Tuesday, July 31st, 2007
1991 Lake’s Folly Cabernet Sauvignon, Hunter Valley, Australia
Appearance: deepish purple with slight orange rim
Nose: concentrated blackcurrant fruit (this wine would have been massive in 1991) with spicy oak and a very savoury nose that defies description. Slight eucalyptus nose but with other herbs, oils and spices there too.
Palate: elegant palate with ripe mellowing fruit, lovely oak, integrated still closely-knit tannins and very good length.
Conclusion: very good, although this wine still has some way to go. 1991 appears to have been a hot and dry year, but there was nothing but finesse to this wine. No wonder this is one of the stars of the Hunter.
Rating: 18.5/20 (possibly higher with time)
Monday, July 16th, 2007
We have to delcare an interest here in that Edward’s brother, Michael Ragg, is co-partner of Mischief & Mayhem, the Burgundian negociant-eleveur based in Aloxe-Corton (which he runs with Michael Twelftree of Barossa-based Two Hands Wines).
But we are not alone in thinking the quality of the wines here is very high. Wine Spectator has awarded repeated high scores in their blind-tastings and quality is set to improve even further, as Bruce Sanderson reported on his recent visit.
In July 2007 we tasted a range of both the white and red 2005s at the property.
Here are our notes on the reds:
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Savigny-Les-Beaune 1er Cru Les Peuillets
Appearance: medium purple-red, clear rim.
Nose: bright strawberry and raspberry fruit, lovely oak, perfumed.
Palate: attractive red fruits, nice ripe grainy tannins with lovely acidity. Good length.
Conclusion: Very approachable and really good value all round.
Rating: 17.5/20
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Aloxe-Corton 1er Cru Les Fournières-Guérets
Appearance: deepish purple-red colour, clear rim.
Nose: red and black cherry nose with some smoke (a darker, even ‘tarry’ nose here). Complex, if a little tight at present.
Palate: strong cherry fruits, largeish chewy tannins on the palate with great acidity and a very good overall structure (fruit-alcohol-acid-tannin balance is very good).
Conclusion: A blend of two Aloxe-Corton Premier Crus, this wine needs time. Will be very good over the next ten years (should keep for even longer).
Rating: 18.5/20
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Volnay (Vieilles Vignes)
Appearance: bright red-purple colour, clear rim.
Nose: immediately attractive bright red cherry nose with some spice (cinnamon, clove, nutmeg) from the oak here. Very appealing.
Palate: bright, deep fruit from the old vines comes through on the palate which has fine acidity with the tannins arriving ‘later’: these are chunky but still more grainy in texture than chewy exactly. Lovely oak and superb structure.
Conclusion: approachable now, but also a wine that will benefit hugely from cellaring. Very good.
Rating: 18.5/20
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Gevrey-Chambertin
Appearance: medium purple-red, clear rim.
Nose: pronounced oak but backed by strong fruit (principally red and black cherry, even some plum); fruit becomes more generous as the wine opens out.
Palate: palate is angular with strong red and black fruits, fine acidity and chunky ripe tannins. Good length.
Conclusion: Young and very good. Will get better and better.
Rating: 18/20 [likely to improve]
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Pommard 1er Cru Clos Blanc
Appearance: medium to deep purple-red, clear rim.
Nose: generous fruit and ‘power’: a strong nose of red and black cherry, some plum, nice oak which also contributes some spice.
Palate: more powerful red and black fruits on the palate with increased spice, good acidity and a big Pommard-like structure.
Conclusion: Needs time. Very promising Pommard.
Rating : 17.5/20 [for the moment]
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Petits Monts
Appearance: more purple than red, clear rim.
Nose: very perfumed first nose with dark red and black fruits, some spice and considerable complexity as the oak marries with the fruit.
Palate: hugely perfumed, lovely fruit; the palate has great acidity with silky elegant tannins and fantastic concentration.
Conclusion: Very, very good.
Rating: 19/20
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Grand Cru Clos Vougeot
Appearance: basically purple, clear rim.
