"TORB Terroir-ises SA" – (The 2004 South Australian Tour Diary) Chapter Three can be found here

Chapter Four – The Barossa – Sunday

When I said goodnight to John, he was in “fine form” and I almost expected to have to go to the pub to kick him out of bed. As I had John’s Shire-owned, stretch limo I got into it, threw my hotel key into the console and drove into town to meet him. 

Much to my surprise, at 8.15 am there he was walking down the street with head held high and a big smile on his dial.   I am really beginning to wonder about the lad, he has got to be faking it and time will tell. I also worried that the usual greasy spoon would be closed that early on Sunday but they were open and ready for business. Now that’s dedication for you and surprisingly enough, there were a number of early morning customers so that early bird is catching worms.

Being slack, I ran out of low-fat milk, so I could not consume my cardboard flavoured cereal before meeting John and had to resort to a bacon and egg roll and coffee for breakfast. In his infinite healthy wisdom, John decided a standard bacon and egg roll was too healthy so today he ordered a two egg and bacon roll to go with his cappuccino and obligatory carton of coffee flavoured moo juice.

The colour at this time of the year is terrific …

Today was Mothers Day and His Pieship had arranged to have flowers delivered to Her Pieship. Over breakfast, John once again “came clean” and acknowledged the reason he comes with me every year over this weekend, in particular, is he avoids going to his out-laws for Mothers Day. Four days with me is less pain than one afternoon with the out-laws.

Then it was off to our first port of call. If you think it is difficult to find wineries to visit on Saturday at 9 am, Sunday is far worse and that was why I arranged to meet Steve Kurtz of Kurtz Family Wines at his parents’ home. In past years this winery has represented some of the best value wines found on the whole trip and I hoped this year would be no exception. The family are long-time growers and a few years ago, Steve started making wine from selected parcels of fruit.

Kurtz Family 2003 GSM (a blend of 60% - 25% - 15%) is available at mates’ rates direct from Steve Kurtz for $130 a case. The nose has a touch of VA with sweet and sour characters. On the palate, it is savoury on the uptake and the slight sweetness is alcohol sweetness rather than from the raspberry flavouring; there is also chocolate, clove, spice and aniseed. Ample in weight, the firm consistency is provided by the smooth, dusty, drying tannins. On the plus side, the wine has a very good mouth-feel and is great value for the buck. On the negative side, it finishes hot and is not the best effort under this label. Rated as Agreeable with ***** for value, it’s an OK quaffer at the price.

Kurtz Family 2002 Boundary Row Shiraz is available at mates’ rates direct from Steve Kurtz for $180 a case. This wine is damn near black with a brooding, black fruity nose with chocolate and savoury cigar box characters. It is full-bodied, has a firm consistency and solid structure. Deep, strong fruit exhibits dark chocolate, blackberry, black plum, prune and clove that finishes with above average persistence. The smooth, almost silky tannins provide a seductive mouth feel but the wine finishes a bit warm and spirity. It is not going to get any better but at this price who cares. Rated as Recommended with ***** for value.

Kurtz Family 2001 Luna Block Shiraz is available at mates’ rates direct from Steve Kurtz for $300 a case. The bouquet is beautifully perfumed fruit and coffee oak. Ultra fine grained tannins are totally unobtrusive and have just enough backbone to hold the wine together and provide a lovely mouth feel. Savoury coffee and clove from the oak combine with sweet underlying red berry fruit and savoury black flavours. Like all the wines from this winery, it is full-bodied, has a solid structure and firm consistency. The complexity is harmonious and agreeable, the wine just slips down and it is ready to be drunk now. Rated as Highly Recommended with **** for value, supply of this wine is limited and it sells out very quickly.

The wines were good, but not as good as I had hoped but given the price, still represent some of the best value around and are worth buying. All can happily be consumed now and do not require further cellaring.

Saltram is just up the road from Kurtz, and thankfully, they open at 10 am on Sunday. No appointment was made but they normally take very good care of me anyway. My long-time contact, Richard had the day off but the girls did the right thing and opened all they could find. Saltram has been owned by Beringer Blass for some time, but for some reason still manages to hold on to its unique identity and, in many ways, still maintains a small to medium winery feel. The restaurant attached, Salters has an excellent reputation and it is worthwhile having a meal there. As we arrived, we were impressed with the JWT winners sign, but more impressed with how it was achieved.

Metala Langhorne 2001 Creek Shiraz Cabernet sells for $17 at CD. Purple in colour with a bright hue, the bouquet was lifted, fruit driven but also showed obvious American oak characters. The pure fruit delivers attractive spicy, almost zingy, red and blue berry spectrum fruit and a liquorice finish of good persistency. Ample in weight, the unobtrusive smooth, dusty tannins provide a supple consistency and it has a harmonious complexity. A good bistro wine that is more than just easy drinking, it is a nice drop. Rated as Recommended with **** for value, it will best be drunk over the next three years.  

Metala 2000 Black Label Shiraz sells for $38 at CD. Initial bottle stink blew off fairly quickly leaving a dumb nose. A good quality, well made, well balanced wine that is reflective of the vintage. The fruit is pure and produces savoury red berry fruit, chocolate and liquorice with a little underlying vanilla sweetness. Abundant, powdery, drying tannins have enough backbone to ensure the wine will last for some years but it is drinking well now. Medium in weight, it has some elegance and an agreeable complexity. Rated as Recommended with ** for value.

The secret to the JWT success? .....

Mamre Brook 2002 Shiraz sells for $25 at CD but can often be found on special for a lot less. Bright and vibrant, dark purple in colour, the bouquet is exciting from the first sniff and shows excellent fruit purity with well-judged vanillin oak. The palate is no slouch either; the wonderful fruit purity is well and truly delivered with a spicy uptake and sweet underlying layer of chocolate and anise. Smooth, dusty tannins back a firm consistency for this solid-weight, well-developed wine. The best under this label for some time, it is rated as Highly Recommended with **** for value and is worth buying. It should also cellar into the medium term.

