"TORB Terroir-ises SA" – (The 2004 South Australian Tour Diary)

Chapter One - Introduction

Last year I said it was the biggest trip that I have undertaken and although this year’s trip was also nine days, it has resulted in even more tasting notes. There are about 240 comprehensive notes taken at wineries, as well as impressions of wines noted with dinners. But, as Tim Shaw says, “Wait, there is more!” Lots more in this case; quotes that will have you in stiches, interesting anecdotes, the usual array of pictures and some new discoveries. 

This Tour Diary will be huge so it will be broken down into chapters, which will be posted in weekly instalments on torbwine.com. All the tasting notes will be individually uploaded in the Tasting Note Data Base for easy future searching.

On this trip, I made more appointments than usual. I am delighted to advise that a number of wineries were very generous and allowed me to try unreleased wine, in some cases, years off release. Tasting notes for all these wines should prove invaluable when planning future purchases and with the proliferation of new wines coming out, you can never have enough information.

The generosity and hospitality exhibited by the majority of the wineries I visit never fails to amaze me, so it would be remiss of me not to thank the many wineries that went to so much trouble and effort to make my visit a memorable one. Without them, there would be no story and I truly appreciate their honesty and candour when answering difficult questions.

Prior to getting into the story proper, it is important to put things in perspective and to do that lets quickly examine the characteristics of the past few vintages. If you have not read my recent report on “Vintage Perspectives in South Australia”, click here now.

The TORB Rating System as always has been used throughout these notes. If you are unfamiliar with the TORB Rating System, it worth spending a minute or two becoming familiar with it; click here for details. It is important to understand that I am a very hard marker.

Day One Thursday - McLaren Vale

The dogs and shop had been left in Lynne’s very capable hands the day prior. Take-off time was an easy 9.45 so it was a relaxing start to the day. I had slept at my fathers’ place in Sydney the previous night because it is easier than fighting my way into the city during peak hour. Dad offered me breakfast but I declined, deciding to get to the airport early so I could get an exit row seat with long legroom. Mission accomplished so it was time for breakfast, a sushi pack and a cup of espresso. By this time, I am normally on my second strong espresso. Like all airport food, the sushi pack was edible and the coffee drinkable, but not great.

The airfare to Adelaide and return to Sydney was the princely sum of $238, which is amazingly cheap. Virgin Blue certainly has been fantastic for the travelling public. The plane was about one third empty and I had a vacant seat next to me so there was loads of room and I took the opportunity to have twenty-eight winks. We touched down ahead of schedule and I did a bolter to the rental car counter and picked up a Lancer sedan for nine days at a cost of $338, which is also reasonable. By the time the paperwork was completed, my luggage had gotten dizzy on the carousel.

A word of caution here when hiring a car, always check for dings and scratches before you drive away. On the last two occasions I have rented cars from Europcar there have been marks on the paintwork that had not been listed on the paperwork.

My first appointment was at 1.00 pm at Fonthill. When I turned on my mobile phone, it beeped at me and there was a message from Lynne saying she needed to talk to me urgently, which was not a good start.  As I was pushed for time, I was naughty and phoned her whilst I was driving, resulting in a missed turn and an eight-kilometre detour.

There had been a solar eclipse two nights previously and I now know why they call it a “lunar” event. Item one, a ”large” lady (in my shop) had tried to walk between two stands that a thin person would have trouble getting through, even without the bird cage that is used to block it off. Result, one large display stand on the deck with a large woman on top if it. The stand had come off second best. Item two; some Persian kittens had come in from a very reliable, quality breeder who had sent them by overnight pet courier. The kittens were sick and the vet did not want us to sell them for 10 days, assuming they got better. Item three, Lynne had just noticed a small crack in the shop front window (which ten days previously had been smashed by vandals and replaced.) Item four, Lynne’s back, which had been bad for the past few weeks, had gotten a lot worse, and she had gone home to rest it. This is not a good start to the trip.

The effect of the sushi pack had worn off and as I was going to be spending the next four days with the Meat Pie King of South Australia (aka John Davis) I desperately needed to get some real and half way healthy food into me. So, when I spotted a Subway I did a wheelie into their car park for a quick fix. Last year I made the almost fatal (unintentional) mistake of having raw onion on a sandwich, which can mess up the palate for hours. I stressed no onion of the sub! Gave the guy a $20 and some shrapnel and he gave me change for a $5. Not a bad trick (if you can get away with it) and he said he felt sure I had given him $5. As I use a money clip that puts an almost permanent fold in our plastic Pacific Monopoly money, I showed him another of my folded notes and asked him to pull out the top $20 from the till. It had the same fold so I got my change. I really did not need this crap at the start of my ‘holiday’.

