Bacchus Grand Cru III - The New World
Oxford University Wine Society
**Archived from Friday 7 May 2004**
d'Arenberg Fortified Shiraz (NV) £15
Jammy, sweet red fruit. A little disappointing? Perhaps only because I thought this was setting out to be a port look-alike, which it clearly is not. Really need to be tasted again on a different night to truly judge, but for now this is too fruit and simplistic for me.
Coriole Lloyd Shiraz 1997
James' bottle, donated to the Bacchus New World tasting. Pink rim, opaque appearance. Mature developed wines. The palate is lighter than I imagined it would be. Difficult to judge when tasted alongside the Orion and Grange '83. The palate is complex yet simple when compared with the latter wines. Lovely mid-palate with a long finish. This is clearly a very good wine, but needs to be tasted away from such esteemed company to do it justice.
Penfolds Grange 1983 £180
Sourced from Oddbins Fine Wine, Little Clarendon Street. Their final bottle. Opaque appearance, staggering when you consider the time in bottle. The rim is showing the age, turning brick red to orange. However, this bottle is clearly not at its best. Despite the enticing nose, it is not as open as I remember. Overly drying tannins, drying fruit. Almost heading like a elderly claret. Compared to bottles previously tasted this one is looking like past history. Shame. Bottle variation? Perhaps to be expected at this age. Or Oddbins' source for this or their own storage not quite up to scratch? Future sample will tell.
Renwood Jack Rabbit Flate Zinfandel 1999
Disappointing. The nose is not as beautifully open as with many great Zin's. Way too hot on the palate at 15%. It doesn't have the body to carry this off. Seemingly little varietal character. For the price, average quality. 13/20.
Sean Thackery's Orion 2000 £60
Double decanted an hour before tasting. Woosh. This is remarkable. Outstanding! Remarkably concentrated. But could you drink more than a glass? This is clearly a wine that would stand out a mile in blind tastings and must rake in the prizes. Yet with the pure fruit balance I think I could tolerate more than a glass - in a few years time. Right now this would certainly outface almost any food combination. The nose is like Lenor and the palate ripe blueberries. Huge liquorice red fruits.. Fine tannins, good acidity - this is assured a long life of well over a decade. I would be very interested to follow its development. Remarkable wine and I would say reasonably priced. 17-18/20.
De Torren Fusion IV 2001 £23
Double decanted an hour before tasting. Amazing Bordeaux in style, yet so much better than most Bordeaux, Certainly at this price. Opaque. Cedar wood ++. Very open. Nicely balanced palate with a smooth finish. The tannins are ripe and powerful. This is certainly well balanced enough to complement some Pauillac lamb perfectly! Drinking well now, it will not go the cellar distance of a comparable Bordeaux. 15+/20.
Esk Valley Terraces 2000 £68
Double decanted an hour before tasting. This is again a difficult wine to judge amongst its peers this evening. Despite an extra year in the bottle it seems younger than the De Torren and is still very tight knit. The two wines are on different plateaus. The rim is pink the nose more closed, mainly subtle wood at this stage. The palate is similar. This is certainly a wine not giving much up today and needs several years further bottle ageing to show at its best. But is it worth £75? I think a comparable Bordeaux would give this a run for its money, so probably not.
Wither Hills Pinot Noir 2002 £14
Typical New World Pinot noir in style. A little on the thin side? Tannic ++. Hot ++. Does not have the body to carry the alcohol. Good length. 14/20.
Mesh Riesling 2002 £15
A 'Mesh' of producers Jeffrey Grossett and Yalumba have produced this new wine. Not as pure at Grosset's styles, with a subtle difference in style and character. Steely and fine. mineral finish. Very good. 14-15/20. Will improve with age.
Oxford University Wine Society
**Archived from Friday 7 May 2004**
d'Arenberg Fortified Shiraz (NV) £15
Jammy, sweet red fruit. A little disappointing? Perhaps only because I thought this was setting out to be a port look-alike, which it clearly is not. Really need to be tasted again on a different night to truly judge, but for now this is too fruit and simplistic for me.
Coriole Lloyd Shiraz 1997
James' bottle, donated to the Bacchus New World tasting. Pink rim, opaque appearance. Mature developed wines. The palate is lighter than I imagined it would be. Difficult to judge when tasted alongside the Orion and Grange '83. The palate is complex yet simple when compared with the latter wines. Lovely mid-palate with a long finish. This is clearly a very good wine, but needs to be tasted away from such esteemed company to do it justice.
Penfolds Grange 1983 £180
Sourced from Oddbins Fine Wine, Little Clarendon Street. Their final bottle. Opaque appearance, staggering when you consider the time in bottle. The rim is showing the age, turning brick red to orange. However, this bottle is clearly not at its best. Despite the enticing nose, it is not as open as I remember. Overly drying tannins, drying fruit. Almost heading like a elderly claret. Compared to bottles previously tasted this one is looking like past history. Shame. Bottle variation? Perhaps to be expected at this age. Or Oddbins' source for this or their own storage not quite up to scratch? Future sample will tell.
Renwood Jack Rabbit Flate Zinfandel 1999
Disappointing. The nose is not as beautifully open as with many great Zin's. Way too hot on the palate at 15%. It doesn't have the body to carry this off. Seemingly little varietal character. For the price, average quality. 13/20.
Sean Thackery's Orion 2000 £60
Double decanted an hour before tasting. Woosh. This is remarkable. Outstanding! Remarkably concentrated. But could you drink more than a glass? This is clearly a wine that would stand out a mile in blind tastings and must rake in the prizes. Yet with the pure fruit balance I think I could tolerate more than a glass - in a few years time. Right now this would certainly outface almost any food combination. The nose is like Lenor and the palate ripe blueberries. Huge liquorice red fruits.. Fine tannins, good acidity - this is assured a long life of well over a decade. I would be very interested to follow its development. Remarkable wine and I would say reasonably priced. 17-18/20.
De Torren Fusion IV 2001 £23
Double decanted an hour before tasting. Amazing Bordeaux in style, yet so much better than most Bordeaux, Certainly at this price. Opaque. Cedar wood ++. Very open. Nicely balanced palate with a smooth finish. The tannins are ripe and powerful. This is certainly well balanced enough to complement some Pauillac lamb perfectly! Drinking well now, it will not go the cellar distance of a comparable Bordeaux. 15+/20.
Esk Valley Terraces 2000 £68
Double decanted an hour before tasting. This is again a difficult wine to judge amongst its peers this evening. Despite an extra year in the bottle it seems younger than the De Torren and is still very tight knit. The two wines are on different plateaus. The rim is pink the nose more closed, mainly subtle wood at this stage. The palate is similar. This is certainly a wine not giving much up today and needs several years further bottle ageing to show at its best. But is it worth £75? I think a comparable Bordeaux would give this a run for its money, so probably not.
Wither Hills Pinot Noir 2002 £14
Typical New World Pinot noir in style. A little on the thin side? Tannic ++. Hot ++. Does not have the body to carry the alcohol. Good length. 14/20.
Mesh Riesling 2002 £15
A 'Mesh' of producers Jeffrey Grossett and Yalumba have produced this new wine. Not as pure at Grosset's styles, with a subtle difference in style and character. Steely and fine. mineral finish. Very good. 14-15/20. Will improve with age.
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