Mamre Brook 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon sells for $25 at CD. A very clean, well-made wine with abundant smooth, dusty tannins, which are well matched to the pure fruit. It is ample-weight, has a firm consistency and solid structure. Sweet blueberry fruit with savoury chocolate, leafy notes and subtle cigar box characters finish with good persistence. There is a noticeable donut in the mid palate. Rated as Recommended with *** for value it should peak about 2006. 

Saltram 1998 No1 was a back release, which was kindly opened for us; it retails for $85 at CD. The aroma is dominated by coffee/mocha oak with clean fruit below it and a whiff of menthol. The pure, persistent fruit is intensely savoury with cherry, chocolate and coffee and there is some real class to this wine despite its obvious oak. It is squeaky clean, superbly balanced, with a solid wall of smooth drying tannins and ample weight. Complexity is well developed and the structure is solid and layered. Seriously good quality, it is a lovely wine and rated Excellent. Drink after 2008.  

Saltram 2000 No1 retails for $58 at CD. A delightful bouquet that was similar to the 1998 but not as lifted or intense. Although there is a wall of smooth, dusty, drying tannins, the pure fruit is well balanced and resulting weight is only medium. A clean, well-balanced wine with an attractive mouth feel, the flavour profile is very “interesting”. Sweet red berry, plums and milk chocolate flavours are delivered with good length and persistence. An excellent result for the vintage, it is a quality drop that will benefit from another few years in the bottle, which should give the tannins time to integrate. Rated as Excellent with ** for value.

Saltram 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon sells for $25 at CD. This was a back release that came about by buying back stock from a large retailer and it is presumed the storage conditions were not as good as they could have been. The staff admitted there was bottle variation at play and suspected the storage. The nose was somewhat dirty. The wine has developed and shows good varietal Cabernet characters. It is drinking well and demonstrates pleasant sweet fruit and a lovely finish. Ample weight, the complexity is harmonious and the consistency is supple. Rated as Recommended.  

The last couple of visits to this winery were a little rushed and in all honesty I did not walk away very impressed, thinking the wines were a bit patchy. Considering, on this visit, a number of the wines were from the 2000 vintage, one could not say they showed well because of great vintage conditions. I walked away thinking things were under control and they are making very credible wines.

There was talk about the new Eighth Maker Shiraz but as it was an unreleased wine that was not available, it did not mean much at the time. Since then it has been released and received rave reviews. The standout wine was the Mamre Brook 20002 Shiraz, which was very impressive for the price. If the 2002 Cabernet is comparable, it should be in the same league as the 96 and the 98, now there is something to look forward to that is well and truly affordable.

The Cellar Door staff are also to be congratulated. They were thoroughly professional, very friendly and go the extra mile to make visitors welcome. They are also totally honest and don’t come across with a heavy sales pitch, even admitting the bottle variation/storage problem with the 99 Cabernet.

It was a worthwhile stop, made even more so by the coffee! We had a cup at Salters and without doubt, they make the best coffee (that I have drunk) in the area. And I am very critical about coffee.

By the time we had finished this tasting; it was still not quite 11 and we headed off in search of the next open winery. I had plans for a few wineries that afternoon around Marananga, so we headed in the opposite direction towards Rowland Flat. There were a few there we wanted to try. Top of the list was Liebichwein; I have never had any of their wines and was determined to fix that once and for all. We drove up their dirt road, turned into their dirt driveway, followed it past the vines, swung a right past the house, drove down the back and arrived at cellar door just after 11 and it was shut. We rang the bell but there was no answer. I used my shoe phone, dialled their number and was greeted by a bloody answering machine. Just because it is Mothers’ Day is no excuse to not open! Either that or they knew I was coming!!  

John had one of his occasional doses of brain flatulence and suggested we try the Barossa Settlers. We drove up their road and were greeted by a chain across the driveway with a notice saying closed till after lunch. More bloody people with mothers! John then decided that Charles Cimicky would be a good idea. We continued to head southwest to one of the last wineries in that direction, before we got to West Australia. Bloody hell, it looks like Cimicky has a mother too, or is married to one as this place was also closed!!!

Time for my recommendation and although I don’t particularly want to visit the winery, I was willing to bet that Burge Family Wines will be open because from personal experience, I know, Rick Burge is a son of a b…… and doesn’t have a human mother.   In all seriousness, Rick is a good guy and I enjoy his company. Part of the reason for calling into the winery was to make the arrangements for our proposed dinner tonight. I did not think there would be much new to try, as Rick often sends me samples when they become available. We wandered into the CD and tried to act like a couple of normal blokes  and try a few wines, but the young lady on the CD was smart enough to know that we knew our Riedels from our ISO’s. Before calling Rick, there were a couple of wines I wanted to try again. I was very impressed with them on release and wanted to check them again as I was thinking about making a purchase.

Burge Family 2002 Olive Hill is a Shiraz, Grenache, Mourvedre blend (50%/35%/15%) that sells for $29 at CD. A pure, fruit-driven lifted bouquet that is also showing chocolate. My original tasting sheet mentions fruit purity in four places, so I think it means I noticed it and was impressed. The pure fruit drives smooth, dusty, drying tannins in a perfectly balanced, ample weight construction, which is solid now and should be seamless in time. The palate is juicy and luscious, sweet and savoury with the fresh acid cutting thorough to a long finish. Complexity is well developed and this is an impressive GSM. Rated as Highly Recommended with **** for value.

