This Month we had Jen Connan again, and again a very good evening, with wines from all over Australia.
Australia is the 6th largest producer of wine >1 billion bottles annually, and the 5th largest exported. Almost all the bottles are now screw cap. Interestingly we get Australian wine cheaper here than the Aussies can buy it at home – a function of the buying might of the British importers, even with our high excise duty.
As usual, 8 wines, with a Sparkling Red, and a botrytis dessert wine too.
Whites:
The Society's Exhibition Clare Valley Riesling 2024 Clare Valley 12%. £11.50. Wine Society
A very different style of Riesling to the German versions we’re more used to. Flinty, austere even. Worth a try . For a bit of fun, get a bottle of this and a bottle of the Society Saar Riesling and compare them.
Vasse Felix Filius Chardonnay 2023 Margaret River 12.5%. £13.99. Majestic
A fairly classic oaky chardonnay. Good.
D’Arenberg The Hermit Crab 2022 McClaren Vale (Viognier/Marsanne) 14%. £16.65. Great Wine Company (GWC)
A very powerful white, high alcohol yet still well balanced
Reds
Rob Dolan Pinot Noir 2021 Yarra Valley 13.5%. £19.95. GWC.
Not the best P-N I’ve ever tasted. Not for me.
Grant Burge Barossa Ink Shiraz 2023 Barossa Valley 14%. £8.95. Waitrose
Very good, a classic Aussie shiraz and a bargain to boot
Hesketh Coonawara Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 Coonawara 14%. £19.99. Cellar Door Wines (CDW)
A bit ordinary to be honest, & at £20?
Paulett Trillians Sparkling Red NV Clare Valley (Shiraz/Cab Sauv) 13.5%. £18.95. CDW
Not a style you see often, but well liked. I certainly did. I recommend anyone to try a sparkling red.
Dessert
De Bortoli Family Reserve Botrytis Semillon2020 Riverina 9%. £9 per half bottle
Riverina is in the Murray-Darling region, and has a climate perfect for predictable noble rot wine. So they can make lots at a very affordable price. Very good it is too.
For me the star of the evening was the Grant Burge Shiraz, on offer at £8.99. I did dash to Waitrose the following day to buy more. A steal, as they say
