Winter Red Wine Special Edition

With Paul Ippolito

Its cold outside! It’s pretty much full on Winter conditions just about everywhere across Australia, even though from where I’m sitting it has been a pretty mild start to the season. Not that I’m complaining as the colder weather sets in as it has given me plenty of excuses to get the rich full bodied reds out of the cellar to drink and have with the hearty, heavier and richer dishes we tend to eat more of over Winter as well as providing me with that extra energy (the food not the alcohol, that is) for all that extra televisional sporting viewing of our magnificent Socceroos.

So whilst I’ve been cooking up some great lamb stews, gloriously cooked beef casseroles, slow roasted lamb shanks and crackling hot roast pork dinners, I’ve also been spending a fair bit of time working out which red wine should match up with each delicious dish (whilst keeping one eye on the telly to size up the opposition teams).

There are some very good red wines out there in the marketplace this Winter Season I am pleased to report. May I recommend the Hunter Valley, Heathcote and the Barossa Valley for those big Shirazes you may be after, the Clare Valley or maybe Canberra for a more elegant style of Shiraz, the Coonawarra or Margaret River in Western Australia for those elegant yet rich Cabernet Sauvignons, or perhaps a smooth and soft Merlot, a complex, albeit more expensive Pinot Noir from the Yarra Valley or from the Mornington Peninsula or just about anything red from McLaren Vale or Langhorne Creek regions in South Australia when it comes to value for money.

There is literally something for everyone to suit all palates, tastes and budgets. The quality of the red wine out there particularly from the 2003 and 2004 vintages at just about all price points from just about all regions, demonstrates why Australian wine drinkers have never had it so good. The 2005 reds just starting to trickle out this season will be just outstanding if we believe what just about every winemaker across Australia seems to be telling us.

So be sure buy up and drink up and enjoy your reds but can I also suggest at the same time saving a few extra bottles and that you consider setting up your own wine cellar as you will find a few years bottle age on some of these reds (that although are made for, and are, drinking quite well now) is going to make such a difference, particularly with the Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon, that a year or so to develop them more will make for even better drinking by next Winter.

So here are a few reds that I can recommend to you that I have tasted over the last few months that should make for great Winter drinking. Rug up and drink well – and while you are at it – raise a glass and propose a toast to our Australian Socceroos who we should be so proud of!

Reds Under $20

Bremerton Tamblyn Cabernet Shiraz Malbec Merlot 2003 - Rebecca Willson from this Langhorne Creek winery knows how to put a good red blend together. This is youthful vibrant fresh spice filled wine that has a glorious set of aromas emanating from it. Rich ripe plums are followed by a litany of dark red fruits. A fruit driven style, well rounded, fullsome with a soft smooth velvety finish. Quite seamless in palate. Drinking now for 5 plus years. Try with oven baked macaroni. Good value at about $16.

Dowie Doole Hooley Dooley 2004 - These guys have come up with a fun easy drinking not too serious red blend that is just right. A blend of Cabernet, Merlot, Shiraz and Petit Verdot and well oaked and having undertaken malolactic fermentation, the wine is very drinkable. It is vibrant and fresh and the purity of the fruit is really good, youthful and upfront. A range of dark berry fruit ensues on the nose and delivers integrated smooth velvety soft flavours with a persistent length of finish. A very good easy drinking wine for around $15. Will hold 3-4 years and just perfect with pizza.

Jeanneret Grenache Shiraz 2004 - From the Clare Valley in South Australia, this red blend is a garnet brick red in colour with purple tints. Fragrantly raspberry and strawberry with elements of blue and blackberry. Intense and nutmeg spice filled aromas with a touch of earthy character. Smooth and soft with quite a mellow finish and length.  Drinking over 3-4 years with lasagna. A very nice wine at about $18.

Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz 2003 - This reliable brand has come up with this wine consists of a blend of premium Shiraz grapes from some of South Australia’s best vineyards with significant proportions from Barossa Valley and the Adelaide Hills all given the quality treatment of French and American oak.  Deep purple crimson colour, a big wine coming from a warm summer with good alcohol. Complex aromas of black fruit spice, hints of white pepper, ripe blackberry, succulent black liquorice and a savoury rather than ripe fruit element. Very well blended. Smooth silky tannins, fine and soft, making it very drinkable. Drink now for 3-5 years. A good bbq wine. Value at around $12.

Step Rd Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 - A dark purple red, it is vibrant and rich. Full of blackcurrants, chocolate and what I call "rum and raisin" aromas. Intensely fruit driven in an impressive manner with a hint of smoky oak. Overall a smooth and distinctive Cabernet palate of luscious blackcurrants and blueberries abounding from the glass. A velvety finish with seamlessly integrated oak and a touch of tobacco, tar and tea leaf adding to what is a complex red and an excellent one that shall develop over 5-7 years. Well priced at around $17.

