Vinous notes: Castle Rock Pinot noir 2009

Date: Tue, Mar 19, 2013 Wine Tasting

My first tasting note written in wine.

A old Sheaffer fountain pen (? 60 years old and once belonging to my father) gathering dust, purged with water and filled with a few drops of Great Southern pinot noir. The ink is a little thin and spurts occasionally. . . For the nib spotters 14K - 585 33.

Flinty and dusty to begin, plum and plumb, eucalypt and curiously citrus peel. I've scribbled cow pat, but in retrospect that's unfair. Frontal and assertive, like something from Central Otago. Spice and weight, edged with bright acids, but it's thin and short in conclusion.

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Te Mata Bullnose Syrah 2007

Date: Sun, Mar 17, 2013 Wine Tasting

If I were blind and only sniffing, I would have called it an 8 year old Australian Shiraz. A St Peters perhaps. . . Rosewood and dark berries, sweet oak, dust and ginger. Middle aged and starting to spread, but still with feet covered in earth, rubber and tapenade. Cork sealed and still vibrant and crimson, it's quite delicious; juicy and bright, spiced and ever so slightly cola like. Medium to full with plum and raw meat tannins. yes.

Hawkes Bay. NZ. 13.5%. Source: Cellar.

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How to love wine

Date: Sat, Mar 16, 2013 Wine Tasting

by Eric Asimov.

The dust cover is capital letter free. After reading the book you get the sense that this is intentional. It's a modest book with very little trumpet blowing. He freely admits his limitations and argues that sometimes what is taken as important (tasting notes, blind tasting, remembering facts) can get in the way of enjoyment.

I partly agree.

the flowery litany of aromas and flavours does little to capture the experience of a fine glass of wine. Yet because tasting notes are now the primary way we write about wine, people assume that they are the proper mode for thinking about wine, too. . .

In their overly specific effort to beat a wine into submission boil it down to its every last aroma and flavor, box it up and present it as fully known and understood, tasting notes become thoroughly off-putting and intimidating, leading directly to the sense of wine anxiety that so many people feel.

At best, tasting notes are a waste of time. At worst, they are pernicious. . .

The myriad flavors and aromas that wine writers strain so hard to extract from the glass tell you nothing of importance about a particular wine. And yet defenders of tasting notes insist they have something crucial to say.

He concludes that it may be better to be less specific, more general.

why not simply offer readers a general idea of the style they might find, with a few words on the quality as well. . . Omitting or simplifying tasting notes in no way panders to public ignorance about wine, because they are of such little value to anybody. But it would force wine writers to come up with smarter methods of conveying useful information, methods that fewer people would find threatening.

I partly agree - for instance -How would you describe a kookaburra?

Wine is potentially a complex and evocative fluid. We don't become effusive about fast food and cola for good reason. The aromas and flavours of wine are like a flower's nectar attracting us and drawing us in. We recognise and find pleasure in the familiar and the rare. Or brains are designed to recall and identify, it seems perverse then to deny what is a hard wired human capability.

I have a medical background (which makes me a determined clue spotter). I spent years learning new words and every day I am faced with a choice. Should I use my medical vocabulary or should I simplify. The answer is obvious. I avoid jargon when speaking to my patients, I use analogy and scribble pictures and point and gesticulate. It's sometimes clumsy and mostly not worthy of repetition, but it's effective (I hope). In contrast, when I write to a colleague or when I write my case notes I lapse back into specifics and aim for precision and clarity. To write and speak to a peer without the language of my profession would appear inarticulate and clumsy.

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Syrahmi Finesse 2011

Date: Fri, Mar 15, 2013 Wine Tasting

It was announced yesterday that Google reader is to finish on July 1. It's a reminder of how fragile technology is. We grow used to it, but it is constantly changing and sometimes it just reaches a conclusion and disappears. I frequent my Google reader page daily. It's how I keep up with the 200+ wine and food blogs I follow. It is of course a distracting and probably unnecessary ritual, but one I have grown fond of.

I write and publish most days. Comments are less frequent, but I'm nourished by the thought that people read and subscribe. According to Google reader I have 258 subscribers. It's not a large number, but equally this is an esoteric and un-promoted venture.

Like me I suspect my subscribers will be looking for an alternate RSS reader. I've been looking for something with no frills but functionality, and have decided to stump up an annual subscription to access the service offered by NewsBlur (where I have 7subscribers). . . and so the image.

Tasting note: The back label offers two definitions of finesse. I can accept both, while questioning whether it is a suitable descriptor for the wine. Anxious or wiry seems a better fit, especially to begin. Sap and rubber, wood polish and spice. Tart cola and juicy acidity to start, a sour edge and a smudge of tannins. It's the sort of off centre, slightly hard edge wine that I favour and enjoy. It does soften and expand, becoming less neurotic and more giving. A sweet core emerges and in weight and emphasis it (eventually) fits and fills the Heathcote shoe.