Nose: very much berry fruit on the first nose (redcurrants, blackcurrant leaf). This bright first nose then reveals darker fruits (black cherry). The nose is almost a cross between the Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Petits Monts and the Aloxe-Corton 1er Cru blend combining that irresistible perfume of the Vosne (violets and something else I can’t put my finger on) with the tarry, smoky and spicier qualities of the Aloxe.
Palate: the palate has complex fruit, excellent acidity, fine chewy tannins and great length.
Conclusion: Superb, but needs time. This wine is still very young indeed.
Rating: 19/20
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Grand Cru Corton Bressandes
Appearance: predominately purple, clear rim.
Nose: lovely oak coming through with very ripe, bright, sweet and creamy fruits (mix of red and black fruits again).
Palate: strong fruit, with chewy medium tannins, excellent acidity and very good length.
Conclusion: approachable now, but clearly still a young wine. This bottle was even better than the one tasted the previous day. Very, very good.
Rating: 18.5/20
Monday, July 16th, 2007
We have to delcare an interest here in that Edward’s brother, Michael Ragg, is co-partner of Mischief & Mayhem, the Burgundian negociant-eleveur based in Aloxe-Corton (which he runs with Michael Twelftree of Barossa-based Two Hands Wines).
But we are not alone in thinking the quality of the wines here is very high. Wine Spectator has awarded repeated high scores in their blind-tastings and quality is set to improve even further, as Bruce Sanderson reported on his recent visit.
In July 2007 we tasted a range of both the white and red 2005s at the property. Here are our notes on the whites:
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Chablis
Appearance: lightish green gold.
Nose: beautiful mineral nose, light lemon and even green apple fruit here too.
Palate: lovely citrus fruit with more mineral notes (wet stones), excellent acidity and impressive length.
Conclusion: this wine is actually 1er Cru Côte de Léchet, but the decision was to deliver a really good Chablis at a decent price in order to establish something reliable as a new addition to the range (rather than price it at Chablis 1er Cru level). This is very good and should improve in bottle very well.
Rating: 17.5/20 [but will improve]
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Chardonnay
Appearance: medium yellow colour.
Nose: lemon fruit with mineral notes, slight oak, fresh, slightly nutty.
Palate: lovely lemon fruit with some well-balanced acidity (even for Chardonnay). Good length.
Conclusion: A very good Bourgogne Blanc.
Rating: 17/20
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Chablis Grand Cru Les Preuses
Appearance: medium green gold.
Nose: intense green apple and lemon fruit, mineral, savoury, concentrated nose.
Palate: marked but integrated high acid, lovely fruit, more mineral flavours, but with a rounded feel too. Intense and full-flavoured.
Conclusion: very promising Grand Cru Chablis with a considerable life ahead of it, if highly drinkable now.
Rating: 18.5/20
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Meursault
Appearance: deepish yellow.
Nose: very attractive lemon and melon fruit (not too lush) with nicely balanced toasty oak.
Palate: good acidity and soft citrus fruits with a creamy note. Excellent length.
Conclusion: Very good Meursault and should develop very well in bottle.
Rating: 17.5/20 [although another bottle warrants 18/20]
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Puligny-Montrachet
Appearance: pleasant medium gold-green colour.
Nose: strong lemon fruit, hazelnut, minerality (stones). Very attractive integrated nose.
Palate: palate has good concentration and a bit more zip than the Meursault – Puligny’s trademark acidity and minerality coming through – although the fruit is bigger here than in Pulignys from other vintages (2005’s plushness to the fore). Good length and very good all around.
Conclusion: Lovely village Puligny. Will improve well in bottle.
Rating: 18/20
2005 Mischief & Mayhem Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Champs Gains
Appearance: attractive medium gold-green colour.
Nose: toasty oak first nose, also featuring lemon and hazlenuts (as on the village Puligny). Young, complex.
Palate: fruit has soft feel at first on palate, but then the acidity comes through so the mouth-feel is supple, simultaneously lean and rich. Very long.
Conclusion: This is possibly more complex than the village Puligny, but I love the blend of the latter. At this stage, I would rate both wines similarly in qualitative terms, but it will be really interesting to see how they develop. Very good.
