The arrivage tasting proved the great quality of the vintage 2020. The promises made in the glass during the en primeur tastings were kept in this tasting session. An excellent vintage with wonderful and convincing qualities.  

Ballandean Generation 3 Shiraz Cabernet 2014 / A 6 barrel blend of Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon - 80/20 - from the heralded 2014 vintage that honours the 3 generations of Puglisis that have contributed to what the Ballandean Estate represents today. I too am honoured to have been gifted this wine as a wedding gift and drink it shortly after the occasion of 1st anniversary. A wine of intensity and depth, new oak lingering long on the nose. It matures in 100% new French oak brrels, is minimally filtered and fined.

Viscous legs allude to the alcohol and intensity of flavour. Black fruit and minerally tannins combine with peanut husk like flavoids, it's a wonderfully harmonious wine, and for all its heft it feels more medium bodied than one might anticipate. 

A incredible depth of flavour that truly represents the contribution of the generations that make this family owned winery what it is. 94

Clos Lanson 2009 / Pale gold colour with a myriad of very fine bubbles. Pure and seductive on the nose, revealing notes of ripe fruits, dried fruits and vanilla. Aromas of white peach, bergamot, hazelnut, almond and pastries come on after another with finesse and complexity. On the palate, the wine starts with smoothness
and creaminess. A wave of white and citrus fruits, notes of pastries and finally a very delicate woody note are expressed with harmony. The finish is dense, long and fresh.

In spring 2009, the heavy downpours and gusts of wind left the vineyard little respite. Flowering was more or less spread out over early June, with a few cool nights. Fruit setting developed well, promising an excellent harvest. The grapes reached maturity during a spell of perfect summer weather, which the Champagne region has not enjoyed since the summer of 2003.The weather was hot, dry and extremely sunny for veraison in the last two weeks of August.Thanks to a rainy period at the beginning of September, the grapes were able to fatten before harvest.The prompt return of hot weather in early September meant that the grapes reached maturity under perfect conditions, right up to the harvest on 9 September, carried out by the women and men of the House. Clos Lanson 2009 is a combination of the minerality, freshness and very delicate woody note of this cuvée, with the unique generosity of the 2009 vintage.

1914 Bollinger Collection  99p.  75% PN, 25% CH
 Disgorged for Madame Bollinger´s private cellar in 1969 and now in perfect condition at Bollinger. Made from across 23 crus with Bouzy as a main component of 18%. A startling bouquet. Golden light color and a long majestic taste that lasted for hours. Most impressive is the incredibly intense scent which in its complex creation contains diverse and at the same time nicely orchestrated ingredients such as; cardamom, lavender, lilac, vanilla, orange blossom, bergamot, Chinese tea and mandarin. Well thickened fat and at the same time a youthful champion. Probably the house's most outstanding vintage.

Gundog Estate Wild Semillon 2022 / I don’t always love the balance on the Wild Semillon – it can look too sweet in some vintages, but better balance this year. As the name suggests, this is a different take on Hunter Valley Semillon, with a wild ferment and time on lees. It’s slightly herbal to start, which I wasn’t expecting. A bit of passionfruit thiol character too – you could almost pick it as being Sauv with that ripe juiciness. A slightly more generous palate but not sweet. The palate feels like good, riper, more textured appley Hunter Semillon. Acidity feels nicely balanced too. Hardly classic, but plenty of flavour in this modern white. Best drinking: now. 17.5/20, 91/100. 11.5%, $40. Would I buy it? Worth a glass.

Rousseau Chambertin Cols de Béze 2021 / Bright,red purple. An immediate hit of quality oak, vanilla notes, but there is a good fruit beneath, and it does not take long for the fruit to rise to the top. Quintessential elegance, rose petals, smooth silky texture, quite a lot of new wood though. Very nicely presented, accessible wine, with good intensity and long ending.

Dom Pérignon Oenothèque 1990 / Big, ripe expression with gingerbread, roasted hazelnuts, straw, green apple and sea notes, complemented by gunpowdery complexity. Broad, almost oily textured yet fresh palate, with the softest mousse. Mature but healthy and fruity. Disgorged 2007.

Weingut Prager 2021 Grüner Veltliner Wachau DAC Ried Zwerithaler Kammergut Smaragd / Pale yellow-green, silver glints. Delicately savoury, with a hint of meadow herbs, soft aniseed and caraway notions, notes of ripe yellow stone fruit, delicate mango and honeydew melon. Complex, juicy, enormously concentrated, white stone fruit, taut and tightly woven, filigree acidity, salinity and lingers for minutes. Definite ageing potential for decades. A Grüner Veltliner marvel par excellence - will remain unrivalled for a long time. 99-100p

“Our 2002 Seña captures the essential elements of the Seña style: perfectly balanced with ripe fruit complexity on the nose and elegance on the palate. Black fruit as blackberry and blueberry are emphasized by spicy notes of sandalwood and cedar, with rich undertones of freshly turned earth and cocoa. The ageing in new French oak contributed integrated notes of toasted vanilla. Spicy, chalky tannins create a lively sensation on the palate. The wine fills the mouth on entry and carries through to a long finish. The considerable tannic structure should allow the wine to age very well and to continue gaining in complexity for many years.”

The 2001 – 2002 season got off to a usual start in the Aconcagua Valley with 201 millimetres of rainfall between June and August 2001. However, the spring was quite cold, and heat summation was 6% below average, which therefore demanded intense vineyard management and a closely monitored irrigation program to prevent excessive vigour and possible disparity in budding, cluster formation, and harvest dates. The temperatures were slightly lower than the historical average in the summer months (January – March), which slowed the vineyard’s phenological evolution and required us to wait for the tannins to fully ripen towards the end of April and delay the harvest by approximately seven days concerning average years. Yields were medium and produced ripe wines with good concentration of flavours.

2001 Gran Reserva from Maques de Caceres, this is a nicely mature cuvee of Tempranillo with 15% Garnacha and 5% Graciano from one of the great post-war vintages. Perfumed, lightly balsamic and well structured, with toast and black fruit flavours and savoury tannins. 2022-28.

Penfolds Californian wines are typically opulent styles and show the kindred spirit of Californian and Australian vine stock. 2019 Penfold Bin 149, described as a wine of the world is a Napa Valley South Australian blend and works impressively well. It’s worth remembering that the Australian component was vintaged six months before California and so the concept of maturation time is blurred. All the same the components all integrate seamlessly, and the wine should enjoy a long cellaring career. The same also applies to the 2019 Penfolds Bin 600 Cabernet Shiraz which has hallmarks of South Australian winemaking but fully amplifies the power and energy of Californian Cabernet. The Shiraz component does the job of filling the mid-palate and adding plushness, but the torque in the Cabernet drives the flavours across the palate with impressive velocity. The wine is strangely familiar yet distant perhaps reflecting the cross-Pacific nature of the wine. 

With an intense ruby-red colour, Ornellaia 2019 has a bouquet full of intriguing spicy and balsamic notes, including aromas of black pepper, sage and aromatic herbs. The wine is both full-bodied and vibrant in the mouth, filling the palate with its dense and elegant tannic texture and ending with a persistent and beautifully crisp finish