Whilst I was eating my Sub, 707 (aka Steve Norman aka South American Drug Tsar – more on that later) rang me to find out if I would be on time as he was to meet me at Fonthill. After almost choking on a bit of onion, which I swallowed quickly, whilst speaking to Steve, it was back into the silver dart for the trip up to the Peninsula. On the way, it was evident how dry the countryside was and as I approached McLaren Vale, I pulled off the road to take a picture. With a mighty squeak of brakes and puff of dust a ‘hoon mobile’ pulled up near me with no other than 707 himself at the wheel. The last time I saw him, he was driving a clapped out old bomb that would not pull the skin off custard.

The entrance to Fonthill Winery is at the very start of the main drag into McLaren Vale. When we pulled into the property, I could not imagine what Steve was up to, this long derelict building looked like it had recently become a construction zone. How could a winery operate out of this ramshackle mess? Mohammed Ansaar provided the answer: it does not but in time it will. The wines are made elsewhere and the majority of supply is currently exported. Mohammed is an interesting guy. He came from Fiji with a family history and background in sugar cane farming and went to Adelaide University. After graduating he wound up with the Willunga Council. In 1997 took a redundancy package. Having sugar in the blood, so to speak, as he could not grow sugar cane in SA, and he did not want to move to Queensland, he bought some land and planted ten acres of grapes.

Cellar Door Under Construction .....

As he is basically a farmer, he takes a farming view to his winemaking enterprise. The first part of his philosophy, like all good farmers, is to grow good crops, in this case wine grapes. He uses an interesting trellising system called TK2T (for short), which produces a large sunlight surface catchment area with the added benefit of a lower canopy density. They now have eighty acres planted with the usual mainstream varieties as well as all sorts of obscure varieties. The aim is to propagate, commercialise, and expand the market for these minor varieties. Much of the fruit is sold to d’Arenberg and there is an obvious close relationship between the two enterprises. Current production of wine is a whopping 350 cases and the Shiraz is cropped at two tons to the acre although in a good year it may be more.

 ................   ..Steve and Mohammed

The second part of his farmers’ philosophy is his long-term view and a no hurry attitude for his winery plans. The bombsite that we visited is part of a five-year transformation plan. The first stage is to convert one building into a cellar door operation and that should be finished by the end of the year. When we visited, the slab and concrete walls had just been poured for the underground cellar. It is hoped that the winery will be completed by years-end. Wine production will be ramped up very slowly so the enterprise has to find a way to sustain itself; which is why stage two is to convert the second historic old barn into a restaurant. By the time it is all completed, there will be a large herb and veggie garden planted and as much home produce as possible will be used in the restaurant. Vines will also be planted because what is a winery without vines!

The final part of the philosophy is to over-deliver on quality for the price. Looks like a winning combination to me and this is an operation to watch in the future. Mohammed was kind enough to give me the samples to take with me so I have had a good chance to look at them at my leisure. There were two vintages of the Grenache and two of the Shiraz.

Fonthill 2002 Dust Of Ages Grenache would have been about $25 at CD but is a sold out. The bouquet shows a bit of VA but is far from your typical raspberry cordial Grenache. This has real complexity and shows savoury characters with prominent pepper, meaty notes, raspberry, blackberry, chocolate, a fair dose of mint and tobacco. This aroma profile is faithfully reproduced on the palate. It is rich, mouth filling and finishes with incredible persistence. Ample in weight, the tannins are smooth and dusty, fill the palate with no dead spots and finish long. With its terrific balance, this is a seriously good and enjoyable Grenache that will mature over the next five years. Rated as Highly Recommended with Four **** for value, it is just as well it is sold out or I could almost be tempted to buy some.

Fonthill 2003 Dust Of Ages Grenache sells for about $25 at CD and there is a small amount still available from the winery. At first sniff, it seems more like a traditional Grenache with its raspberry and milk chocolate scents but the pepper and savoury nature together with the tobacco leaf of the 02 seems to be there too. My first reaction to the wine when tasted was ‘interesting’ because there is a lot more to this wine than the seductive mouth feel and rich ripe fruit. It would be easy to overlook this as a simple crowd pleaser but that would not do it justice. The wine has been well made and does have real complexity behind the initial raspberry sweetness. It comes with a layered, savoury, spicy, white pepper profile that includes chocolate and that same meatiness as the 02 and finishes with dry tobacco leaf tannins. Almost as good as the 2002 but then it is a year younger. It is still tight but it is a lighter too, which is a reflection of the vintage. Rated as Recommended with *** for value, the rating may increase as the wine matures.

