Overseas Passion     September 2002 A large but perfectly organised tasting of "New World" wines courtesy Martel of St.Gallen. We were also lucky enough to have several of the winemakers present both to pour for us and to talk over the wines with us. We took a nice lunch before, otherwise, after 4 hours of tasting, I might have had trouble putting pen to paper ! The Rating A quick note on how I approched the wines is worthwhile. If a wine is well made i.e. has no obvious faults, then it should rate as a minimum 'okay' or 'quite good'. In this type of environment, particularly with many young & highly tannic wines it becomes harder to differentiate, so to rate better than 'good' the wines need to be just that little bit more individual. I tasted 87 (!) wines; nothing was worse than 'okay' (which you should expect with a good merchant - only nice surprises!), 27 rated 'very good', and I had 5 which were 'fine'. The Result This was a well thought out tasting with a fantastic range of wines. More importantly the quality was also very high. But I guess the true test is - what did I buy? I actually didn't buy the best wine in the tasting, the Pahlmeyer (left) and that was for two reasons: first I decided 128chf was too high a price, and second I don't need any more wines that require (at least) 10 years in my cellar. Actually I bought 11 different wines. From the whites, I took the quite oaky but very fruity Franciscan Napa Valley Chardonnay, and as a counterpoint the more mineral and individual Fromm La Strada Chardonnay. The reds were an easier choice. I already have some of Fromm's Clayvin Pinot Noir, so although at different ends of the price spectrum I liked the wines of two 'new' producers, so both wines from Achával Ferrer (Argentina) and Mont du Toit (South Africa) made my basket. The Coriole Lloyd Reserve Shiraz also made my basket and the rest was shared between Joe Grilli of Primo Estate and Robert O'Callaghan of Rockford - both as warm and open as their wines. I took both of the displayed Primo Estate wines and from Rockford their 1999 'Basket Press' Shiraz and their Hoffmann Vineyard Shiraz. I only need to work out how to pay for them now ! The Tasting I (almost) kept the structure and order of the actual tasting to aid navigation :   16 white wines from Australia and California   4 New Zealand wines from Ruth & Georg Fromm   9 Chilean wines from Santa Rita and Valdevieso   2 red wines from Achával Ferrer of Argentina   26 red wines from several Australian producers   2 red wines from Mont du Toit of South Africa   28 red wines from several Californian producers 16 white wines from Australia and California 2001 Taltari, Sauvignon Blanc - Victoria Very pale yellow. Green nose with medium intensity nettles. Palate is sweet with strong fruit. This is quite long too. Good. 1999 Rockford, Semillon - Barossa Pale yellow. Some peach on the nose. Medium intensity fruit and 'okay' acidity. Not very interesting after the previous wine, should have tasted the other way round. Okay. 2001 Tatachilla, Chardonnay - Padthaway Pale green. Clean melony nose. Good concentration and acidity. A little tough on the finish though. Quite good. 2001 Chapel Hill, Unwooded Chardonnay - South Austr. Very pale yellow. This unwooded wine actually has a nice sandalwood twist on the sweet nose. A sweet palate too with good acidity. Good. 2000 Chapel Hill, Reserve Chardonnay - McLaren/Padthaway Medium yellow. Some toasty oak. Palate is reasonably fat and a little buttery. Nice acidity. Quite Good. 2000 Grosset, Piccadilly Chardonnay - Adelaide Hills Medium yellow. No obvious oak but some boiled sweets on the nose. The palate has medium density but intense fruit. Good length too. Good. 2000 Dalwhinnie, David Jones Chardonnay - Victoria Pale yellow. Medium strength nose has sweet melon. Palate is fat, but the fruit is hard to get at. Good length though. Good. 2000 Silverado, Sauvignon Blanc - Napa Pale yellow. Hint of aniseed on the nose. Palate is very fruity with good acidity. Length is good, but the finish is a little harsh. Quite Good. 2000 The Monteray Vineyard, Chardonnay - Californian Yellow. Melony nose. Thick but strangely anonymous in the mouth. Only medium length too. Okay. 2000 Estancia, Chardonnay - Monteray Pale yellow. Very fruity nose, melon and grapefruit. Fresh palate, succulent and good acidity. Medium length. A Good wine. 1999 Franciscan, Chardonnay - Napa Yellow. Oaky but pineapple showing through. Fattish with appley fruit on the palate. Long slightly oaky finish. Good Plus. 2000 Cuvaison, Chardonnay - Carneros Pale yellow. Subdued