Vietti Barolo Castiglione 2004

This is Luca Currado’s and Mario Cordero’s entry-level Barolo, a wine mainly made from grapes from Bricco Fiasco vineyard in Castiglione Falletto, Bussia and La Coste in Monforte d’Alba, Fossati in Barolo and Ravera in Novello. Average yields are around 40 hl/ha - yields for the crus are typically 30 hl/ha - so the quality of the fruit is of what can be expected of Vietti. However, with growing conditions as exceptional as in 2004 the fruit has gained a concentration and richness not often seen at this level. Deep red in colour its nose reveals plums, blackberries, cherries, violets and exotic spices following through to a masculine and tightly knit palate where complexity is locked in sturdy fruit, fine yet powerful tannins and fresh acidity. It’s big, macho, shows class and should be left alone for at least 2-3 years before its more delicate and emotional side will be shown. 92 points  

Source: Red + White  Price: $125  Drink: 2010-2020

Web: www.vietti.com

Cullen “Kevin John” Chardonnay 2006

Spring is in the air and clear blue skies quickly make me forget about winter. Although, somehow I had to think about the summer of 2005-2006 with its extremely cool temperatures. I’ll never forget the drizzle at Fernhook Falls on New Years Eve. Later in 2006 it turned out the weather had been so cool that Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz grown in the most southern parts of WA had failed to ripen fully. But a difficult vintage for red wines turned out to be a great one for whites. Especially the Chardonnays show magnificent concentration of flavours and high natural acidity across the board, with the better ones from Margaret River being truly outstanding. Whether its the bio-dynamic approach, the pedigree of the fruit, restrained wine making or a combination of this all, the Chardonnays from Cullen always possess a certain naturalness making it one of the regions best. Light yellow in colour, intense aromas of citrusfruit and melon are underpinned by subtle oak and barrel derived characters. This is all repeated on a palate that is tight, elegant, focused and pure with ample acid and a superb creamy mouthfeel. Although I prefer to drink Chardonnays relatively young, I would cellar this wine for another year before looking at it again. 93 points.

Source: Red + White  Price: $79.99  Drink: Now-2011+

Web: www.cullenwines.com.au

Bodegas Tabula “Damana” 2004

Nothing is better than a good independent liquor store but my local Vintage Cellars comes in admittedly handy for last minute purchases. Even more so now the range of imported wines has grown significantly over the last couple of months. For some good everyday drinking wines it’s alright to stay around the $20, for the real interesting stuff you’ve got to be prepared to spend at least $10 more. Most of the time, as you may expect at this price, the leap in quality is worth the money as demonstrated by this smart Crianza from the most western part of Ribera del Duero. Deep purple in the glass this wine offers a mix of cherries, little berry fruit, dried herbs, violets, vanilla and moccha on the nose following through to a tightly knit palate where fresh acidity and compact, grainy tannins lead to a very well balanced finish. This is seriously good, solid and modern style Tempranillo at an attractive price. 89 points

Source: Vintage Cellars  Price: $35  Drink: now-2015

Web: www.bodegastabula.es

Descendientes de J. Palacios Petalos Mencia 2006

It has been a very quite month with a meagre three posts, far too low for my own ambitions. Time and mind consuming business as the organisation of a trade day, the addition of Gilberts, Gibson and Loose End wines to The Grocer’s portfolio and the writing of a new website, www.thegrocer.com.au, have kept me from posting any reviews. Better news is that I’ve been drinking my way through a reasonable amount of good to very good wines lately, so there’s plenty of tasting notes to look out for while upcoming trips to Melbourne and Piedmonte guarantee new inspirational fuel.

I thought a bit of adventure couldn’t do any harm to end this month, so a Spanish wine from the emerging DO of Bierzo, crafted from bio-dynamically grown Mencia grapes by one of Spain’s most reputable  producers is not a bad choice regarding my own preference and drinking profile. All I can say is the wine didn’t offer an easy ride as any quality conventional wine from Priorat, Rioja or Ribera would have done. Being regularly exposed to challenging red Italian varieties as for example Lagrein and Refosco, I’ve gradually grown used to fragrantly aromatic wines with highly acidic, linear and mineral driven structures, a category in which Mencia perfectly fits. Deep purple in colour this wine shows exuberant aromas of little berry fruit, violets, spice and pepper with a leafy, sappy undertone that recurs on a palate with full, juicy and soft fruit, brisk acidity and some almond bitterness at the finish. Clean, well balanced and bustling with personality it’s a wine screaming out for food and understanding before you can fully appreciate it. 89 points

Source: Spanish Acquisiton/Liquid library  Price: $50  Drink: Now-2015

Paul Jaboulet Aîné Côtes du Ventoux 2005 ‘Les Traverses’

The anonymous appellation of Côtes du Ventoux is named after the famous mountain that forms the scene for some of the most heroic stages of the Tour de France. Unfortunately the wines of this region often resemble this limestone peak in their bare simplicity, but when the winemaking is accurate they can offer relatively good wines for little money. Take this blend of 80% Grenache and 20% Shiraz, a lovely uncomplicated, medium-bodied and fruit-driven wine that offers about anything you’d like to see in an everyday drinking red Rhône: a nose with lush red berries, plums, liquorice and a hint of herbes de Provence that follow through to a palate where sweet fruit is wrapped in firm but polished tannins. Simple but good, especially at this price. Buy a case and enjoy! 87 points

