Southern Highlands
Regional wine show results – a mistery for some
Last week Friday I went to the regional wine show in Kiama. Here a tasting panel with renowned Australian wine judges got together including winemaker Keith Tulloch as Chairman of Judges, Christian Gaffey, himself winemaker and Wine Selector as well as Judge Bryan Martin, Winemaker at famous Clonakilla & Ravensworth Wines. They gave their best comparing local wines and a selection of participants from the Southern Highlands.
Kiama Wine Show 2009
No one so far could explain to me, how wines from 700m cool climate Highlands could be compared to wines from a distinctly different climate at the South Coast in a regional show- but here you go: the mission for the judging panel was ‘make this judging work on the basis, that the wines compare on distinct ‘international wine levels”.
The results are a repeat of former years and a few big surprises to me- firstly the repeat: Coolangatta Estate won best White Wine with their 2001 Estate Semillon, a great wine without any doubt and for sure one of the outstanding Semillons in the country. Good to have a Hunter Valley expert in Keith Tulloch (his Keith Tulloch Wines are Hunter based) confirm the success of Coolangatta’s flagship again. Owner Greg Bishop was very contempt with its Semillons, he even confirmed to me that the years 2005 and 2006 looked even more promising but needed more time to develop.
The surprises came with the awards for two categories I was having a close eye on: best Red Wine and also Best Wine of the show was awarded to Southern Highlands Wines with their Cabernet Sauvignon and best Pinot Noir was scored by the 2008 Centennial Wines Pinot Noir. I tasted both of them and these results were very much to my surprise to put it mildly. I tasted at least three Pinots at the show that were far superior and had no faults.
The Centennial Pinot tasted foul, even faulty – to its credit the bottle was open for 24 hours when I tried it. Still, a wine under screwcap must hold onto its credentials for more than 24 hours. This Pinot was one I would have not cared to finish the bottle – even if I had bought it myself.
And taking into account, that the judges were asked to apply international standards in this regional show, I have no understanding for the decision to award best red wine (and best wine of the show) to a Cabernet Sauvignon from the Southern Highlands. There is simply no good Cab Sav from this region, most serious winemakers actually pull the plug on this variety these days as the Highland’s climate simply doesn’t work for Cab Savs.
To award a gold medal to the Cabernet Sauvignon from Southern Highlands Wines is an absolute disgrace for all Cab Savs from Coonawarra, McLaren Vale or Barossa, that scored less in other shows. These judges must have smoked good stuff when they made this call, sorry guys.
But this is wine judging in Australia – sometimes you have to ask yourself how these results come up. Let me put one thing straight: my opinion of no good Cab Sav from the Southern Highlands stands and if this particular winery uses grapes from other regions, than this wine shouldn’t have been entered in the regional show. A good judge should figure this out.
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In der letzten Woche war ich endlich einmal auf einer der vielen kleineren, regionalen Weinshows zu Besuch. Die regionale Wine Show in Kiama brachte in diesem Jahr neben einem wiederholten weissen Gewinner zwei dicke Ueberraschungen als bestem Wein der Show und bestem Pinot Noir. Jene beiden Entscheidungen lassen mich diese regionale Show eher ein wenig belaecheln, einer der Wine Makers vor Ort urteilte: well, there is another show next week. Den Besuch in Kiama werde ich mir naechstes Jahr allerdings schenken.
Ihr Michael Brecht
Spring time is Pinot Gris time
The weather here Down Under has changed: it is spring and we experienced temperatures in the late 20s the whole of last week. Time to check the latest whites, I started with a Pinot Gris from Southern Highland’s Cuttaway Hill Estate.
Cool climate Pinot Gris 
This cool climate producer has brought out the 2008 Pinot Gris a few days ago – the new labels promise a classy version of this subdued variety. The wine opens up in a slightly golden colour, an even vintage with cool nights and warm days during ripening helped the wines gain a strong varietal character and complexity.
I like its balance and longevity, my initial fears of a white with 14.5% – hence a super alcoholic – Pinot Gris are not confirmed. The alcohol level is finely balanced with a complex palate of citrus and pear. Its broad finish is balanced by crisp acidity – great style.
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Es wird Fruehling hier in Australien und damit Zeit, einen der cool climate Pinot Gris auszuprobieren.
Der 2008 Cuttaway Hill Estate Pinot Gris ist ein starker Vertreter dieser neuen Klasse, ich geniesse seine komplexe Struktur nach Zitrus und Birne schmeckend. Sein Saeuregehalt ist durchaus angenehm, die Laenge fuer einen cool climate Wein erstaunlich.
Ein wirklich gelungener Vertreter der australischen Pinot Gris Generation.
Methode Traditionelle from the Southern Highlands
Australia’s top sparkling wines are very close to the french champagnes. In a former post we recommended Tasmania’s sparklings, the innovative ‘methode tasmanoise‘ was all present at Sydney Airport too.