oak and melon on the nose. The concentration in the mouth is certainly good, as is the length, but still a bit harsh. Quite Good. 1999 Phelps, Chardonnay - Carneros Pale yellow. A good pure and fruity nose. The fruit being a little higher toned than the previous wines - peaches. Still a little 'square' in the mouth, medium length finish. Quite Good. 2000 Landmark, Overlook Chardonnay - Sonoma Pale yellow. Nose has toasty oak but is quite well presented. Quite fat with good acidity. Long oaky finish. Quite Good. 2000 Shafer, Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay - Carneros Lighter gold. Slightly nutty nose - cashews, pineapple too. Palate is wide with good acidity, but cannot match the nose for interest. Still Good. 2001 Mount Horrocks, Cordon Cut Riesling Dessert Wine - Clare Actually the last wine tasted, but fits better in this section. Nice gold colour, looks thick in the glass too. Lovely sweet nose with citrus peel. Palate is sweet and nicely coats the inside of your mouth. Only medium length, but for such a young wine, definitely - Very Good. 4 New Zealand wines from Ruth & Georg Fromm We were joined by Georg Fromm who took time to explain a little about the wines. The basic Pinot Noir had just won a "New World Pinot" tasting staged by the UK magazine - Wine. 2000 Fromm, La Strada Chardonnay Very pale yellow. Nose is has some yeasty smells but also higher perfume type notes. Palate is much more mineral than any other chardonnay on display, some pear on the palate too. This is quite long. An individual wine, as such merits Very Good. 2000 Fromm, La Strada Pinot Noir This three vineyard blend just won a tasting hosted by 'Wine' magazine. Cherry colour. Nose is earthy with subdued red fruits. Medium intensity fruit with the very good acidity pushing the finish long. A Good wine. 2000 Fromm, La Strada Clayvin Pinot Noir A wine already in my cellar. Medium full cherry colour. Earth, faint coffee and high toned red fruits on the nose. Nice and fat in the mouth with juicy redcurrant and cherry. Medium plus length. Very Good. 2000 Fromm, La Strada Merlot Reserve Deep ruby colour. Pepper and black chocolate are the most obvious on the nose, followed by black skinned fruit and plum. Good concentration with fine furry tannins. Medium length but a little astringent. Still, interesting so Good. 9 Chilean wines from Santa Rita and Valdevieso 2001 Santa Rita, Sauvignon Blanc Reserva - Casablanca Very pale yellow. Piercing nose, mainly pear fruit. Palate is a little thin, finishing like a glass of 'Bitter Lemon'. Okay. 2001 Santa Rita, Chardonnay Reserva - Casablanca Pale yellow. Clean nose with melon balls. Thick and fruity palate with grapefruit and nice acidity. A nice wine. Good. 2000 Santa Rita, Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva - Maipo Deep ruby. High toned nose. Palate is a little astringent and only medium length. Not very interesting. Okay. 1999 Santa Rita, Carmenère Reserva - Rapel Beautiful deep ruby colour. Slightly rubbery though interesting nose. Tannic with very good acidity and good density fruit. Excellent for teeth staining. Quite Good. 1999 Santa Rita, Cabernet Sauvignon Medallia Real - Maipo More garnet in colour. Nice red and black fruit on the nose. Sweet, tannic palate - roast coffee too. Medium plus length. Good. 1999 Santa Rita, Cabernet Sauvignon Casa Real - Maipo Dark ruby colour. High toned black cherry and blackcurrant nose. Good acid and strong tannins. Mouthfilling with really good length. Good Plus. 1998 Valdevieso, Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve - Central Medium - full ruby colour. High toned nose, quite nice berries with coffee. Sweet and tannic with good acidity and very good fruit. Nice length. Good plus. 1999 Valdevieso, Merlot Reserve - Central Dark ruby, still with a purple rim. Hints of coffee on the nose. A lighter palate than the last 2 or 3 wines but lovely fruit. Medium length only. Quite Good. 1999 Valdevieso, Malbec Reserve Single Vineyard - Central Deep colour, still purple. Deep low toned nose. Sweet with furry tannin. Fresh tasting with medium plus length. Good. 2 red wines from Achával Ferrer of Argentina We were joined by Manuel Ferrer Minetti from this producer. They have only been producing for two years having bought up a couple of old vineyards. One of these has Malbec vines over 80 years old - apparently only pigs ate the grapes when they purchased the lot. I can't believe there is any artistic licence here as Manuel who is such a nice guy, used to be a lawyer (!) The Malbec is particularly low yielding with 3 vines required to make each bottle. 