A Shock Result

Recently Jamie in Bahrain posted a question on Auswine Forum asking everyone “what were their top three producers in terms of bottle numbers.”

Off the top of my head I could think of a number of contenders in my cellar, Penfolds was bound to be up there (lots of Bin wines) as was Leasingham (Classic Clare, Bin series and Sparkling Shiraz) but when I checked my actual cellar records I got a shock.

Top of the list was Orlando! Now how did that happen, I would never have thought that in a million years? However the list doesn’t lie and there are six vintages of St Hugo (left), five vintages of Lawson, plus multiple vintages of Jacaranda, Centenary Hill, Jacobs Creek Limited Blend and the 1998 Limited Cabernet.

In terms of how it happened, the answer is fairly simple. Over the past five years I have been buying more six packs than dozens and with the plethora of new labels the dominance of BRLH, Penfolds and others has declined in my cellar. There has also been a steady increase in smaller producers that represent much better value than many of the large companies gaining space in the cellar. Long gone are the days of multiple case buys of wines like Bin 389 and Classic Clare, firstly variety is the spice of life and secondly better value options are available.

So why is it that Orlando has been gaining space in my cellar when the other majors have been declining? Two reasons, value and quality!

Orlando wines represent real value for money. At the lower end of the premium spectrum, St Hugo at $30 (and it’s been that price on special for years) is one of the great Coonawarra buys year in and year out. The quality of the wine is also very consistent from vintage to vintage and the wine matures into a typical Coonawarra Cabernet. The 94 at ten years of age has entered its peak drinking window and is beautiful. The 96 being a pretty ripe year is also starting to drink well. 1997 was not a good year and that too is just about ready to drink.

As I type this I have a bottle of the 2000 to assess so here is the tasting note.  Orlando 2000 St Hugo Cabernet Sauvignon (Jan 04) - In some way an unusual nose for a Coonawarra Cabernet as there is spice and white pepper amongst the ripe berry fruit with hints of mocha and chocolate. However I chilled the wine down a few degrees (to about 18) and it was typical of a warm year Coonawarra Cabernet.

Abundant tannins are slightly powdery, the acid refreshing and well judged with ample weight pure fruit to balance the package. The wine fills the mouth with a good level of ripe blackcurrant, savoury mulberry, and chocolate flavour complexity with a persistency of finish that is more than acceptable. It’s a well built wine and in many ways typical of the region and will go well with food.

Rated as Recommended with **** for value (at $30) the wine is worth buying. The rating is deceptive as it’s bound to improve as it matures in about 4 years.

After writing this article I opened a bottle of the Orlando 1994 St Hugo and here is the tasting note. - The wine is showing a pleasant integrated soft mature nose with obvious balance and harmony, nothing sticks out! Tannins are soft, dusty and drying; the wine is harmonious and has developed beautifully in the last 12 months, even if faster than expected. It’s smooth and easy to drink and a typical good example of what Coonawarra Cabernet should be like when it’s mature. A perfect food wine, its ample weight with a savoury uptake, a sweet mid palate and drying leafy notes on the tail; finish is moderate in length. Rated as Highly Recommended, it’s not going to get any better so drink up. (Original cost - $21 in 1998.)

Their Coonawarra Cabernet icon, Jacaranda Ridge can normally be picked up for about $45-50 and it’s in the same quality league as the likes of Parker First Growth and the other wines that cost $70, so it too represents excellent value.

Their efforts in the Shiraz market should not be overlooked either. The Centenary Hill was launched in 94 and whilst from a personal perspective whilst I wasn’t overly wrapped in the wine, its quality and breeding was obvious. The 95 and 96 both made their way into my cellar with the 96 being one of those ‘full on seductive wines’ that just disappear from the glass in record time. The 96 was released with about six years of bottle age and was available for $45. Consider that value against the others that release their wines in this price bracket at two or three years of age. Also this wine stands up to many that cost $70.

The Lawson which hails from Padthaway is a classic wine. It’s built for the long haul, the 91 is drinking brilliantly and about a year ago I had an 88 that was still in the prime of its life. This wine is generally available for $47.50 when it’s released at about five years of age; consider its value against wines like the Eileen Hardy which is now almost twice the price.

The Jacobs Creek Limited Blend suffers from its association with the lesser wines of the same name but that does not lessen the quality of what’s in the bottle. This is a seriously good Cabernet Shiraz blend which is also release at 5 years of age and available for $47.50, little more than Bin 389 but its so much better! A very under rated wine and one worthy of purchase! In fact I recently saw some of the 1999 vintage available at Langtons Melbourne auction even though the wine has not been released yet. I suspect it was stock that was sold through the Australian Wine Exchange. Good news for me as I picked it up for $37.50 including delivery and insurance. The tasting note is as follows.

For those of you unfamiliar with the wine, this is the Orlando pinnacle wine and is a blend of the best barrels of Shiraz from the Barossa and Cabernet from Coonawarra.

Jacobs Creek 1999 Limited Blend (December 03) - Initially the wine was brooding with nose clearing menthol, hints of mocha, dark black fruits and chocolate but as it opened and evolved the order changed and complexity became more obvious. It’s very clean and a perfect construction and balance are provided by the ultra fine grained almost powdery nature of the ripe tannins, unobtrusive acid and deeply seated fruit. Intensely savoury flavours fill the mouth and roll around the palate in waves showing chocolate, blackberry, spice and tar finishing off to a tomato leaf character. Finish is both long and lingering. This full bodied wine is all about power and intensity without excessive weight or extraction. Rated as Excellent with **** for value based on its anticipated street price of $47.50 on release, it needs time to come together and harmonise.

Orlando can be called many things, but greedy is not one of them. Their wines are well made (from the lowest cost Jacobs Creek to the icons) for their price point. The one thing Orlando can’t seem to do is to market their icons as well as some of the other majors; from my perspective that’s a very positive attribute.

The balance of the rest of my cellar is as follows:-

2. Hardy 4.5%
3. Penfolds 3.9%

4. Wynns 3.6%
5. Leasingham 3.4%

6. Kays 3.0%
7. Tim Adams 2.8%
8. Veritas 2.4%

9. Rockford 2.4%

10 Wendouree 2.2%

And then 147 other producers making up the other 66%.

A very interesting and surprising result indeed.