Burge Family 2002 G3 is a Grenache, Shiraz, Mourvedre blend (52%/42%/6%) that sells for $45 at CD. The attribute that instantaneously strikes you about this wine is the perfect construction. Ample in weight, the very smooth, dusty tannins provide great length to the finish, which is also sparkling clean. Chocolate, aniseed, cassis, more chocolate, meat and spice complete a refined package of flavours that entice you to just keep sipping. Rated as Excellent with *** for value, this wine should improve till about 2007.

Whilst I was trying the G3, Rick walked in with his new sidekick, a Jack Russel puppy. I think the puppy was happier to meet me than Rick was to see me again.   However, there were two new wines he wanted me to try and we got stuck straight into them because he had to rush away to have lunch with his family.

Burge Family 2002 D & OH sells at CD for $27. This wine has an interesting history. The wine came about from two sources. The first was when Rick was harvesting he spotted some pretty good fruit, and whilst it was not top notch, it was of a good enough quality to keep separate. There was enough for about 200 cases. That wine would have resulted in a Shiraz dominant blend with 58% Shiraz and the balance Grenache. When he was blending the G3, he had a specific ratio he was shooting for and that left a little Shiraz to spare. Rick selected the least attractive barrels of Shiraz that had been earmarked for the G3, declassified it, and blended it into the already separated stock that was to form the D & OH (Draycott and Olive Hill) label. That produced enough for 300 cases and a 74% Shiraz 26% Grenache blend. 200 cases have gone to the US and the balance will be sold via CD and mailing list, or people who are reading this and ring up and order. The wine was matured in 1, 2 and 3 year old French barrels. Having previously heard the history, I was anxious to try it. 

Purple in colour, the hue is bright and the perfumed aromas emanating from the glass were delightful. There is nothing like pure, strong, fruit combined with well managed French oak and smooth, dusty, drying, grape tannins as the foundations for making a solid, well constructed wine. The fruit is sensational, with juicy flavours on the uptake; the waves of sweet and savoury flavours finish with wonderful persistence. Ample weight, the complexity is sophisticated and well developed. Rated as Highly Recommended with **** for value, it should peak in 2006+

Every once in a while, the Meat Pie King comes up the perfect description for a wine and this one was a classic. When I asked him what he thought of the D & OH, he said, “Perfumed farts in a glass.” 

Burge Family 2002 Clochmerle sells at CD for $16.80. Driven by pure, deep fruit that is intensely flavoured, the chocolate and blue spectrum flavours finish with persistence. Tannins are unobtrusive and combine with the harmonious complexity to form a clean and well-constructed wine. This is more than just a bistro wine, it has some class. It is also dangerous as it would be very easy to ‘get pissed quick’ as it gurgles past the tonsils. Rated as Recommended with ***** for value. 

No one can accuse Rick Burge of following convention and being a slave to what others think, or even following conventional wisdom. Firstly, when many wineries are making a ‘Reserve’ to boost their image he dropped the Draycott Reserve. The rationale was that the best parcels of fruit should go into the normal Draycott and that he did not need a ‘Reserve’ to boost his image or bottom line.

The next bit of unconventional, do your own thing, happened with the 75^th anniversary of the family being in the wine business. He decided to make a ‘special’ wine to commemorate the event. Most people would assume he would lead with his strength and what was most popular; a top flight Shiraz. What does Rick produce? The G3, which is a GSM blend.

And then we have the Clochmerle. Most sane winemakers would make a Grenache/Shiraz blend, or even a Shiraz/Cabernet blend, but what does Rick do? He makes a Grenache Cabernet blend and guess what? It works!

You certainly have to respect a person who has the courage of his convictions, does it his own way and does not chase the latest fashion trend. All of that and he is modest to a fault and makes damn good wine too.

Time flies when you are having fun and we were having fun with Rick but he had to race off for lunch, even winemakers must celebrate Mothers’ Day at Pie O’clock. As we drove back through Tanunda I threw the anchor out of the council-owned stretch pie mobile, which just happened to wrap itself around the tree outside my favourite deli that sells real sandwiches. His Pieship had no alternative to stopping as I threatened him with grievous bodily injury if he took us back to yesterday’s lunch spot. I ordered a salad roll and a bottle of tomato juice and headed off to the gents and left John to pay. I am generous in that regard.

When I got back, his Pieship had two square hunks of pastry in front of him and when he bit into the first; I could not help noticing some strange creamy, off-white looking runny material. I asked John what they were and he grunted something about chooks and my suspect parentage. It turns out that John has eaten here twice in three days and has been forced to endure chicken pies on both occasions. But at least they had not run out of coffee flavoured moo juice so he wasn’t totally devastated.

By now the Pie King knew that her Pieship would be up and around, so he called to make sure all was OK. The Pie Kid answered the phone and told him that the flowers he had ordered for Sue had not arrived. In passing, The Pie Kid also said they had been up to Blewitt Springs and had a look at the property that had been mentioned the day prior. I think I am beginning to see a picture forming here but John is too busy having fun with me to worry about something as incidental as a possible house move.

There were a few wineries planned for this afternoon but there was time available to take potluck on a couple. I have seen some positive comments on the Pheasant Farm and Beer Brothers wines. For those that don’t know, Maggie Beer is a household name in Australia, originally because of her paté but now for a range of fine dining products. The Beer’s purchased their property in the Barossa in 1973 and some time ago, they established a Farm Shop and it expanded into a restaurant. When they bought the property, it had vines and the grapes were sold to Yalumba and others. In the early days the plantings were expanded and in 1999 they made their first commercial wine.

