Henschke Mount Edelstone

 The Henschke Mount Edelstone has always been a very popular wine on my blog. I am continuing to explore the 2018 vintage with this wine.

Nice to see a traditional and well trusted label

Wow! The 2018 Henschke Mount Edelstone is not what I expected. Therefore, I had a look at some other reviews. They reported what you would expect of this wine. But I experienced something different. A different bottle or lazy reporting by others? Anyway, this is my take on what I drank.

This wine is different. It is predominantly red fruited, red cherry, pomegranate. It is lighter on its feet than the previously reviewed Yarra Yering. There are purple flower notes. It is clearly lighter than the typical Mount Edelstone profile, no mocca here, either. This wine is a delight to drink. The mineral laden acidity, and the very fine tannins deliver a great structure.

This wine is tightly wound right now, a racy wine waiting to burst out of the glass.

Score: 97/+++

Hill Of Grace (again!)

 For a special occasion, I pulled my second last bottle of Hill of Grace from the cellar (I do not buy this wine at the current price point any more). It is a 2010 Henschke Hill of Grace.

I reviewed this wine five years ago and not much has changed. Interestingly, the Henschkes attribute this good vintage to the amount of light during the growing season. This is only rarely talked about, but can deliver flavour and colour, in particular.

In any case, this wine is very aromatic and vibrant. The palate is complex, with mulberry, blackberry, eucalypt, white pepper, and tender meat flavours. It is a very elegant and velvety wine. The oak is noticeable, but in contrast to the 90s wines previously tasted, this now has 40% French oak, which improves the balance and integration, in my view.

This is a full-bodied Shiraz, but more on the medium side. The fruit weight carries the 14.5% alcohol well. This wine hits some high notes and finishes long, but I did not find it totally remarkable.

Score: 96/+++ 

Hill Of Grace Vertical Tasting

 I grew up during a time when the Beatles and the Rolling-Stones split the teenagers. The good kids loved the Beatles, the bad kids loved the Rolling-Stones. There was no crossover. I feel it is a bit like that with the two icons of Australian Shiraz, Hill of Grace and Grange. Who is the good guy here? Maybe it is a bit different: Hill of Grace is single vineyard, Grange is blended. Grange is about power and fruit weight, Hill of Grace more about grace? This post is about a rare opportunity to taste four Hill of Grace wines, all more than 20 years old.

There is a view the label has never changed. Not true, as seen here

We are tasting these wines from old to young. This is often done to capture the nuances of old wine, which may get lost when you taste them last. The 91 and 99 wines are from warm vintages, the 92 and 98 from relatively cool ones. This will be interesting.

The colour is a deep brown. The primary fruit of the 1991 Henschke Hill of Grace is largely gone, but the structure is holding up. The wine is still concentrated and rich in the mouth, maybe a little broad. The wine has an elegant and earthy texture with silky tannins and still a long finish. It will still drink well for a number of years.

Score: 94/++

The 1992 Hill of Grace has a similar colour. There are intriguing herbal, spice and honey aromas. This is a slightly fresher wine with plum, earthy and leathery flavours. This wine is very special and quite long in the mouth.

Score: 96/+++

The 1998 Hill of Grace has a brighter, crimson appearance. This is quite a big wine. Blackberry fruit, licorice, and spice. Some mocca on the back palate. Good focus in this wine, lithe tannins and a very long, silky finish.

Score: 96/+++

The 1999 Hill of Grace comes from one of the hottest vintages on record - and it shows. Plum, roasted meat, and tar are the main flavours. There is sweetness in the core and overall complexity. However, this wine is a bit fat and short. The tannins are very dry and dusty.

Score: 93/+

Temperature and rain were the two main variables across the vintages. Overall, the cool vintages showed much better. What are the commonalities, the signature of Hill of Grace? Aniseed is a common flavour, and the fine silky tannins typical. The other element which showed quite strongly was the American oak still prominent in these wines. In later years, more French oak was employed, which suits this wine much more. 

   

Henschke Hill Of Grace

 A year like no other - you would have read this 100 times. I feel it is reason enough to raid the cellar and get out three of the best wines Australia has to offer for three consecutive nights. You only go around once. Last night it was the 2010 Henschke Hill Of Grace. I do not buy these wines anymore, as prices have gone through the roof, but I used to buy a couple of bottles from the great vintages, and 2010 was one. To start with, the wine comes in a nice wooden box.

