The second bottle after the first one which was tasted about 3 years ago already…

Yes, this time the bottle was retrieved from the cellar fridge about six hours earlier, bottle standing up and rested to a good winter room temperature.

Deep and dense color, not really fragrance, but on the mouth it is really powerful wine. Long finish and last for couple minutes. Interesting blackcurrant after taste and very enjoyable. Not very silky but still fine in tannin.

All in all, 4 stars out of five for now !

The cellaring potential of this vintage is at least 20 years. I viewed this bottle 6 years aged (the first one was 3 years cellared). Thus, the tasting schedule for the remaining 4 bottles could be: 2017, 2022, 2027 and 2032, then this should be a good coverage of the cellaring effects

Just before the Christmas last year (2012), my desktop computer was down. I also had a lot NEW experience with the big computer company… unfortunately including defects on arrival and returns

Anyway, these are all good experience…

With the introduction from my wine companion… I started to explore and use VIVINO apps, and thought it’s about time to link it here… so that I could focus something else in here…

BUT other than wines, what else ??… back to the normal life in Bunbury… in fact we just celebrated our third years Anniversary in Bunbury two days ago !!

Please follow me at VIVINO if you are interested on the wines I have tasted

http://www.vivino.com/users/alfredcslau

Although I didn’t have any solid objectives for the last year or so… I believe I have somethings in my mind if I read through what I have published so far:

1. To explore more diverse wine grapes, type and country. Since we moved to WA, we have more good Aussie wines for sure. However, we didn’t leave our French wines behind… also, a lot of others from old world and new world.

2. To search for some good wines with lower or reasonable price tag. Expensive wine should be good but not always. Inexpensive wines are not necessarily so-so… some are indeed outstanding.

Moving on, I would try to look for some wines with its own character… not tailor-made to become a certain style, etc.

Finally, I wish you all a Merry Christmas and Fabulous 2013 !

Champagne/Sparkling:

1999 Pol Roger Extra Cuvee De Reserve (Not suggest to BYO a vintage champagne)
NV Lanson Black Label Brut Glass Gift Pack
NV Laurent-Perrier LP Brut
NV Joseph Perrier
NV Katlenburger Sparkling Strawberries (Germany)
NV Deutz Blenheim Marlborough Cuvee  (NZ)
NV Fresita Sparkling Strawberries (Chile) (Good value party drink !)
NV Killawarra Victoria Sparkling Strawberries
NV Veuve Amiot Saumur Sparkling
NV Riccadonna (Italy) Asti Sparkling Moscato Bianco
NV Lindauer Fraise (New Zealand) Sparkling Strawberries
2008 Chandon Victoria Sparkling Pinot Noir and Chardonnay Vintage Brut
NV Henkell (Germany) Sparkling Trocken Dry-sec
NV Freixenet (Spain) Cava Sparkling
2007 Blue Pyrenees Sparkling
2010 Windows Estate Margaret River Sparkling Mousseux
NV Grant Burge Sparkling Pinot Noir Chardonnay
NV Dopff Au Moulin Alsace Sparkling Brut Cuvee Julien
2006 Yellowglen South Australia Sparkling Rose Pinot Noir Pinot Meunier Perle Rose

White Wines:

2011 Oxford Landing Estates South Australia White Sauvignon Blanc (Gift from Matt M. at Good Food and Wine Show Perth)
2008 Bellarmine Pemberton White Riesling Auslese
2008 Bellarmine Pemberton White Chardonnay
2010 Alkoomi Frankland River White Riesling Late Harvest
2009 Gilberts Mount Barker White Riesling
2010 Wirra Wirra Adelaide Hills White Riesling The Lost Watch
2011 Jacob’s Creek South Australia White Sauvignon Blanc Cool Harvest 375ml
2008 Poacher’s Ridge Mount Barker White Riesling Louis’ Block
2010 Pierro Margaret River White Blanc de Blanc
2009 Wirra Wirra Adelaide Hills White Chardonnay The 12th Man
2010 Cherubino Great Southern White Riesling
2010 Ferngrove Frankland River White Chardonnay Diamond
2010 Dopff Au Moulin Gewurztraminer
2008 Cherubino Riesling Mount Baker
2010 Dorgo Sanleo (Italy) White Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie
2008 Heafod Glen Perth Hills Chardonnay
2010 Maison Louis Latour (France) Chardonnay Macon Villages Chameroy
2010 Pewsey Vale South Australia Riesling
2009 Hugel (France) Gewurztraminer
2008 Dopff Au Moulin Riesling Grandcru Schoenbrg 44590
2009 Maison Louis Latour (France) Chardonnay Cuvee Latour Bourgogne Blanc
2011 House of Cards Margaret River Sauvignon Blanc The Joker 100% Single Vineyard
2009 Wignalls Great Southern Chardonnay Sydney Royal Gold 2010 Award
2005 Voyager Estate Margaret River Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Tom Price 5304/6318
2011 Marlborough Ridge (NZ) Sauvignon Blanc
2011 Houghton Swan Valley Chardonnay Verdelho
2011 Voyager Estate Margaret River Sauvignon Blanc (56%) Semillon (44%)
2011 Pikes Clare Valley, SA Riesling Traditionale
2011 Taylors Clare Valley, SA Gewurztraminer
2009 Jane Brook Margaret River Chardonnay Shovelgate Vineyard (Toast nutty favour)
2011 Dopff Au Moulin (France) Gewurztraminer Domaines de Riquewihr
2010 Paul Mas France Chardonnay
2008 Leeuwin Estate Margaret River Riesling Art Series (Pair with seafood)
2011 Krondorf Barossa South Australia Chardonnay

Red Wines:

2008 Six Gates Barossa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot (Barossa Shiraz Estate Lyndoch)
2007 d’Arenberg McLaren Vale Shiraz Grenache d’Arry’s
2010 Domaines & Vineyards Pemberton Pinot Noir Pemberley
2007 Smith & Hooper Wrattonbully SA Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot Cabernet Franc
2005 Chateau Baret (France) Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec Graves
2008 Robert Oatley NSW Shiraz James Oatley Tic Tok Riedel Wine Lover Session
2007 Brookland Valley Margaret River Red Shiraz Veraz 1
2008 Wirra Wirra McLaren Vale Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz Merlot Church Block
2008 Moss Wood Margaret River Amy’s
2007 Palandri Frankland River Shiraz The Estates 3 Oceans
2007 Palmer Margaret River Shiraz
2008 Hungarovin Hungary Kadarka Szekszardi
2005 Shingleback McLaren Vale Cabernet Sauvignon
2007 Capel Vale Margaret River Shiraz Whispering Hill Mount Barker Bottle Number 1304
2007 Briarose Estate Augusta Cabernet Franc Reserve
2008 Wynns Coonawarra Red Shiraz
NV The Chocolate Shop South Australia Shiraz Chocolate
2008 Irvine South Australia Merlot Springhill
2001 J.M.Boillot France Syrah Domaine de La Truffiere
2005 Donnelly River Pemberton Merlot
2008 d’Arenberg McLaren Vale Shiraz The Footbolt
2009 Watershed Margaret River Sangiovese (Decant or aerator)
2007 Briarose Estate Augusta Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve
2008 Dalyup River Estate Esperance Shiraz
2008 Dalyup River Estate Esperance Shiraz Stokes
2007 Wolf Blass Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon Gold Label
2009 Torbreck Barossa Shiraz Woodcutter’s
2007 Howard Park Margaret River Shiraz Leston
2008 Leeuwin Estate Margaret River Shiraz Art Series
2007 Bowen Estate Coonawarra Shiraz
2008 d’Arenberg McLaren Vale Cabernet Sauvignon The High Trellis (Decanting)
2009 Ferngrove Frankland River Pinot Noir Limited Release
2009 Bellevue de Rambaud Bordeaux
2007 Grant Burge Barossa Shiraz Viognier Balthasar (Powerful Shiraz)
2007 Knotting Hill Margaret River Cabernet Merlot
2008 Two Hands Barossa Shiraz Gnarly Dudes
2008 Flametree Frankland River Shiraz
2007 Ashbrook Estate Margaret River Shiraz
2009 Wignalls Albany Pinot Noir
2008 WISE Margaret River Cabernet Sauvignon Lot 80
2007 Grant Burge Barossa Shiraz Filsell Old Vine Shiraz (Good Value Shiraz)
2011 Kooyong Mornington Peninsula, VIC Pinot Noir Massale (Good Value Mornington Pinot)
2010 Yalumba South Australia Shiraz The Y Series
2010 Chateau Cheylno Rhone (France) Syrah, Grenache, Cinsault, Carignan
2008 Chateau Lavergne-Dulong France, Bordeaux Red 60%, Merlot, 30% Cab Sav, 10% Cab Franc
2011 Wynns Coonawarra, SA Shiraz
2010 Kooyong Mornington Peninsula, VIC Pinot Noir
2007 Masi Italy, Veneto Amarone (Rondinella, Corvina and Molinari) Costasera Aamrone Classico AAB 04063921 / 04304265 RP91
2007 Tenor France, Languedoc-Roussillon Carignan Corbieres
2009 Te Mata Estate Hawkes Bay (NZ) Cabernet Merlot Awatea
2006 Illuminati Italy Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Colline Teramane Zanna Reserve AAA 01027337 SPC
2006 Wolf Blass South Australia Shiraz
2005 Clos Floridene (France) Graves Red Bordeaux Blend
2009 Chateau Mathiot (France) Bordeaux Red Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot
2007 Penfolds Coonawarra Red Cabernet Sauvignon Bin 407
2009 Christian Moueix (France) Bordeaux Merlot
2008 Masi Italy Covina Blend Campofiorin Ripasso
2009 Brand’s Laira Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon
2010 Brand’s Laira Coonawarra Cabernet Merlot Rutherglen Wine Show 2011 Class 217b