Source: Fine Wine Wholesalers  Price: $17.99  Drink: Now-2012

Web: www.jaboulet.com

Domaine des Sénéchaux Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2000

I had no intention to write about joint ventures again but with the ever globalising dynamics of modern wine business it’s hard not to do so. Take for example this iconic Châteauneuf du Pape producer. Acquired in 2006 by Jean-Michel Cazes, it adds to a prestigious portfolio including Château Lynch-Bages, Ormez de Pez, L’Ostal Cazes and Tapanappa, the latter a joint venture with our own icon Brian Croser. Time will tell what direction the wines will take stylistically,  this one is made under auspices of previous owner Pascal Roux. Deep ruby in colour the nose still shows remarkable fresh primary fruits as blackberry, raspberry and plum while notes of spice, earth, garrigue and leather add an intriguing complexity. Time has smoothed the tannins, lending the wine an appealing elegance only found in Châteauneuf with sufficient bottle-age, without loosing its finely woven structure that guides the core of sweet fruit towards a long and satisfying finish. Maybe a bit old fashioned but certainly well-made. Bravo! 92 points.

Source: Swanbourne Cellars  Price: $60  Drink: Now-2010

Domaine Tournon Syrah 2004

Renowned Northern Rhône producer Chapoutier is one of the most important players on the Australian Shiraz scene with the Heathcote derived La Pleiade - jointly crafted with Jasper Hill’s Ron Laughton - receiving raving reviews and heading towards cult status rapidly. But in the meantime the wines from Chapoutier’s other vineyards in the Victorian Pyrenees and Mount Benson should not be overlooked, producing excellent wines stylistically sitting between French elegance and Australian sturdiness. The in 1998 founded Domaine Tournon in Mount Benson is situated on the famous Terra Rossa soils of the limestone coast. Around 50 hectares of vines are organically cultivated in what is one of Australia’s coldest wine growing regions with a mean January temperature of only 18°C. A viticultural approach avoiding over ripe fruit further guarantees wines that offer finesse through relatively low alcohol as shown by the 2004 Syrah. But if you think this intensily purple red wine exposes any hard, leafy or green characters you’re wrong. In contrary, ripe berryfruit strapped by spicy and toasty oak defines the nose following through to a medium to full-bodied palate exhibiting lush, rounded fruit, velvety tannins and hints of smoke, toast, earth and pepper. This is a discrete, elegant and balanced food wine that drinks perfectly now or can be cellared for at least another 5 years to gain futher complexity. I hope we see more of these wines in the future. 91 points

Source: Fine Wine Wholesalers  Price: $30  Drink: Now-2013 

Web: www.mchapoutieraustralia.com

La Chablisienne Chablis 2006

About two weeks ago Australian Financial Review’s Tim White wrote an interesting article on the unprecedented wide choice of fine European wines in Australia. Apart from importers like Enoteca Sileno, Vintage & Vine, CellarHand and The Spanish Acquisition, praised for keeping up stock levels of many independent bottle shops and top restaurants with exciting wine styles, a fair bit of attention went out to the wine buyers at Coles. Owning outlets as Liquorland and Vintage Cellars, our biggest wine retailer has jumped onto the bandwagon with imports at the cheaper end of the market in order to expose customers to new styles and varieties. Although not all the offerings are of the same quality, some nice ones can be found at attractive prices. I know this subject throws around some controversy but one can’t deny democracy has landed in the world of wine.

The always reliable wines from Chablis co-op La Chablisienne are well represented on the shelves of my local Vintage Cellars. The straw yellow 2006 Chablis unveils its regional identity straight away with aromas of lemon, apple and white flowers while gentle acid flows underneath the smooth and textural palate. This is not the most concentrated and persistent Chablis, but for a village wine selling at twenty dollars its all forgiven. 87 points

Source: James Busby Fine Wines/Vintage Cellars  Price: $20  Drink: Now

Web: www.chablisienne.com

Ca’Marcanda Promis 2004

The coastal Bolgheri is one of Italy’s youngest DOC’s. Home to the renowned Ornellaia and Sassicaia, it’s a fast evolving region too with numerous producers following the same path as the Antinori’s. This is understandable regarding the high prices those Super Tuscans have been fetching since the mid-90’s, the possibility of making cutting edge wines out of popular international varieties and the abundance of sunshine ensuring flavours and tannins to ripen fully and relatively easy. Angelo Gaja’s Ca’Marcanda is one of the new kids on the block, with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot as main varieties planted in its vineyards. But as with most of its Piedmontese cousins the wines are voluntarily made as IGT’s, enabling cross-regional blending and the use of other varieties than permitted by the DOC regulations. The entry-level Promis fits exactly in this mould with 55% Merlot, 35% Shiraz - both from the Bolgheri estate - and 10% Sangiovese from Montalcino. This deep purple wine shows an attractive nose with loads of ripe red berries and seductive vanillan oak. Soft grainy tannins, generous fruit and balanced acid on a medium weight palate testify of skillful winemaking. Unfortunatly the absence of a defined sense of place makes this wine nothing really more than a well made, easy drinking Italian wine. 88 points.

 Source: Negociants Austrialia  Price: $50  Drink: Now-2010

Faiveley Mercurey Clos du Roy 2005

The combination between Faiveley and the appellation of Mercurey is one that delivers pretty good wines at reasonable prices. My expectations of the Clos du Roy were high after the outstanding 2005 Mercurey Clos de Myglands of the same producer. But where the latter had some elegance and subtlety, this premier cru shows the robustness wines from this appellation usually offer. Deep ruby in colour the nose displays dark berry fruit, plums and wet earth following through on a  straightforward palate with rather firm, mouth drying tannins. Although this wine needs more time to come together a bit, it certainly won’t shed off its frankness. 88 points

Source: Negociants Australia  Price: $65  Drink: Now-2012+

Web: www.bourgognes-faiveley.com