Any value in this? Not really. But onto the wine. Mulberry flavours dominate on the nose. This translates to the palate. Aniseed, exotic spices and a hint of mint add to the flavours, as well as earthy notes. This is quite an opulent and ripe, even brooding version of this wine. The mouthfeel is elegant and smooth, if slightly fat.

Hill of Grace, in a golden glow

So what is extra special in a wine like this, after you parted with hundreds of dollars? Three things for me: the tannins are extra silky; the finish is super long, and the wine, made from 150 year old vines, is at peace with itself. This is difficult to put into words. This is a special wine, but not perfect.

Score: 97/+++ 

Henschke Mt Edelstone

At a time when I could still run polls on this blog, Henschke Mt Edelstone was voted Australia's best Shiraz by my readers (I believe I excluded Grange and Hill of Grace at the time). It is an iconic wine, and I value the Henschkes have not changed the label in over 50 years.

Having said this, there is significant vintage variation in this wine. How does the 2009 Henschke Mt Edelstone shape up after 10 years? It was a transition vintage between the drought years of 2007 and 2008, and the near perfect vintages of 2010 and 2012.

The nose of the wine is very strong, with blackcurrant and forest and spice aromas. On the palate, the wine is a little different. Chocolate flavours lead to a sweet and slightly warm mouthfeel. I cannot detect the usual typical eucalypt flavours in this wine. This is still an elegant wine, with a structure intact, despite its ripeness, but the wine lacks detail and ultimately interest. It should drink well for a few more years.

Score: 93/+

Henschke Hill Of Grace

For those who are getting a bit bored with my South American reviews, I thought I might interrupt this series with a review of the 2006 Henschke Hill Of Grace, a wine which is now out of reach price-wise for most consumers.

My bottle is screw capped, and the aromas from the bottle are fresh and quite full-on. The colour is still deep purple. In fact, the wine got better and more nuanced after a couple of hours. This is a Hill of Grace on the rich side.

The blackberry, cherry, and meat flavours are opulent and deliver a full mouthfeel. The five spice, often prominent in Hill of Grace, is there, but takes a backseat in this wine. The tannins are firm, yet velvety, and the wine has a long finish and silky aftertaste which goes on and on.

I would have given this wine an even higher score if the fruit flavours were a bit more layered.

Score: 96/++

Demystifying The Hill Of Grace Vineyard

Hill Of Grace is often described as the most famous single vineyard wine of Australia, and rightly so. I reviewed a 10 year old version a few posts below. It is also often described as a vineyard of 150 year old vines. This, however, is misleading.

Hill of Grace Vineyard

Some Grandfathers

The Grandfathers, as these vines are called, represent only 14% of this 4ha vineyard. A further 8% of vines are 100 years old and the rest is 60 to 65 years old. The percentages of  the oldest vines might even be lower, as dying vines within the block get replaced. The vineyard is thus divided into 8 Shiraz blocks ( there is also Riesling, Semillon and Mataro grown on this vineyard). The fruit of the two youngest blocks, less than 30 years old, does not go into the Hill of Grace, but into the Hill of Roses.

There is also a variety of soils in this vineyard. The oldest vines are on red, clay-rich loams topped by sandy loams with good moisture-holding capacity. Some other blocks have more gravel, and the clay is free draining.

As a result, the grapes from this 'single-vineyard' are not homogeneous at all. Some deliver red, other blue and black fruits; some have a lot of spice. Berry size and fruit concentration varies.

All this delivers a 2+2=5 result. 

Henschke Hill Of Grace

2008 was a year still in drought, after the very dry 2007 in the Barossa. It is said that Hill of Grace comes into its own after 10 years, but should I be worried, given this could be quite a ripe wine? But then I took confidence from the very old vines. They are so old because they have survived harsh conditions before.

Notice the Vino-Lok glass stopper

When I opened the wine, I got a little bit worried, though. The dark violet colour was tinged with orange/brown. This would be interesting. I need not have been concerned. On the palate, the wine delivered its typical flavours: dark plum, kirsch, aniseed and five spice. There is no other wine in Australia which expresses the terroir as distinctly as Hill of Grace. Oak was noticeable in a support role, and the tannins were incredibly smooth and silky.

