Lafleur 1950 / This was a fascinating bottle. It was in fine form,  and the level was top-shoulder. Decanted only 45 minutes. Light and feeble colour. Exposed and very seductive, fragrant, candied sweet bouquet. Flawless and silky, but also with a firm backbone of minerals. Rich and soft wine with drying fruit that echoes chocolate and coffee. Has lots of complexity, but requires fast drinking. Long and remaining at the end. Sensational, old-style refined Lafleur. 

Hentley Farm The Beauty 2017/ ‘2017 was a nice year in that we got lots of winter rainfall in spring.  Solid crop levels.  Had to drop a fair bit of fruit.  Trying to find the balance.  Fruit weight was there.  It was, in the end, just about hanging in there.  3-4 weeks later on average than average harvest.  Longer hang time means the 2017’s were quite big wines.  Even VS odd years in the Barossa – odds are bigger more intense more tannic.  Evens are softer finer more elegant, cooler.

Hentley Farm was founded by Keith Hentschke who was working for Orlando back in the 90’s.  He asked around about setting up his new vineyard, and subsequently bought the property in ’97 and planted ’99 as he wanted.  Greenock creek runs through the middle of the property.  The Beauty vineyard sits down on the banks of the creek.  There’s cooler air and it’s on the eastern side of the creek, there’s gums down there which provide shade; it’s cooler in the mornings.  Slower flavour development.  Mid-low 14’s baume at harvest.’ -AQ

Shiraz aromatics.  White florals, pretty red berries – this is a beast in terms of intensity and concentration, there’s so much going on here.  The 2017 vintage conditions play a big role in the muscular expression of this wine. The length of flavour is prodigious.  Delicious.  Plenty of charm and life here.  Blood/satsuma plum, raspberry, pomegranate molasses. Blue fruits and slately graphity earthy characteristic.  Soft tannin.  35% new French oak (the coopers are selected based on their ability to provide tannin support without oak. aromas and flavours.)

A journey to Champagne brought some interesting insights to famous houses and new discoveries with excellent tastings and some amazing wines.

Penfolds Grange 1971 / A superb bottle in every way, living up to its fame 100%. Deep colour, fascinatingly complex bouquet of smoked meats, leather, traces of raisins and squashed ants and all sorts of things. Incredible depth of flavour, concentration and power. Endless length. A very great wine indeed, drinking at its peak. Bottles as good as this will have at least 10 years of life left. This bottle is way better than the last bottle I tasted -- at the 2007 Rewards of Patience.  99 points

2020  Château L'Evangile Pomerol / Dark garnet in color, initially you notice all the truffle, flowers, dark cocoa and plums with a touch of licorice in the aromatics. On the palate the wine is rich, lush, velvety and full-bodied. There is a beautiful richness to the texture on the mid-palate and in the opulen finish with its wealth of chocolate, espresso, black plum and sweet Morello cherries. The endnote lingers, which is what you need, as this tastes and feels so good, you want more of it.  If you can, give this a decade of age this will really be singing. The wine blends 88% Merlot with 12% Cabernet Franc, 14.5% ABV. Yields were low at 32 hectoliters per hectare. The Grand Vin was made from 50% of the harvest. 96-98  Pts

Weingut F. X. Pichler Grüner Veltiner Unendlich 2017 / 100 points
Medium yellow-green, silver reflections. An inviting bouquet of fine blossom honey underlaid with nuances of fresh apricot, fine tropical fruit and a floral touch. Juicy palate with fine fruit, silky structure, elegant acidity, all perfectly balanced. Mineral and long on the finish, this is extremely satisfying and will age beautifully.

2021 Château Ausone / Ruby. Scented, delicate, nuanced, bright, layered, floral and intense nose. Fresh acidity, ripe tannins, blackberries, silky smooth, velvet, detailed, elegant and refined, the texture is unbelievable in this wine, beautiful! A very graceful wine. 12,7% alcohol. About 8000 bottles made. 96-98p

After a loooong wait of two long, we got finally the world's best champagne fair – Grand Champagne – organised. Superb bunch of chefs de cave, great selection of champagnes and bubbly atmosphere, what else do you need! And the best champagne for me was........Charles Heidsieck La Collection de Crayères 1981 in Jeroboam (98p)! 

‘It is striking that Winston Churchill 2013 is now lighter and more shy at launch than they used to be in the past. On the other hand, they seem to end up very close to the older vintages after a few years of their own storage. This slow development with Verzenay as such a clear mineral-rich stringent protagonist is noticeable not least in the glass. Just like in 2012, the wine is much more impressive and rounded rich a few hours after opening the bottle. Then a little cautiously, the whole Winston bouquet appears in the form of baguette, dark chocolate, strawberry jam, olives, gunpowder smoke, black coffee and sweet gravenstein apples. Drink after 2028.’

90(94)p

Beaulieu Georges de Latour Private Reserve 1970 / It's a rare treat to be able to try an old Californian classic like this. Sweet open spicy nose with some herby fruit showing a savoury, spicy, earthy/meaty edge. The palate is soft and spicy with some American oak still showing. Tarry and sweet with some evolution in the glass. Very nice, this historical old wine. Very good+ 88/100

2007 Nikolaihof Steiner Hund Reserve, Kremstal / This brilliant biodynamic estate is based in the Wachau on the “wrong” side of the Danube, but this wine hails from vineyards in neighbouring Kremstal. It’s an incredible Riesling: intense, focused and minerally with remarkable texture, density and concentration. Honey, white flowers and a stony undertow, with spice, creamy lees and a finish that lasts for minutes. The wine will develop for at least another decade in bottle.

Bollinger R.D. 1976 /“Every one of my encounters with this wine has been a slight disappointment, but then again expectations fly really high for the vintage. The earlier disgorgements have had a really sweet appearing nose with candied fruit and patisserie notes. Mouth-filling, super ripe, chunky palate short of energy. It feels like its best days are already gone. From a very recent 2012 disgorged bottle if was still fully vibrant, with a peculiar combination of aged and youthful characters. Probably still recovering from the shock of such late disgorgement.”