Their establishment is certainly located in a beautiful spot. It is set on the bank of a huge dam. In fact, it is more like a lake, with deep, sparkling, crystal clear water. Judging by the lunch crowd, it is a popular venue and you can eat inside or sit outside at one of the lawn tables. The building layout is interesting. There are three distinct segments to the operation. The first is the restaurant area. The second is the “farm products’ sales area and the third is the wine tasting area. The restaurant was busy with a sea of wafting food smells that would make our wine tasting difficult due to the conflicting aromas.

We headed up to the wine bar area and were greeted by a very pleasant young lady who had obviously been schooled in what to say. The wine serves are, for once in my life I will be polite and say, “small.”

Pheasant Farm 1999 Cabernet Shiraz sells for $20 at CD. As the wine was poured our host proceeded to tell me exactly what I would find in the glass. Obviously I look like I cannot work it out for myself.   After sniffing the wine a few times I said to our host, “this wine is oxidised.” She looked at me with a straight face and said…………….

…..Wait for it………

…..It’s coming………

“Yes!” And then proceeded to tell me more about how good the wine was.

Next wine please!

Pheasant Farm 2001 Home Block Shiraz sells for $25 at CD. Dark purple, the colour is delightful. Muscular in weight, the minimal tannins and pure fruit combine to form a silky consistency and seamless structure. Intense, ripe, plummy fruit and milk chocolate have good persistence but finish short on the back palate. The wine has a great mouth feel and is as smooth as top of my head. It is totally juggable and is rated as Highly Recommended with **** for value. The rating is not due its great quality or seriousness but for its sluttish enjoyment factor. John could get arrested for what he said he wanted to do with this wine.

Beer Bros 2002 Old Vines Shiraz sells for $47 at CD. The fruit comes from 40 years old Siegersdorf vines and the dark purple, bright colour instantly stained the glass. Distinct, strong fruit with minimal tannins of muscular weight combine to produce a silky mouth feel, seamless structure and soft consistency. The refreshing acid does a good job of cutting though a veritable fruit-bomb sweetness of intense chocolate, caramel and plums. Complexity is agreeable and harmonious. This wine is also totally juggable and on account of its lusciousness is rated Highly Recommended with ** for value. If you like this style of wine, the Farm Block is far better value.

It looks like the Pie King is not handling the pace well. He has been making noises about dropping him off at his hotel so he can have an afternoon siesta. I made polite noises in return, saying it is possible, knowing I was not going to let the bastard off that easily. It looks like he may have had “a cleansing ale” last night after all and the morning’s bravado has just been a big front. Nope, time to make the King suffer because I am a caring, sharing sort of guy.

In fact he did not even come into the next winery with me and stayed in the car and pouted.

From Pheasant Farm it was back up the road to Langmeil Winery. I have never had a great deal of luck with this winery for two reasons. The first is bad timing. When I visit in May, there is normally not a huge amount left to taste. I also frequently find heavy char and black spectrum flavours that are not to my personal taste, however given the reputation of the winery keep going back.

Langmeil 2001 The 5th Wave Grenache sells for $28 at CD. This is a solid, ample weight wine with lots of powdery, drying tannins that provide a firm, but supple backbone. The obvious fruit is sweet on the uptake, which immediately goes savoury, with raspberry/strawberry and milk chocolate flavours. The lively acid slams a swathe through the underlying sweetness and the flavours finishes with good persistence. Rated as Recommended with ** for value.

Langmeil 2002 Valley Floor Shiraz sells for $22.50 at CD. VA, cigar box and slight char was immediately evident on the bouquet. The palate was a complete surprise with surprisingly sweet, red berry fruit on the uptake with an immediate influence of savoury, charry oak which finishes with persistence to liquorice and milk chocolate. The unobtrusive tannins hold it together and finish dry and the acid is fresh and lively. Ample in weight, the wine will have mass appeal due to its lovely mouth feel and fruit. The acid should ensure it lasts for a few years too. Rated as Recommended with *** for value.

What can I say about the next winery? It has been two years since I visited Two Hands. At that time, the tasting was carried out in a winery they were in the process of building at Marananga. Now, two years later, lots of changes have been made and barrels of money have been spent. I have no idea what happened to the winery they were building at Marananga; they are building another new one here at Seppeltsfield. There is also a new Cellar Door facility, although I am not sure “facility” is the right word. Let me explain.

Michael Twelftree has taken an antique cottage (over 100 years old) and turned it into what looks like a brand new, modern building, but that building is like no other cellar door in the Barossa; in fact it is like no other CD in Australia. Whether you love it or hate it, it has raised the level of appointment in wine tasting facilities to a new height. The outside of the building looks like a brand new modern cottage with clean lines. The inside is something else. Walk through the door (John had to duck his head) and be prepared to be gob smacked! Is this a wine tasting facility, a futuristic, small art gallery or a corporate boardroom? It looks to be combination of all of these things. Sleek, sophisticated, classy, modern, pleasing to the eye, brilliantly designed, functional – all these adjectives and superlatives describe it accurately.

Music, mood lighting, colour and computers have all been put to good use but the slick look and feel does not end with the amenities. I don’t know where Michael found his staff, but those two ladies know their stuff, do not miss a trick, are entirely tuned to their customer’s reactions and could sell porn at a Mormon convention. At one stage, I made a comment to John about needing coffee later. Within two minutes, I had a short black espresso in front of me. Now that is smart work. The operation is designed to take wine marketing to a new level and there is no doubt Michael has achieved what he has set out to do.  

It has been said by staff in competitive wineries that Two Hands has raised the bar and that all other cellar doors pale by comparison, and to some extent, that is true. However, some people do like the old, traditional look of facilities like, for example, Peter Lehmann or the rustic Langmeil winery. All these styles have their place, but anyone aspiring to compete with the Two Hands style and go “one better,” will not find it easy. The minimalist, stark and clean Jacobs Creek Visitors Centre, that is only a couple of years old, pales into insignificance in comparison with Two Hands.