This will eventually be the restaurant ...........

The incredible similarity and consistency of these two wines shows fantastic winemaking skills.

Fonthill 2001 Silk Shiraz is a sold out at CD but can be found for under $30 in the shops. The lifted bouquet is interesting with blackberry, an unusual meaty nutmeg aroma and sweet mentholated clove. The bouquet is accurately reflected on the palate; the wine is intensely savoury and finishes bone dry and a swathe of fresh acid cuts through the fruit. There is sufficient tannin to back the deep, intense fruit and provides a solid structure for this full-bodied wine but the tannins need time to integrate too. The one concern I have is the clove from the French oak, which is prominent in the flavour profile; it sticks out. If the fruit is able to soak up the French oak clove and American oak dill, it will be fine. In my opinion, this wine is over oaked and will not age well. Give it a couple of years for the acid to tame down and the tannins to integrate a little. Rated as Recommended with ** for value.

Fonthill 2002 Silk Shiraz has not be released yet. The bouquet on this wine is a big step up over the previous vintage. Its brooding, closed and …. four letter words, slightly corked. Normally I do not review corked wine but as this is the only bottle I have, the taint is mild and the quality so obvious I will give my impressions. Fruit is deep, intense and pure and has been allowed to speak. The oak has been well managed; the wine has excellent construction and balance. It is full-bodied, intensely flavoured and should be long lived. It looks to be a very high quality drop. Looks like I missed a beauty here, even this slightly tainted bottle is a star and would get an Excellent with **** for value rating.

This winery looks like they know what they are doing and growing their own fruit certainly helps. Even the 2001 Shiraz will hold great appeal (despite my misgivings) and the American market will be impressed with the intense fruit, even though it finishes bone dry. Watch this winery closely; they are contenders for stardom.

From there it was to an old favourite, Tatachilla that is located front and centre on the main drag in McLaren Vale. Some years ago, the winery became part of Simeon group and more recently, it was taken over by Lion Nathan. As so frequently happens in these situations, there is a large upheaval in staff and this winery is no exception. Much of the old staff is gone, Michael Fragos, their old winemaker, is now at Chapel Hill doing ‘some consulting” and many of the old cellar door staff have changed. However, the wine is still excellent; prices have not changed, so things are still good. If you are in McLaren Vale, this is a cellar door worth a visit.

Tatachilla 2003 Partners sells for $12 at CD and is one of the few wines at this price point that is good drinking and as such, it represents great value. Purple in colour with a bright hue, the fruit driven bouquet is appealing with coffee, chocolate, and some mushroom oak nuances. Smooth, dusty tannins provide enough backbone to hold the wine together; the strong obvious fruit is savoury with plum, spice and chocolate. The soft consistency is also rich and produces a very drinkable wine with an excellent finish for the price point. Rated as Agreeable with ***** for value at $10 on special, it is drinking well now.

Tatachilla 2001 Adelaide Hills Merlot sells for $22.50 at CD. Just dark purple, the aroma of smoky oak jumped out of the bottle as the wine was poured and there was another very unusual smell (see below) to this wine. Tannins are smooth, unobtrusive but there, the weight is ample. The distinct fruit provides sweet red berry flavour that is off set with savoury plum, chocolate and mint. The supple consistency, layered structure and harmonious, well-developed complexity combine to produce a Merlot that is a cut above many at this price. It is a single vineyard wine from Lenswood and rated as Highly Recommended with **** for value.

The unusual smell turned out to be the stench emanating from 707’s bloody meat pie! This pie guzzling looks like it could be contagious, my first meat pie incident of the trip and I have not even met John yet. This does not bode well.

... Just a Meat Pie King Pretender

Tatachilla 2001 McLaren Vale Merlot sells for $22.00 at CD. Nowhere near as appealing as the previous wine, the aroma was similar but showed more oak influence. The wine is ample in weight, with a firm consistency and agreeable complexity. Tannins are a bit coarse (in comparison to its previous stable mate) and it will take longer to come together. Rated as Agreeable with ** for value.

Tatachilla 1999 Clarendon Merlot sells for $40.00 at CD. This wine is already starting to show a fair amount of browning. Chocolate, plums, smoky oak and a nutty scent on the nose leads to a savoury palate that is consistent with the aroma. Smooth, very drying tannins on the finish detract a little from the supple, soft, consistency, seamless structure and harmonious complexity. It is at its peak now and is rated as Recommended with ** for value.

