Tokaji Wines

Tokaji Aszú

The Tokaj Aszú is the typical noble sweet wine from Tokaj-Hegyalja. The basis of this wine are hand-selected, dried and noble rotten berries. After selecting, those dry berries are processed to an Aszú paste. Taste and quality of the Aszú mainly depend on the number of baskets (puttonyos) filled with dry berries (25 kilograms each), which are added to a cask (Gönc type, 136 liters) of dry base wine. Consequently, the proportion between aszú berries and dry base wine is about 1:1 for a 6 puttonyos Aszú. A 3 puttonyos Aszú needs to contain at least 60 grams of residual sugar; 90 grams are required for the 4 puttonyos, 129 grams for the 5 puttonyos and 150 grams for the 6 puttonyos. After several months of fermentation, the Aszú normally matures for 3 to 8 years - traditionally through oxidative ageing with air contact. Its decent, stable acidity charactzerizes this dessert wine, which is one of the slowest maturating wines worldwide.

Menu 724th Dinner

724th  Dinner – June 21, 2012

Campana’s Stockade Cellars,

cnr Mair & Armstrong Streets

President: Dean Stevens 

CANAPES

Pacific Oysters, Coffin Bay SA

Portland bug sausage

Jamon and pecorino in brioche

G.H.Mumm NV Cordon Rouge

ENTRÉE 

Game:

Rabbit, Hare and Teal

2004 Tomboy Hill ‘The Tomboy’ Pinot Noir

2008 Domaine Alain Burguet Bourgogne Les Pince Vin

MAIN COURSE

Braised beef rib, polenta, peppered chocolate, black cabbage

2001 Poggerino Chianti Classico

1983 Lindemans Hunter River Bin 6600

1995 Evans & Tate Margaret River Shiraz

CHEESE & DESSERT

Goat’s dairy platter:

Montenebro (Spain), Frais (Meredith), Chawanmushi (Japanese custard)

1972 Oremus Tokaji Aszu 6 puttonyos

Chef: Peter Ford

Food Master: John Coco

Winemaster: Mal Anderson

Cork Award Mike Sheeedy Tokaji

Fork Award Graeme Harvey Canapes

Best Match & Course Cheese & dessert

Best Wine Tokaji

Cellar Additions

Tyrrell's Vat 1 Semillon 2005

Region: NSW- Hunter Valley Size: 750ml Tasting Note: Gary Walsh 94/95 points! "What commercial release of Vat 1 are we up to at the moment? Must be 2002 or just coming onto 2003. This would have been sent because it was a trophy winner at the recent Sydney show. I like the 2005 Hunter Sems but I’m a classicist at heart and prefer the vintages on either side of it – and especially 2004 for the long term. Limey and lightly toasty – exuberant and punchy – almost leaning to tropical. There’s bursting acidity of the mouthwatering kind, not abrasive, although certainly sharpish. Length is good and there’s plenty of flavour. A richer, softer style that’s just starting to do some of those interesting honey/hay/toasty things that make aged Hunter Semillon such a wonderful wine. An excellent Vat 1. Re-tasted Jun11 Rich, lime, light toast and dried flowers – almost like chamomile. Terrific colour. Has an intense, soaring palate combining tangy acidity with subtle lanolin softness. Explosive. Abundant flavour. Top end. You can drink it now but it’ll be better again with a couple more years. 95-96 2015-2025." Gary Walsh, Wine Front Feb 2009

Ata Rangi Pinot Noir 2010 - 5***** 19 points. 

UK Decanter July 2012
"One of Ata Rangi's best ever wines. 

The star feature is a silky, mouthfilling, 

seductive texture, although the complex, 

layered fruit and savoury flavours are nearly as appealing. 

Hard to imagine how they can improve on this, 

but they will." Bob Campbell MW 

 94 Points - Wine Spectator USA, 15 June 2012.  

Top scoring New Zealand Pinot Noir of 30 reviewed.

"When I asked winemakers to name 

New Zealand's greatest producers, 

one name kept coming up: Ata Rangi, 

meaning 'new beginning'."  Robert Parker Online

.

