D’Arenberg The Laughing Magpie 2007

Michelle picked this up at the Wine Expo, and it is no longer available.  Sounds like that’s not a bad thing.

— Michelle’s Review —

This wine is a 90% Shiraz and 10% Viognier.  I was assuming from trying similar blends that the Viognier would give the Shiraz a bit of a minerally edge, round out the pepper, mellow  the dark fruit. I have to say,  I was a bit hesitant buying this wine because of the experiences with other d’Arenberg wines. I found them a bit to “hot” for my liking.  Well, this one happened to be the same. Perhaps I should have decanted it, let it breath for at least ½ hour…something.  It literally burned my eyes as I brought it up to my nose. At 14.5% its so over the top alcohol.  Personally I think that is a bit ridiculous. I lost everything in the tasting because of that hotness.  Very disappointed. I would give it 2/5 for value (since it was about $25 from what I remember) and a rating of 75/100.  Do people really enjoy that style? Alcohol so overwhelming it burns your eyes before it gets to the lips. Perhaps I am overly sensitive to it and I would love to hear if anyone else had the same experience.

Angoves Nine Vines Shiraz Viognier 2007

A brief foray back into red wine. Sad to say, but summer is almost over. But here's a wine to make you feel better about drinking red again.

--- Iron Chef's Review ---

Ever since the Wolftrap opened my eyes to the Shiraz/Viognier blend, I have been meaning to try this wine.

Nose: Cola- like Dr Pepper. Mint and Asian spice like Sesame seed oil. Vey full and deep nose.
Taste: Plummy with a creamy mouth feel - malolactic fermentation. Good tannins, some gamey notes. Not sweet as I have come to expect with Aussie wines. Warm integrated oak. Long finish that really excels in the mid palate- somewhere that many, many wines go flat or hollow. Very creamy and enjoyable. Food friendly matched well with Korean marinated steaks, balanced.
Overall- didn't love it as much as the Wolftrap, I went bananas over that btw. But I liked it a lot more than most aussie sugar bombs. It was just austere enough for me. I have been picking up nice Australians for a while now, it is beginning to give me some confidence in the area again.

Price: $13.29
Value: 5/5
Score: 90
Region: South Australia
Alcohol: 14%
UPC: 9300694347445

Domaine de Bila-Haut, Occulatum Lipidem 2005

Welcome to Peter, a new reviewer. After finding the site and contributing some comments, he's decided to take the plunge and contribute a review - you can too!

--- Peter's Review ---

Nose: Very rich and complex nose of earth, barnyard funk, red fruit compote, and baking spices.
Taste: Medium bodied, pleasant acidity, nice back bone of red fruit (I could not pick out which specific fruits), nice long finish. Well balanced wine. This wine pairs well with a variety of food, though it certainly can be lovely on it's own.

Some further notes: I have to admit a strong bias toward the wines of southern France. I crave the baking spices, garrigue, and balance they so often bring to the table. This one fit the bill. It may not for everyone, so be warned, if you want gobs of fruit or the creaminess of well-oaked wine, this one may not be for you. Wine Access magazine scored it 90 points. Gary Vaynerchuck of Wine Library TV scored it 88 points. I found it not dissimilar to Chateau Haut Bel Air from the same region, but a notch better. This one is far superior to the regular Domaine de Bila Haut red. I will be buying more. Would love to hear some opinions on this.

Price: $27.99
Score: 89-90points
Value: Fair price 4/5.
Producer: M. Chapoutier
Varietals: Syrah, Grenache, Cinsault
Region: Languedoc-Roussillion, France
UPC: 3391181390736

Lehmann Clancy's Red 2005

Single vineyard varietal wines are all the rage - and Clancy’s Red from Lehmann shows why this is a mistake. With a blend of grape of different varieties sourced from various Barossa vineyards, Lehmann has put together a great wine at a great price. This is not at all the kind of candied fruit bomb that I worry about getting from Aus at this price - Kelly first guessed every country in Europe, and then said 'well, it's not Australian." (I love it when a wine fools her.) It has good fruit, but with restraint, and a twist of something a bit different at the finish for interest. Just a bit of a rough edge, though that dissipated with air. Excellent balance. I wish I knew how long this is likely to cellar.

Here's Kelly's note: "Nose of dried flowers, stewed fruit, warm spices (cinnamon, cloves, pepper). Much more earthy and spicy on the palate; long, with maybe an eensy hard note at the very finish. No way I'd have guessed it Australian - I was pretty sure it was Italian and certain it was old world. At least I got the blend right."

Kelly and I independently gave it the same score. Ok, not 89.5, but we were both wavering between 89 and 90.