The mouthfeel of this wine was quite big, but very layered. The beautiful texture was well balanced with savoury notes. The flavours went on and on at the back of the palate and on the finish; beautiful.

This is a 10-20 year wine, not a Grange 30-50 year stayer, but it delivers everything it needs to deliver now.

Score: 97/+++ 

Henschke New Releases

The famous Henschke winery is now a pretty substantial winery with 36 (!) different wines. They have four major vineyards: Hill of Grace, Mount Edelstone, and the Eden Valley vineyard, all in the Eden Valley, and the Lenswood vineyard in the Adelaide Hills. A couple of days ago, I tasted a number of the new releases. Following are some general impressions.

The white wines were all from the Eden Valley vineyard. They were from 2017 the Peggy's Hill Riesling, the Julius Riesling and the Percival's Mill Gruner Veltliner. Then there was the museum's release 2005 Julius Riesling. I found these wines quite Germanic in style. They deliver a broader mouthfeel than, say, Rieslings from the Clare Valley. Lime and floral flavours dominate the Rieslings, with the Julius more intense in style. The 2005 had expected toasted characters on the palate. I did not find the Gruner Veltliner true to varietal character, maybe a work in progress.

Of the medium priced reds, I enjoyed the 2016 Stone Jar Tempranillo. It attacks with very fresh red cherry fruit. This is a vibrant wine, very crisp and balanced. The 2015 Johann's Garden GMS is 70% Grenache, and the raspberry fruit shines through. There is spice as well in this easy drinking wine. The workhorse, the 2014 Keyneton Euphonium was a surprise. This is a blend of Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. The Cabernet Franc is a minor component, but it dominated the palate with its spicy and forest fruit character.

Then came three premium priced Shirazes. They were a real revelation. The first two were from the excellent 2015 vintage. The Wheelwright Shiraz from the cool Eden Valley vineyard is a new wine, but the vines are actually 50 years old. And what a wine this is. Elegant and super delicious with bright and pure fruits of the whole spectrum (red, blue and black). The tannins are silky. This wine moves seamlessly along the palate. The spices are sweet rather than sharp, and the finish is long. The Tappa Pass is from three vineyards across the ridge near Light Pass in the Barossa Valley. The fruit is darker and more concentrated and ripe, but the wine is not heavy. Dried fruit and wood mellow the character of this very drinkable and smooth wine.

The 2013 Mount Edelstone is from a very dry vintage and was released later than usual, in fact after the 2014. This is an intense, quite dense wine, showing off the typical character of this wine: dark plum, blackberry, olive, aniseed, mocca and pepper. It is immediately recognizable, and despite the concentration and strong tannins is well balanced and not overwhelming.

Overall, the red Henschke wines have evolved over the last decade from intense wines to wines with beautiful purity of fruit, elegant and still retaining the expected power.     

Henschke Mt Edelstone

It is always a pleasure to drink this iconic wine. This 2004 Henschke Mt Edelstone Shiraz has developed an interesting profile at 13 years of age.

The flavour of this medium to full-bodied wine is quite complex. Blackberry and mulberry fruit is matched by aniseed, exotic spices, earth, eucalypt, licorice and bitter chocolate. The wine has mellowed and is elegant with firm, but silky tannins, and the finish is long.

The 100 year old ungrafted vines produce this unique profile, usually bolder than Hill of Grace. For an experienced taster, it can be easily recognized in a blind tasting of various Shiraz wines.

The wine is probably at its peak now, supported by a screw cap closure, and has a number ofgood years ahead.

Score: 95/++   

Henschke Mt Edelstone Shiraz

The 2005 Henschke Mt Edelstone is quite an extreme wine. This is not surprising. We were entering a drought period, and Robert Parker, whose influence has since waned, was the most important critic at the time. Being from Eden Valley, though, with higher altitude and cooler nights, there is no dead or dried fruit flavours in this wine.

What this wine has, however, is extremely intense fruit flavours, not fruitcake, but just very ripe mulberry fruit. Aniseed is present, as are five spices, and a hint of eucalypt. The wine has a great mouthfeel. The first experience on the palate is sensational, so intense. The structure of the wine holds up and there are even lifted aromas on the long finish.

This is a showy wine, and what happens with showy things, when you look again, it does not create quite the same excitement. The alcohol is rated as an acceptable 14%, and it does not show, but the second glass is harder to drink. Nevertheless, the first one was excellent.