Very clever marketing has seen the introduction of a large range of wines, most of which are fairly limited in supply. Production will be capped at 10,000 cases. The supply shortage ensures the price can be maintained at a high level more easily, especially in the status conscious American market. The Garden Series is their premium series and contains six wines from different areas: McLaren Vale, Langhorne Creek, Barossa, Clare, Padthaway and Heathcote. And then there is the Ares at $120. The Picture Series is the lower cost range and contains, amongst other things, wines from Barossa, McLaren Vale and are mainly (but not exclusively) Shiraz, and Grenache based. This series also contains project wines. I notice from their web site that these “project wines” are referred to as “'Show Room only wines.” That will give a snippet of an idea about the different approach taken by this winery to marketing their wines.

Two Hands 2002 Tyre Kickers is a Shiraz (60%) Cabernet blend that sells for $18 and is available only to CD and mailing list customers. Excellent fruit purity drives this drop and delivers fresh, deep, savoury fruit with chocolate, mulberry and subtle liquorice. It is an easy-drinking style with a good mouth feel, a very agreeable complexity and flavour profile. Rated as Recommended with **** for value.  

Two Hands 2003 Angle’s Share sells for $25 at CD. This is a McLaren Vale Shiraz matured for 10 months in (30% new) American oak. Attractive raspberry and milk chocolate nose leads to a palate with very sweet upfront raspberry fruit, which is sliced by the fresh acid. It is clean with ample weight; the consistency is supple and the harmonious complexity and almost seamless structure makes this a ridiculously easy drinking wine. Rated as Recommended with ** for value.

Two Hands 2003 Yesterday’s Hero sells for $35 at CD. This is Barossa Grenache with 6% Shiraz and is a “project” wine. On the plus side this wine has an excellent mouth feel. The tannins are well judged and provide enough backbone to hold it together. Lolly sweet strawberry is offset with minimal savoury flavours and youthful acid. Medium in weight, the consistency is soft and some people will just love it but to my way of thinking it would be a lot better with a greater Shiraz component. Rated as Agreeable with ** for value.

Two Hands 2003 Brave Faces is a Shiraz Grenache blend that sells for $32.50 at CD. Fruit driven, there is enough very fine, drying tannins to hold it together. Savoury chocolate dominates sweet, but not too sweet, strawberry, which finishes to milk chocolate and subtle liquorice. Ample weight with fresh acid, the well-developed complexity produces an interesting flavour profile. A very nice wine with an attractive mouth feel it is rated Recommended with ** for value and the rating may go up in the next year or two.

Two Hands 2002 Bull and Bear is a Shiraz (55%) Cabernet blend that sells for $45 at CD. Matured for 16 months is mainly French oak, 25% of it was new. A very seductive wine, from the first sniff, all the way through to the sigh, when you finish. Pure, deep, strong fruit fills the palate with waves of rich, blackberry, plums, chocolate and prune flavours that finish with great length and persistence. It is a full-bodied wine with an intricate complexity. The good news is the mouth feel will get even better as the very-fine, dusty, drying tannins resolve further. It is drinking well now and I don’t know if it will improve but it will certainly hold for some time. Rated as Highly Recommended (and extra points for hedonistic appeal) with *** for value.

Two Hands 2000 Sophie’s Garden is a Padthaway Shiraz that I first tried almost 3 years ago which Michael was kind enough to let me try again. Well constructed and balanced, the fruit is pure and the dusty tannins are very smooth. (As pleasant as the mouth feel is, it seems almost coarse by comparison to the previous wines. That does not mean this is a bad wine, it just shows how the wine making has changed since the first wines were produced.) Muscular weight, the consistency is firm and the structure solid. Savoury blackcurrant, blueberry, milk chocolate and mint provide a harmonious flavour profile. It is drinking well now and is a lovely wine that will only get better but it does finish a fraction hot and it is rated as Highly Recommended. 

After I typed up this tasting note, I looked back at my original note and in part, it said “It’s slightly one dimensional with an uncomplicated level of complexity but the structure is downright seamless. The acid is softer than the McLaren Vale offering and I wouldn’t bother to cellar this wine, just drink it now and enjoy it for what it has to offer. It’s not a “serious” wine, but it is very seriously juggable, it just slides down. Grab the moment with this one and watch it disappear. Rated as Recommended with *** for value, but that belittles the sheer juggability.” Interesting to see how it has developed. 

Two Hands 2002 Bella’s Garden is a Barossa Shiraz, which sells for $55 at CD. A well-made muscular wine with a firm consistency, solid structure and well-developed, harmonious complexity. Pure, deep fruit, refreshing acid and smooth, drying tannins have been well put together. The initial raspberry sweetness is layered with savoury, off spicy fruit and milk chocolate that travels across the palate in layers of waves. Whilst it is drinking nicely now, the wine needs about another 4+ years to show its best. Rated as Excellent with *** for value. 

It was interesting to go back and see this winery again. All the wines have been designed with mouth feel and “drinkability” in mind. The wines are stylistically similar but the top end wines seem a little different as they are more serious. In the past, I (and at least one other person) have been critical about the value of the Two Hands wines. On this visit, whilst only one wine represents great value, and overall whilst the wines are still not cheap, they are not as far from the mark as they were a few years ago.

It was an enjoyable experience and Michael Twelftree is certainly shaking some competitive bushes with his new cellar door and savvy marketing.

As cynical and as objective as I try to be, even I must have been influenced, to some degree, by these surroundings.

His Pieship thoroughly enjoyed Two Hands but was still bitching about needing a siesta.   He was also worried about the Mothers’ Day flowers arriving for Mrs Pie King and rang the Pie Kid yet again, to see if they were there. All this concern and I am starting to wonder if he really does love Her Pieship after all and is not just “feigning interest in his family” – his word, not mine.  

