| Kiwi Wine Fan Club Elite Australasian Chardonnay Challenge |
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| Written by Craig Thomson | |
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Selection Wines were nominated to the panel by Kiwi Wine Fan Club faithful to represent the best of the best. We tried not to cut any corners, but price precluded perhaps a few Australian wines that could have made an all-star team. Giaconda for example was obtainable but was precluded because of price. Internet Forum members also contributed, especially on the selection of the Australian examples. Vintages were also discussed. New Zealand 1996 Kumeu River Mates Vineyard Chardonnay, Auckland, $45 1996 Te Mata Estate Elston Chardonnay, Hawkes Bay, $35 1998 Morton Estate Coniglio Chardonnay, Hawkes Bay, $80 1999 Clearview Reserve Chardonnay, Hawkes Bay, $40 2000 Cloudy Bay Chardonnay, Marlborough, $35 2001 Neudorf Moutere Chardonnay, Nelson, $50 Australia 1995 Penfolds Yattarna Chardonnay, Adelaide Hills, SA $120 1997 Rosemount Roxburgh Chardonnay, Hunter Valley, NSW, $55 1999 Bannockburn Chardonnay, Geelong, VIC, $40 1999 Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnay, Margeret River, WA, $85 2000 Vasse Felix Chardonnay, Margeret River, WA $26 2000 Orlando St Hilary Chardonnay, Pathadaway, SA $18 The aggregate average age of the wines is identical. The retail price average is also fairly similar, though Australia weighs in $10 a bottle more. I think this is a true reflection on the prices being asked between the countries, with many chardonnays in Australia now commanding over $50, where in New Zealand, only Morton Estate has been that brave. Set Up The wines were all served blind in pairs. Six flights of two wines. Each flight contained an Australian and a New Zealand wine. The pairs were predetermined, taking into account styles and the ages of the wines. But the pairs were not pre-announced. Tasters only knew the full line up of the wines and that there was a kiwi and aussie per flight. The pair ups were as follows: Flight 1 2000 Cloudy Bay vs 1999 Bannockburn Flight 2 2001 Neudorf Moutere vs 2000 Orlando St Hilary Flight 3 1999 Clearview Reserve vs 2000 Vasse Felix Flight 4 1998 Morton Coniglio vs 1999 Leeuwin Art Series Flight 5 1996 Te Mata Elston vs 1997 Rosemount Roxburgh Flight 6 1996 Kumeu River Mates vs 1995 Penfolds Yattarna Scoring Tasters were simply asked firstly to pick their favourite wine per flight. Tasters were then asked to rank their top three wines overall. Some found this too hard and abstained. Tasters were asked to try to pick which wine was kiwi and which wine was the Aussie per flight. Finally tasters were asked to try to pick out the ‘cheapie' wine (2000 Orlando St Hilary Chardonnay $18) from the mix. I have also scored these wines from my personal perspective out of 20, but remember, my notes and comments are NOT from a blind perspective, everyone else's are. My votes are not included in the votes section. That information you can deduce from my scores. Notes 2000 Cloudy Bay Chardonnay Massive intense aroma of fresh cut grapefruit and flinty, mealy notes. Good strong acid spine, powerful and intense grapefruit. Nutty, toasty. A big ballsy wine. 17.5/20 Fresh, crisp bouquet (GJ), Gentle background tastes (MT), Similar to number 2 (Bannockburn) but not as sweet (CBS), Fruit nose, not a lasting palate (DC). Fairly closed nose, muted, lovely light colour, almost like a Riesling (RH) 12/15 picked this wine as New Zealand 2/15 picked this wine as the cheap wine, Orlando St Hilary 6/15 voted this wine as best of the flight 1/15 voted this wine their overall favourite wine 0/15 voted this wine their overall second favourite wine 1/15 voted this wine their overall third favourite wine Total Group Score = 4 points 1999 Bannockburn Chardonnay To me this was a lot more similar to the Cloudy Bay than I had imagined. Many I remember commenting the opposite. A fine classy wine, nose of grapefruit in a more elegant and integrated frame. Palate is very classy and integrated, showing lovely texture, seamless flavours, compact fine, long and complex. A stunner. 17.75/20 Oyster, sea salt(MT) Intense, Powerful (GT) Oyster flavour (GJ) Rich, sweetish, scrummy (CBS) Promised more on the nose, but didn't deliver (BL) Long Palate (DC). Beautiful nose but faded. Thick, viscous, sweet. Tastes aged.