Score: 95/++     

Henschke Mt. Edelstone Shiraz

There are many Australian Shiraz lovers who rate the Mt Edelstone amongst their favorite wines. And there many very exquisite examples of this wine. However, vintage variation is significant. Yesterday, I had a bottle of the 2005 Henschke Mt Edelstone. How did it compare?

This bottle opened up to an intense forest berry aroma - remarkably fresh, but this is a screw capped bottle. On the palate, dark berries, mulberry and aniseed flavours combine to an exotic and intense mouthfeel. This wine is quite ripe, very smooth, with a slightly sweet core. You notice the alcohol, but it does not overpower, and the long, well structured finish is satisfying.

This wine is walking a tightrope of ripeness, but the wine holds together for a distinguished experience.

Score: 95/++ 

Henschke Hill Of Grace - New Vintage

One of the events of the year on the Australian wine calendar is the release of the new Hill of Grace, and it does not come much bigger than for the 2010 vintage. This highly regarded year started with a hot spring in Eden Valley, which kept the yield down. It was followed by a mild summer and autumn with very little rain. The grapes were very even when they were harvested. But what is the wine like?

As expected the colour is deep purple, but what surprises is the aroma. It is intense, very spicy and full of sage. The 2010 Henschke Hill of Grace is medium bodied and quite perfumed. The fruit is blackberry and mulberry, but the dominant element on the palate is white pepper, five spice, and sage, in particular. This is unusual. Spicy notes often occur, but they are intertwined with mocca notes. This is not the case with the 2010. This is a more lifted and fragrant wine. The 60/40 American French oak combination is not very noticeable, This is partly due to the unusual long seasoning period of the American oak. The wine has great length, but does the fruit fill the mouth? There is probably just enough weight. Alcohol at 14+% is noticeable. The tannins are velvety and fine grained, showing the age of the vines.

The wine did not grab me initially, but the complexity combined with the elegance and lasting penetration of the wine won me over in the end. This could be very special in a few years.

Score: 97/+++

Henschke New Ultra Premium Releases

It is not often that you see a better trio of new releases than this. And I am making sure in this assessment that I am not influenced by the fact that they were presented at a dinner at Quay Restaurant or that I won a rare magnum of Tappa Pass Shiraz (pictured).

But before I get to this, I would like to report on the 2012 Henschke Croft Chardonnay. The grapes for this wine come from the Henschke's Lenswood Vineyard in the Adelaide Hills. Not many people know that these grapes are the oldest Chardonnay grapes in the Adelaide Hills, planted in the early 80s. The wine is wild yeast fermented and quite full flavoured. It is a clean and elegant wine with a lot of complexity, showing pear and white nectarine, as well as some nutty flavours. There is good acidity on the silky finish. This is a classy wine - a real surprise.

Score: 93/++

Then on to the main game. The 2009 Henschke Mount Edelstone jumps out of the glass with a rich bouquet of sage and black pepper spice. There are many descriptions of this wine, so what is special? The palate is fine, with layers of plum, blackberry and peppers, yet strong at the same time. I like a wine with paradox. The finish is long, on the base of silky tannins. The best ever?

Score: 96/+++

The 2009 Cyril Henschke Cabernet Sauvignon is 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Cabernet Franc and 6% Merlot.  The Cabernet Sauvignon clearly dominates. The complex palate oozes blackberries, violets and cigar box flavours. The outstanding feature? The extremely dry and dusty tannins underlying a ripe fruit intensity. This wine cries out for meat protein.

Score: 96/+++

Hill of Grace reminds me of Morocco, every time - the Grand Place in Marrakesh. It is the exotic spices in this wine.The 2008 Henschke Hill of Grace is a terrific example of this. No other wine in Australia has this scent and flavour - a real treasure. If we would loose these 150 year old vines, we would have to wait 150 years before we get them back. Think about that. Different soil structures in this vineyard contribute to the complexity of this wine. The paradox of this wine: This wine feels lighter on the palate than the Mount Edelstone, yet it is more intense. The tannins are ripe, yet soft and fine. Everything comes together in a balanced, elegant finish.  One of the most exciting Australian wines I have ever tasted.