Cool Climate Methode Traditionelle
Twenty years ago, some brands in Germany started with the ‘methode traditionelle’ or ‘methode champagnoise’ and did everything the way the French do with their champagne, only not using the grapes form the champagne region (hence not calling the end product champagne). It worked well, even in the country which loves German Sekt from German drink giants such as Henkell or Rotkaeppchen.
One of our current favourite sparklings here Down Under comes from Cuttaway Hill. These guys entered the sparkling arena only last year and what an entry this was: their top sparkling is named Laurence Chardonnay Pinot Noir and won the gold medal in Murrumbateman and a couple of silvers in its first year. Impressive.
The Laurence range of sparkling wines from Cuttaway Hill wines are named in honour of the founder of Cuttaway Hill, Laurence O’Neil. A premium single vineyard blend from hand harvested grapes followed by a slow cool primary fermentation only for the base wine was the base for this sparkling. The end product is then made in a traditional single bottle fermentation method and aged on lees for a minimum of two years before disgorgement and release. Low yields and dry ripening conditions produced full flavoured wines for Laurence.
We like this combination of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir – both excellent grapes that grow well in cool climate conditions here in the Southern Highlands. And Laurence is an excellent example of well made sparklings Down Under.
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Unsere Serie ueber australische Sparklings wird heute fortgesetzt mit einem pitzelnden Wein der Marke ‘methode traditionelle’. Jene Bezeichnung wird nicht mehr lange auf australischen Flaschen stehen duerfen, denn im Einigungsvertrag zwischen der EU und Australien hat sich Letzteres dazu verpflichtet, jenen franzoesischen Ausdruck nicht mehr auf australischen Flaschen zu verwenden.
Hier in der cool climate Gegend Southern Highlands werden erstklassige Chardonnay und Pinot Noir Trauben angepflanzt. Jene sind Grundlage fuer den Laurence Sparkling Chardonnay Pinot Noir, ein erster Wurf der Cuttaway Hill Winery und ein aeusserst erfolgreicher dazu: der sparkling sahnt bereits in seinem ersten Jahr eine Goldmedaille nach der anderen ab – ein koestlicher Tropfen, der Lust auf weitere sparklings hier aus Down Under macht.
Ihr Michael Brecht
A leg of lamb and a Reserve Merlot – it is winter in the Southern Hemisphere
I simply cannot help myself but when I think of Merlot, I think about the movie in which … – no let us not go there. So, when I started writing about my latest Merlot experience this morning, I thought it might make sense to ask online service Wikipedia how they defined Merlot to get a sort of neutral look at the variety: “Merlot is a red wine grape that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines.”
Reserve Merlot Cuttaway Hill
Autsch, that doesn’t help either, a blending grape, but honestly: there are many fine Merlot producers in the Bordeaux region in France and in Australia alone, there were more than 125,000 tonnes of this variety produced in 2008.
Time to have a closer look at an Australian Merlot, not blended but standing on its own, especially with a nice roast of lamb for dinner already in the oven:
My choice: the 2006 Reserve Merlot from Cuttaway Hill, of the largest vineyard properties in the Southern Highlands. The wine is bright purple in colour, its bouquet full of dark ripe fruit and chocolate. I give it an hour after opening it as the bottle was stored in a rather cold cellar, mainly due to the frosty nights of this week.
When I take the first sips, I am amazed: this Reserve Merlot develops rich fruit characters on the palate and shows a very nice length. On the bottle they recommend celaring to 2013, knowing the many Merlot fans in the Southern Highlands I suspect most of their bottles gone by then.
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Der australische Winter zehrt mit heftigen Winden an uns, die wir gerade erst aus dem warmen Europa zurueck gekehrt sind. Abends ist es Zeit fuer einen Reserve Merlot von Cuttaway Hill, ich selbst bin kein ueberzeugter Merlot Fan, doch dieser Reserve mundet mir vorzueglich. Ein besonders fruchtiger Charakter und eine schoene Laenge machen diesen Wein zu einem perfekten Tropfen fuer das Lamm, welches heute auf unserem Tisch steht.
Ihr Michael Brecht
Wine advertisement on the radio – get Australian bargain hunters to your cellar door
Yesterday afternoon, I experienced an amazing phenomenon as I visited one of the wineries in the Southern Highlands. I spent two hours at their cellar door and although Fridays are usually busier than most other weekdays, this one was special: every five minutes a new car arrived at the car park with new people rushing through the door asking whether the radio advertisement was true and some of the announced wines still available.
Radio ads lead us to the latest bargain at a cellar door
So this is what they mean when they talk on the radio about how ‘radio advertisement works’ – I suspect everyone in Australia has heard the advertisement of Commercial Radio Australia for its own capability to make ads work (their latest slogan being: radio advertisement – economically sound).
