Mr. Mike's Odd Tasting: Super Scoring Aussie Wines

Mr. Mike at John's Marketplace pulled some more great bottles out of his cellar tonight. What a treat! I think the lowest scoring red was 98 points. The white was a last-minute addition, and not on the original list.

• 2004 Torbreck Sémillon Woodcutter's White - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
  Very interesting Aussie Sémillon...aged just enough too. A hazelnut/pinenut component that really gets my attention. This tastes more like a Chardonnay...white Burgundy actually, especially after it started warming up in my glass. Fun wine! (87 pts.)


• 2001 Torbreck Run Rig - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
  No decant, and it really needed one. Dark purple with a very floral nose. In the mouth, just a tad bitter, coming around slowly as it swirled in the glass. Blueberry fruit really stands out in this one for me, with some serious black pepper and a long sweet finish with surprisingly firm tannins. This could go another 10 years easy. (95 pts.)


• 2002 Glaetzer Shiraz Amon-Ra Barossa Valley - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
  Decanted 1 hour. Probably my wine of the night. From a great vintage, this wine had softened enough to really showcase more than just the huge fruit, oak and tannins. There was some complexity there that was starting to emerge, with lots of black pepper showing as well. Blackberry fruit, and a nice sweet finish. Showing very well at this stage. (95 pts.)


• 2003 Glaetzer Shiraz Amon-Ra Barossa Valley - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
  Decanted 1 hour. This wine was missing something. It certainly wasn't oak and it definitely wasn't tannins...the fruit was there too, but not as sweet and lush as the 2002. Almost harsh, actually. This just needs a decade of cellar time...way too young. The tannic finish curls my toes, and not in a good way. This should be amazing in 10 years. (90 pts.)


• 2005 Glaetzer Shiraz Amon-Ra Barossa Valley - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
  Decanted 1 hour, and needed about 23 more. A MASSIVE wine, just over the top in all categories. Aroma was mouthwatering with black fruit and pepper, and in the mouth, that fruit slaps you upside the head. But the real killer is the tannic vice that locks down on your mouth and throat once you swallow the wine. Once my vision cleared, about 2 minutes later, I could still taste the huge fruit in this wine...an amazing finish of sweet fruit. This was sheer infanticide and I wouldn't even dream of opening a bottle of this in the next decade. This is a wine for your grandchildren. (93 pts.)

As always, tasting notes posted from CellarTracker.

Mr. Mike's Odd Tasting: Old California Cabernet and Blends

Mr. Mike at John's Marketplace sent out an email less than 24 hours prior to this event. $10 got you a taste of each wine, until they were gone, with some absolute blockbusters in the lineup...How on earth could I say no?!?

• 1989 Kenwood Cabernet Sauvignon Artist Series - USA, California, Sonoma County
  A bit of funk on the nose at first. This wine was most certainly NOT over the hill and dead! Although starting to brick at the edges, this is drinking quite nicely for a 20 year-old cab. Dark fruits, some barnyard/earthiness, and cedar. Very smooth, with just a hint of tannins on the finish (still!). (90 pts.)


• 1984 Mount Eden Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Bottled - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
  As noted by a previous taster below, this had a bit of musty funk at first. Several other tasters thought it corked. The mustiness blew off, and by the time I revisited this wine an hour later, it was gone completely. I'm again amazed by how young this 25 year-old wine seems. Great fruit, just starting to go into the browner side of maroon. Blackberry, currants and some barnyard funk. So tasty...surprisingly grippy tannins as well, even on my second tasting at the end of the event. What a thrill to drink. (94 pts.)


• 1996 Mount Eden Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Old Vine Reserve - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
  Amazingly still quite young. Big black fruits and nice earthiness. Quite complex, with some minty flavors. Firm tannins on the finish...this has a long life ahead of it. (93 pts.)


• 1993 Opus One - USA, California, Napa Valley
  This was like aged Bordeaux, with the cedar/pencil aspects. Very light in color, with lots of gravelly earth flavors. Raspberry fruit, maybe some currant or cranberry? Definitely the most complex wine in the lineup, so far, but the flavors don't grab me like some of the others did. (91 pts.)


• 1994 Heitz Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon Bella Oaks - USA, California, Napa Valley, Oakville
  Surprisingly bold and firm, with chewy tannins and some "Rutherford Dust" characteristics. Blackberry fruit is smooth and lush, with additional flavors of earth and olives. The CT drinking window is way off...this has another 4-5 years in it. (92 pts.)


• 2000 Justin Vineyard Isosceles - USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles
  Having tasted a number of 2000 vintage Napa wines, including the 2000 Harlan "The Maiden" and 2000 Opus One, I was surprised to see such a flavorful wine from that vintage. It appears that Paso Robles wasn't affected by whatever weather killed the Napa harvest in 2000. This wine was the fruitiest of the bunch, with raspberry and spice, and nice tannins that were integrated perfectly. Although lacking the complexity I normally associate with Isosceles, this wine is by no means lacking flavor. (93 pts.)


• 2005 Gundlach Bundschu Cabernet Sauvignon Rhinefarm Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Valley
  My least favorite of the tasting, probably just because it is so damn young! Quite tannic, this tasted much more like a Cab Franc or Malbec than Cab Sauv. Blueberry was the dominant fruit for me, with some very nice dirt. Not earthiness, this was DIRT. I could almost see the pebbles and earthworms as I sipped this. While it was tasty, most of the finer nuances were hidden behind the tannins. I'd recommend holding this one another 3-5 years, unless you like your Cabs young. (89 pts.)

Thanks to Mr. Mike for pulling most of these bottles from his private cellar and sharing them with us. I was surprised to see that not many showed up for this event, including none of my wine-loving friends. I just have to say that you all missed out on a wonderful tasting, with some really interesting and delicious wines!

As always, tasting notes are posted from CellarTracker.