Score: 98/+++

Henschke Mount Edelstone 2001

After having experienced the quite rapid ripening of the 2002 Mount Edelstone, I decided to open a 2001 Henschke Mount Edelstone, the oldest vintage I still have.

The fruit in this wine is not as intense as in the 2002, but there is sufficient complexity with smoky and meaty flavours delivering a good balance. The structure of the wine is good, with firm tannins and underlying acidity. This wine is not super elegant, but expressive and well suited to slow cooked meat dishes.

Score: 91/+

An 18 year old Henschke

I am not talking about the next Henschke generation, but rather the 1994 Henschke Mount Edelstone Shiraz. I opened my last bottle, in fact my last bottle from the 90s, last night. This has been my favorite Mount Edelstone for some time, and this bottle did not disappoint.

The 1994 achieved only moderate acclaim when released, but what a wine it has become. The cork came out perfectly, and I was immediately engulfed by the bouquet of the deep, concentrated fruit. The flavours of rich blackberry fruit are incredibly pure. There is some mellowing in this wine, but not much. As the wine rolls down my palate, the image that comes up is of the swell building off the coasts of Tahiti, then rolling smoothly, but powerfully to the shore.

There is great harmony in this wine, firm, but very silky tannins, and an incredible length of finish. This will stay in my memory for a long time - almost perfect.

Score: 98/+++  

Barossa Tastings, Day 1, part 1

Following on from a trip to Adelaide, I decided to spend a couple of days in the Barossa and do some quite selective tastings. The following notes are from the first day.

An established star: Henschke


To clear something up for people not too familiar with the area. Henschke is situated in the Eden Valley. This plus the Barossa Valley form the Barossa. Therefore, Henschke wines are from the Barossa - well, the original ones. They now have quite significant plantings in the Adelaide Hills as well.

My overall impression was very positive. It seems the wines move more towards European style wines, in particular the white wines with more emphasis on texture than fruit. The red wines from the hot 2008 year have come out really well, given the grapes come from the cooler Eden Valley and Adelaide Hills.

The Henschke wine portfolio is now quite large, certainly for a family company, with over 20 new wines and 5 museum releases on offer. Of the white wines on offer I tried three, the 2011 Julius Riesling, the 2009 Louis Semillon, and the 2010 Innes Vineyard Pinot Gris.  The Riesling is another strong showing from the difficult 2011 vintage. Its grapes come from a grower near Springton.The wine is quite green, with good acidity and typical lime characteristics. The Louis comes from the Hill of Grace vineyard. Yes, not many people know that other grapes than Shiraz grow on this famous vineyard. The vines are 35-40 years old. This wine is very dry and incredibly backward. One to put away for many years. It will be amazing in 30! The Pinot Gris is also quite dry. It has beautiful pear flavours and has quite a linear texture. I would rate these wines 90/91 points, but maybe more in a few years.

Of the red wines, I tasted the 2009 Giles Vineyard Pinot Noir, and from 2008 the Abbotts Prayer, Tappa Pass and Mount Edelstone. The Pinot Noir is quite lean and savoury, with earthy flavours , well made, but lacking some of the fruit concentration which Australia can offer (90 points). The Abbotts Prayer is a Bordeaux blend from the Adelaide Hills. Sometimes, this wine is not quite ripe enough, but this year is excellent. The wine is dominated by blackberry flavours, and has a lot of complexity. An elegant wine with a long finish (93/+++ points). The Tappa Pass comes from the Fechner vineyard near Moculta. Made from 70 to 80 year old vines, this wine hits you upfront with a lot of plum and blackcurrant and has well structured tannins. Overall, the wine is perhaps not that well balanced (92 points/+).

The Mount Edelstone was the star of the tasting. This year, the vineyard turns 100, and the wine 60, making it possibly the oldest single vineyard wine in Australia. The 2008 is big and vibrant, with blackcurrant flavours dominating. Eucalypt is present, as always, and there is complexity with anise, mocca and spice on the palate. The wine has a terrific mouthfeel, with a strong tannin structure and great length. This is one of the best Mount Edelstone's of the last 20 years (96/+++ points).

Everybody visiting the Barossa should visit the Henschke cellar door. There is a lot of variety on offer. And although the top two or three wines are rarely opened, you may get lucky.  