Tatachilla 2000 Clarendon Merlot sells for $40.00 at CD. This wine has not been released yet. Dark purple in colour, it has signs of bricking already. Similar aromas as the previous wine, it has coffee and chocolate oak over plums. The distinct fruit delivers very savoury, tart nuances with slightly sweet coffee, spice and plums. Ample in weight, firm consistency, solid structure and agreeable complexity do not disguise the unusual nature of this Merlot. It is certainly not sweet or jammy, or even friendly as the wall of abundant smooth tannins dominate the wine and I wonder if there is enough fruit to last. Rated as Recommended with * for value, I do not understand what they are trying to achieve with this label.

Tatachilla 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon sells for $22.00 at CD but can be found on special for $16.  A rich fruit nose that’s fresh and shows coffee oak, almost mocha and minty notes. The wine has terrific balance with no rough bits sticking out. Obvious, strong fruit provides intense, ripe, blackcurrant, savoury plums, chocolate and coffee. Muscular in weight, the structure is solid. The well-developed complexity completes a well-built wine with a ripe core of fruit that is not over ripe or jammy. Rated as Recommended with **** for value when found on special at $16, the rating should increase as the wine matures around 2007 and beyond.

Tatachilla 2001 1901 Cabernet Sauvignon will sell for $40.00 at CD when it is released. For the first time, this is 100% McLaren Vale Fruit. Who says McLaren Vale doesn’t make good varietal Cabernet? This is a well-constructed, classy wine with a solid core of pure, deep, persistent, ripe fruit. Savoury blackberry, black cherry, some spice and chocolate add a sophisticated complexity to this muscular, tight wine that has an excellent intensity and finish. It demands another sip. Rated as Excellent with **** for value, the wine should peak about 2008 or later.

Tatachilla 2001 McLaren Vale Shiraz sells for $22.00 at CD.  Good sweet raspberry, plum and berry fruit is overshadowed by coffee. Ample weight, firm consistency and solid structure produce a well-balanced and constructed wine with no sharp edges that may improve in the short term. Not as good as some of the previous vintages, it is rated as Agreeable with *** for value.

Tatachilla 2000 Foundation Shiraz sells for $45.00 at CD.  I tried this wine last year and found it to be impressive for the vintage and it has improved in that time. Just ample in weight, the consistency is supple; the structure is elegant and should become seamless in time. Complexity is refined and harmonious. The plum, liquorice, coffee and milk chocolate flavours are ably supported by loads of fine, smooth tannins, which finish dry. Good power and length across the palate without weight completes the package. Rated as Excellent with *** for value, it should peak about 2007.  

Tatachilla 2001 Foundation Shiraz will sell for $45.00 at CD when it is released in September. Quite a surprise, the 01 vintage is very similar to the 00 but the 01 has more intense and richer fruit. The structure of the two wines is very similar but this wine is much tighter and is muscular in weight. Savoury blackberry, black cherry and chocolate fruit fills the mouth and finishes long. Complexity is well developed; the structure is solid and the consistency firm. The wine has great potential to improve and just needs time to show its best, about 2009 should see it blossom. No longer an in your face fruit and oak bomb, the more classy and dignified style suits the wine. Rated as Excellent with *** for Value.

Generally, Tatachilla is making very good wine and there is a certain consistency in style. The one exception is the Clarendon Merlot, which I just do not understand. Their wines are a safe buy.

Not the line up for me, these are 04 samples and I am glad I did not have to asses them all

The next winery was another first time visit for me. When I made this appointment, a different day was requested. That was inconvenient for the winery so I agreed to squeeze it in today. I advised I only had forty-five minutes so it was a shock to see the line up of bottles that I had no way of doing justice to in the allotted time. As a result, I sheepishly had to postpone my next appointment until the following week.

Shingleback has its winery just down from Serafino Wines (the new Maglieri Family winery) in the McLaren on the Lake Complex. It is owned by the Davey brothers. John is the viticulturist/winemaker and Kym is the managing director. The family are fifth generation farmers who planted grapes in 1995. After working for a large winery, John decided that leaving the corporate world was better than “adding fertiliser and water to the children and watching them grow when he had an odd second or two.”  