Dessert Wines:

NV Harvey River Bridge Estate Fortified Muscat of Hamburg (Orange Aroma)
NV Mozart Austria Dessert Chocolate Cream
2009 Sandalford Margaret River Dessert Botrytis Semillon

… and many others not from my cellar !

The first bottle of my 2009 Bordeaux Indent Offer from Vintage Cellars, this Acte 1 gave a very smooth and solid texture in taste…

There’s not much info in the internet regarding this wine. From the wine-searcher.com, it mentioned the owner - Sylvie et Jacques Guinaudeau who is the owner of Chateau Lafleur in Pomerol. The grapes are right band style with mainly Merlot and Cabernet Franc… that’s where the smoothness coming from I believe.

Pairing it with two meals, first was a steak and the second is the Chinese style pork ribs cooked with mushroom in oyster sauce. Both could complement the complexity of the wine and the reaction were very well.

The wine is drinking well young and I just can’t find any information regarding the aging potential for this wine.

Anyway, given the fact that this is a medium price tag wine for me… Just finished it first and it would be good to try the Acte 2 in 2010 and Acte 3 in 2011 when they are available

Open up the pink sponge finger biscuits (Biscuits roses de Reims) from Maison Fossier we bought from Reims a few weeks back and pairing with Billecart-Salmon…

Apart from the Champagne, one of the most famous products in Reims should be those biscuits made by Maison Fossier. Seems like the Biscuits Roses are the most particular, in addition to other Croquignoles, Chocolate Bouchons… they have.

We learnt from the owners of a small grower champagne house in Reims that these pink biscuits can go well with Champagne !

And this is the first time we tried at home, with a bottle of Billecart-Salmon Brut NV, which is quite heavy in citrus after taste. It’s a typical “Champagne” style if I compare it with other big names, Moet, VC,… but again, the strong citrus taste is the most remarkable.

Actually, we were having this combination 2 days ago celebrating our 3 years living in Aussie (since first landed). Time files… and we love everything here so far !

What we had for dinner the key is the Honey Bugs from Shark Bay. As I mentioned before, this little Honey Bug are much more delicious than those from Moreton Bay QLD which we tried earlier. Just pan fry them, without any seasonings, and you can get a very juicy and tasty meat – similar to the lobster, but more soft and tender !

Can’t wait to taste… Cheers !

Having seafood with Gewurztraminer and got a chance to compare the new world against the old world again…

Tried both new world and old world’s Gewurztraminer before (Henschke Joseph Hill Gewurztraminer 2007 and Hugel Gewurztraminer 2007) and the old world won because of the Lychee favour I am looking at.