2000 Achával Ferrer, Malbec/Cabernet.S/Merlot - Mendoza Very purple. Blackcurrant and pepper on the nose. Palate is furrily tannic, not so fat but with excellent fruit intensity. Medium plus length. Very interesting. Good. 2000 Achával Ferrer, Gran Malbec - Finca Altamira Very deep, in fact saturated purple. High toned interesting nose. Sweet and very concentrated, fine furry tannins. Very long. Very Good. 26 red wines from several Australian producers We were lucky to have our wines poured by and the time to chat with: Joe Grilli of Primo Estate, Samantha Connew of Wirra Wirra and Robert O'Callaghan plus his son Travis of Rockford. 2000 Tatachilla, Keystone Grenache/Shiraz - McLaren Ruby colour. Flowery high tones on the nose. Palate has good acidity and fruit. Very commercial style. Okay. 1999 Maxwell, Ellen Street Shiraz - McLaren Ruby colour. A little vanilla on the nose. Very ripe and tanninc. Medium plus length. Quite Good. Chatted with Joe Grilli of Primo Estate. Apparently their big 'bread & butter' wine is a Chambourcin which is sold only in Australia. This pays for the experimentaion in other areas, including for instance, spectacular (in terms of shape) bottlings of Shiraz. Their 'folly' as Joe described it, is a vineyard planted to Nebbiolo in the Adelaide Hills. Watch this space . . ! 2000 Primo Estate, Il Briccone Shiraz/Sangiovese Ruby colour again. Reticent nose even with swirling. Very smooth and fat - black fruits. I like this. Good. 1999 Primo Estate, Joseph Cabernet.S/Merlot This wine spends 2 years in a mixture of French, American and German oak. Deep ruby colour. Some high toast on the concentrated nose. Very sweet, almost port-like on the palate. Good acid and nice furry tannin. Easily the best wine so far - Fine. 1999 Chapel Hill, Cabernet Sauvignon - McLaren/Coonawarra More garnet in colour. A sweet and interesting nose. Sweet palate too, like blackcurrant jam. Tannic and long. Good. 1999 Chapel Hill, Shiraz - McLaren Ruby colour. High tones on the nose with some lower plum notes. Sweet palate with nice black fruit and medium plus length. Good. 1999 Mount Horrocks, Shiraz - Clare Ruby core with cherry red at the rim. Palate is sweet with black fruit and medium plus length. Quite Good. 1998 Charles Melton, Cabernet Sauvignon - Barossa Garnet colour. Hint of vanilla on the nose. Very sweet palate. Black fruits again with very good tannin and acidity. Very interesting. Very Good. 1999 Charles Melton, Nine Popes - Barossa Ruby but looking older at the rim. Subdued nose. Very sweet palate with stewing black fruits. Finishing very long with subtle vanilla. Good Plus. 1998 Penley Estate, Shiraz/Cabernet Sauvignon - Coonawarra/McLaren/Barossa Deep ruby colour. Black cherries on the nose plus deeper stewing blackcurrant notes. Palate is sweet and tannic with black skinned fruit. An intense finish too. Very Good. Samantha Connew is the new winemaker for Wirra Wirra so not responsible in person for the wines on display. When asked how her career path developed she said she started with a Law Degree - apparently this made her emminently suitable for proof-reading everything! 1999 Wirra Wirra, Shiraz - McLaren Dark ruby colour. Oaky nose with some chocolate. A sweet palate with deep plummy fruit. This is long too. Very good 1999 Wirra Wirra, RSW Shiraz - McLaren Very dark ruby, almost opaque. Nose is almost inky, perhaps boot polish too. Great intensity of fruit. Tannic with good acidity. Very Good. 1998 Wirra Wirra, The Angelus Cabernet Sauvignon - McLaren Deep ruby with some purple at the rim. Classic blackberry and blackcurrant nose. Tannic with good acidity and really good intense fruit. A trace of coffee on the very long finish. An excellent cabernet. Fine Spent time chatting about the wines with Robert O'Connell of Rockford. This was an excellent range, and not seen much outside Australia. In fact even at home 70% of his sales are to cellar door and regular 'mailing list' clients. Robert cultivates Shiraz in around 30 separate vineyards and makes his assemblage only after the various wines have matured in oak. In this way he keeps consistent quality - it's just the volume that will alter depending on the success of the vintage. The Hoffman vineyard wine in particular is a beauty. It's from the most northern area in the Barossa, Eberneezer. Robert doesn't even sell this wine in Australia. Each year he bottles a couple of hogsheads (around 2,000 bottles) and sends it to this one Swiss merchant. I bet he keeps a couple of cases in his cellar though! The balance of fruit from this vineyard is usually included in Grange. 