Henschke Hill of Grace

What makes Hill of Grace so special? Clearly it is the age of the vines, up to 160 years old. But it translates into something very special on the palate. I was pondering this question, as I was drinking the 2002 Henschke Hill of Grace at a special occasion on the weekend. There is obviously a lot going on, and the wine is quite complex, but so are others.

Then I noticed something unusual. There are opposites woven together in this wine:

- creaminess and spice

- softness and intensity

- plum and mocca

This wine is like no other in Australia (or anywhere?). I enjoyed the 2002 immensely. It has a long life ahead (20+ years), but is great to enjoy now. A wine with a wow factor.

Score: 98/+++

1990 Shiraz comparison: Grange, Hill of Grace, Wendouree

This tasting should provide a good insight into the differences of these three iconic wines, and so it turned out to be.

Day 1:

The wines were tasted after one hour of being decanted.

First came the 1990 Hill of Grace. The colour was brown-orange, a little bit disconcerting, but similar to Barolo, and we know what that can deliver.

The wine is very feminine, smelling of garden flowers, roses in particular. Drinking it is an amazing experience: multi-layered berry flavours, orange peel, a bit of chocolate and sweet spices. The wine is very pure, with a supple texture, very elegant and a long, long finish. Superb. Drinking at its peak. It conveys the specifics of the vineyard and old vines very well.

Score: 98/+++

Second was the 1990 Grange. This wine had a denser red-brown colour. It was clearly going to be a bigger wine. And so it was. The fruit flavours were dark cherry, blackberry and plum. The wine had a thicker mouthfeel than the Hill of Grace, quite satisfying. It did not have quite the same complexity, but was also well balanced with a long finish and slightly bigger tannins.

Score: 97/+++

Then came the 1990 Wendouree Shiraz. I put this last, because I thought this would be the biggest wine. However, it turned out to be similar to the Grange in this respect. The wine tasted of dark plum and blackberry, and a fair bit of eucalypt, often found in the Clare Valley. The wine was a bit rustic in comparison with the other two, but its structure is standing up well. The wine did not have the same complexity as the other two, but delivered a long fine finish with dry tannins.

Score: 94/+

Day 2:

The Hill of Grace tasted similarly. The key features being its smooth mouthfeel and the silky tannins. However, the flavours were not as differentiated as on day 1. The extra day was not a plus for this wine.

Score: 96/+++

The Grange impressed with its intensity of fruit flavours. This Grange has quite concentrated elements, but is not at all heavy. A great drinking pleasure on the second day.

Score: 97/+++

The Wendouree was slightly smoother on this day, but fell apart on the back palate. The alcohol was separated from the fruit flavours and quite prominent.

Score: 91/-

Day 3: The Hill of Grace is still very elegant, but is starting to weaken (95 points). I had the Wendouree next and surprisingly, it was much more together today (93 points). The Grange was still strong, but lost a bit of the fruit flavours (95 points).

Overall, it was amazing how well these 20 year old wines held up. The Wendouree came across as a bit old fashioned. While the other two brands have clearly developed their style over time, Wendouree appeared a bit same old, same old. Its rarity is clearly supporting the cult status, though.

Postscript 1: The flavours and structures of the wines changed significantly during these days. It makes you wonder how much hit and miss is in tasting reviews, depending on how long a bottle has been opened, what has been tasted beforehand, the kind of food etc. Not much is talked about changing flavours over time.

Postscript2: I just checked how much these wines would sell for at auction: Hill of Grace: $450, Grange $600, Wendouree maybe $200. Would I pay this? I don't think so. At these price levels, the wines have to deliver an absolutely memorable wow effect. The Hill of Grace came close ( and did so many years ago, as did the Grange), but unless this is achieved, you can get plenty of pretty outstanding wines for $50-100 per bottle. And the problem is, you never know beforehand.

I enjoyed the experience, hopefully I managed to share some of this with you.

1990: Grange, Hill of Grace, Wendouree

Today, I am starting a process I have been looking forward to for many, many years: I opened three bottles of the best Shirazes at their 20th anniversary. I will drink and compare these over three nights: a glass each on each night.

They are looking good, the levels are high in all wines.

But then the first major obstacle. Only the Grange cork, which I pull

ed first, comes out cleanly. The others break. It is not a disaster, as I will capture the cork which fell in (it was not much) in the decanting process. But is my cellar too dry?

Results will follow after the three day event.