered that they manage to put a lot of these wines onto the market at around $12,which is impressive.
The reds; pass on the Merlot(03),but the 02 Shiraz and Cabernet represent great value once again,especially the Cabernet which has good intensity and varietal definition.
I also tried the 1998 St Andrews Cab and the 2000 St. Andrews Shiraz, both $55.
Both big wines,ripe,expressive fruit. The Cab is beginning to show some aged character with herbal/tobacco notes coming through. Still has very assertive tannins though. Not sure about this one. The Shiraz has big,tarry flavours, plenty of American oak,pure sweet shiraz fruit with peppery,spicy notes. Good,but not for me at $55
KILIKANOON
I was impressed with the range here. The word in the valley was that Kevin Mitchell has some serious money backing him;it seems he is making good use of it.The 03 Rosé was one of the better types I have tried,up there with Turkey Flat,Melton et al, not insipid or overtly confected,nice wine. The Morts Block was sold out. The 01 Prodigal Grenache was lovely,avoiding the alcoholic finish that puts me off this style. Pure raspberry/cherry fruit,spice and well handled oak. The 01 Blocks Rd Cab was a cracker at $26. Ripe,soft,concentrated,fully flavoured and balanced.
Close to my favourite wine of the trip though was the 01 Oracle Shiraz. Dense,ripe,deeply coloured,liquorice,spice and black fruits. Lovely tannin structure. A very well put together wine with a long future in front of it. Not over-priced at $38,really worth a look.
TIM ADAMS
Could be the most under-priced wines in Australia. Everything under $20 except the Aberfeldy. The Riesling and Semillon are classical,bone dry styles( approx 1.3 gr RS) ,the Sem gets 40% new oak. Both will age well,but are quite austere young. The Cab 01( $19) represents great value,earthy,herbal,full flavoured and grippy. 02 Shiraz very good at the same price,quite defined and with impressive length. 01 Aberfeldy another step up in class and structure,more oak and fruit intensity,needs time but a classy wine.
First appointment 9-30am at Mt Horrocks..
MT HORROCKS
It had been suggested to me that Stephanie Toole was a bit of a feisty character; on the contrary,she was charm personified,and a really thoughtful and passionate winemaker. I really enjoyed my time with her,and the Mt Horrocks wines were impressive right across the board.
2003 Watervale Reisling $27
Pale yellow/green,lifted floral and citrus notes in the typical lemon/lime spectrum,clean,spotless palate of citrus,some spice and a pure clean finish. Quality.
2003 Semillon $27
A slightly different take on semillon,with batches fermented in older French oak. Its youthful,dry and tight,and definitely needs time to develop,but it has plenty of length and a light creaminess to the mouthfeel. It will compliment food nicely,heaps of potential.
2001 Shiraz $38
Stephanie thinks this is the best shiraz she has made. It is very good, and deserves a little more attention as one usually only thinks about whites in relation to this winery. Violets,dark plums and spice,a hint of liquorice. Restrained,with a touch of elegance. Should age gracefully,really a very nice wine.
2001 Cabernet $38
Concentrated and ripe,pure berry fruit with hints of chocolate. Good persistence and length. Lovely clean finish. Another classy wine, fully priced though.
2003 Cordon Cut Riesling $32
Non botrytised dessert wine. Apricots,pear,sweet and concentrated. Plenty of acid,balances out the sweetness. Unique style,quite delicious.
TAYLORS
Tasted the whole range,but I won't bore you with the full details of the lower range stuff. This is a winery on the rise though,churning out big volumes of quality wine across a wide choice of price points.
Of the whites,I liked the (all 03's) Riesling and Semillon; the White Burgundy was a bit too fruit salad,sweet and directionless,and the chardonnay quite basic, but it needs to be remembered that they manage to put a lot of these wines onto the market at around $12,which is impressive.
The reds; pass on the Merlot(03),but the 02 Shiraz and Cabernet represent great value once again,especially the Cabernet which has good intensity and varietal definition.
I also tried the 1998 St Andrews Cab and the 2000 St. Andrews Shiraz, both $55.
Both big wines,ripe,expressive fruit. The Cab is beginning to show some aged character with herbal/tobacco notes coming through. Still has very assertive tannins though. Not sure about this one. The Shiraz has big,tarry flavours, plenty of American oak,pure sweet shiraz fruit with peppery,spicy notes. Good,but not for me at $55
KILIKANOON
I was impressed with the range here. The word in the valley was that Kevin Mitchell has some serious money backing him;it seems he is making good use of it.The 03 Rosé was one of the better types I have tried,up there with Turkey Flat,Melton et al, not insipid or overtly confected,nice wine. The Morts Block was sold out. The 01 Prodigal Grenache was lovely,avoiding the alcoholic finish that puts me off this style. Pure raspberry/cherry fruit,spice and well handled oak. The 01 Blocks Rd Cab was a cracker at $26. Ripe,soft,concentrated,fully flavoured and balanced.
Close to my favourite wine of the trip though was the 01 Oracle Shiraz. Dense,ripe,deeply coloured,liquorice,spice and black fruits. Lovely tannin structure. A very well put together wine with a long future in front of it. Not over-priced at $38,really worth a look.
TIM ADAMS
Could be the most under-priced wines in Australia. Everything under $20 except the Aberfeldy. The Riesling and Semillon are classical,bone dry styles( approx 1.3 gr RS) ,the Sem gets 40% new oak. Both will age well,but are quite austere young. The Cab 01( $19) represents great value,earthy,herbal,full flavoured and grippy. 02 Shiraz very good at the same price,quite defined and with impressive length. 01 Aberfeldy another step up in class and structure,more oak and fruit intensity,needs time but a classy wine.