Happy birthday to me

If you hadn't guessed by the title...my birthday has come and gone with only marginal fanfare. Although my birthday was on Monday, I broke the rules and brought out a 'Sunday' wine that I had recieved from Wine Selectors a few months ago - a 2005 Petersons 'Back Block' Hunter Valley Shiraz. Hey...it was my birthday after all. We enjoyed this wine alongside a hearty italian dinner at Amici in Camberwell, which is always a treat (although we have recently had some mixed experiences there...).

This was typical Hunter Valley, very earthy, but with a nice bit of pepper/spice to it that reminded me a bit more of a Heathcote Shiraz. It is still a little young with the Hunter earthiness overpowering the fruit flavours, but as our cellar is in Sydney and we're in Melbourne, we have no choice but to follow the youth movement until we build up the collection again.

The best thing about it was that it was better the next day. A recommendation I took away from the guys at Winorama. If you ever have a wine that is anti-social and refuses to open up...put the cork back in, put it in the fridge overnight, and decant it the next day. Naturally this won't work if the wine is actually off or is just bad wine, but don't give up immediately. I've found this with a few of the big reds we've opened in the past.

Heavy price tag at $50, but not a disappointment. All up, a solid wine.

Poor Man's Grange

After the bad experience with my first Grange, I decided to give 'Baby Grange' or 'Poor Man's Grange' a go. I picked up a case of aged '02 cellar release Bin 389 from Dan Murphy's for $40/bottle while restocking the whites (apparently this was marked down as Dan Murphy's are rotating their cellar release wines). The price of this wine has crept up over the last few years, hovering around $50/bottle for the current release. I've got the '03, '04, and '05 in the cellar, but didn't have any of the '02, so I couldn't resist the urge...

I decanted it for a few hours before my first glass but it was still pretty closed. I think this will need a few more years before it really hits its straps, but it is still drinking well now. I don't know the final blend, but the cabernet is obvious and gives it a minty flavour right from the start. It is big and long (yes, I'm talking about a wine...), and went brilliantly with a block of Lindt Mint Intense (and a slow roasted leg of lamb). Definitely worth the $40/bottle, or even the $50/bottle for the current release.

I did feel a bit guilty buying this, but I'm sure I'll get over it. I read an interesting article about Len Evans this weekend; his wife recalling how, when they were trying to make ends meet, he would still come home with an expensive bottle of wine...proud as punch. Not that I'm in his league, as one of Australia's finest oenophiles, but one can aspire... There were, however, some similarities, as my accountant wasn't overly impressed when I emerged with my purchase.

After almost a full week of AFD's (alcohol free days), this was a great start to the week. Am definitely looking forward to the next bottle in six months time...

My First Grange

I finally had a chance to drink a bottle of Grange, collecting the spoils of a little wager with my old boss.

After the first taste, I knew something wasn't quite right, but it wasn't off. I couldn't put my finger on it, perhaps it just needed time to open up, as it did seem to get better with some more time in the glass/decanter. To be fair, we only gave it about 30 minutes intially.

Not much else to say...unfortunately an underwhelming experience for my first tasting of a $500+ bottle of wine. I will need to ensure I collect on my other wager with another colleague to improve the experience.

Incidentally, it was a '92 Grange, which should in theory, just be starting to drink well now...

Boys Night

Every Tuesday is 'Boys Night' since we've moved to Melbourne and since Natasha started school. Not your typical 'Boys Night', but Seamus and I have our fun. I teach him tricks, he follows me around thinking I have food, he chases the ball, humps his bed for a while and then goes to sleep. Life as a dog I guess...

Perhaps inspired by Ms Chokecherry Pancakes herself (or perhaps the lack of pre-prepared convenience food in our fridge...), I was forced to make my own dinner tonight. The three previous 'Boys Night' meals had been grilled cheese, which was getting a bit old, so I thought I'd go all out and heat up a can of Campbell's Tomato Soup. Yes...Tomato Soup...that of Andy Warhol fame. As I was opening it I saw a recipe on the back for bolognese sauce, so I decided to go a step further. Spaghetti bolognese, a staple of my university days...

One can of Tomato Soup, one packet of Tomato Paste, carrots, capsicum, onions, some spices, and some grilled hamburger (Natasha's famous chili burgers) and I was off and running. As I was drinking my wine and stirring the sauce, I decided something was missing. You guessed it, a glass of red wine! Voila! I'm not an expert, but my theory is that there is no point cooking with $hit wine so my bolognese sauce had a glass of 2006 Barons of Barossa Shiraz, and I had the rest of the bottle.

Overall, very pleased with my purchase of a few weeks ago. A typical Barossa Shiraz, big fruit, good length, with a bit of cinnamon and licorice. I'm not sure it's a long termer, but will certainly last for a few more years. When you've got grapes from the best of the Barossa, it's hard to go wrong I suppose. I doubt this is available anywhere outside Australia, but if is, try it out - $20/bottle. At that price it's a steal...

Oh...and for my one or two readers, in case you're wondering, the half-marathon training is going ok. Not exactly setting the world on fire, but have at least done a few 8-10 km runs. Tomorrow morning will be test...6 am boot camp...

