Bargain wines of 2011
We’re all looking for the bargains, and there are plenty about – on paper at least. Or online, at Kemenys and Dan Murphys and Winestar. The problem is that you need help to find the real gems, and that’s a problem unless you have a wine merchant you can trust and who really knows your taste. Not many of those left, so we’re left with wine judges and wine writers.
I’ve long struggled to understand some of the gongs and ratings our experts bestow on wines. James Halliday seems to have decided that just about all Aussie wine is worth 90 points or better (a silver medal by the old 18/20 scoring system), and throws 90+ point ratings around like confetti. Others like Tyson Telzer and Huon Hooke are more restrained. There’s talk about ‘points-creep’ in wine circles, guys trying to outdo each other with bigger scores? Doesn’t help, does it?
James Halliday put out his annual top 100 in the Australian a few weeks ago http://www.winecompanion.com.au/wines/james-hallidays-top-100-wines-of-2011
The first problem with this list is that you simply won’t find over half of these wines, not even at Dan Murphy’s. I had more luck with the reds under $20 than the whites, and a few made it on my list of top wines for 2011.
Best reds under $20
St Hallets Gamekeepers Shiraz Cabernet $11 Vintage Cellars
Smooth as silk drink now red. Good as it gets for the money. Same for Shiraz Grenache
Amberley Secret Lane Cabernet Merlot 2010 $14 Kemenys
Voluptuous fruit, silky smooth. They’ve found Wolf Blass’s Jimmy Watson winning recipe
AnaHera East Vineyard Pinot Noir 2007 $17 Dan Murphys
Interesting Pinot from Central Ottago with body, depth and complexity.
Mount Langi Ghiran Vineyards Billi Billi Shiraz 2008 $15 Winestar
Low yield year, rich fruit and good depth of flavour. Great drinking at a great price
Teusner The Riebke Northern Barossa Shiraz 2010 $18 Winestar
This is old vine Shiraz from a great year. Concentrated, needs a few years to open up
Thorn-Clarke Shotfire Quartage 2009 $18 Winestar
Bordeaux blend. Tightly packed layers of fruit on a fine tannin/acid backbone. 10 years +
They’re all bargains. The Amberley is my pick for drinking now, the Quartage my pick to put away. An object lesson in restraint and perfect structure.
Best whites under $20
Jim Barry Watervale Riesling 2011 $14 Winestar
Full of vigour and life, a mouthful of summer
Pewsey Vale Riesling 2006 $19.95 Dan Murphys
Super value for $5 more than the 2011. Still has years in front of it
Montes Chardonnay 2010 $9 Dan Murphys
Super value from Chile. Big, round, full-flavoured, easy on the gums
Whither Hills Sauvigon Blanc 2011 $14 Dan Murphys
Great value, classic NZ SB, the best under $15 by far
Robinson Pinot Gris 2010 $12 Vintage Cellars
At the ripe peach end of the spectrum, not the most elegant PG but great value
Lawson's Dry Hills Gewuerztraminer 2009 $19 Winestar
Gewuerz from NZ to rival Alsace at its best
If there are more Kiwi wines in the white selection, it’s because they’re working harder to give us value for money. It’s very hard to find decent chardonnay, pinot gris or sauvignon blanc under $15, and not easy under $20.
The stand-out bargains are the Montes Chardonnay and the Amberley Secret Lane Cab Merlot 2010. Serve the red blind to your friends and they’ll shake their heads in disbelief when you tell’em the price.
The Montes Chardonnay qualifies as the under $10 bargain white of the year. The red under $10 find of the year is the Leasingham Riders Row Clare Valley Shiraz 2008 at $8, including delivery from Grays Online. No, it's not Grange, but it's a smooth, easy drinking red with real flavour and no faults http://www.graysonline.com/retail/01625-08/wine/leasingham-shiraz-syrah-2008?spr=true
I ‘m not talking about bubblies and fortified wines in this post, as I don’t drink enough of them to have anything sensible to say.
The biggest disappointments of the year
Cape Mentelle Semillon Sauvignon Blanc 2011
Restrained nose, some promise on the front palate but no depth or length. Hollow. Gets 95 points from Halliday??!
Cape Mentelle Trinders Cabernet Merlot 2009
Big, lush nose raises expectations the wine fails to deliver. No depth, and does a vanishing act. An imposter like its white sibling. Great reviews.
Mike Press Adelaide Hills Shiraz 2010
This red is easy on the gums but I can’t for the life of me see why it got rave reviews
Palliser Estate Pencarrow Pinot Noir 2010
Billed as THE bargain Pinot from Martinborough ($18). Trophy and Gold medal winner. Pinot nose, indistinct palate, ordinary finish
Les Courtilles Cotes Du Rhone 2009
A big alcoholic, pedestrian red which you’d never pick as a Cote du Rhone.
Here are some pleasant surprises
Richmond Grove Watervale Riesling 2004
A Dan Murphy Cellar release, and a steal at $16 in a six-pack. Classic Clare Riesling.
Seppelts Chalambar Shiraz (Grampians. Bendigo) 2004 $19 Dan Murphys
This is another DM Cellar Release, and an absolutely bargain. Elegant, cool climate Shiraz close to maturity.
Teusner the Avatar 2008 $25 Winestar
Steak & eggs and a good cigar in a bottle. Let it breathe, and it will blow you away. The 2009 is just as good, but dearer at Dan Murphy’s.
Have a peaceful Christmas, and a healthy New Year
Kim
More Resources:
Halliday’s tasting notes for close misses - reds
http://www.winecompanion.com.au/wines/~/link.aspx?_id=A6191CBE5D3246BD9DD7AC61A563DD64&_z=z
Halliday’s tasting notes for close misses - white
http://www.winecompanion.com.au/wines/~/link.aspx?_id=B1E18B4F35F24F24BE06E5693FA33A43&_z=z
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