In 1998, the first vintage was produced and ninety percent of the wine was exported to the US. (Trust 707, he had some of this wine in his cellar and was kind enough to bring a bottle to a dinner we had a week later. I wonder, is there a first vintage wine from any small SA producer that in not in Steve’s cellar.) In the early days, much of the fruit was sold off to produce bulk wine. The 1998 vintage yielded about 700 cases, in 2004 yield was 70,000 cases so they must be doing something right. Shingleback ultimately aims to produce 100,000 cases. It will be made up of 50,000 cases of the premium Shingleback Label and the balance of production will be the Red Knot Label that will comprise some “value level” wines. Part of the growth has been financed by forging a partnership with a US backer. Some of the wines produced are only sold in the US and some are sold both here and overseas.

As a winemaker, John has a couple of obvious things going for him. The first is that he controls the vineyards from scratch, right down to having been involved in planting them. He said, “Every vine needs to be the same clone and look the same and also be even when they grow. One of the biggest problems, in some vineyards, is the sweet and sour effect, created by different ripening of the vines because they have not grown evenly. In our vineyards, I am pleased to say, less than 1 in 1,000 needed to be replanted.”

The second obvious attribute is John’s enthusiasm as a winemaker. He obviously is very dedicated and loves his work. This came across loud and clear in conversation and has been translated into the wine he produces.

Trying to gain much aroma varietal definition was difficult during this visit due to the pervading smell of wine fermenting. That is not a criticism, just a comment.

Shingleback 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon is the current release and sold for $29 in Australia and about US$18. The smooth tannins are deceptive because whilst they provide the required backbone, the wine has a supple consistency, which is enhanced by the mouth feel. Deep obvious fruit is rich and provides blackberry, some youthful green stemmy characters and a rich, dark chocolate, excellent finish. The muscular weight combines with a rich palate and results in a seriously drinkable wine with a big appeal; it is rated as Recommended with *** for value.  

Shingleback 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon is to be released in Australia later this year and will sell for $29. The pure, deep fruit is sweet and luscious but provided as a savoury under layer all through the palate. Blackberry, plum, chocolate and mint with some minor stemminess on the finish. It is drinking beautifully now but should improve to 2008 and beyond. Just muscular in weight, the consistency is firm but supple, and solid. The tight, layered structure combines to produce a beautifully constructed, balanced wine with good mouth feel. Rated as Highly Recommended **** for value, this is a good steak wine.  

The 2002’s are available in the US and will be released in Australia fairly soon.

Shingleback 2001 Shiraz is the current vintage and sold for $29 in Australia and about US$18. This wine was a bit simple and others produced under this label were better. The flavour profile seemed to be a bit clumsy with coffee, smoky oak, plum and chocolate. Complexity was agreeable, the consistency firm but supple and the structure solid; it is rated as Agreeable with ** for value.

Shingleback 2002 Shiraz is to be released in Australia later this year and will sell for $29. This wine is a step up over the previous wine. The nose was closed but it was much classier than the 01 and showed good fruit below the smoky oak. Loads of very fine, smooth, drying tannins, fresh acid and pure distinct fruit combine to form a tightly structured, ample weight wine with a firm consistency. Rich dark fruit slams the palate without excess weight and lingers well but finishes a touch leafy-green, possibly from young vines. It is well-constructed and balanced but needs time to show its best. Rated as Recommended with *** for value, the rating should improve as the wine matures around 2007+. A nice wine, it will have mass appeal. 

McLaren on the Lake - one of the most picturesque settings in the area ......

Shingleback 2002 The Gate Shiraz is only available in the US and sells for US$32. Very dark purple in colour with a bright hue, the wine has a lovely mouth feel. Pure, strong fruit with a glorious intensity of well-controlled extraction produces rich mulberry, plum, liquorice, black cherry and coffee that finishes with good persistence. The wine is muscular in weight, with a tight, elegant, seamless, solid construction and a harmonious, refined complexity. This is a seriously enjoyable drop that drinks well now and is perfect for restaurant dining. Rated as Highly Recommended with *** for value, if you are in the US and see it on a wine list, do not hesitate - grab it.  

Shingleback 2001 D Block Reserve Shiraz has been released and sells for $45 in Australia but is sold out on the other side of the pond. As the name suggests, this wine comes from one single block and is made from the best available barrels. The wine was matured in mainly American Oak but does have some French Oak influence. Loads of smooth, dusty drying tannins and rich, deep, strong fruit provide the necessary components but they are a bit ‘clunky’ at this stage. The wine needs about five years to come together. There is no excess weight to the fruit, in fact, it is good but it is not subtle. Dark, savoury flavoured mulberry, subtle aniseed and chocolate flavours finish very long. It is full bodied, with a rock-solid structure and well-developed complexity. Rated as Highly Recommended with *** for value, I would like to try it in five years.