A good day for the Corkmaster...

Well...it was generally a good day today. Cleaned up some long outstanding admin, finished some projects at work that have been dragging for a while, had a good performance review, and had a few good wines...

For starters, I finally lodged my 2006 and 2007 tax returns which have been overdue for quite some time now. I am now officially off the 'delinquents' list at work...with a larger than planned refund due, which never hurts. I even offered the lady that does my taxes a bottle of wine and she turned it down...Sweet...more for me. Apparently she's allergic. Not sure what I'd do if I was allergic to wine...

My day ended with a surprisingly quick delivery of my most recent purchase from The Wine Society, a case of the 2006 Glaetzer Bishop Shiraz. I have tried most of Ben Glaetzer's wines, but this was one that I hadn't tried, and it is a bit more affordable than the others, so I thought I'd give it a go. I only had one glass tonight but I thought it was exceptional for a $30 bottle of wine. No doubt this label has benefitted from the fact that Glaetzer no longer produces one of their more premium (and more expensive) wines, which means the grapes previously destined for that wine now go into 'The Bishop'. Definitely one to watch, as my guess is it goes up in price over the next few years...

My purchase came about because earlier in the week I finally gave in to the endless phone calls from the Wine Society and ordered another case of wine. I joined the 'club' when I first moved to Australia because we, and the people who referred us, got a few free bottles of wine. I've continued as a member as the only real obligation is one case/year and there is a good deal to be had at least once every 12 months, sometimes more. I had just recently purchased my annual requirement, having bought a six-pack of the Penfolds 2005 bin releases (2,28,128,138,389,407) and a six-pack of the 2006 Barons of the Barossa Shiraz, but couldn't turn down another case. In a short space of time, I have managed to fill the wine fridge again, after putting everything else in offsite storage before we left Sydney. I think I will be in trouble with my accountant, which incidentally isn't me, it's Natasha...

I also officially locked myself in to run a half-marathon today, having registered with Run Melbourne and my 'boot-camp' trainer. Seven weeks to go...21 km...I'd better get my a$$ in gear. Less wine, more running... I'm keen just to get a time to benchmark against in the future where I can do some proper training. I've done the Sydney City to Surf, which is 16 km (with some big hills...), so how much harder can 21 km be? I guess I'll find out seven weeks...

Our Sunday Best

Natasha is blogging upstairs on the sticky date pudding she just made from scratch, which was awesome, so I figured I might as well finish mine off for the day. Although it might seem like I've done nothing but update this blog today, most of the effort was transferring some old posts from my Bigpond blog, which I have decided was crap (the template/layout not the content...).

As it turns out, I made the wrong choice and took Seamus to the park and missed the best part of the Swans game. They came back to tie the game in the end - and I missed it! Still kicking myself I didn't go to the game, just felt a bit lazy today I suppose... In my opinion (probably biased), the Swans should have won because the game-tying kick from Brett Kirk was touched behind the goal line (i.e. it was a goal, not a behind...). Anyway, two points is better than no points...

So...we finished two of the wines we purchased today, starting with the Mesh Riesling while preparing dinner (which admittedly for me was more watching television than preparing...). A great young Riesling that will also cellar well, although I think this one is a little less acidic so might not be a super long term wine. For dinner, along with the lamb roast, we had the Saltram No. 1 Shiraz, which was everything one could ask for from a Barossa Shiraz - Big, Fruity (but dry) and long lasting. Looking forward to drinking the next two with a little age. I still don't know why it is discounted so much, I assume it was to clear the '03 vintage. I will have to check in the next few days to see if the '04 is there at the same price. Regardless of the vintage, I'd snap it up at the current $38/bottle price.

The Sunday Ritual

I made my fortnightly trip to Dan Murphy's this afternoon because I had heard rumours of Saltram No. 1 Shiraz being available for under $40/bottle (it usually retails for around $60-70/bottle) and we needed some 'dailies'. As it turned out, the rumours were true - $37.90/bottle for the '03 No. 1. As I said previously, I am a fan of Nigel Dolan's wines and I have always been keen to try this one but the price tag scared me away. Under $40/bottle, however, I couldn't resist, and bought the only three bottles they had left. I think I'll open the first one tonight and put down the other two...

I also managed to find the 2007 Mesh Riesling for about $22/bottle. Mesh is a 'joint venture' between Jeffrey Grosset, who is probably Australia's best maker of Riesling (and winemaker of one of my Top Five wines) and Robert Hill-Smith (Yalumba). I've had a few previously but have been looking for a few to put down. I guess I don't need to look any further. It was only released in 2002 and they only blend the two parcels together late in the process, but I would imagine in a few years time, this wine will be an icon in Australian Riesling.

Other than wine shopping and dog walking, it's been a pretty quiet day. Am currently debating whether I finish watching the Swans/Kangaroos match or take Seamus to the park before all the other dogs leave...yes, it's non-stop excitement today! It's not looking good for the Swans as the Kangaroos have just taken a three goal lead and the Swans have only scored six goals all game. I think I know the answer...

Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to report on an outstanding bottle of wine and a miraculous comeback victory for the Swans