St Hallett Gamekeepers Reserve Shiraz Grenache 2005 - One excellent wine from this Barossa Valley producer. A gorgeously uplifted intense dark berry fruit nose ensues. Spicy and so fruit driven in nature. Think lots of blueberries, plums and blackberries – with a violet fragrant bouquet. Satin smooth in delivery – well rounded with a silky mouth feel. Lingering length of finish making it ever so drinkable. Try it with lasagna and enjoy now over the next 3-4 years. Outstanding value at around $15.

Taylors Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 - This is a really good Cabernet from the Clare Valley in South Australia. Mid dark purple crimson red in colour, it exudes youth, vibrancy and vitality. Intense and luscious in character it is persistently fruit driven in style. Blackcurrants, mulberries, ripe plum and milk chocolate all flow from the aromas. Mouth-watering dark red fruit flavours make for a delicious well rounded and drinkable wine - the mid palate is well and truly covered here. The oak influence whilst secondary to the fruit influences through vanilla, nutmeg and roasted nuances. Silky tannins ensue. Try with gourmet beef sausages. Drinking to a peak of at least 5 years and beyond. Very well priced at around $18.

Reds Between $20 And $40

Cookathama Pigeage Merlot 2003 - Deep dark purple crimson. Blackish fruit and typically varietal Merlot. Stewed rich plums, black olives, blueberries, spicy fruit but savoury edge to it. Fine puckering tannins, good alcohol, and lingering length reflective of dark fruit flavours. Touch warm. Luscious fruit blended well with smoky roasted oak flavours. A good red drop at around $25.

Lark Hill Pinot Noir 2004 - This environmentally friendly winery from Canberra produces an interesting Pinot Noir here that is really fruit driven and full of ripe sweet fragrant fruit on the nose. Resplendent with deep rich strawberries and raspberries with hints of plum. Earthy, forest floor and truffles abound in aromas adding to the complexity of such. Nice soft smooth flavours on the palate. All fruit, little discernable oak. The acidity is also soft, so you get a really easy drinking fruity red. Drink now and for 3-4 years. Priced at around $28.

O’Leary Walker Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 - A sensational great value top quality red. Dark purple crimson red indicating its veritable youth. Vibrant and fresh in composition and structure. Pure red currants flow from the aromas. Lightly spiced with a touch of liquorice. Soft blackberry, plum and blackcurrant flavours fill out the palate providing a well roundedness, fine grainy tannins and well integrated oak. One very drinkable red that is still in its infancy. Try over next 7 plus years with grilled lamb fillets. A bargain at around $22.

O'Leary Walker Adelaide Hills Pinot Noir 2005 - This Pinot Noir is just excellent, proving again the quality of such fruit coming out of the Adelaide Hills especially when it is given the O'Leary Walker winemaking treatment. You get just the right balance of gorgeously soothing rich plums and ripe red cherries delivered in an aromatic manner through a complex inviting nose. This is coupled with a delicious taste on the palate that exhibits and highlights an array of earthy, truffle and game savoury flavours that works a treat and melds with the fruit and oak to provide a well rounded wine drinking exceedingly well now. Try with Peking duck. Priced around $25 and well worth it. 

Penfolds Bin 28 Shiraz 2003 - This is a full bodied purple crimson red that just bursts with full upfront ripe sweet fruit. Lots of intense and resplendent plum with hints of rich luscious blackberry on the nose. It presents quite robustly and delivers a lusciously velvety mouth feel without compromising its balance in relation to fresh acidity, deep fruit and subtle and integrated cedary oak treatment. Indeed it is quite seamless in its delivery. Primarily fruit driven but also lingers with a savoury dimension that takes it out of the big blockbuster high alcohol warm red league and into a more balanced quite stately arena. Should cellar 5-7 years plus. An excellent wine. Perfect with oven roasted lamb shanks. About $26.

Penley Estate Phoenix Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 - A glorious purple garnet red colour reflects its youth on one hand but some development on the other. You get lots of ripe upfront deep red berry fruit with hints of spice and nutmeg. It flows onto the palate with a smooth rich character, fleshy with rich plum and strong blackcurrant flavours that just linger. The oak is seamless, there but letting the fruit do the talking maintaining that sense of balance. The structure is elegant yet substantial. Drinking very well right now for up to 4-6 years, the wine will go well with lasagna. At around $25, this is an excellent value Cabernet from the Coonawarra region.