June Dinner 724th

 

       Invitation to the June Dinner

Members are advised that the  724th meeting,

will be on

Thursday June 21st 2012

At

Stockade Cellars

Armstrong St

Chef Peter Ford

At  7.00pm

Food Master: John Coco

Wine Master: Mal Anderson 

Dress Business smart

Guests are most welcome

Electronic banking via account:

ANZ BSB 013 520 ACCOUNT 008699266 is recommended.

Cost $130 per person

Reply to Bob House

ballaratwineandfood@gmail.com

RSVP Sunday June 17th

More Cellar Purchases

Hi Bob – Two new ones for the Cellar!

2010 Giaconda Estate Vineyard Chardonnay

The next release of 2010 Estate Vineyard Chardonnay will be available for purchase through this website from 1st November 2011. This includes a limited En Primeur offer of the 2011 vintage.

Giaconda Estate Chardonnay is fully barrel fermented with approximately 33% new French oak. This wine is aged in barrel for 22 months, deep underground in our granite maturation cave.

2011 Barrel Tasting notes: The notes below certainly also apply to the 2011 vintage. This wine is a little more racy again, a further example of power and concentration. It should develop amazing depth and complexity.

2010 Tasting notes: Our first Chardonnay completely fermented and aged underground in our cave. This means a slower and more even ageing process, combined with the cooler season this has resulted in a wine with very long ageing potential. The wine has a signature nose of matchstick and meal with powerful underlying minerality. While similar in style to 2008 this wine is a little more racy with slightly less oak showing at this stage. The palate is highly refined and harks back to some of our best vintages from the 90s. The fruit is powerful but very well integrated with the other components.

Tasting update (October 2011) - The most recent tasting of this wine has exceeded my expectations. Although the above notes still stand, the wine has now developed a traditional Burgundy nose and the palate is showing more power.

Giaconda Nebbiolo 2008

Does Nebbiolo travel? I was just reaching the conclusion that it probably doesn’t fare too well outside of Piedmont when Rick had me try a barrel sample of his 2008 Nebbiolo from about 1.5 acres that have just been included into vines that have been designated for the joint partnership with Chapoutier. Aged in large old oak for 2 years, it will receive another year in barrel before being bottled. Possessing a medium ruby color, the rose petal character on the nose is pretty profound, with quite a lot of tar and some funky game notes Layers of aromas include rose hip tea, tobacco, some loam, a bit of dark chocolate and a touch of anise amongst the stewed Ceylon tea leaves. The medium to full body, crisp acidity and firm, chewy tannins confirm this is a wonderfully varietally expressive wine with a long complex finish. When I was told they were considering grubbing these vines up and replanting with Shiraz I strongly objected that this would be a crime! Personally, I can’t wait to see this wine in bottle...though only around 2000 bottles will be produced.  95-97 points (Barrel sample). Reviewed by Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW - Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate June 2010. 

Rick Kinzbrunner fancies himself as a bit of a nebbiolo fan, so six or so years ago he grafted over about half a hectare of the older vine pinot noir in the Giaconda holdings to the Italian variety. The vineyard sits somewhere between 500 and 700 metres above sea level on schist and granite filled soils. The wine matured in a single, large, Italian-made French oak cask and was matured for a longer than anticipated spell. There are follow up vintages, but I am yet to see them. Fresh cherry and floral as the aromas might be, there is a seething depth of char, charcuterie, earth and savouriness that adds seriousness to the bouquet. The palate is slender yet chock full – layered with suggestions of the classic nebbiolo ‘tar and roses’ characters, but shows a drier, mineral edge with bergamot and a warm meatiness that sets this apart from Italian appropriations. Tannins are superb – complex, with herbal inflection, and feel feathery yet taut. Finishes very long, focussed and elegant with a prickle of spice and florals. Superior debut. Rated : 94/95+ Points; Drink : 2012 - 2022+ Mike Bennie; The Wine Front

