Wine without BS

By Jingo Wines 2006 Montepulciano

 

Before I start, I need to confess that I somehow lost my tasting notes for this wine but am pressing ahead anyway as this wine more than deserves a spot on my blog and easily earned its place in my 'Most Memorable Wines of 2011'

Australian made Montepluciano's are few and far between but coincidentally I had recently tried another Aussie Monte's a week or so before trying the By Jingo. It took but one sip of the 06 By Jingo Montepulciano to know I was drinking something pretty bloody awesome. There was definitely a 'wow' moment after sip number two and the bottle didn't last as long after that! It has such a gorgeous flavour that I can't relate back to any other wine I've tried before. It was completely different to the other Montepulciano I had the week before that is also from a South Australian producer. 

Being lucky enough to have a bottle of the 08 also around at the time I took it along to a staff tasting I held for Google Australia, as part of Google Wine Week+. I remember a staff member yelling out to me 'What is this?' pointing to the bottle of By Jingo 08 Montepulciano, then saying 'It's fantastic!'.  I only got a tiny taste of the 2008 vintage before the staff polished it off, but it would seem the reaction to it from several Googlers meant they had just as high an opinion of the 2008 as I do of the 2006. As a result of that tasting I'd also like to ad that this wine is vegan friendly and apologise to the staff member who missed out given I only learnt of this fact the day after the tasting.

I should add that it was actually days after I had tasted it that I learnt it's price and admit to being somewhat surprised to see it was over $100. After pondering the price point for a while I realised that I've had plenty of $100+ wines that I cannot even remember... but I'll remember this one for a long time to come I am sure!

By Jingo 2006 Montepulciano
Price - $120 from By Jingo Wines
Region - Adelaide Hills, South Australia
Final Sip -  Do yourself a favour and try this wine before the 30 cases made have sold out. If the price is still getting in the way then try the 2008 as it is less than half the price! Alternatively keep an eye out for my upcoming Rare and Odd varieties wine dinner, as you can bet your Montepulciano it'll be there!

Most Memorable Wines of 2011

2011 will forever be etched in my memory as one of the worst and best years of my life, the latter sentiment largely due to a five month stint in the United States where I lived in Los Angeles over their summer and spent part of the US spring time touring California and visiting the East Coast for the first time where I saw Boston, New York and Washington DC.

It meant I had a vast array of US wines that are not available in Australia and for this reason I have separated those wines from the wines available or made in Australia. It is sad to see the lack of US wine labels available in Australia given the fact that they have access to good Australian wines in almost every wine store and some of our cheaper, but not always bad, brands are in their major supermarkets like Ralph's and Wholefoods. America makes many fantastic wines at all different price points and if you love Cabernet Sauvignon and haven't had some of Napa Valley's finest you are really missing out. I was told before I left that Napa had Australia beat when it came to ultra premium Cabernet. I'll admit prior to my trip I was sceptical but now having had my second trip to Napa I must confess that many of the Cabernet's on my list below are amongst the best Cabernet's I've ever had. If given the choice, I'd take a $70-$100 bottle of Napa Cabernet over anything of a similar price made in Australia.

However, upon my return in September I was very impressed with the quality of a number of wines I tried from right here in Australia. So, without further adue the below, in no particular order, are my most memorable wines of 2011.

Made or purchased in Australia

Primo Estate 'Joseph' 2008 Nebbiolo
Xanadu 'Reserve' 2008 Chardonnay
Taltarni 1977 Cabernet Sauvignon
De Bortoli Gulf Station 2008 Pinot Noir 
Grove Estate NV MCB (Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon & Barbera)
Thomas Wines 'The Kiss' 2007 Shiraz
Oak Works 2008 Tina Molle
Logan Wines 2010 Sauvignon Blanc
Chapel Hill 2011 Il Vescovo White blend
Two Paddocks Picnic 2009 Pinot Noir
Lowe Wines 2009 Zinfandel
Logan Wines 2011 'Hannah' Rose
ByJingo 2006 Montepulciano
Henschke 1992 Hill of Grace 

