We actually had this meeting more than a month ago (April 22); it’s just me being really busy for the past month. We meant to have this once a month, but we have not been able to find a day good for most people. In fact, looks like we won’t be able to do this until August. But some of us did get together to have some wine a few times in May, including a few times in Las Vegas. I don’t remember most of the wine we had; I guess I should ask Vince for the list of wines we’ve been having.
No Longer Blind
Well, I do remember the Shiraz we had in this meeting #3, that’s because I wrote it all down. This time we were not doing blind tasting (so no more brown bag covering the bottles). We were doing both vertical and horizontal tasting; it’s horizontal because 2 of them are 1998 Australian Shiraz, the other two are 2003 Australian Shiraz; it’s vertical because they are from two wineries (so 2 bottles from each winery)
Well, I do remember the Shiraz we had in this meeting #3, that’s because I wrote it all down. This time we were not doing blind tasting (so no more brown bag covering the bottles). We were doing both vertical and horizontal tasting; it’s horizontal because 2 of them are 1998 Australian Shiraz, the other two are 2003 Australian Shiraz; it’s vertical because they are from two wineries (so 2 bottles from each winery)
Tasting Sound Bites
Penfolds Bin 128 Coonawarra Shiraz 2003
– fruity, tannic, short finish, not ready for prime time
Elderton Barossa Shiraz 2003
– Longer finish, sweet, well-round, sour, dense/concentrated, more flavor
Penfolds Bin 128 Coonawarra Shiraz 1998
– Cellar, tone down and less fruity, more tannic than 2003 (which is unusual), spicy at first
Elderton Barossa Shiraz 1998
– Much longer finish, balance, harmony, nutty, less fruity
The GINI Australian Shiraz Index
Like previous two times, we ranked the bottles 1 thru 4. Then we add up the numbers. Whichever one has the lowest score is the best. Here is the list of participants: Aaron, Andrew, Anson, Kelvin, Kwong C, Naomi, Vince M, Vincent W
Elderton Barossa Shiraz 2003
– Longer finish, sweet, well-round, sour, dense/concentrated, more flavor
Penfolds Bin 128 Coonawarra Shiraz 1998
– Cellar, tone down and less fruity, more tannic than 2003 (which is unusual), spicy at first
Elderton Barossa Shiraz 1998
– Much longer finish, balance, harmony, nutty, less fruity
The GINI Australian Shiraz Index
Like previous two times, we ranked the bottles 1 thru 4. Then we add up the numbers. Whichever one has the lowest score is the best. Here is the list of participants: Aaron, Andrew, Anson, Kelvin, Kwong C, Naomi, Vince M, Vincent W
|
|
Bottle # |
Vineyard |
Region |
Pts |
Group Rank |
My Rank |
|
|
1 |
Penfolds Bin 128 Coonawarra Shiraz 2003 |
Coonawarra, South Australia |
24 |
4 |
4 |
|
|
2 |
Elderton Barossa Shiraz 2003 |
Barossa, South Australia |
14 |
2 |
3 |
 |
3 |
Penfolds Bin 128 Coonawarra Shiraz 1998 |
Coonawarra, South Australia |
28 |
3 |
2 |
|
|
4 |
Elderton Barossa Shiraz 1998 |
Baross, South Australia |
14 |
1 (more 1st place votes) |
1 |
Summer Break
We have not had another meeting since April, and it seems that we won’t be having another one until August (or September even); maybe we will have a BBQ (right, Ida?) Despite of that, some of us had been getting together to have wine over dinner. Maybe I’ll blog on some of those wines (if I actually have the time)