1998 Rockford, Moppa Springs - Barossa Medium ruby colour. Sweet red and black fruit, tending to raspberry as the top note. Sweet with furry tannin and nice acidity. This is a soft wine. Good 1999 Rockford, Cabernet Sauvignon - Barossa Medium ruby colour. Very sweet palate, ripe and rich with good acidity and medium tannins. Good 1999 Rockford, Basket Press Shiraz - Barossa Ruby but with a cherry edge. A good, ripe and deep Shiraz nose. The concentrated palate is quite sweet with thick tannin and good acidity. Medium-plus length of finish. Very Good. 1998 Rockford, Basket Press Shiraz - Barossa Deep ruby colour. A fuller higher toned nose than the previous wine. Very similar concentration of fruit to the 1999 but a little less sweet on the palate and with softer tannin. Different, but also Very Good 1997 Rockford, Shiraz Hoffmann Vineyard 'SLV' - Barossa 1996 was the first vintage for this wine. Very deep saturated ruby colour. High tones of blackberry on the nose. Very sweet and tannic with superb concentration. Good acidity keeps this nicely in balance. Easily Fine ! 2000 Coriole, Shiraz - McLaren Deep ruby colour. Red fruit and tobacco on the nose. Very sweet. Tannin is not so smooth but this wine has a very long finish. Good 1999 Coriole, Mary Kathleen - McLaren Ruby colour. Subdued nose with some deep tones. Palate has interesting 'burnt' fruit notes. Fine acidity. Quite Good 1999 Coriole, Lloyd Reserve Shiraz - McLaren Deep, opaque purple. High toned but relatively subdued nose. Thick but smooth, furry tannin on the palate with very concentrated fruit. Long too. Very Good. 1999 Greenock, Cabernet Sauvignon - Seppeltsfield Medium/deep ruby. A very blackcurrant nose. Tannic with very concentrated fruit and good acidity. Good Plus. 1999 Grosset, Gaia Cabernet - Clare Ruby colour. More oak than fruit on the nose. Palate is sweet with reasonably concentrated fruit, furry tannins and good length. Good 2000 Dalwhinnie, Shiraz - Moonambel Victoria Deep ruby colour. Nose is subdued with mainly low notes, perhaps a little blackcurrant. Very tannic, but excellent fruit. This is very interesting. Very Good. 1999 Clarendon Hills, Shiraz Brookman - McLaren Ruby colour. Toasty oak on the nose but not heavy handed. This has a very deep and fruity palate. I have to say that it's not 100% to my personal taste, but it's also quite individual, so Very Good. 1999 Clarendon Hills, Grenache Romas Vineyard - McLaren Medium ruby colour. A deep nose with chocolate and coffee. Very tannic, but excellent fruit and acidity too. Finishes long. This is Very Good. 2 red wines from Mont du Toit of South Africa Carolina du Toit poured the wines for us. Another 'new' producer. Despite apologising for having no tasting room (they need to make some money first!), we will be welcome to 'pop in' if we're passing. 2000 Mont du Toit, Hawequas - Coastal Region Ruby colour with a nice soft nose. Sweet, medium bodied but stands up remarkably well after some very big shiraz's. Even ignoring the price (~€10) Very Good. 2000 Mont du Toit, - Coastal Region Ruby colour. Subtle oak on the nose. Nice concentration and ripeness to the fruit. Very subtle vanilla on the finish too. Very Good. 28 red wines from several Californian producers The notes don't look too bad in print but I had the feeling whilst tasting these wines that the Cabernet Sauvignons were all very similar - a generalisation of course but it was hard to find an 'individual' wine. Similarity in taste then but at a high level of quality, almost all the wines were 'good' or 'very good'. The Pahlmeyer though only the second most expensive wine on display (still too expensive !) was probably the finest in the whole tasting. It's interesting that most of the 'Very Good' wines come in this section - but none of my purchases. Perhaps this crystallises why I find it hard to get excited about (predominantly) Cabernet wines. Of course if we could taste them all again when they are 15 years old . . . . . . . 