American Wines

J.Lohr Monterey 2009 Valdiguie
Phiffer Pavitt 'Date Night' 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon
Kelly Flemming Wines 2009 Sauvignon Blanc & 2007 Cabernet
Wolffer Estate 2006 Fatalis Fatum red blend
Bridlewood Reserve 2007 Syrah
Corison 2000 Cabernet Sauvignon
Red Tail Ridge 2008 Sparkling Teroldego
Opus One 2007 Bordeaux Blend 
Seghesio 2009 'Home Ranch' Zinfandel
Smith Madrone Chardonnay (Vintage not noted)
Kenneth Volk Vineyards 2008 Negrette
Rancho Sisquoc 2009 Sylvaner 
Andrew Murray Vineyards 2008 Esperance Red blend

(The barrel room at Opus One. The centre of each barrel is painted with red wine so that spills as a result of topping-up the barrel do not make the barrels look messy! This is just one example of the kind of attention to detail I saw during my tour of this amazing facilitiy.)

 

 

 

Wine-isode 3 of Wine without BS TV

Earlier in the year I had the pleasure of visiting Hungerford Hill Wines in the Hunter Valley and spent time with owner, James Kirby, and winemaker, Michael Hatcher. I also somehow end up locked in a stainless steel wine tank!

 

I would like to take this opportunity to thank James and Michael for there amazing hospitality on this visit. If you are ever in the Hunter Valley this winery is a must and their restaurant, Muse, simply has to be your priority stop for lunch or dinner! (check out their amazing Petite fours below)

 

 

 

Chapel Hill 2011 il Vescovo White blend

With summer having just begun many of us will be heading more and more to the fridge to grab our wine and I would like to urge all of you to try more white blends just like this Chapel Hill il Vescovo this season. Many great Australian wine makers are producing more interesting blends of three or more varieties and the more of them I try the more I find myself wanting them regularly in my collection.

This particular example from Chapel Hill is a unique blend of Savagnin, Verdelho and Roussanne. It has a very light, almost clear colour showing just hints of pale lemon/lime colours. There is citrus in the aroma mixed in with other elements that I failed to place... probably because I am not a botanist like so many other wine writers appear to be. I also didn't want to waste too much time sniffing at the stuff as it drinks too well to stay in my glass all that long. This was a real joy to drink and I really cannot fault it at all.

Chapil Hill il Vescovo 2011 White Wine
Price - $22 from Chapel Hill Wines and assorted retailers
Region - McLaren Vale, South Australia
Final Sip - One of the most enjoyable and well priced white wines I've had in recent times, blend or no blend!

What wine are you?

I was honoured and excited recently when Rocketman Media contacted me for a consulting project, saying that their client had specifically requested me to assist in the creative input of their up and coming social media campaign.

I'd never done anything like this before but I had loads of fun with getting the characters for this video mapped out and I'd be keen to see if can pick out what celebrities may have been inspiration for a couple of the characters in the below video.

 

Check out the United Cellars wine types video here

Now click on the link below to take the quiz yourself and find out what wine type matches your personality! You will also be given a codeword at the end that entitles you to $50 off your next purchase above $250  with United Cellars.  It is all just a bit of fun, which is what wine is all about and you may even be introduced to a brand new character as well!

 

Quiz - What wine are you?

I took the quiz and came out as Pinot Noir (very accurately pictured above). Please share with me what wine you are and hope you enjoy!

 

Update on Wine Week+ with Google Australia

Here’s the latest round of updates for Wine Week+ ( Twitter hashtag #wineweekplus) on Google+ the week of December 12.  We’re going to publish our calendar of events next Wednesday, December 7.  So if you’re planning to host Q&A on your Google+ page, or are planning to do some hangouts, please let me know what time/date you’re planning to do it, and what your topic(s) will be.  Don’t forget to include what time zone you’re in!

(We look forward to announcing our special guests for the food and wine pairing hangout!)

I’m also going to be hosting a very special Hangout on Google+ on Wednesday, December 15, at 6pm  I’m going to host a tasting Hangout, featuring 3 interesting bottles of Australian wine.  I’m going to select 9 people to be in the Hangout with me and try those 3 wines live on air with me providing tasting tips.  If you’d like to join me, go to the Wine Without BS Google+ page  and reply to my post about this Hangout -- tell me in 50 words or less why you like to drink your wine without BS.  I’ll pick my favourite responses and get you set up with the 3 wines we choose. 

I am really looking forward to Wine Week+ and am honoured to be involved and hope you can join us. just ensure you have a Google+ account !