Taylors Gewurztraminer Clare Valley 2011

This time I didn’t intend to compare at the first beginning. However, I opened up the bottle of Traminer from Clare Valley South Australia, and I thought it was a bottle of Riesling !! Even though in the wine label it mentioned lychee favour… of course I couldn’t find it… instead it’s still very floral in nose and dry in the tongue… not a bad wine. Perhaps the Lychee favour of Traminer really depends the terrior or the type of Traminer (assume the winemaking process does not really matter) !?

All in all, this Traminer from Clare Valley go very well with the seafood (raw oysters, blue swimmer crabs and banana prawns)

Dopff Au Moulin Gewurztraminer Grand Cru Sporen de Riquewihr 2009

In the following day I tried to locate a bottle of Gewurztraminer from Alsace in my cellar… what I have are either Hugel or Dopff Au Moulin. I am pretty sure they both have the Lychee favour !

In fact, we just visited both cellar doors at Riquewihr a few weeks back during the wine’s trip to France And I bought a bottle from Dopff Au Moulin and wanted to try… however, I found another bottle which I bought earlier from Dan Murphy’s, should be ready to drink (maximum 3-4 years aging from the Dopff Au Moulin website). Although this bottle (Sporen) is relatively sweeter, it’s good to pair with some dessert too. OK, let’s open this bottle and try !

Because of its degree of sweetness is high, I have the home-made seafood pizza (banana prawns) to go with it ! And later on, we have a cake as a dessert.

Surprisingly the sweetness is not really high to me… it’s less dry only. And no disappointment, the lychee favour is rich and just pumping up to your nose. Also, the after taste is quite powerful and it should be the strongest I had so far !
As each bottle is numbered so I reckon the production quantity for this vintage is small and may be quite limited. If you like Gewurztraminer, remember to after this wine and just grab it if you see one !

Also, what’s the result of this old and new world’s challenge ?

Based on my two-round’s comparison, I could only say South Australia’s Gewurztraminer is very different from Alsace’s one… and lacking of Lychee favour.

Never mind… that’s give me the reason to continue to hunt for other Aussie or new world’s Gewurztraminer with Lychee favour !!

My first bottle of Blanc de Blancs from the oldest Champagne House – Ruinart…

This bottle was bought from HK with extreme value compared to her value here in Aussie. It is about A$60 in HK and brought over duty-free while travelling. The retail price here is about A$120 and the cheaper you can get will still over $A100. Thus it is about half price. Compared to some volume production, Moet, VC,… the price difference is not that much so it would better to carry this or others like Krug (NV or Vintage) back home when you are travelling oversea, especially to HK where is tax-free on wine !

This Blanc de Blancs was opened yesterday… the Father’s Day in Oz ! Just a co-incident.

Surprisingly the taste of this Blanc de Blancs is quite rich and you can feed the length straight away ! Remember I discussed with the sales in Vintage Cellars at Hays Street awhile ago, during a Champagne tasting. I asked if he would like or recommend the Blanc de Blancs as all the Champagne presented were traditional one. He straight away told me… Hm… Blanc de Blancs, just Chardonnay, the taste is a bit blank, light and lack of depth and seemed he didn’t like it… or just because he didn’t have any Blanc de Blancs for tasting.

Anyway, this Ruinart will totally change my mindset. In terms of color, yes, it’s a bit pale and you can see through from the clear bottle. While opening the cork, the pressure is just right but the bubbles are not really strong in the glass… and the sustainability of the bubbles are not long neither.

Not very aromatic but the taste came with a full body and rich favour. A bit honey at the first sip and then the bitterness came through and remain pretty long.

The food matching was with prawn rolls in rice paper. Although my wife had prepared some sweet and sour sauce, I just ate the roll alone with the Champagne. Oh… the prawns are from Shark Bay, WA. It cames with freshness as well as the sweetness from the Ocean !

Shark Bay Prawns with Vegetables. Both were having different dimensions of sweetness, well matched with the slight honey but bitterness of the Champagne !

Oh… can’t just drink these Ruinart without the honey bugs from Shark Bay as well. That’s the best seafood we ever had in WA. This time two bugs were having eggs too. Well pairing with the Champagne again !

I saved about half bottle for the second day (today).

Actually when I plugged the bottle with the Champagne stopper last night, I found the size of this Champagne bottle (not just the shape but the opening) is a bit smaller in the opening. I tried to fit in the normal stopper (the only one I got), it fitted very tight and the locking ring seems a bit smaller too. I fixed the plug and put it to the fridge anyway. And I inspected one more time last night, nothing happened.

