There are very few
wine growing regions globally
which enable the noble Cabernet Sauvignon to fully achieve it's potential for flavour, to express it's inimitable qualities, and to ultimately yield a distinguished wine. Max Schubert was so troubled in his attempts to formulate a super Cabernet, that he eventually went in favour of his second choice of varietals, and came up with the mighty Grange Hermitage.
Cabernet & Coonawarra
The ying & the yang
Whilst flagship Coonawarra Cabernet are attainable at prices which are comensurate to their scarcity, some of the better labels can still be found in the twenty to thirty dollar bracket. Wynns Black Label $26.99, Majella $27.99, Katnook $29.99,
and Balnaves $32.99. All will virtually sell out with each passing vintage, and the prices will continue to rise. We have however, for our subscribers, a rare opportunity to acquire a champion Coonawarra Cabernet normally found at such prices, available
this week exclusively from us, for considerably less.
Resellers Are Welcome
The 2004 Punters Corner Cabernet is one of the Coonawarra's quiet achievers. From a Jimmy Watson winning winery, crafted by a Jimmy Watson winning winemaker, enjoying a 94 Point Rating by Gentleman James Halliday. It is amongst the very best of Australia's reds, and we're offering it to our readers at only $19.99 / $239.88 for one week only.
This wine is doubly blessed, in that the fruit was cultivated by one of the Coonawarra's most praiseworthy grapegrowers, and it was made by one of the Coonawarra's most highly decorated winemakers. The quality of Cabernet grown by viticulturalist Pete Balnaves is so highly sought, that his own winemaking estate, only a stone's throw away, also enjoys a Five Star Halliday rating.
Born and bred
Punters Corner Cabernet 2004 took out Gold and Silver at successive Winewise competitions. Punters Corner also smashed the record price for their 2004 Cabernet Barrel Series 9, only one year out from vintage, selling for an amazing $33,198.75 at a Coonawarra Auction. Previous vintages have all been champions, the 2003 went Gold Winewise Awards, whilst vintage 2002 claimed Wine of the Year Trophy and Best Red Wine @Hyatt/Advertiser Awards. Get it this week $19.99 $239.88/dozen
Q: Which Wine is This?
"It is nothing
short of a travesty that you can buy this wine on special for $10. How can entry-level Pinot be this good? If every wine drinker in Australia were given a taste of this, the ensuing stampede would throw sales of every red wine under $15 into complete mayhem!"
-Matthew Jukes & Tyson Stelzer
"Finesse and class to this wine, which was by far the best pinot under $20. Bright but deep purple-red, it has ripe red and black cherry aromas and flavours, the palate with excellent texture, structure and length. 92 Points!" -James Halliday
"Pinot noir is notoriously expensive to grow and make - it takes lots of man-hours to produce a good one. That's what makes this such a bargain. Intense and spicy, doesn't taste as though any corners were cut. It makes simple coq au vin taste very special. 4 Stars!" -Greg Duncan Powell
A: Windy Peak Pinot Noir 2007 $9.99 - $119.88 /dozen
Winefinders Wine of the Week?
Yalumba Patchwork Shiraz 2005
A new label by Yalumba and clearly a gem, as inaugural releases by good estates with vast resources often over-deliver on quality to gain critical acclaim. Patchwork was released only a few weeks ago, but stocks won't last long. One member of our tasting panel exclaimed "There's layer upon layer of seamless fruit in this, not-too-bold & not-too-brassy, yet distinctly Barossa. Swirl the glass and you get alternating wiffs of chocolate, spice, and vanilla. Swish the wine around
your mouth and the flavours are entwined with bursts of berries and plums. It's a cracking good Barossa Shiraz, and I'd say a bargain at $25!" Jump into Patchwork today as it's drinking beautifully right now, or cellar up to five years.
Our Winefinder's rating? 93 points! $16.99 $200.00/dozen
"Given the extraordinary value
the Charles Sturt chardonnay usually offers, it is no surprise it is a regular in the Top 100, but this has to be the best yet. It has lovely cool-climate nectarine, grapefruit and melon flavours supported by a touch of French oak and terrific length!" –Weekend Australian. Chardonnay enthusiasts, take this one on board, at $12.99 $150/dozen you are assured of satisfacton, and your friends will at the same time be, both wickedly envious and suitably impressed.
Daniel Di Pietro, Nillumbik Cellars
De Bortoli Windy Peak Pinot Noir 2007 $9.99 $119.88/Dozen!»
"Good pinots tend to be outrageously expensive, but this is a very drinkable young pinot, extremely food friendly, from one of the best wineries in the Yarra Valley!" -Winsor Dobbin, "Good value, providing more pleasure and satisfaction than most similar styles at the same price!" -Herald Sun
"A stunning Victorian pinot noir: superb, soft, silky, even velvety texture, with finesse, elegant, piercingly pure wild-berry flavours and an assured, pristine finish. Brilliant value!" -Peter Forrestal
"Bursting with red berries, this is a wine for midweek red duck curry at your nearest Thai restaurant!" -Maryanne Egan, "Vibrant fruit, and complexity from smart winemaking techniques: 100 per cent fermentation with wild yeast, cold maceration and a small whole-bunch component. Lively summer berry fruit aromas and flavours but lots of texture. Serve with char-grilled tuna!" -Sally Gudgeon
A Patchwork of Twenty-five to
Thirty-five Year Old Barossa Vines
Yalumba Patchwork Shiraz 2005 $16.99 $200.00/Dozen!»