Shingleback 2002 D Block Reserve Shiraz will be released in the third quarter of 2004 in Australia but is available in the US for $39. Dark purple in colour with a dark hue, this wine has a bloody serious nose. Two standout features immediately become apparent from the first sip. Firstly, it has wonderful fruit and secondly, it has excellent balance and construction. Pure, rich, strong fruit is inky black and stains the fillings with blackberry, liquorice, 80% Lindt chocolate, black plum, and yet it is not over ripe or prune flavoured. It is a full-bodied wine with a tight, solid, layered, construction and well-developed complexity that almost has that very rare ‘wow factor’. Rated as Excellent with *** for value, the rating should improve as the wine matures in 2009 and beyond. My tasting sheet has the notation “note to self, buy it!”

This was a great way to finish off the formal part of the days’ tasting, but the days’ wine consumption and real fun was just about to commence. First stop was to check into the McLaren Vale Hilton, which is owned and run by my good mate, The Meat Pie King of SA and his better half, Sue. John Davis has a sense of humour that is drier than the 2003 McLaren Vale summer and Sue, no doubt, will eventually be canonised for putting up with his antics. John’s council-owned stretch limo was in the drive when I arrived and Sue pulled into the driveway behind me so the timing was perfect.

Glen Green, the inventor of ‘The Essential Wine Guide’ and horse trader extraordinaire, who could sell ice to Eskimos, had insisted that we get to the Victory Hotel between 5.30 and 5.45. The plan was to watch the sun go down over the bay and have a q.l.d (that’s quiet little drink – which is an oxymoron when Glen is involved) before dinner. So, after a very quick and rushed hello at the Davis home, we all piled into the Falcon stretch station wagon and headed up to the Victory. When we arrived, we were greeted by Roger Pike of Marius Wines who was also crazy enough to join us. It was cool, but we sat outside and watched a very pleasant sunset but the ever-late Mr Green and his lovely partner Vasiliki were nowhere in sight. Bloody typical! Just after the sun had said good night, Glen graced us with his presence and we went into the restaurant.

For those that don’t know, the Victory Hotel is an institution in this area. It is your bog standard pub but it has three redeeming features. Firstly, a dining room with good food and reasonable prices. Secondly, a cellar with one of the best collections of wine in SA, also at reasonable prices and to top all that off, you can still BYO with nominal corkage. Now how good is that? Although there is no smoking in the dining room, the only downside is the smoky atmosphere that wafts in from the bar. As well as those mentioned, 707 (also known as Sir Lunch-a-Lot, who is a legend in his own lunchtime) had naturally joined us. Hosanna Davis and a school friend of hers also joined us. Last year as I was leaving SA, John said that he was going to have to sell Hosanna to Adelaide University for medical research to pay for all the wine I had forced him to buy. John admitted he was pleased the foot that was transplanted to her forehead was finally rejected by her body.

After we had looked at the menu, Glen leaned over to John and patted his hand with great compassion and sincerity said “don’t worry mate, Doug (the owner) has defrosted a couple of Balfour’s meat pies for you.”  

And with that, we tried the first masked bottle of wine, which was brought by Glen. For those that do not know, Glen has a PhD in wine option bastardy and even he excelled himself with this one. The wine had a coffee nose with ginger. It was mid weight, well balanced, smooth, harmonious and silky. The palate was very savoury with light plum flavour, milk chocolate and cherry but there was a slight donut hole in it. Complexity was simple. I am not going to dignify the options game by describing the pedantic, ridiculous, obscure, convoluted, warped and twisted options that Glen gave us, but suffice it to say, we all looked about as smart as a Norman Gunston after a full frontal lobotomy. The wine was unveiled as a Hartenberg 1999 Pontac from Stellenbosch in South Africa and is possibly the world's rarest commercial wine made from an obscure grape variety.

According to Glen, when he was at the winery in South Africa, he was also told an interesting story about this grape and its evolution. “It goes something like this, during the early days of viticulture in South Africa, like most countries they had many pests, but whereas we would encounter rabbits, kangaroos, and birds, their biggest problem was baboons!

The Baboons would pluck fruit from as close to the outskirts of the vineyard as possible and make a dash for it, however once the first row of vines were picked clean, they would slowly venture further and further into the vineyard depths, and hence slowly but surely wipe out an enormous portion of the fruit yield over several weeks.