This early morning I didn’t detect any problem yet but later on when my wife was preparing the lunch, she was surprised with the Champagne plug popped out and some Champagne leaked out ! As the bottle is too wide I cannot put it vertically in the door holder, but horizontally in the shelf instead.

Oh no… it’s a lesson learnt that we need a right plug to save this Ruinart if you cannot finish it at one time !

And there’s two more stories to share:

1. My wife asked me what’s the meaning of Ruinart yesterday. Actually it’s just a name or surname but I told her the direct translation is Ruin Art, i.e. some spoilage of a piece of art. And what we have today is exactly a spoilage of art (a half bottle of Champagne), although the quality of the Champagne still remains.

2. I just received two book orders delivery (out of four in total) for our France – Champagne’s trip in Oct… here the chance for us to explore more different style of Champagne. And because of the opportunity – having Champagne at lunch – I check the internet right after lunch and found that it’s possible to visit Ruinart… and sent a request message immediately of course… stay tuned !Yes, that’s the Shark Bay Prawn Noodle with Chinese preserved beans – which we got from Margaret River (Blue Ginger) last week. My wife planned to have oysters to pair with this Champagne at night but seems we can’t wait… The Champagne is still good, just with lower acidity and even stronger and richer favour and taste. Guess the alcohol might go away for one or two hours. And I tried to call it Chardonnay… there’s no bubbles in the bottle but once I poured to the glasses, the bubbles come again… may be better called it Sparkling Chardonnay !

It’s a unique experience to decant (breathing) a Champagne inside the fridge though!

A bottle of Pinot Noir from Albany Great Southern of WA – Wignalls. It was bought 16 months during the Easter’s trip to Albany last year, just tasted few days ago…

The color of this Wignalls Pinot Noir 2009 is pale red, aroma is not significant but strong in oak taste. We had a home made pizza with prawns to match with this light bodied Pinot Noir. Good match with the seafood. However, didn’t impress with the taste and can’t re-call what we had tasted while visiting their cellar door. It must be good for me to take a bottle home.

Still remember I asked the cellar door staff how long can this wine be cellared, the answer is kind of sitting on the fence. Anyway, most of the Australian wines are made for immediate drinking, my 16 months aging may be more than enough

I was also told that Wignalls owner just store their wines in the shed, so some of the 10 years old Pinot Noir was spoiled and only discovered during recent tasting !!

Anyway, I saved half bottle for the second day… and this time the wine is changed totally ! On the nose is still a bit weak but on the palate it is really my Pinot Noir. Not really long after taste but you can taste the flowery, a bit berry’s sweetness as well as some earthy taste.

I cannot miss to mention the food this time. It was discovered quite accidentally. Originally I was targeting the prawn meat promotion at IGA. After we were in the store, we are surprised to see 3 rows of new freezers are installed in the seafood corner at Supa IGA Bunbury. Lots of local WA (with some are still imported though) from Shark Bay… Tiger Prawns, Jumbo King Prawns, raw broken prawn meats, BUGS (!!),… and we are happily shocked !

We tasted only coupled times the Moreton Bay Bugs at home or in the restaurant. Only just recently tasted the Shark Bay Bugs at Incontro in South Perth. And this is the first time to have local WA Shark Bay Bugs cooked at home.

Simply pan fried with a pinch of salt only, the bug meat is incredible, not really juicy but the sweetness is the best !! Can’t beat with lobsters, marrons or other prawns. Even the shell of the bug were full of “seafood” favour…

With the breathed Pinot Noir, it’s a wonderful match with this awesome BUGS… I have nothing else to say, just to enjoy…

Have been ordered couple cases of wines before. Some were local at WA and some were from SA. Most of them use Australia Post to delivery the wine, typically using their own carton box with wine crating.

This is my first time to order some Bordeaux Reds from Dan Murphy’s online. The motivation behind is simple:

1. Dan Murphy’s promotion on Bordeaux 2008. 10% off for a mixed case.

2. Bordeaux 2008 is not a bad vintage year. Of course it’s not as excellent as 2009/2010 or 2005/2000 in this decade. 2008 is still a good year which the price tag is not as sky-high as those excellent vintages. Also, not all 2009 vintage has been arrived and available here yet.