Join me for 'Wine Week +', brought to you by Google Australia

 

Google Australia is putting together 'Wine week +' on Google+ to help Aussies (and Kiwis!) who love talking about wine to find each other on Google+. I'm helping them put together a program of wine-related activities for the week of December 12 and we hope you can join in the fun.

We will be starting with a Google staff wine tasting on December 7th and are looking for Australian and New Zealand wineries happy to share some wine with us to contact me at stewart@winewithoutbs.com.au

If you're a winery and you'd like help getting your own page on Google+, you can start here

I will also be hosting live video 'hang-outs' on Google + every day that week. I'll have topics of interest to all wine lovers throughout the week and ensure I get some special guests involved to make the whole week as fun and as diverse as possible.

All you need to do to join us is get a Google + account and add Wine without BS and Google's, Courtney Holne to your circles.

More information to come folks so please check back for updates! If you have any topics or questions you'd like discussed during 'Wine week +' please let me know.

Lowe Wines 2009 Zinfandel

Zinfandel is hardly a common variety in Australia and many wineries that make it cannot boast about doing it all that well in my opinion. Amongst other consumers here in Australia I hear everything from 'Zin is a Sin', to 'You have to try the one by XYZ wines... theirs is different!'. It is a totally different story over in California though as Zinfandel is made by hundreds of wineries and your local supermarket will feature whole shelves of the stuff where even a reasonably priced drop is likely to fare well against our best attempts.

However, David Lowe, from Lowe wines in Mudgee, can boast that not only does he make a great Zinfandel, but he has a stack of medals for his latest release and that the vast majority of critics and consumers that try it give it rave reviews, myself included. No suprises then that David spent time during his career in the heart of Californian Zin country, Sonoma County, just next door to Napa.

The 2009 Lowe Zindandel has a lovely aroma of stewed fruits and even licorice becomes noticeable after a bit of time in the glass. As soon as you start drinking this wine it becomes an experience. It is 'full-on' in its flavours and creates a warm sensation on the back of the throat. The tannin creates what I wrote in my notes as a bit of a 'Mr Ed' effect, as your gums dry instantly and you lift your lips up and down to re-moisturise them. After a glass or two I noticed a really pleasant fruit cake like after taste building on the palate and it wasn't too long before I found myself with an empty bottle and wanting more. The price point is likely to stop many over indulging in this drop and as much as I wish you could grab two bottles for $100 or less, David talked me through the vast efforts he goes to in the vineyard for this varietal and any comparisons to Californian Zinfandel prices are simply unfair if you consider our much higher minimum wages in Australia and sheer economies of scale when California alone has a population of 35 million.

 

Lowe Wines 2009 Zinfandel
Price - $75 from Lowe Wines
Region - Mudgee, NSW
Final Sip - I really enjoyed this wine as it is exactly what I find myself looking for these days when I look upon a wine rack full of predictable Shiraz's, Cabernets and Chardonnays. Something different!

Did you know? Zinfandel is the genetic equivalent to the variety grown in Italy known as Primitivo and Crljenak Kaštelanski in Croatia.

Wine Match Challenge - Corned Beef with Mustard Sauce

This year I've had a bit of a corned beef 'revival', for lack of a better term. Growing up it was made semi regularly but my parents have always enjoyed their meat well done and my memories of overly dry beef with boiled potatoes aren't my best childhood food memories.

Having only enjoyed it cooked to perfection in recent times and enjoying it regularly as part of a New York Reuben Sandwich during my extended time in the United States this year I have started cooking it myself. As this post goes live I will be heading into the kitchen to cook it tonight using this recipe I found online

Question is, what wine do you think will pair best with this British classic?

I've done some basic searches on-line and was surprised to see an almost even amount of people recommending a white wine vs. those suggesting a red wine. The mustard sauce is fairly mild but is going to be better suited to a white wine on its own. Being beef though I am still leaning towards a red and have an relatively inexpensive Bordeaux that I am leaning towards opening.

As always with this segment though, I am keen to hear your thoughts?

Wine-isode 2 of Wine without BS TV

Inspired by a list of ways to open a wine bottle without a corksrew on WikiHow, Ivana and I set out to test a few of the methods suggested. Some worked and some didn't yet we were surprised with some of the results.

 

PS - While it didn't make the final cut, banging my shoe against the bottom of the bottle like you see Ivana trying did actually work after a while!