The next winery on the agenda was Torbreck Vintners and that seemed to buck John up again. This winery needs no introduction as larger-than-life Dave Powell has built an awesome reputation for his wines. Last year I did an extensive interview with Dave so this year it was just a case of tasting the wines. There are only so many wines in a day that I can taste so I decided to give the low-end wines a miss and go straight into the good stuff.

Torbreck 2002 The Struie sells for $46 at CD. I was looking forward to trying this wine as my mate Brian had found some at an unbelievable price a month previously and had purchased some for me on spec. The wine is a blend of 1/3 Eden Valley and 2/3 Barossa Valley fruit. Plums and spice dominate the bouquet but the 20% new oak does have some influence. The fruit in this wine is seriously good! It is pure, deep, strong and concentred delivering savoury black flavours, chocolate, tar, aniseed and plum with fantastic length across the palate. Ultra-fine drying tannins and fresh acid add the rest of the components for a solid, tight structure, firm consistency and sophisticated complexity. It is a full-bodied wine and although it is youthful, with its silky mouth feel it drinks well now but has the structure to age beautifully. Rated as Excellent with *** for value, the rating may increase as the wine matures around 2008. I fell in lust with this wine and to my way of thinking it represents the best buy in the whole Torbreck line up.

Torbreck 2002 The Descendant sells for $125 at CD. This Shiraz has 8% Viognier co-fermented and most regular readers will know that generally I am not a great fan of this style unless it has been particularly well managed. In reality, I did not expect to like it very much, even if it was good. This wine is a big, illegitimate offspring with more front than Dolly Parton. Very fine, slamming, drying tannins suck the tonsils out the back of your throat but it is OK, the fruit is pure, deep and strong enough to manage it. Despite the 8% Viognier, the flavours are savoury with little noticeable influence from the Viognier but the fruit will need years to emerge from under the oak and tannin. Complexity is diverse and sophisticated. This is a seriously well balanced and structured wine that is right up there with the best of them. Rated as Excellent with *** for value (by the scruff of its neck), the rating should improve as the wine matures around 2012. What can I say; I bought three bottles because they will eventually be great in options games. 

Torbreck 2002 The Factor sells for $125 at CD. Cropped at about ½ ton to the acre, the fruit comes from Moppa and Kanunga Hill and has been aged in 30% new French oak. The bouquet is bloody good but it is brooding, like a spoilt little rich kid that refuses to come out of their room. Sweet raspberry and cherry on the attack, with a savoury mid palate of plums, blackcurrant, tar and mint; the complexity is wonderful. It is a very classy, full-bodied wine with abundant, drying, puckering tannins and distinct fruit. Locked up tight at the moment, it is rated as Excellent with ** for value.  

Torbreck 2001 Run Rig sells for $187.50 at CD. The 97% Shiraz component spent two and a half years 65% new French oak. Something I did not know was that the 3% Viognier only spends six months in oak and is added just prior to bottling. The bouquet is truly seductive and the Viognier effect is overt. However on the palate, it is covert. There is a skirmish between competing flavours; the top layer is savoury through and through but there is an underlying layer of sweet, very ripe fruit. Blackberry, apricot and dark chocolate finish with extraordinary length. Puckering, dusty tannins, refreshing acid and deep, strong fruit combine to form a full-bodied, solid wine that should be very long lived. Rated as Excellent with ** for value now, the rating may improve when you open this around 2010.   

A fine line up of quality wines, my picks, with value in mind, is The Struie followed by The Descendant. The Factor and Run Rig, whilst fine wines, did not tempt me for one second.

Did the Pie King spit the Torbreck wines? Does a duck have big lips?  It may explain why he was suddenly in such a good mood and not bitching about being tired. John also knew our last appointment for the day was at another Barossa icon winery, Veritas. I love tasting there, as Rolf Binder is always exceedingly generous with the range of wines offered for tasting. He also leaves me alone to get on with it and does not try to influence me in any way during the tasting. After I have completed the line up, we then discuss the findings. We were due at the winery at 4.00 on Sunday afternoon, which was great as not too many people are prepared to talk to me at that time. Just after we walked into the winery, the phone went and it was Rolf saying he was delayed but we should go ahead and start. So we grabbed some glasses from Jonathan (on CD duty) and proceeded to get stuck into the line up. About half an hour later, Rolf joined us.

Veritas 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot sells for $18 at CD. Ripe strawberry fruit with some char of the bouquet leads to a palate of spice, lovely chocolate, more spice and strawberry. Dusty, drying tannins and obvious fruit provides a solid backbone for this, medium-weight, good “drinking wine” with an agreeable complexity. Rated as Recommended with **** for value, this was a good way to start the tasting.

J.J. Hahn 2002 Reginald is a blend of Shiraz and Cabernet that sells for $25 at CD. Dusty oak and tea leaves on the bouquet. Ample in weight, the wine seems “clunky” and a bit disjointed; hopefully in time it will come together. The flavours are savoury, that is typical varietal Cabernet, and added chocolate. A bit short on the palate, the wine is rated as Agreeable with ** for value.

Veritas 2003 Christa Rolf Shiraz Grenache sells for $20 at CD and is bottled with a Stelvin cap. An unusual combination of spice and raspberry on the nose leads to an attractive flavour profile on the palate. Sweet raspberry, white pepper, mild cloves, and chocolate lingers in the mouth. The wall of very fine, drying tannins needs a couple of years to soften and integrate. Medium-weight, the wine is still tight and has a very solid consistency. Rated as Recommended with *** for value.