Rating: 18/20 [could be 18.5/20 or higher]
Saturday, July 7th, 2007
Trade tasting with Ben Glaetzer of Heartland winery (as well as the Glaetzer family label of Barossa) hosted by Palette Vino. Glaetzer himself was on hand to discuss the wines and explain something of his philosophy. Although he harvests grapes in a number of regions in South Australia, all of the wines are still made in the Barossa.
Ben explained that for many of his reds the Limestone Coast vineyards tend to provide aromatics, particularly eucalyptus in the hotter years, but also an herbaceous quality (basil, rosemary, green pepper etc.); whereas the reds from Langhorne Creek tend to give more structure and a chocolate quality. For this reason he often blends the fruit from both areas.
Also, when it’s hotter, if there are eucalyptus trees in the area, the oils from the eucalyptus become volatile and even settle on the grapes in a kind of resinous state. This is why certain Australian reds really do taste of eucalyptus, although Ben admitted there’s considerable research to be done in the area (clearly, some wines may yet smell of eucalyptus even if the vines have not been in close proximity to eucalyptus trees).
It’s just that Glaetzer himself has seen a eucalyptus mist envelope his vineyards in hotter years like 2003, conditions that simply did not occur in cooler vintages like 2002. Anyway, we had a great time tasting the wines and also enjoyed a very good chat, both with Ben and also Vicky Arnold, general manager.
Here are the wines. As mentioned, all are made in the Barossa. All are also typified by very clean wine-making, restraint, elegance and lovely ripe fruit:
2006 Heartland Stickleback White
Appearance: pleasant gold-green
Nose: lovely lemon fruit nose with some waxy notes.
Palate: pleasant fruit, good acidity and a touch of residual sugar on the palate, although this wine is essentially dry.
Conclusion: a really drinkable blend of 52% Chardonnay, 32% Verdelho, 16% Semillon (all of which are fermented separately in stainless steel then blended).Very good at its level and a great buy at 99RMB.
Rating: 16.5/20
2006 Heartland Viognier Pinot Gris
Appearance: medium gold.
Nose: complex nose with peach, apricot and pear fruit with some mineral notes and slight spice.
Palate: medium-bodied, glycerol, but also lifting acidity, lovely fruit and good length.
Conclusion: this wine is 68% Viognier and 32% Pinot Gris with most of the grapes coming from Langhorne Creek and the rest from Limestone Coast. The varieties are again vinified separately with the Pinot Gris being allowed some skin contact for a little bit of colour and structure to tame Viognier’s fattier ways. Lovely and pure.
Rating: 17.5/20
2005 Heartland Dolcetto Lagrein
Appearance: medium to dark purple-red, clear rim.
Nose: has a wonderfully spicy nose with black fruits (even dried cherries). Clove is predominant in terms of spice (comes from the oak here).
Palate: lovely fruit, chewy medium tannins, good oak, pleasant moderate acidity and impressive length.
Conclusion: this is 70% Dolcetto with the remaining 30% being made up of Lagrein. About 50% of the Dolcetto spent time in French oak, but the Lagrein only went near stainless steel. Very interesting and very well-made. Hurray for growing these grapes in Australia!
Rating: 17.5/20
2005 Heartland Shiraz
Appearance: dark purple-red, clear rim.
Nose: has a characteristic black cherry and slight blueberry nose, but not the masses of fruit that can blow some tasters out of the water. Elegant.
Palate: there are two things you wouldn’t notice about this wine: 1. it’s 14.5% alc., but without a ‘hot alcohol’ nose, 2. it’s been matured for 16 months in a mixture of light and heavy toast French oak. Both the alcohol and oak simply harmonize with the fruit. Tannins are moderate and chewy with just enough acidity to carry the fruit. Impressive length.
Conclusion: I loved this wine. It’s 100% Shiraz with 56% coming from Limestone Coast and the remaining 44% from Langhorne Creek. Very good.
Rating: 18.5/20
2005 Glaetzer Bishop Barossa Shiraz
Appearance: dark purple to black, clear rim.
Nose: sweet black cherry and blackberry fruits with mixture of savoury and sweet oak notes.