The opportunity to craft a single wine of individuality and personality from a patchwork of soils, aspects, microclimates and cultures was simply too good for the Yalumba winemaking team to pass up. Through rigorous site selection, the winemakers unearth power, elegance, spice and structure – all the elements of an outstanding Barossa Shiraz.
The natural wild yeasts present on the grape skins were allowed to initiate the sugar fermentation. Cultured winery yeasts were then added to complete this fermentation. The majority of parcels were then run to barrel, with some select parcels remaining on skins post fermentation for one to two weeks. Maturation for eighteen months in a combination of French and American hogsheads. It's alcohol? 14.5%
Yalumba» |
Deep, crimson red. A wine with excellent depth of colour, richness and complexity. Deliciously savoury aromas of pepper steak and quince, eucalypt and spice, it's secondary impressions of blackcurrant and blackberry, chocolateyness and liqorice. Following a mouthful of it's mesmerising fruit, you get involved with the lingering closure of the wine, as it sails away amongst waves of plums and cedaryness, confectioned fruits and cocoay oak. Vintage 2006, despite the early heat and mid vintage rains, produced wonderfully aromatic wines with rich textures and full palates. Fashioned for elegance and restraint rather than brute power, this wine has a supple, silken texture and fine grained, earthy tannins.
The Unanimously Endorsed
Highly Browed Chardonnay
Charles Sturt University Chardonnay 2007 $12.99 $150.00/Dozen!»
The Charles Sturt University Winery is an integral part of Australia's leading wine and food science school, and as such is at the forefront of viticultural practices and wine making techniques. The winery focuses on excellence, using state of the art technology without sacrificing tradition.
Handsome straw yellow in colour. Aromas of peach and nashi, assorted stonefruits and crunchy pear, wisps of vanilla and cashew, there are also greener elements like fuji apple and asparagus. The palate is lively and multi dimensional, offering not only very fine fruit, but super texture and mouthfeel from lees stiring. A fresh, fruit dominant wine with the right amount of woody hints, and a crisp acid finish
Charles Sturt» |
Charles Sturt University Winery represents the same environment as other commercial Australian wineries. CSU provides stimulating training for those students fortunate enough to be employed through winery scholarship. Being a fully market driven operation, it produces the quality and style of wines that obtain ready acceptance from discerning wine consumers in the open market place. Wines from the University Winery since 1977 have been awarded multi trophies, and hundreds of gold and silver medals in national wine shows. The majority of the wine was fermented under strict temperature control to retain the fresh fruit flavours. A further component has been fermented in new French oak for added complexity.
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94 James
Halliday Points
"Lots of juicy
black fruit
flavours, balance,
length, oak!"
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Punters Corner is home to the 2000 Jimmy Watson
Punters Corner is racked and reworked during oak maturation, which takes between twelve and eighteen months, under a combination of new and seasoned Russian, American and French oaks from coopers Seguin Moreau and Bossuet.
Winemaker Peter Bissell was described as a magician by Master of Wine Andrew Caillard, when he was named Qantas/Gourmet Traveller Winemaker of the Year. Bissell has made wines in New Zealand and in France, with Adam Wynn at Mountadam, then at Lindemans Hunter River, at Leo Burings and at Pipers Brook. He later became Wynns Coonawarra winemaker, and worked as a flying winemaker for Penfolds. He is also a judge at national competitions.
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"Well I must confess
that I have been dithering like a right old fool over this particular wine. I have opened two bottles now and I just can’t decide whether I really like it a lot or just a fair bit! Aromas of rich dark berry, leather, capsicum, dark chocolate, camphor and cedar vanilla bean oak. At once rich and ripe yet herbal and peppery. On the palate full bodied with dark berry, dark chocolate, leather and spicy peppery flavours. Plenty of dry grainy tannins and fresh acidity. Finishes with peppery tobacco flavours. Very interesting and I do like that. 92 Points!"
-Winorama.com.au
"Complex black olive/ mint chocolate
aromas with a lovely spicy lift. Palate is big and flavoursome and very fruity with choc mints in the middle!"
-Winestate.com
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Last Weeks
Specials
Still Available
An assemblage
of over
one hundred
of the most remarkable eaux-de-vie, aged up to two centuries
In 1765, Richard Hennessy laid the foundations of a priceless collection made up of his most exceptional eaux-de-vie. Eight generations of the Hennessy family have enriched the Founder's Warehouse with their own contributions of the finest cognacs produced during their lifetimes. It is from this collection that Hennessy has created Richard Hennessy. According to Talleyrand, "cradle the glass in the palm of one’s hand, swirl the spirit to release it's full aroma, lift it to one’s nostrils, inhale deeply and then... set it down and discuss it's virtues!"
Personally autographed by Maurice Richard Hennessy in May of this year, the only such bottle in Australia
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**free shipping within Australia |