(RH) 12/15 picked this wine as Australian 3/15 picked this wine as the cheap wine, Orlando St Hilary 9/15 voted this wine as best of the flight 1/15 voted this wine their overall favourite wine 0/15 voted this wine their overall second favourite wine 0/15 voted this wine their overall third favourite wine Total Group Score = 3 points 2001 Neudorf Moutere Chardonnay Nose initially of cashew nuts, and then gentle fine sweet lemony citrus. On the palate this wine is simply enormous. Young, very fine. Immensely powerful and intense. Huge, huge concentration. Tight, fine and closed. Almost overwhelming. Shows nice complexity. Perhaps the most concentrated wine of the night. Needs time, but is an absolute stunner. 18+/20 Very powerful, marmalade, high alcohol, So intense, not sure what to think(RH). Enjoyed this for its stronger complexity(GT) Rose petals (MT) Slight herb flavour (GJ), not fussed on this one (ST), Overpowering, not a quality wine (BL) 9/15 picked this wine as New Zealand 1/15 picked this wine as the cheap wine, Orlando St Hilary 6/15 voted this wine as best of the flight 0/15 voted this wine their overall favourite wine 3/15 voted this wine their overall second favourite wine 0/15 voted this wine their overall third favourite wine Total Group Score = 6 points 2000 Orlando St Hilary Chardonnay A big mouth filling, broad and concentrated wine showing grapefruit and citrus skin notes. Well integrated with some toasty complexity in the background. Excellent wine 17.5/20 More oak (MT) Changed with time, improved (GJ) Best so far (ST) Rich, good now (CBS) Pleasant, could be 2000 vintage (BL) Balanced, not overpowering, easy palate(DC) Toffee nose, easy to drink(RH) 9/15 picked this wine as Australia 0/15 picked this wine as the cheap wine, Orlando St Hilary 9/15 voted this wine as best of the flight 1/15 voted this wine their overall favourite wine 0/15 voted this wine their overall second favourite wine 1/15 voted this wine their overall third favourite wine Total Group Score = 4 points 1999 Clearview Reserve Chardonnay The nose on this wine is quite dumb at this stage, showing nectarine, just. Palate is powerful, integrated and rich with a deep silky texture. Concentrated, nectarine type fruit. Big bodied, smooth, but still quite tight and un giving. Another excellent wine 17.5/20. Pretty good (BL) Not much nose, very nice but not so complex (DC). Lovely mouth feel, sensuous, elegant (RH) Don't like this one (ST) Smooth (GJ) 13/15 picked this wine as New Zealand 1/15 picked this wine as the cheap wine, Orlando St Hilary 4/15 voted this wine as best of the flight 0/15 voted this wine their overall favourite wine 0/15 voted this wine their overall second favourite wine 2/15 voted this wine their overall third favourite wine Total Group Score = 2 points 2000 Vasse Felix Chardonnay Quite a chunky wine in this lineup, showing oak and peach, rockmelon and marmalade, citrus skins. A big wine, clean. Seemed a little disjointed to me and I felt it struggled with the company, but it is a lovely wine never the less. 16.75/20 Longer, mild (GJ) Peachy taste, fruity, minerally, not much nose (RH) Not much nose, higher alcohol, just delicious.(DC) Good colour, creamy (BL) 13/15 picked this wine as Australia 2/15 picked this wine as the cheap wine, Orlando St Hilary 11/15 voted this wine as best of the flight 0/15 voted this wine their overall favourite wine 0/15 voted this wine their overall second favourite wine 1/15 voted this wine their overall third favourite wine Total Group Score = 1 point 1998 Morton Estate Coniglio Chardonnay Nose is unique showing soft toffee, caramel creams and gentle fresh nectarine, peach fruit. Fantastic complexity, good fine acids and gentle flavours. Caramel, butterscotch complexities, restrained, soft and easy to drink but showing good fine structure. Massively sexy, sensual drink. 18.75/20 Slightly creamy (CBS) A nothing chardonnay (BL) Fantastic lasting palate, caramel (DC) Interesting flavour, didn't quite work out what it was, vanilla? Like it (ST) Smooth and mild (GJ) Very nice, more subtle than number 2 (Leeuwin) (GT) Rich caramel nose, lovely, slight sherbety, long finish, opens out with time (RH) 3/15 picked this wine as New Zealand 0/15 picked this wine as the cheap wine, Orlando St Hilary 5.5/15 voted this wine as best of the flight 2/15 voted this wine their overall favourite wine 1/15 voted this wine their overall second favourite wine 3/15 voted this wine their overall third favourite wine Total Group Score = 11 points 1999 Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnay Fresh nose, very powerful and integrated wine. Big wine with great structure, mouthfilling and very concentrated. Long finish. Shows soft citrus and citrus skin flavours. Super wine. 18+/20 Well balanced, youngish. Pungent (RH) Lovely, balanced (MT) Smooth (GJ) Like this (ST) Balanced, opens with time (DC) Superb (BL) Lasts well (CBS) As good (as the Morton) (CS) 3/15 picked this wine as Australia 1/15 picked this wine as the cheap wine, Orlando St Hilary 9.5/15 voted this wine as best of the flight 3/15 voted this wine their overall favourite wine 4/15 voted this wine their overall second favourite wine 0/15 voted this wine their overall third favourite wine Total Group Score = 17 points 1996 Te Mata Estate Elston Chardonnay Massive wine. Full of nectarine, citrus skins. Massive concentration. Complex, long wine of exceptional quality. Great length. 