Pontac, being a teinturier grape, are very dark coloured and stain your hands horrifically. Some South African bright spark first decided to plant these in the outer rows of their vineyards so that the white fleshed and 'higher quality' grapes were in the middle. Once the baboons grabbed the teinturier grapes from the outer rows, and then looked at their hands, they thought they were bleeding and racked off. This had the effect of dramatically decreasing the percentage of yield that had been lost to marauding baboons.

Unfortunately nowadays that people have wiped out most things due to urban sprawl, the baboons aren't really much of a problem anymore and there is no need to continue this viticultural practice.”

Well Glen, I have news for you, the baboons may not be a problem (but you are) and this grape is still a necessity so that  like you can play options.

Whilst all this was going on, we looked at the gigantic roll of (look-a-like toilet) paper that graced the wall that listed the daily specials. I must admit the menu looked mighty good. After our waitress had run the gauntlet and had taken the order, it was time to pour the second wine, a Coriole 1989 Lloyds Reserve Shiraz that was kindly brought by Roger. I stuck my snoz into the glass and all I could smell was coffee, something I had been sniffing, to a lesser or greater degree, in almost every wine, so far today. Then it struck me, I had only had that early morning fix at the airport and my nose was going through caffeine withdrawal. I would need to take precautions to make sure that did not happen again on the trip or I would be in trouble. Others found the aroma to contain smoky oak and youthful fruit that belied the wines age. The acid was still fresh and the deep, pure fruit was sweet, clean and finished crisp. Plums, liquorice and chocolate provided wonderful complexity with leathery aspects starting to show. Rated as Excellent.

 ...      From left to rear, Roger Pike, John Davis, Vasiliki, (in centre a school friend of Hosanna)

....From right to rear, Glen Green, Steve Norman, Sue Davis (in purple and hiding) Hosana Davis

The third bottle was provided by yours truly and was served unmasked; it was a Leasingham 1992 Classic Clare Cabernet Sauvignon, which I expected to show well however on this occasion it proved to be below expectation. Loads of integrated smooth tannins, chocolate consistently right though the palate but the finish was very disappointing, as it appeared the fruit was fading. The oak was dominant on the finish and I just hope it was a non-representative bottle as I still have a few more in the cellar.   

By this point, the starters arrived. Sue and the kids shared a huge bowl of wedgies, which looked good enough to steal, but they were at the other end of the table and my arms were not long enough. One of the crew had the soup of the day and said it was not great but everyone else was very happy with their choice. I selected Salt and pepper squid with a sweet and sour chilli sauce that was faultless.

As I was making notes, Glen asked me what I was doing. “Makes notes of the interesting bits for the tour diary” was my response. John piped up, “You will never stop him, even if he has nothing to say, he still writes it up.” I am so glad I have friends like John.

The fourth bottle of wine was another one from Roger and I was very much looking forward to trying it. I had had the pleasure of drinking the Kay’s 1993 Block 6 a few years previously and it was stunning. This wine was more like an 03 than a 93! It was incredibly youthful, the tannins still need time to integrate further the fruit is fresh and the acid judged to perfection. Someone, who shall remain nameless, said, “If I was told I could not drink any more Cabernet for the rest of my life, I could live with this wine.”  And it’s true, it was a great wine from a pretty ordinary vintage. “Tannins with liquorice, blackberry, plum and chocolate flavours ‘suck’ on the back palate, it’s wonderful” was another comment. Glen, who is even more critical than I (if that’s possible) said “falls off slightly at the back palate but that’s the only criticism.” I rated it as Excellent with extra points for youthfulness.

Whilst we were drinking this wine, Glen told a wonderful story. He was at the airport and a friendly, well-spoken, fellow came up and started to talk to him. He obviously knew Glen reasonably well, but for the life of him, Glen could not remember where he had met the guy and more importantly, his name. After the conversation had been going for some very awkward minutes, the guy said, “you obviously don’t remember me, I am Colin Rayment from Kay Brothers.”  And Glen wonders why  he has trouble getting an allocation of Hillside and Block 6 now!