I experienced the simple truth of this fact when 80% of the mostly new visitors to this winery claimed, they had heard the spot on the radio. Which spot I asked, as I currently listen to a Mozart CD in my car and therefore avoid commercial radio’s inundating commercial breaks this way. I realised that my selfish behaviour might have made me miss out on the hottest news in the Highlands this week and only pure luck brought me to the place where all the action was taking place!
The cellar door manager informed me that they announced the sale of Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlots at $3.00 per bottle – vintages being their 2003 and 2004 ones. Here we are – the old Australian habit to love a bargain was happening right in front of my eyes. Highlights of these two hours were a Mercedes S-class from the Northern beaches in Sydney and various BMW four wheel drivers – all these guys hunting for the cases with $3.00 wines. Well, you can’t buy an S-class when you spend all your money on Penfolds Grange bottles, do you?
On the other hand, one customer told me: this is cheaper than buying your daily red at larger bottle shops such as Dan Murphy’s – and the wine is definitely better – this is for sure.
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Australier lieben ein Schnaeppchen, so geschehen gestern nachmittag, als ich viele Schnaeppchenjaeger in eine Cellar Door hereinstuermen sah – und das an einer Cellar Door, die viele Kilometer ausserhalb der Kleinstaedte hier in den Southern Highlands liegt. Ein Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot ist dort fuer $3.00 die Flasche zu haben – im Dutzend – und die Jaeger stroemten nur so hinein. Grosser Unterschied zu den $3.00 Australiern in deutschen Supermaerkten ist, dass dieser Tropfen hier richtig gut schmeckt, kein grand cru classe – aber immerhin.
Ihr Michael Brecht
Cool delights in the Southern Highlands
Last weekend saw the first ‘Cool Flavours’ event of its kind here in the Southern Highlands. The tourism bureau in Mittagong had labeled this long weekend the ‘Event of Cool Delights’ and the event met all expectations: great food, a great selection of wines to taste from the region and it was cool – extremely cool.
Cool Delights at Tertini Cellar Door
A Queens Birthday weekend is usually the start for the cold winds in the Southern Highlands and that is what we got. Colder temperatures with a very chilly breeze invited all of us to focus on red wines and find our spot close to the next open fire. The cellar door of Tertini Wines luckily had both and so we indulged in their Italian cheeses, great Pinot Noirs and I didn’t move from the fireplace myself.
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Im Juni wird hier in Australien der Geburtstag der Koenigin gefeiert, auch wenn der tatsaechliche Geburtstag der 21. April ist. Sei’s drum, der Montag ist anerkannter Urlaubstag und so entschloss sich die hiesige Region in den Southern Highlands, das Wochenende zum ‘Food and Wine’-Wochenende zu vermarkten. Bei eisig kalten Winden wurden vor allem die roten Weine probiert und gekauft, ich selbst positionierte mich bei Tertini Wines an deren offenem Feuer und genoss italienischen Kaese zu feinstem Pinot Noir. Cool climate eben.
Ihr Michael Brecht
Cuttaway Hill Estate – cool climate Pinots from the Southern Highlands
Its been a while since I tried Cuttaway Hill Estate – one of the larger wine growers in the Southern Highlands. This is a winery which grows its grapes across the Highlands, has them processed and bottled in the Hunter Valley and unfortunately sells only through bottle shops – hence has no own cellar door.
Cuttaway Hill Pinot Noir
This is such a shame, as the Cuttaway Hill wines receive awards across the country – latest example is the five star ranking of its 2006 Chardonnay in Winestate Magazine (March/April edition).
Trying their 2007 Pinot Noir last night showed, how far the top Pinot producers in this region have come: soft berry and plum aromas, rich fruit characters and a nice finish – quite long for a Pinot Noir. I am so much more into these Australian Pinots this year than the – in my opinion – overrated and overpriced Pinots from New Zealand. Sorry my kiwi friends, I think that Australian Pinots have really caught up and in some cases overtaken you in this variety.
By the way: the new labels work wonder for Cuttaway Hill – I am sure that many wine buyers appreciate a real good label when purchasing new wines.
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Ich probierte den 2007 Cuttaway Hill Estate – einer der top-Pinot Produzenten der Southern Highlands. Ein sehr schoener Wein, der zeigt, wie weit diese junge Weinregion inzwischen mit Pinots gekommen ist.
Michael Brecht
A ‘Ladies only’ release of wine
What a shame: I am not invited! Tertini Wines from one of Australia’s upcoming wine regions Southern Highlands is surprising me with a ‘Ladies only’ Launch of the 2008 Tertini Wines Noble Riesling tonight. They will even serve Italian soft cheeses and Italian desserts to accompany this dessert wine.
I decided to send my wife and buy a bottle for me to try later tonight. More info about where to head for this event here.
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Eine wirklich ausgefallene Einladung erreichte mich heute von Tertini Wines aus den Southern Highlands. Sie laden zum Launch ihres Noble Riesling, grossartige Sache, doch leider mit einem Haken: Ladies only.
Ihr Michael Brecht
