Barossa Valley, Part 1

 Then on to the Barossa, where I wanted to taste the 'new' or 'alternative' Barossa. My first stop is at Agricola in the Eden Valley. This is a small operation (700 cases per year) by Callum Powell, the son of ex-Torbreck winemaker David Powell. His wines are nothing like Torbreck, though.

Callum's wines have been well received and are sold out, but he was kind enough to open two bottles for me. One of the key features of his Shiraz winemaking is the use of 100% whole bunch in the ferment. Let's see how this goes. He also does not do any manipulation, say adding acid etc.

The first wine is the 2023 Agricola DWxHV Shiraz. DW stands for Dallwitz, HV for Hutton Vale. So this is a blend of fruit from the famous Hoffmann managed vineyard in Ebenezer and Eden Valley. The wine is fresh and very savoury and drinks well. I took the bottle with me, and found on day two that more green elements emerged. Using 100% whole bunch is brave in a cool vintage such as 2023, but the fruit from the warm Ebenezer area made it work, although not perfect (92 points).

The second wine, the 2023 Agricola Ebenezer Shiraz comes from old Dallwitz and Dimchurch fruit (not the oldest blocks). The wine is bright, and tastes of red skinned fruit, licorice, and mocca. This is also a fresh wine, a little bit herbal. There is no sweetness in these wines and alcohol is about 13.9% (92 points).

I found these wines interesting. In warmer vintages and with more experience, they could become outstanding.

My second visit is to Ollin, a new winery only started in February of this year.  However, Jaysen Collins, the winemaker, is very experienced, probably best known for the work at Massena together with Dan Standish.

The surprise here was that I liked the white wines better than the reds. The 2022 Ollin Chenin Blanc spent 24 months on lees, yet the colour was still bright. This was a refreshing dry field blend with 13.5% alcohol (92 points). The 2022 Ollin Chardonnay was my wine of the tasting. It spent 12 months on lees and was matured in old French barrels. Gentle citrus flavours dominate in this textural wine (93 points). I also liked the 2023 Ollin Rosé from Grenache fruit. 12 months on lees and barrel fermented, this is made in the Provence style - pale, but with flavour (92 points). 

I was not too impressed with the red wines. The 2022 Balto Grenache from Standish fruit was hand stomped. It is meant for early drinking, but I found fruit and earthy components not well integrated (86 points). The 2022 Ollin Grenache is more serious. It comes from 160 year old fruit in the Eden Valley. There is a lot of spice on the palate. The wine is quite astringent and acidic (87 points). The 2022 Ollin Shiraz, from Kalleske fruit, is a slightly better wine. It is fresh, red fruited, but also quite astringent (89 points).

Chenin Blanc Tasting

 Chenin Blanc is grown in many countries, but only in France (Loire Valley) and in South Africa is it prominent. Originally, it is a grape used to make sweet or off-dry wines. However, as dry wines are so popular now, most of the time you can expect a dry Chenin Blanc. This tasting demonstrated the variety is a chameleon, or in other words, terroir and winemaking have significant influence and dominate any inherent grape features. Following are brief notes on five of the wines tasted.

2021 Savage 'Never been asked to dance'(South Africa): White flower on the nose, white peach and pineapple on the palate; an elegant, quite classic wine with high acidity and a long finish (93 points).

2020 Mullineux 'Iron Chenin'(South Africa): Melon flavours, honey, and a slightly oily character; a balanced wine with good length (93 points).

2015 Nicolas Joly 'Les Vieux Clos'. This is quite a funky wine, quite dark, copper colour, a little cloudy, tastes of cut-up apple, apricot; loses some flavour down the palate (91 points).

2015 Domaine de la Taille Aux Loups 'Venise': This is a complex wine, still fresh, with apple and melon flavours; delivers a musky mouthfeel with a long and lifted finish (93 points).

2017 Domaine Guiberteau 'Clos de Carmes': white flower, great purity, elegant and refined with noticeable new oak influence; a bit Chardonnay like (95 points).  

Three Outstanding European White Wines

 In a recent tasting of examples of 8 different white wine varieties, three wines stood out. The move in Germany to designate some sites with GG (Grosses Gewächs), and imposing some regulations for these, has clearly been successful. The example in this tasting was the 2015 A. Christmann Koenigsbacher IDIG GG Riesling. 

From a warm vintage, this wine is now showing some age, but also complexity which has generally not been seen say, a decade ago. This is an aromatic and rich wine, with a blend of citrus and honey flavours. A little sweetness is kept in check by unobtrusive acidity. This is a very balanced wine from a producer who can't do wrong.

Score: 95/+++

The second wine was the 2013 Louis Jadot, 1er cru, Meursault Genevrières.

The tasting was blind, but it was immediately clear this was a Burgundy Chardonnay due to the obvious oak treatment of this wine. As a result, the wine was creamy with some toast on the palate, but at the same time, the wine showed pineapple fruit and minerality. This is quite an intense wine with a long and persistent finish.

Score: 94/+++

The third wine was a Chenin Blanc from the Loire. The Loire Valley is quite complex, with different subregions and varieties. This example came from Savennières, specifically the famous Coulée de Serrant vineyard of Nicolas Joly. This 17ha 'monopole' has been planted by Cistercian monks in the 12th century originally, and still includes old vines on ungrafted rootstock.

The 2011 Nicolas Joly Coulée de Serrant Chenin Blanc is based on biodynamic vineyard management. It is a dry version of Chenin Blanc and shows an array of flavours: lemon, apple, herbs, ginger, walnut, and perhaps sherry. I sometimes struggle with the 'salad' of flavours in Chenin, but this is a balanced wine of very good maturity.

Score: 94/++

 

Kaapzicht Chenin Blanc

I have not reviewed many wines from South Africa. Chenin Blanc is an important white grape variety  there. The 2015 Kaapzicht Chenin Blanc is a refreshing wine, tasting of green apple and passionfruit. It is fruit forward, a pleasant drink, with good balance, but does not display much depth, complexity, line or length. Drink now.

Score: 88/0

Big Banyan Wine

I find it quite hard to go for a week or even longer without wine, but when you travel to India, it is easier. For one, it is really too hot, and then maybe nothing special to look forward to?

But then, curiosity takes over. So, a couple of days ago I tried a Big Banyan Chenin Blanc. This wine comes from the centre of the Indian wine industry - which is quite new and small, the Nashik Valley. This is located at 700 meters altitude, at the foothills of the Western Ghats, 3-4 hours drive from Mumbai.

The wine has some good qualities. It is fresh, clean and dry. There is not much fruit flavour, just a little spice, and the wine is nicely balanced with a pleasant acidic finish. There are no major highlights on the palate, but this wine avoids potential downsides from a hot climate. It was a good companion to the spicy fish I had. I think I will have this again.

Score: 86/+

Voyager Estate Chenin Blanc

If you were to put a list together of the grape varieties with the worst image in Australia, Chenin Blanc would be at or near the top. Many Chenin Blancs used to be sweet, sugary and with no distinctive flavour. I must admit, I have not been tempted often to select a Chenin Blanc.

However, one should be careful with preconceived ideas. The 2010 Voyager Estate Chenin Blanc is excellent. It has more depth of flavour than its cousin, your average Sauvignon Blanc, it is crisp and refreshing, more so than your average Semillon, with lovely citrus flavours, not grassy.

This wine would be excellent with white fish or sushi and it is great value for (not much) money from a high quality producer.

Score: 91/+++