Magpie Estate 2002 Gomersal Grenache sells for $40 at CD. Purple in colour with a bright hue, the aroma is attractive and classy. None of your lolly water here; this is a serious Grenache with a serious price tag. Ample in weight, the structure is tight. That is no surprise as the smooth, very fine, drying tannins and pure, deep fruit combine to form a well-built, well balanced, rock solid wine that has obviously had Rolls Royce treatment. Milk chocolate and subtle raspberry/strawberry fruit finishes long. Rated as Highly Recommended with ** for value, the wine should hit its peak about 2007+. (As good as this may be, I still do not understand the attraction of straight Grenache.)

Veritas 2002 Bulls Blood sells for $35 at CD and is a Shiraz with Mourvedre pressings. This wine is frequently overlooked in this winery’s line-up, which is a shame as it is always good and reasonably priced too. The aromatics are lifted and idiosyncratic. The very fine, smooth, drying tannins produce a delightful mouth feel and firm backbone. The pure, distinct fruit produces dark plums, blackberry, black cherry, tar and aniseed, which has both excellent length on the palate and persistent aftertaste. Complexity is sophisticated, the weight muscular, and in short, it is a sensational wine that just begs another glass. Stands out in any line up and will be good with food. Rated as Highly Recommended with **** for value, the rating should improve as the wine matures. It must be good - John bought a six-pack.

Magpie 2003 The Sack Shiraz sells for $25 at CD. Purple in colour with a bright hue, the pure, deep fruit is perfumed with violets and red berry fruit. With enough tannins to tie the package together, the wine is ample in weight and has a supple, silky consistency. An easy drinking, “party in a bottle”, with plum, red spectrum fruit and chocolate flavours. You get a sackful of fruit for the buck that finishes with terrific persistence. Rated as Recommended with **** for value. 

Veritas 2003 Shiraz (Cellar Door) sells for $20. Although the nose smells confected and sweet, it does not translate through to the taste. The deceptive palate is reasonably savoury with milk and dark chocolate that finishes with refreshing acid and drying tannins. Its attractive, easy drink nature and reasonable length finish makes you want to come back for more. Not a great wine but enjoyable for what it is, it is rated as Recommended with **** for value.

J.J. Hahn 2002 1928 Vines Shiraz sells for $40 at CD. Tannins have been well judged and there is some class to this wine. The fruit is buried by the coffee-flavoured oak at this stage and it is incredibly tight. Initial sweet strawberry/raspberry fruit is offset by coffee and very dark chocolate that finishes with good length and persistence. The consistency is firm but supple and the structure is layered. I think this wine is good, but it is almost impossible to judge it at this stage.

Veritas 2002 Heysen Shiraz is an export only wine and sells for US$30+ or about £15. A delightful bouquet with sexy coffee and great fruit. The deceptive, drying, almost silky tannins (which don’t suck your tonsils out) combine with refreshing acid and deep, strong fruit to produce a wonderfully structured muscular wine. Coffee, plums, milk chocolate and dark chocolate fill the mouth with heaps of flavour and finish with excellent length. On first opening, it was very tight but the beauty of this baby’s construction could be seen by a blind man. Rated as Highly Recommended with **** for value, the rating should improve as the wine matures around 2008+. 

Magpie 2002 Election Shiraz sells for $60 at CD. A dark, brooding nose with dusty oak shows through on the palate with chocolate, coffee, plums, spice and blackberry. Now this is wine that doesn’t need an intravenous drip to be enjoyed. A luxurious mouth feel comes from silky, slightly drying tannins and the pure, deep strong fruit finishes with the length and persistence that would satisfy any wine slut. Full bodied but not heavy, complexity is diverse and the structure is rock solid and tight. Drinking well now, it should improve over the next few years, it is rated as Excellent with *** for value. It is not all show; there is some class to it too. In an election, if this was on the ballot paper, it would be elected minister for family planning.

Veritas 2002 Hanisch Shiraz sells for $95. When the bottle was first opened, the bouquet was lifted and a little alcoholic and not showing much at all. A wall of fine-grain tannin submerged the pure fruit but the wonderful structure was obvious. The flavour profile is in the black spectrum, tar, cloves and blackberry that finished with excellent length. It is a full-bodied wine with a firm consistency that is very tight and needs about six years to show its stuff. Rated as Excellent with ** for value, the rating should increase as the wine matures. I had the benefit of trying this with dinner a few hours later and got a better look at its true colours. The fruit started to emerge and showed beautiful, rich chocolate. I certainly would like to try this again a few years.  

The use of French oak in the last three wines was obvious and in all honesty, they are all the better for it. Rolf, who is larger than life, has an awesome reputation as a winemaker. In the late 90’s, some of his wines were over the top and they gained the attention of Mr Parker. The legend was made with the 1998 Hanisch when it scored 99 points. It is pleasing to see the current wines are moving away from that over the top style. Rolf’s wines are better for it but in the process the Veritas top-end house-style is not as tight as it could be. Hopefully with time, this will improve and the wines will become more consistent. When you have a look at wines like the Bulls Blood and Magpie Election, which Rolf makes, whilst the styles are very different to the Hanisch and Heysen, the former wines seem to have better stylistic consistency. Hopefully, the Hanisch and Heysen can improve further over time. The Hanisch price certainly dictates that it needs to keep up with the others in this exulted price bracket.

On another topic, Rolf was extremely excited about 2004 and feels it will be as good for him as 1996. He was never as enthusiastic as many other producers about either 1998 or 2002. 

After we finished the tasting and discussed the wines, it was time for dinner. His Pieship rang The Pie Kid (yet again) to see if the flowers for Mrs Pie King, which had been promised for delivery in the morning, had arrived yet. As he was on the shoe phone, I drove to the restaurant. After a sickening display of feigning affection for his only offspring, he proceeded to produce a ”lovey dovey” performance of academy award winning standards with Mrs Pie King. Having to listen to that performance was sickening but at least it was on an empty stomach so I did not throw up.