3. Strong ForEX on A$ to Euro. It’s not good for the stock or money markets for Europe (even to the whole world), the low Euro definitely beneficial to their export, i.e. imports to  Australia. We have a strong A$ as well thus the price level now is pretty attractive for the imported wine from France.

4. Why not I just go to the store – Dan Murphy’s Bunbury to get the wines ? And that’s the reason I tried the online order from Dan Murphy’s – as not all the wines particularly Bordeaux are available in store.

Alright. Picked some good Bordeaux 2008 from Dan Murphy’s online, mainly based on the price level and the RP’s scores. In the range of A$150 a bottle, there’s lot of choices from 2nd growth to some good fifth growth. And you can get RP’s score at 95 to 96 already… that may exceed some of the first growth’s mark but their prices is couple times higher.

Dan Murphy’s website is not a perfect ordering system but still easy to get the order done. Although once you picked your choice and you want to go back the wine list, it may go back to the primary page which you need to scroll down again for the Page 3 or 4 which causes some inconvenience.

That’s my choice finally:

• Chateau Baron de Pichon-Longueville, Pauillac x1 (RP 95)
• Chateau La Conseillante, Pomerol x1 (RP95)
• Chateau Montrose, Saint Estephe x2 (RP95)
• Chateau Pontet-Canet, Pauillac x2 (RP 96)

Once confirmed the purchase, immediately I got the confirmation screen and email as usual. What UNusual (to me only for this first time) was it told me right away that the dispatch of the wines will be in two deliveries !!

Originally I thought Dan Murphy’s would have all the stocks in a place for the online warehouse. Or they may have individual warehouse in different state or main city. Even if certain bottle is out of stock in WA, say in this case. They will get it shipped to their WA warehouse, consolidated and then shipped to the customer.

Anyway, I trusted that Dan Murphy’s should have their own reason and optimization on their supply chain to bring this type of split shipment a benefit to both Dan Murphy’s and customers so that it’s a win-win.

The confirmation also mentioned the delivery to regional WA will take 3-7 business days usually.

Thus, from the order tracking through the email, I was informed that 5 bottles dispatched in the next day from Welshpool, WA. And two days later, the parcel arrived Davenport, WA and of course delivery in the same day to Bunbury. And I received them in just 3 days happily !

Immediately open-boxed, they are packed in strong polyfoam and with a separate carton box. What I noticed is that the polyfoam package is being shipped by Australia Air Express from Treasury Wine Estates from SA to Dans Murphy’s Kelmscott in WA. The person handling seems to be the fine wine specialist Richard Moore ! And the polyfoam package is further packed with a carton box and sent to Bunbury from Welshpool through Australia Post.

OK. The second delivery – as Dan Murphy’s still own me a bottle. From the order tracking it was shipped directly from Adelaide. And just in time, 7 days later, the parcel is arrived Davenport and delivered to my doorstep first thing in the morning.

It’s my first time to receive a single bottle thus quite interesting to get this particular wine box packaging from Australia Post. The design is not really strong but should be sufficient from the top and bottom, just not sure the side walls. Nevertheless, as the package already shown it’s a wine box, the handling should be careful.

Overall it’s no major hassle to browse, order, payment, tracking and received. And this case of 6 are now finally resting in my cellar. They are not really ready to drink yet, may be at least further 3-5 years. Cellar may up to 20 years. Thus, the only thing to do is to wait for the aging… and look forward for the next excellent vintage 2009 from Bordeaux

Although all d’Arenberg wines are suggested to decant, this bottle of High Trellis Cabernet Sauvignon was just poured to the glass right after unscrewing…

The color of the wine is a bit purple red and dark. Very fruity aroma and hard to classify it as Cabernet Sauvignon… may be a very full bodied Merlot. After breathing a bit, some oak and very heavy plum are coming at the taste. Very unique in terms of the favour and the plum in palate.

With the mushroom and tiger prawn, this CabS did not overkill the seasoning of these dishes cooked in Asian style. May be the plum and sweetness of the wine help to make a perfect balance.

With roasted beef, the wine supplemented the saltiness and caramelization of the beef. Again, the rich body and relatively sweetness of the wine help to balance out the favour of the dishes.

Very outstanding McLaren Vale wine from South Australia !