Out Of The Bottle
With David Ellis
Katnook Estate & 2009 Scarborough Yellow Label Chardonnay
Wayne Stehbens has built an enviable reputation as Senior Winemaker
at Coonawarra’s Katnook Estate for creating wonderfully fuller-bodied
Merlots that always stand out from the crowd.
And his
newly-released 2009 is no different: crafted from full-flavoured fruit
from a low-yielding vintage, this wine’s got beautifully up-front plum
and red currant flavours, a nice sweetness to it – together with a
touch of spice – and fine tannins.
"We had average winter
rainfall that helped budburst in Spring", Wayne recalls of the 2009
vintage. "But January was a testing time with a mini-heatwave, slightly
below average temperatures for the rest of the vintage – that was the
latest since 2004 – and yet resultant fruit of outstanding flavour".
At $40 enjoy this one with rare rib-eye fillet and field mushrooms. SPECIAL OCCASION
What better way to ring-in New Year than with the same wines that
Sydney’s Lord Mayor and her official guests will be enjoying at the
Sydney Opera House on December 31 as they watch the annual fire-works
that have made Sydney the New Year’s Eve capital of the world.
The
Hunter Valley’s Scarborough Wine Co has been chosen to provide the
wines for this year’s official bash – and at the Dawes Point Viewing
Area for a selection of the 1.5-million people who will line the
harbour foreshores for this year’s event – and one in particular to
think about for your own celebrations is their 2009 Scarborough Yellow
Label Chardonnay.
At $28 it’s honeyed lime, butterscotch and roasted cashew flavours match beautifully most party foods. CHRISTMAS MUST
A gotta-have for yourself or a family or friend wine buff this Christmas is Jeremy Oliver’s Australian Wine Annual 2012. Jeremy’s
used his 27 years industry experience to rate 14,000-plus current and
back-vintages from more than 300 leading Australian producers… it’s a
must for those looking for the best from Under $20, to what Jeremy
considers our Top 100 for that Very Special Occasion. Priced at $29.95
from most book shops.
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