… …….. Rick Burge

We had arranged to meet at the 1918 Restaurant in the main street of Tanunda. We parked the car at John’s hotel and walked back to the restaurant and shortly after we had been seated, Rick Burge staggered in under the weight of a box of wine filled with all sorts of things, including some samples. Last year when I ate here, the food was not that great, it was OK but not up to the price. We were taking the risk for two reasons. Firstly, you have to live dangerously and secondly, it was conveniently located.  Rolf was also going to join us, but had to go home first and get his leave pass stamped by Linda, so he had arranged to meet us later.

I had the starter size of the Antipasto. It was awesome! Both in terms of quality, which was outstanding, and size, which was disgusting, but being a little piggy, I enjoyed every morsel. Salt and pepper squid, pitta bread, green and black olives, cornichons, prawns and avocado (and not just one tiny one either), asparagus and hollandaise, roasted walnuts, curried potatoes, tzatzaki, red capsicum in olive oil and ham. This starter size was a meal in itself.

For the main course I had ½ a large duck with wilted spinach, baby onions and a rich sauce. It was perfectly cooked and delicious. The service was also attentive and thorough. The bill averaged about $50 for two courses including a tip and corkage, very good value and a welcome return to form for this restaurant. I would be happy to eat here again.

With dinner, we revisited some of the wines that we had tried earlier in the day at both Veritas and Burge Family. Without exception, they were far better after airtime.

The first sample that we tried was the Burge Family 2003 Old Vines Garnacia. This is an old vine Grenache that has been blended but is still in wood. Fruit is behind the wheel and it is a better driver than his Pieship. The fruit is also doing the talking and makes more sense than much of what the Pie King has to say. The wine has a lovely mouth feel, it is rich with chocolate, plum and raspberry that finishes dry and warm. Muscular in weight, there is s touch of hardness on the palate but it is still very drinkable. Rated as Recommended, the rating may be better when it is finished.

Burge Family 2003 The Renoux is a 2/3 Cabernet, Shiraz and Merlot blend. First impression is that the wine has a terrific structure and a drying finish. You can tell it is seriously good, despite the fruit having been subdued by sulphur. It is well balanced with good length and persistence but totally closed down. The fruit is obviously top quality, showing sweet berry, chocolate, leafy notes, cigar box and tea. I would like to try it once it has settled down and gets over being pillaged by Rick.

Rick also brought two imported jobs. The first was an “interesting” Spanish wine and we drank about half the bottle but no one had a second glass. There was also an oddity presented by Rick (but I guess that is not unusual as he is an odd sort of a guy, just my sort of person. )

The wine was a 2001 Italian Cabernet Sauvignon from Tuscany. That is a bit like a wide-mouth frog, you don’t see too many of them around. It was a good wine but not great and absolutely revolting value at $125. It was more like a ripe Shiraz than a varietal Cabernet. No more details on the wine as at this point, after a hard day, I just wanted to sit back and enjoy the dinner.

Even though there are no more notes from this dinner, I have to mention Rick’s secret passion. Prior to having his own winery, he did a stint in Rutherglen and developed an obsession for fortified wines. On previous occasions (after a few glasses of wine) we have discussed this topic and he promised to let me in on a few “special drops” he could get hold of that were not generally available. He also threatened to ensure that I got some of them and it is just as well I didn’t hold my breath as I would have died years ago as I am still waiting for the inside poop.

Being a frustrated fortified winemaker is no fun, so Rick has stuck his gout infected big toe into the pond and produced a fortified wine of his own, but it is hush hush and I promised not to tell anyone about it. Please make sure you keep this confidential and don’t tell a soul. Only Rick could come up with a blend of Shiraz, Touriga and Souzao for an Australian “Port”. At this stage, he did not know if he should turn it into an upmarket Ruby Port or make a VP and he wanted our opinion. Why, I don’t know as John is just an old soak and I am ….

His new fortified is rich and delicious and both John and I agreed it should eventually be released as a VP and not downgraded to a Ruby. It will be many years till it sees the light of day but in the meantime, Rick will release some other fortified wines. Oh, and the name of the drop we tried, well as it is a blend of Shiraz, Touriga and Souzao, Rick thought it should be called by its abbreviated name, Shi.T.S.

After a great night, John walked back to his hotel and Rick was kind enough to drop me off at mine. As we drove into the driveway, I reached into my pocket for my hotel room key and then remembered throwing it into the console of the pie-mobile. So Rick drove me back into town and dropped me outside the Tanunda pub. The big question was where would I find John? The chances are he would he be propping up the bar? Damn, the bar was almost empty and no sign of his Pieship. I asked the publican what room he was in and wandered up the stairs. Needless to say, John was surprised to see me but I sprung him good and properly. Now I know why he can’t take the pace during the day. It’s not the “cleansing ale” that attracts him to the pub, it is not even a lady discreetly stashed in his room that he does not want me (let alone Sue) to know about. Those reasons I could understand. He stays in the pub because he is secretly addicted to Fox Sports, which is piped into every room! Oh, the shame of it all!

After having been “sprung”, John handed over the keys to the Council owned stretch pie wagon and, as I had not had much to drink, I drove it back to my hotel where I had a well earned, good night’s sleep. Naturally John was up for half of what was left of the night watching sumo jelly wrestlers or guinea pig races, or something equally as riveting. Oh the shame of it all.

So who won the Guinea Pig Derby at Epson Downs? Tune in next week to find out.

Copyright © Ric Einstein 2004

Chapter Four can be found here

Click here for home page