1999 Laurel Glen, Reds - California Medium ruby colour. Nose is oaky but with blackberry and plum. Sweet with 'okay' fruit. Acidity is quite strong and shows a medium length finish. Still Quite Good 1999 Buehler, Zinfandel - Napa Medium ruby colour. Sweet nose and palate. Good tannin and acidity with very nice fruit. Very Good. 1999 Sterling, Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Ruby colour. Very fruity nose. Tannic with good acidity. Nice and fruity. Good 1997 Sterling, Diamond Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Deep ruby. Nose is a little reticent, just some high flowery tones. Palate has lovely fruit, strong tannins and excellent acidity. Very Good. 1999 Estancia, Cabernet Sauvignon - California Ruby colour. High toned nose with some blackcurrant.The palate is deeply flavoured. Something about this wine is not to my own taste, but it's certainly different so Good for that! 1998 Franciscan, Oakville Estate Merlot - Napa Ruby colour. A deep chocolate nose. The palate is very tannic but it comes with good fruit. Very Good. 1999 Franciscan, Oakville Estate Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Deep ruby. The nose is a little cheesy - can this be right? Quite sweet palate with less forceful tannins than most. Quite Good 1998 Estancia, Meritage - Alexander Ruby colour. Coffee and chocolate on the deep, low toned nose. The tannins are certainly prominent but there is also very good fruit. I think Very Good. 1999 Quintessa, - Napa Medium ruby. The nose has coffee and something deep and sweet. The palate is also sweet and perhaps a little 'jammy'. Good tannin but excellent fruit. Very Good Plus? 1998 Cuvaison, Merlot - Napa Deep ruby colour. Oaky nose - a little dirty, perhaps not so well integrated. Oaky palate too. Not so interesting for me - Okay. 1999 Murray, Syrah Les Coteaux - Santa Barbara Good colour. A very individual scent - plums plus gewurztraminer! Palate is quite coffee-ish. Good concentration. An unusual and interesting wine - Very Good 1999 Ridge, Lytton Springs - Sonoma Deep ruby, still with some purple colour. Nose is quite subdued. The palate has strong fruit and tannin but is well balanced. Good. 1999 Scherrer, Zinfandel - Alexander Medium cherry colour. Jammy nose. Medium density palate with high density tannins. Only Okay. 1998 Scherrer, Cabernet Sauvignon - Alexander Dark, still with a purple rim. This is tannic but has a long finish. Quite fruity. Good 1998 Stags Leap, Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Medium ruby colour. Nose has some oak plus high blackberry tones. Tannic but excellent fruit. Very Good. 1999 Schafer, Merlot - Napa Ruby colour. Nose is subdued but the palate has intense fruit. Not too bad tannin. Some oak on the finish but Very Good 1999 Schafer, Firebreak Sangiovese/Cabernet - Napa Deep ruby colour but still a cherry edge to the glass. Oaky nose with some plum fruit. Very tannic with good fruit but it's hard to express the type. Good 1999 Schafer, Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Ruby colour. Coffee and oak nose. The fruit comes through very well considering the strong tannin it has to contend with. Good. 1999 Forman, Merlot - Napa Medium ruby colour with quite a subdued nose. The palate is relatively sweet with good black fruit and strong tannin. A Good wine 1998 Forman, Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Ruby colour. Black fruits on the nose. A melange of black fruits on the palate too. Good full tannin. Very Good 1997 Corison, Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa The colour is mainly ruby but there's still some cherry evident. There seems to be coal on the nose - very mineral. Nicely balanced with excellent strong fruit. Very Good. 1998 Laurel Glen, Cabernet Sauvignon - Sonoma Mount. Ruby colour with some licorice on the nose. Oak marks both the palate and the long finish but the fruit is first-class. Very Good. 1998 Pahlmeyer, Red - Napa More of a garnet colour. Some oak on the nose but it melds beautifully with the fruit. A noticeably soft and smooth palate, very refined tannin here. Excellent fruit. At least Fine! 1998 Heitz, Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Ruby colour. A sweet black cherry and blackcurrant nose. Tannic but the fruit sustains a very long finish. This is Very Good 1997 Heitz, Bella Oaks Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Ruby coloured. The lovely nose has macerated fruits and coffee. Excellent fruit here plus a good tannic palate. Also Fine 1997 Joseph Phelps, Merlot - Napa Garnet colour. Cooking plums on the nose. Tannic, but very good fruit in support. Long finish too. Very Good 1998 Joseph Phelps, Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Deep ruby colour. Blackcurrant/blackberry nose. Very tannic. In this case I'm not so sure that the fruit is capable of competing with the tannins. Quite Good 1999 Joseph Phelps, Insignia - Napa Colour is an opaque ruby, still some cherry at the rim of the glass. Subdued nose. Very tannic, but this time the fruit is more interesting and definitely up to the job of competing with the tannin. This wine is a bit of a monster. Very Good © nanson.ch 2000-2002