The next bottle of wine was served by Steve and was masked with a paper bag; I sometimes wonder if Steve has shares in the bag manufacturing plant, he uses heaps of them. We played silly bugger options again and once again I blew it big time with no correct answers but at least Steve’s options were both fair and sane, unlike another person who shall remain nameless, Glen. There were all sorts of oohing and ahring when people were sniffing this wine. It was obviously a sexy drop. On the palate, there were plums, chocolate and a hint of marzipan. The wine was incredibly smooth and seductive with its full-bodied ripe fruit. No one could believe a Coonawarra Shiraz could be this rich, intense and powerful. John was having orgasms over the wine but some were not quite as impressed. I, for one, thought it was a Britney Spears wines, it looks great but is as boring as bat turd. Roger said “It’s ripe, full and lovely but it doesn’t suck the back of my tongue.” (For those that have seen Roger, that brings up horrid vivid images.) The wine was the Bowen Estate1998 Ampelon Shiraz and I rated it as Excellent based on its sex appeal but it didn’t do much for me.

By this stage of the proceeding, some of us were feeling no pain, and the comments were entertaining. For example, when I asked Vasiliki what she thought of the Ampelon, she said, “Not overly complex but hedonistic, full bodied but not heavy.”

John looked at me and said, “Write down Vasiliki’s impressions.”

Vasiliki replied, “Yes, they would be my depressions.”

That’s was almost as good as my recent gaff. In a description of an article, I was explaining how I had taken three people’s tasting notes and had “copulated” them into a story.

Whilst all this slurping and joking was going on, our main courses arrived. I had Venison with bush tomato relish on a risotto and veggie cake. I certainly did not expect the artwork that arrived. And it tasted even better than it looked.

The sixth wine was provided by John and at the end of the night, it was almost full. It was a Metala 1994 Black Label Shiraz, which according to John, was bought fairly recently, from a retailer with suspect storage conditions. The nose was subdued and whist there was some fruit, it was not great. Rated as Acceptable.

The seventh and final wine of the night, a Stanton and Killeen 1996 Durif was presented by Glen, and praise the lord, this time it was open without options. The wine was big, all encompassing with mouth numbing liquorice, dark chocolate, and other black fruits. Loads of smooth tannins and fresh acid help balance the delivery of a mountain of flavour that peaks on the mid palate. As Glen said, “this is never going to be a noble grape variety” but the bottle was finished by the end of the night. Rated as Highly Recommended, I wish I could have tasted something this good in the red department when I was at their cellar door in February.

All sorts of weird and wonderful topics of conversation emerge at dinners like these and I have no idea how the subject of South American drug lords came up. As soon as it did, quicker than a feral rodent can escalate the average drainpipe, 707 whipped out his wallet and flashed this picture.

..      Steve Norman Circa 1984

And, just as quickly John came back and said, “No mate you don’t look like a South American drug lord - more like a 70’s porn star!

The wine of the night was obviously between the 89 Lloyds and the 93 Block 6. Glen and Roger summed it up perfectly. “The nose of the Lloyd kills everything else but after an hour in the glass the Lloyds has fallen over. The Block 6 does everything.” The Ampelon certain had its fans and all three of these bottles were empty which was testament to their quality and enjoyment factor.  

After coffee and tea, we paid the bill, which was a most reasonable $32 (including corkage) a head, and said our goodbyes. John and I were in no condition to drive and as Sue does not drink wine, she was the designated driver. (John informs me there is no truth in the rumour that he only married Sue because she didn’t drink wine and could drive when he did; the real reason was she could cook very good pies of varying descriptions.) 

The three members of the Davis family and the two guests piled into the Council owned stretch limo and headed for home. Just imagine it, there is Sue, having been a paragon of sober virtue driving the car. John is in the front passenger seat and I am sitting behind him. (They need the stretch wagon so people can sit behind John without needing to have their knees surgically removed from their ears.) The two kids are in the back seat next to me. Suddenly, John burst into song (if that is what you call it) and the others joined in with much gusto. My singing voice, not to put to fine a point on it, is enough to curdle milk and I normally refrain from caterwauling but when The Meat Pie King started on one of my favourite Neil Diamond songs, I could not resist joining in.  All I can say is they are all either completely tone deaf or very polite as they did not tell me to buttonhole it.

As you could probably tell, a great night was had by all, some a greater night than others, if you get my drift. The big question is, what sort of shape will John be the next day. We have to get up early as our first appointment is at 10 am in the Barossa!

This first days’ experience was just the first of many and represented what was to become a typical day on this trip. I met many interesting people, drank some great wine, a few average drops and everything in between. There were loads of laughs along the way and plenty of good food. This first chapter, as there was only a half a days’ wine tasting, will have the least number of tasting notes of any chapter in the tour diary. I hope you have enjoyed reading it and will return next week for the second instalment. It will take about eight or nine weeks to tell the whole story so stay tuned.  

Copyright © Ric Einstein 2004

Chapter Two can be found here

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