Palate: lovely fruit, large chunky tannins, good alcohol balance, pleasant medium acidity. Good length.
Conclusion: launched as a bench-mark Barossa Shiraz, this wine has all the elegance of the Heartland wines with a little bigger fruit. From 60 year-old vines, it has impressive structure and pure fruit. Vinified in a mixture of French and American oak, it has a slightly ‘sweeter’ nose than the Heartland Shiraz which is very appealing for the larger fruit here.
Rating: 18/20
2005 Glaetzer Wallace Barossa Shiraz Grenache
Appearance: dark purple-red, clear rim.
Nose: has an instantly appealing nose of ripe black and red fruits (more black on the account of the Shiraz fruit, at least in its Barossa expressions), some white pepper and other spices and appealing oak (French and American here again too).
Palate: refreshing acidity, chewy medium tannins (although these are slightly grainy too), strong fruit and good balance throughout. Good length.
Conclusion: this is 70% Shiraz and the remainder Grenache. Clean, pure and tantalizing, rather than being merely technically well-made.
Rating: 18/20
Wednesday, July 4th, 2007
2005 Beaujolais-Villages, Joseph Drouhin, Burgundy, France
Appearance: medium purple-red
Nose: strawberry and raspberry fruit, not too much carbonic maceration going on here so there is not that that bubble-gum, confected flavour. Bright fruit from the 2005 vintage.
Palate: a pleasant palate with low tannins, medium acidity and decent fruit. Quite good length.
Conclusion: representative and solid Beaujolais Villages in an excellent vintage. Not bad value for the Chinese market at 138RMB either from Torres China.
Rating: 16/20
2003 Trentham Estate Ruby Sparkling Shiraz, Murray Darling, New South Wales, Australia
Appearance: deepish purple.
Nose: lovely Shiraz fruit with blackberry, black cherry and even slight pepper (which doesn’t usually come from Aussie Shirazes).
Palate: lovely mousse, great fruit, even some tannin although it seems like every effort has been made to keep these low. Good length.
Conclusion: impressive sparkling Shiraz, a category we need to taste more of! Available from Gelipu for RMB 228.
Rating: 17.5/20
Wednesday, July 4th, 2007
2006 Norton ‘Lo Tengo’ Torrontes, Mendoza, Argentina
Appearance: gold with orange tints.
Nose: distinctive Torrontes nose of lychee and mango, but not really the rose-petal or gingerbread quality of Gewurztraminer (nor the orange blossom aspect of Muscat). Torrontes is apparently related to Muscat, but it remains an Argentinian thing really.
Palate: palate was rich with strong tropical fruit, distinctive bitterness and even slightly salty in taste with low acidity, highish alcohol and some length. More pleasant on the nose than palate.
Conclusion: fascinating to taste, but we’re not sure we’d want to drink a whole bottle. A good deal at 88RMB, however (from ASC).
Rating: 15.5/20
2004 Moscato d’Asti, Castello del Poggio, Piemonte, Italy
Appearance: characteristic cheerful green colour with orange tints and some sparkle.
Nose: pleasant Moscato nose of highly aromatic grapes. It certainly has not deteriorated into that geranium smell you get on oxidized Moscato d’Asti.
Palate: good fruit, refreshing acidity and balanced medium-high residual sugar.
Conclusion: we were concerned that the bottle-age – which is desirable only in very high-quality Moscato d’Asti wines – might be a problem here, but the wine had held up very well. Good and well-priced for the Beijing market at 134RMB from Palette Vino.
Rating: 16.5/20
2006 Indis Shiraz Rosé, Great Southern, Western Australia
Appearance: purple-pink.
Nose: strong strawberry and red cherry fruit on the nose and even some spice (white pepper?).
Palate: decent palate showing the same strong red fruit qualities, nice acidity and not too high alcohol (weighs in at 12.5%).
Conclusion: A real find from the Beijing wine club Big 9. Indis wines are under the flag of Forest Hill, a really good Western Australian producer. Well-priced at 165RMB.