Price: $19.99
Score: 89.5
Value: 5/5
Region: Australia, Barossa
Grape: 35% Shiraz, 34% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc.
Alcohol: 14.5%
UPC: 9311910102069

The Wolftrap Boekenhoutskloof 2006 & 2007

Here is a 2 for 1 review from Iron Chef:

--- Iron Chef's Review ---

The Wolftrap Boekenhoutskloof 2006

I am usually a sucker for any Rhone blend, so I had to try this since it was on the cover of the WS this month. At the Prospect St ANBL, I asked Aaron if there was a difference between the 2006 and 2007 vintages- he laughed and said probably not. So I bought both, btw there is a big difference.
Nose- Gravelly like a dusty driveway. Asian spices- Soy, Ginger, Teriyaki. Also Mocha Hot Chocolate. And Dank wood- think of a firewood left outside for a decade. Very interesting nose- a lot going on.
Taste- Plumy and Gamey. Some tannins on the front of the palate that were Dusty. Meat Pies from Northern NB and Beef Gravy. Real rustic component to the taste. And that wood that reminds me so much of South African wines- all I can say is Old and Dank.
Overall- I really enjoyed all the stuff that was going on, it was fun, complex and surprising. Decanted for the Length of the Rolling Stones' Exile on Main Street.
Value- 4.2/5
Score- 90
Grape: 50% Syrah, 48% Mourvedre, and 2% Viognier
Alcohol 14%


The Wolftrap Boekenhoutskloof 2007

Part 2 of the Boekenhoutskloof vertical was surprising in the differences more than the similarities.
Nose: Aromatic way beyond what I was expecting- Dried Sage, Violets and Lilacs. Also Plantains and peppery toasty wood. Smelled a lot like a Crantini. Very complex.
Taste- Toasty wood, vanilla and bright Fruit- cherry mostly. Some nutmeg from the wood also. Tasted a lot like a Crantini. Very smooth tannins. Some hot-ness on the palate. Nice Long peppery/mocha finish. Really clean Wine.
Overall- I really like the 2007 vintage, gone was the dank wood, rustic wine- replaced with a polished toasty vanilla cocktail. I liked them both but for obliviously different reasons. If you have the chance, try the 2006 and 2007 side by side. Decanted for the length of London Calling by the Clash.
Value- 4.5/5
Score- 91
Grape: 60% Syrah, 39% Mourvedre and 1% Viognier
Alcohol 14.5%

Price: $15.29
Score: 90 (2006) / 91 (2007)
Value: 4.2 / 5 (2006) / 4.5/5 (2007)
Region: Western Cape, South Africa
UPC: 746925000564

Clos de Los Siete 2005

--- A Review from Vasco da Gama ---

This is an interesting blend of Malbec, Cab, and Syrah from one of the most renowned wine producers/consultants on the planet Michel Rolland. I was anxious to try this wine, and could no longer resist, so I tried this fresh out of the bottle last night - The cork and wine are both a very dark purple. This wine has a beautiful smell of vanilla, gravel, dark berries, ripe plum and licorice with a hint of smokiness (on the 2nd glass I picked up the scent of cherry blossom or cherry nibs, as well as tar). The blackberries, licorice, and dark cherries come through on the palate with good refined tannins and balanced acidity. A beautiful full bodied red with a nice long dark chocolate finish. This is a superb and complex wine to drink now, but I suspect it will only get better over the next few years into 2015 or so. Will have to try another bottle again a few years down the road to see if it doesn't have even more character to it. Although the price of $33.29 is not cheap, for the quality you are getting I would say this is great wine and an excellent value, and I like the label :-)

Price: $33.70
Score: 93
Value: 4.5/5
Region: Argentina
Grape: Malbec, Cabernet, Syrah
UPC 7798104410179

Penfolds Bin 2 2004

This wine has unmistakeable Aussie character, though not in a good way. It has some reasonable fruit in the blackberry range that is smothered by a thick blanket of vanilla. Smooth and sweetish feel. Kelly and I had it with a couple of friends and the consensus score was 87, but I think we were being polite.

Price: $24.79
Score: 85
Value: 2/5
Region: Australia
Grape: Shiraz 80%, Mourvèdre 20%
Tasted: Jan 2009
UPC: 012354071995

d'Arenberg d'Arry's Original 2005

After Ted's recent d'Arenberg post, I decided it was time to try d'Arry's Original, which is a 50/50 blend of Grenache and Shiraz. I thought the Original was solid, but nothing special. The fruit is very bright without being candied and the same flavours follow through on the palate. It is a very soft wine - too soft for my taste.

Perhaps this wine will improve with age. Wine Spectator says to drink now through 2010, but the d'Arenberg website says this wine will cellar "for a considerable time." I'm not sure how long that is, but it sound like they mean longer than 2010. I wouldn't have thought it was a wine to cellar, as the tannins are not noticeable (to me), but d'Arenberg should know better than I do. Certainly there is enough fruit that it could fade quite a bit without doing much harm and if age added some complexity that would help.

For now, Kelly and I agreed that the Original deserves an 87. Wine Spectator gave it an 88.

Price: $24.48
Value: 3/5
Score: 87
Alcohol: 14.5%
Tasted: Oct 2008
ANBL UPC: 9311832337006