Penley Estate Hyland Shiraz 2004 - This Shiraz is just drinking perfectly at the moment. Deep dark broodingly purple with crimson hues, it is also still a youthful wine. Intensely varietal with rich seductive classic blackberry dominating the nose. The purity of the fruit just abounds. Spicy, rich, ripe yet elegant with a medium bodied style, it is just seamless in palate delivery with a smooth soft well rounded finish. Plum fruitcake flavours on the finish just linger, the oak is there but well integrated and let's the fruit take the front of stage. Cellaring up to 5-7 years but drinking very nicely with roast lamb. At around $25, this is a bargain. Drink up and buy up.

Robertson's Well Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 - This is a distinctive Coonawarra Cabernet. Garnet red with crimson hints, the wine is intensely blackcurrant, mulberry leaf and minty in aroma. The fruit is spicy, smoky yet lively and varietal in composition. Ample but not full bodied, it enjoys a good length of finish. Spicy oak and superfine tight tannins are there. This is still a young and somewhat restrained still youthful red that should open up further and develop over time. Quite savoury in style. Try with marinated bbq steak. Should drink well for 5-6 years and develop throughout that time until it peaks. A good example of Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon at around $25.

Schild Estate Shiraz 2004 - Very dark deep crimson blackish purple. Broodingly deep intense aromatic and luscious black fruits driven. Spicy and fresh in demeanour. A touch of sweet caramel oak - well melded with the fruit. Soft and smooth with a velvety finish - milk chocolate and sweet liquorice hints. Fine grainy tannins also ensue. Quite a seamless wine in delivery overall. A classic Shiraz typically varietal with dominant plum and blackberry fruit flavours. Should cellar 5 plus years. Try it with roast lamb. An excellent wine at around $24.

Schild Estate Barossa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 - Young and a touch raw at first, the restrained nose opens up very nicely with time revealing layers of black cherry, cassis and black olive aromas. There is also a hint of tealeaf and a touch of mint that provides a savoury dimension. The oak is coffee orientated with some tobacco and quite classic in its composition and structure. The wine has a good long length with plums and blackcurrants ensuing. Lingers long on the finish. Try it over 3-4 years with a nice cut of roast beef. About $24.

Wynns Coonawarra Black Label Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 – Deep dark red in colour with some youthful purple hints, the wine has aromatic classic blackcurrant which presents in an elegant, floral upfront manner. The fruit is ripe and young. The acidity is fresh and the oak seems integrated. Neither overly ripe nor big in structure, the word, elegant again comes to mind. Fine silky tannins with a good length, the palate delivers a well rounded array of berry fruit flavour. Should cellar 7-10 years plus. Drink with bbq pork spare ribs. Around $25.

Reds Over $40

Cape Mentelle Zinfandel 2004 - Deep dark blackish purple. Pure fragrant spices and violets. Anise, liquorice, dried herbs and mocha follow. Liquorice abounds as does dark club chocolate. An elegant style despite the massive alcohol of 16%. Lively and fresh and delivery. Fine tannins with smoky and spicy oak. Dark berry fruit on the plate lingering long. Try with lamb shanks. Cellaring 7 plus years. About $51.

Devils Lair Cabernet Merlot 2003 - Deep garnet red with youthful crimson hues, the aromas that follow are complex to say the least. You get spicy bacon, charred oak, spiced plum, broodingly dark blackcurrant and an good strong earthiness, all enmeshed together to produce a savoury yet elegant class of wine. Vibrant in its fruit character projection, it delivers a soft full bodied well rounded set of flavours that are very well integrated. Dark berry fruit, chocolate mocha with deep seated plums flow with a long strong savoury finish. Good firm oak packing a punch along with fine powdery tannins support the fruit dimension of the wine, particularly the forward Cabernet features of it. I would say it has at least 10 years plus in cellaring potential. Around $58. An excellent red which is still in its infancy despite its drinkability. Try with roast lamb.

Kay Brothers Amery Vineyards Block 6 Shiraz 2003 - Deep dark purple crimson in colour with intensely pure blackberry aromas. A good dose of alcohol with impressive polished persistent obvious smooth dark fruit ensuing. Fresh and lively acidity supports the fruit and gives the wine its structure. Lingers in fruit flavours with good firm oak influence. Chocolate, liquorice and soy secondary characters. Deep and distinctive in style and one serious red. Not as full bodied and well rounded as the 2002 but instead quite elegant and also a quite powerful wine. Overall quite well balanced despite its youth. An excellent wine at around $70. Cellaring 7-10 years plus. Try with oven roasted lamb shanks. 

Paul can be contacted by email at Paul_Ippolito@hotmail.com where you can also request to be placed on his mailing list for his wine newsletter.

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