Dinner Menu 723

723rd Dinner - May 17, 2012

Lydiard Wine Bar

15 Lydiard Street

President: Dean Stevens 

Master of Ceremonies: Bob House

CANAPES

Sugar cured Salmon, pomelo & apple

Oyster, celery & lemongrass salad

1998 Pol Roger Vintage 

1st MAIN COURSE

Grilled Hervey Bay Scallops with a sweet fish sauce

2004 O’Leary Walker Polish Hill Riesling

2008 Heemskerk Coal River Valley Riesling 

2nd MAIN COURSE

Smoked Duck & Quince

2007 La Gibryotte Bourgogne

3rd MAIN COURSE

Roasted saddle of Hare, slow cooked leg & mushrooms

1999 Whitehorse Wines Pinot Noir

1999 Whitehorse Wines Sparkling Pinot Noir

Tel for purchase 0417348749

DESSERT

Pears with Prickly Pear sorbet

1997 Riverina Wines Balingal Estate Botrytis Semillon

Chef: Damien Jones

Food Master: John Coco

Winemaster: Mal Anderson

Cork award, Mike Sheedy (Whitehorse Sparkle)

Fork award Rob Campbell (Hare)

Course of the Night Smoked Duck

Best Match Scallops and  Reisling

Best Wine Pol Roger

Best's 2010 Great Western Shiraz

Hi Bob – a few interesting notes on my latest acquisition. Jim 2010 Best's Great Western Thomson Family Shiraz
Great Western, Victoria, AUSTRALIA

RATING: 98	VALUE:	CELLAR: 10 - 15 years (2022 - 2027)	ALC/VOL: 14.00%	TASTED: 8 Mar 2012

The Thomson Family Shiraz is produced from Henry Best’s original 1867 Shiraz plantings, and is only produced in exceptional years with yields typically at less than two tonnes per acre. Opaque black dark purple crimson colour with deep purple crimson hue. The nose displays strong white and blackpepper top notes followed by some more subtle liquorice, vanillin oak and spice scents. The palate delivers an explosive yet beautifully controlled flavour experience of blackberry, blackpepper and liquorice followed by some vanillin confectionary and cedar characters with a strong white pepper back palate. Magnificent concentration, power, richness and depth all delivered with great finesse and refinement. Velvet smooth perfectly balanced tannin structure. Exceptionally long blackpepper, liquorice, cedary vanilla and spice aftertaste. A youthful Thomson Family Shiraz that will potentially evolve into one of the greats with the components eventually all seamlessly integrating. Cellar 10-15 years (2022-2027) Alc 14.0% It’s a $30 increase on the 2008 release, and I’m never a fan of hefty increases. That said: the make is only 350 dozen, it’s from a single vineyard planted in 1867, and from a vintage like 2010, the quality result is Grange-like. How much would Grange cost if they only made 350 dozen of it? This is a tremendous wine. Just terrific. The tannin feels so mature, so long, so sinewy. The fruit flavours are ripe and blueberried – and intense – but there is no heaviness here. Musky, vanillin oak plays an assertive role but given time, this won’t be an issue. Has an iodine character to it. A small amount of spice. A commanding presence. It finishes – eventually – with searing length. Drink : 2020 - 2030+ 96 points Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front An amazing Great Western Shiraz. Already a complete and focused wine that will continue on this line and length for the next twenty to thirty years. Dark purple in colour; the nose is a mix of blueberry fruit, spice and cloves. The palate is interwoven with dark red fruits, dark chocolate, spice and integrated tannins. Drink 2017-2037 96 points Anthony D’Anna Every time I think of Best’s Bin 0 Shiraz I hear estate owner Viv Thomson saying: Best’s Bin 0 is built on acidity, rather than on fruit flavour. From a tasting I attended over a decade ago. The Thomson Family Shiraz is produced from Henry Best’s original 1867 Shiraz plantings, and only available in exceptional years, on average about six times a decade. The vines are cropped at less than two tonnes per acre (four tonnes per hectare) and are then meticulously hand-harvested, selected and sorted. Thomson Family Shiraz was first made in 1993, one hundred years after the Thomson family settled in the area. It is produced predominantly from the fifteen rows of vines planted by Henry Best, recorded as “Hermitage” by Henry in his daily journal. Today the clone is referred to by the CSIRO as the Concongella clone and it is the mother clone of all subsequent shiraz plantings at Best’s Great Western. Thomson Family Shiraz is hand harvested, hand plunged and fermented in small open fermenters and the wine is only produced in years when the quality is second to none. The Langton’s Classification is “Outstanding”.