Rating: 17/20
Wednesday, July 4th, 2007
The theme for this tasting held for the Oxford & Cambridge Club of Beijing and guests was ‘Wines for Summer Drinking’. We actually gave the tasting to two different groups on consecutive nights (4th and 5th July 2007).
We have divided up our notes into a series of posts. Here’s Part I.
2006 Neil Ellis Sauvignon Blanc, Stellenbosch, South Africa
Appearance: light green.
Nose: delicate gooseberry fruit, some minerality.
Palate: ripe gooseberry fruit, excellent high acidity and impressive length.
Conclusion: made from fruit sourced in the Jonkershoek Valley, Stellenbosch, this sophisticated Sauvignon Blanc showing all the delicacy of well-made Sancerre but with greater density of fruit. Well-priced for the Chinese market at 188 RMB from Jebsen.
Rating: 18/20
2006 Brokenwood Semillon, Hunter Valley, New South Wales, Australia
Appearance: light green.
Nose: delicate lemon and lime nose with slight chemical smell (wax) and some green notes reminiscent of Sauvignon Blanc but without the same aromatic quality.
Palate: tight-knit lemon and lime fruit, high balanced acidity and characteristic relatively low alcohol with great length.
Conclusion: very, very good Hunter Valley Semillon, but also very, very young. This wine will develop wonderfully in bottle turning deep yellow and showing complex lemon and even toasty notes (although there’s no oak here, this is a feature of aged Hunter Semillon). The wine is approximately 214RMB retail from Jebsen, but totally worth it.
Rating: 18.5/20
2004 Heartland Viognier Pinot Gris, Limestone Coast, Australia
Appearance: lovely golden colour.
Nose: complex nose showing peach and apricot from the Viognier and pear and slight spice from the Pinot Gris.
Palate: The palate has pleasant fruit, some minerality and also some of that glycerol fatness that Viognier offers; but the latter is moderated by the freshness of the Pinot Gris (which, although not a high-acidity grape, nevertheless lifts the whole). Good length too.
Conclusion: very well-made, very drinkable. A delight.
Rating: 17.5/20
Tuesday, July 3rd, 2007
Summergate brought in Ernie Loosen of Dr Loosen, the well-known German producer, whose wines are largely based in the Mosel, although he does make some wines in the Pfalz as well. The tasting was held at the Zeta Bar in Beijing’s Chaoyang Hilton. Ernie Loosen was a lot of fun and spoke both realistically and optimistically about the China market(s).
2004 Wolf Pinot Noir, Pfalz
Appearance: medium red with orange rim.
Nose: immediate Pinot fruit in a ‘rustic style’, largely red cherry and strawberry.
Palate: high acidity, pleasant fruit, not much length, but faithful to the grape.
Conclusion: pleasant enough Pinot, if rough around the edges on the palate. Would go better with food, particularly salmon. Pretty drinkable, though.
Rating: 15/20
2005 ‘Dr L’ Riesling, QbA
Appearance: light to medium green-gold.
Nose: apples, chemical, slight tartness.
Palate: obviously high acid balanced by the sugar here which is overt in the QbA style. Pleasant apple fruit. Not bad length for this level.
Conclusion: as good a QbA as anyone is likely to find (certainly in Beijing!).
Rating: 16/20
2005 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Kabinett, Mosel
Appearance: light to green-gold.
Nose: very young, but still shows apple fruit, minerality and a generally savoury nose.
Palate: closed apple fruit, more mineral notes, delicate acidity with very well-balanced residual sugar.
Conclusion: a baby of a wine, but already showing some of the characteristics of excellent Mosel Riesling from an already fabled vintage.
Rating: 17.5/20 [but will get better]
2003 Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Spätlese, Mosel
Appearance: medium green-gold
Nose: honey, spice, some kerosene, already mellowing apple fruit.
Palate: round mouth-feel with more honeyed aromatic fruit. Acidity is lacking no doubt owing to the 2003 heat, but this is well put together.
Conclusion: I know some German Riesling producers managed to pull something out of the hat in the difficult 2003 vintage, but although this is largely a lovely wine, I still miss the grip of acidity that was denied that year (apart from to those who rashly acidified). Nice development on the nose, however.
Rating: 17/20