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Beef and Guinness pie with mushy peas

Date: Thu, Mar 14, 2013 Wine Tasting

My second Pi day offering.

The pie filling (which would be enough for 2 pies)

2.5kg of beef short rib pieces
3 medium carrots - roughly chopped
750mls of Guinness
1.5L of veal stock
Cracked black pepper

Brown the pieces of beef in batches in a large pan and set aside. Add the carrots to the pan and then the beer and stock and now return the ribs. Season with pepper if desired. Simmer for 3 hours, occasionally spooning off the surface fat. When the beef is tender, remove the meat and carrots and turn up the heat so the sauce can reduce to approx 20% of the original volume. When the meat is cool enough break it into small 1-2cm pieces. Add a generous ladle of the reduced sauce and mix this with the caramelised onions.

Caramelised onions

2-3 tablespoons of olive oil
30g of butter
1kg of brown onions - sliced
6-7 cloves of garlic - sliced
3-4 sprigs of thyme
2 tablespoons of flour

Add the fats to the pan and heat. Throw in the garlic/onions and thyme and cook at low - moderate heat for close to 60 minutes. Stirring every few minutes, so the bottom of the pan does not develop a coat of char. When the onions are medium brown add the flour, mix well and cook for a further few minutes.

Pastry

250g flour
150g unsalted butter - cubed
110g of creme fraiche

Incorporate the flour and butter (Thermomix speed 6 for 10 seconds) then add the sour cream and kneed (thermomix kneed function for 20 seconds). Using your hands bring the dough into a ball and roll into two disc. Use 2/3 for the base and 1/3 for the lid. When rolled out (on silicon paper) place in the fridge till ready to use.

Construction and cooking

I used a buttered 24cm pie dish and one beaten egg as the egg wash to brush the pie prior to cooking at 180 degrees for approx 35 minutes.

Mushy Peas

2 medium potatoes - peeled and diced
600g of frozen peas
1 handful of mint
30g of butter
Pepper

In a pot of water, cook the potatoes till soft. Add the peas and mint and cook for a further 2 minutes. Strain and then mash the peas and potatoes before adding the butter and pepper and incorporating.

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Silverbeet and bacon pie

Date: Wed, Mar 13, 2013 Wine Tasting

3.14
Pi day. . .

Shortcrust pastry: 250g plain flour / 150g unsalted butter cut into cubes / 1 egg yolk.
Process the flour and butter till it is granular. Add the egg yolk and 2 tablespoons of water and process for a few more seconds. Bring together with your hands. Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Filling: 450g of silver beet - leaves and stems (or use same amt of spinach) / 250 - 300g bacon or speck lardons (plus some guanciale off cuts if you have them) / 1 large onion diced / 5 eggs and the egg white not used in the shortcrust / 50g of Parmesan grated.
Cook the silverbeet in boiling water, drain and when cool squeeze out most of the water. Cook the bacon and when golden add the onions and cook till the onion is clear. Add this to the now cool silverbeet. Beat the eggs (save the bowl used for later) and add this with the cheese to the silver beet.

Construct the pie. Use a buttered tart tin and roll out the pastry. 2/3 for the base and the rest for the lid. When the base is in and trimmed, add the filling and top with a pastry lid. Brush with egg wash - use the remains from the filling after adding a splash of water. Bake for 50-60 minutes at 180 - 200 degrees C.

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Phaedrus Pinot noir 2007

Date: Wed, Mar 13, 2013 Wine Tasting

Mornington Peninsula, Victoria, 13.9%. Screwcap.

A gift from an old classmate who I'm lucky to see once every few years. I still picture the two of us riding with abandonment down the bicycle infested streets of Beijing. 1991, two years after 6/4, two foreigners wide eyed and simple. . .

Like the wine, the acorn with cupule still attached was collected a few days ago. . . It's momentarily bright and cherry scented before becoming more wild and stinky. Menthol and camphor, dried herbs and small goods. Aniseed and animal. Savoury and slightly sweet to start, before finishing dry, metallic and adhesive.

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Soumah Savarro 2011

Date: Sun, Mar 10, 2013 Wine Tasting

Savarro sounds Italian, while Soumah makes me think more of Thailand than the Yarra Valley and Victoria. The back label mentions that Savarro is a synonym for the ancient grape Savagnin, which of course only entered the consciousness of Australian wine drinkers in 2009.

