"The cheap wine style, without the nasty cheap wine taste." That was my comment to Kelly after having a glass of this wine. I didn’t enjoy this wine at all. I suppose they were going for the big, bold Aussie Shiraz style, but to my taste it came across as unbalanced and garish. I don’t know what the residual sugar is, but it certainly tasted cloying sweet. And while Kelly says “fresh cherries, with a hint of evergreen,” I’d say cherry cough syrup with menthol. Maybe it will mellow with age, but there are less expensive wines with more to offer in the same style (for example the Wynn’s Coonawarra.) I can’t understand how this wine and the Envoy came from the same winery in the same year. This wine is making me seriously second guess the high score we gave to the Envoy. But Kelly thinks it really was just a lot better. Anyway, we agreed on the score; while I didn’t enjoy it, it was well enough made in the style.
Here's what Kelly had to say. Note that we agreed on the score:
"The nose is predominantly fresh cherries, with a hint of evergreen and spice and also a bit of hotness. There's more fruit on the palate, which is clear and fresh, and a bit sweet, and ends with firm tannins. It is lighter and clearer on the palate than I'd expect from shiraz, which tends to be more rich and spicy. This wine is very difficult to score. It has some very nice flavors, and a decent structure and clarity on the palate, but it also has some objectionable flavours and qualities, such as sweetness and a funny cheapish edge. I'd like to pay under $20, although I could easily see it being as much as $30."
Price: $28.10 (on Sale)
Score: 85
Value: 2 / 5
Region: Australia, Barossa
Grape: Shiraz
Tasted: March 2009
UPC: 9338498004301
Posts
Weird...this is really contrary to everything I have read in online reviews for this wine (ranging anywhere from 90 to 93pts). I have 3 bottles, but I think I'll wait a year or so before I try my first one.
ReplyDeleteI find that reassuring in a way, since it means that maybe we weren't crazy in our review of the Envoy. But the bottle we had wasn't obviously flawed - plenty of fruit, no taint of cork. I might add that we drank half a bottle of the Explorateur on the first night and a glass a day later, and it hadn't improved.
ReplyDeleteYes, this was puzzling. We enjoy a good Aussie Shiraz, and as Norman mentioned, we really liked the Envoy. So I wonder: were we wrong then, or are we wrong now; or are they different?
ReplyDeleteOne thing I think is worth noting is that the evening we tasted the Explorateur, we also had an Italian wine. Its dried flowers and stewed fruit really emphasized the qualities I liked least in the Explorateur. The evening we tried the Envoy, we also had the Collazzi; and we felt that the Envoy stood up ridiculously well. As usual, I tasted all of them blind. In fact, I don’t yet know the identity of that first Italian wine.
It could just be that the Explorateur is not the style you typically like, as I think it is a bit atypical in some ways for Aussie Shiraz. I have read that it should develop, so maybe just before it's time. Or maybe you are right and it just is not that great. Maybe since some of the reviews the wine were written, it has developed unfavorable characteristecs that weren't evident previously. I wouldn't worry, whatever the reason, just not something you like. You certainly are tempting me to try one of my bottles :-)
ReplyDeleteI definitely think you should try one of your bottles. ;-) Even if you don’t like it now, that will be interesting information if it turns out that you do like it a few years from now. And if you love it, there’s plenty left, at least in F’ton. And of course I’m very curious as to whether we’re way off base on this one.
ReplyDeleteOn the issue of wine developing, we bought a two bottles of an Aus Nebbiolo a few years ago (Craneford). The first one we tried was terrible - sweet and jammy. Reminds me of the Explorateur now that I think of it. But just three years later it was transformed - Kelly even guessed it was old world. Maybe the same will happen with this.
We were away for 10 days and left a glass of this in the fridge. I just had that last glass, and I liked it better than I did when it was first opened. Still too syrupy for my taste, but I wonder if this means that a few more years in the bottle will mellow it?
ReplyDeleteI think it could be more an indication of the quality of wines we were drinking on our vacation (i.e. not so excellent).
ReplyDeleteWell, I decided to try one of my bottles of Explorateur a couple of nights ago, and here are my thoughts:
ReplyDeleteI figured it would need a couple of hours to develop, so I opened it 2 hours before planning to drink it. No decanter around, so bottle breathing for most, with some in a glass. I tried a small sip of it as soon as it was opened, and I have to agree with Norman and Kelly that it was way too "syrupy", and I also found it hot (alcohol on the nose)...this is 14.5%. There must have been a lot of sugar in these grapes.
2 hours later I tried again and did find that some of the alcohol and sweetness did seem to subside, allowing dark cherry and licorice to be fully revealed. as I aerated the wine in my mouth, I picked up a lot of clove and spice on the back end, and a bit of tannins that made my lips a little numb. Even though the wine did get better, I still found it too "syrupy" for my taste.
My overall experience was a bit disappointing, and I am wondering if this wine will pull itself together in a few years and live up to its reputation. Perhaps, these are just some youthful characteristics that will trun into something fantastic...I am going to wait 3 years or more to try my second bottle.
I wouldn't go buy any more, and would not recommend the wine, but time will tell how this wine evolves.
Very interesting - too bad about the wine, but I'm glad to see my impressions confirmed. It will be extremely interesting to see how this wine develops with a few years in the bottle.
ReplyDeleteI actually returned my other two bottles. I figured why take a gamble on this wine, when I can trade up to a guaranteed good wine like Collazzi
ReplyDelete