Prior to 2009, all the Savagnin that was being planted in Australia was thought to be fashionable Albarino. The mistake being a technocratic stuff up. To quote Robinson et al - The mix up was not finally confirmed until 2009, when it was shown that the source material propagated at CSIRO, Australia's plant research institute, was derived from mis-labelled plant material imported from Spain via France.

Incidentally Savarro is not listed in Wine Grapes as one of the principle Savagnin synonyms, making its use on the label at once curious and obscure.

All of this, and indeed Savagnin's link to Cabernet (it's a parent of C. franc) is much more interesting than the tasting note.

Grass, citrus and a suggestion of musk. It's bright, clean and unremarkable.

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Pickled kale stems

Date: Thu, Mar 7, 2013 Wine Tasting

Using an old but clean jar of vegemite I made a simple pickle.

Ingredients:

1 bunch of cale stems - trimmed and leaves removed.
150mls of vinegar (I used a combination of white and rice)
150mls of water
1 teaspoon of salt flakes
1 - 2 tablespoons of sugar
1 clove of garlic sliced
6 peppercorns
6 coriander seeds
6 fennel seeds
1 pinch of dried dill tips

How? Trim the cale stems and place into the waiting jar. Add the dill tips. In a sauce pan add the remaining ingredients and bring to the boil. Pour the boiling liquid complete with the spices into the pickling jar. Seal and refrigerate once cool. Serve after 24 hours.

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Sauvion Dilection Chinon 2010

Date: Thu, Mar 7, 2013 Wine Tasting

An atypically shaped bottle (and label). From a distance and before I saw the word Chinon I had assumed it was a bottle of Champagne. . .

Floral and bright, raspberries and cherry pips, herbs, sticks and saw dust. It's quite wild and free, lifted and pointed and coated with a layer of dust. Slightly under nourished and thin to open, like a nail down a blackboard. . . Thankfully, it fills out with time and air and the company of meat. . . A green edge, sap and grass but there is cream and soy and meatiness to the finish.

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Mac Forbes RS14 Riesling 2012

Date: Tue, Mar 5, 2013 Wine Tasting

It's like a Willy Wonka golden ticket. . . my bottle was 3884 of 4063. From the town of Caveat in the Strathbogie Ranges. 29 year old vines growing at altitude (600m) on their own roots. Hand harvested, fermented with wild yeasts and matured in oak and steel with time on lees. 14 grams of residual sugar and 12% alcohol.

Lime, ginger, steel, and curiously hops. It reminds me in scent of the Orange Riesling made by Xabregas, but this is fresher witha green bean edge. Beyond the expected jolt of acidity and mid palate spice the most notable thing is the texture. Citrus pith, essential oil bitterness and bold grape fruit phenolics.

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Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese Goldkapsel 2007

Date: Mon, Mar 4, 2013 Wine Tasting

Seven years of Wino sapien and I'm surprised my self indulgence has lasted so long. . .

Something small, sweet and singular to mark the day. A dark blue half bottle, a cork too thick for the opening and the gold foil bling. Once more, I've misjudged my pouring and drinking and I find I've only a few drops left. Just enough to swirl and sniff. . .

Slate and a whiff of brimstone, and all manner of sweetness - pollen, dried apricots, maltose, candy, passion and stone fruit. It's quite pale and still has a hint of green and visible spritzig. Playful but intense and concentrated; a juxtaposition of sting and sweetness, rich texture and lightness of touch.

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Shall I compare thee. . .

Date: Sun, Mar 3, 2013 Wine Tasting

It's becoming a common refrain, uttered by new world producers. Don't compare us to the old world archetype. . . judge us for what we are, look and enjoy in isolation without checking over your shoulder or up ahead. And still tasting notes for the new world remain littered with the geography of the old.

I find it impossible not to compare and categorise. It's one of the magical characteristics of wine, it is a liquid which can reveal subtle differences and nuance, it speaks to the attentive with a regional accent, sometimes allowing localisation to place, time and person.

Two sparkling wines from 2004. Both similar in weight (12.5%), though differing in composition. The Arras being 2/3 chardonnay and 1/3 pinot noir, while the Moët is a 1/3 each of noir, meunier and chardonnay. Not dissimilar in price. The Arras $A60 and theMoët $A80. I thought the Tasmanian was more assertive, angled and edged while the French had more brioche, polish and sweetness.

I preferred the Arras, though I concede this is likely to be a minority position. A streak of patriotism, coupled with a fondness for wines with edge and hardness.

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Kale

Date: Sat, Mar 2, 2013 Wine Tasting

Stems removed, blanched in boiling water for a few minutes then tossed with a simplevinaigrette. In shape, taste and texture it must be the land plant that most resembles seaweed. . .

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