18.25/20 Delicious, long length, good acid spine. What Ross likes (RH) Smells lovely (MT) Strong bouquet (GJ) Lovely bouquet (ST) Powerful nose, yum (DC) Nicely balanced (BL) 11/15 picked this wine as New Zealand 0/15 picked this wine as the cheap wine, Orlando St Hilary 5.5/15 voted this wine as best of the flight 1/15 voted this wine their overall favourite wine 2/15 voted this wine their overall second favourite wine 6/15 voted this wine their overall third favourite wine Total Group Score = 13 points 1997 Rosemount Roxburgh Chardonnay Very intense. Bigger even than the Elston. Nose of grapefruit marmalade, massive length and excellent complexity. 17.75/20 Raisen flavour, bright, slight kero, aged, grapefruit marmalade, complex (RH) menthol, lime (MT) Strong (GJ) Lovely boquet, but not as strong as wine 1 (Te Mata) (ST) Yum, complex (DC) Typical Australia (BL) Great nose (CBS) 11/15 picked this wine as Australia 0/15 picked this wine as the cheap wine, Orlando St Hilary 9.5/15 voted this wine as best of the flight 2/15 voted this wine their overall favourite wine 2/15 voted this wine their overall second favourite wine 1/15 voted this wine their overall third favourite wine Total Group Score = 11 points 1996 Kumeu River Mates Vineyard Chardonnay Nose shows the age of this wine, quite developed and unique in the context of the preceding wines. Fine palate shows excellent concentration and structure. An amalgam of flavours. Very complex, long and fine. 17.25/20 Thick butterscotch, mineral, cheesy. Worst wine for me, tastes old something not right (RH) Honey (MT) Distinct bouquet (GJ) Nice enough, not very memorable (ST) Very little nose or complexity (DC) Cheap Australian (BL) Light lemon nose (CBS) 3/15 picked this wine as New Zealand 3/15 picked this wine as the cheap wine, Orlando St Hilary 2/15 voted this wine as best of the flight 1/15 voted this wine their overall favourite wine 0/15 voted this wine their overall second favourite wine 0/15 voted this wine their overall third favourite wine Total Group Score = 3 points 1995 Penfolds Yattarna Chardonnay Complex long and integrated wine showing dark nectarines, peach flavours, complexed by nutty, toasty notes. Rich but well structured. Lovely wine, decadent. 18.5/20 Deep golden. Typical old style, opens out with time. (RH) Smooth, not distinctive (GJ) Very Nice (ST) Very yellow colour (DC) Beautiful balance (BL) 3/15 picked this wine as Australia 0/15 picked this wine as the cheap wine, Orlando St Hilary 13/15 voted this wine as best of the flight 3/15 voted this wine their overall favourite wine 3/15 voted this wine their overall second favourite wine 0/15 voted this wine their overall third favourite wine Total Group Score = 15 points Final Rankings First Place and Kiwi Wine Fan Club Trophy for Elite Australasian Chardonnay 1999 Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnay Second Place 1995 Penfolds Yattarna Chardonnay Third Place and Trophy for top QPR wine and trophy for top Kiwi Wine 1996 Te Mata Elston Chardonnay Fourth Equal Place 1998 Morton Estate Coniglio Chardonnay and 1997 Rosemount Roxburgh Chardonnay Sixth Place 2001 Neudorf Moutere Chardonnay Seventh Place 2000 Orlando St Hilary Chardonnay Eighth Place 1999 Bannockburn Chardonnay Ninth Place 2000 Cloudy Bay Chardonnay Tenth Place 1996 Kumeu River Mates Vineyard Chardonnay Eleventh Place 1999 Clearview Reserve Chardonnay Twelth Place 2000 Vasse Felix Chardonnay Conclusions These wines are simply stunning. It must be remembered that even the lower scoring wines within this group are magnificent wines that have, in other forums, been absolutely outstanding. It is easy to forget this point in a line up of such elite wines, where we are picking the sublime from the exceptional. This is further displayed by the fact that every single wine rated in someone's top three, and deservedly so. Even though I personally didn't rate the Leeuwin in my top three, I had before the event suggested that it must be the favourite to win. This came through in the end. We have to acknowledge Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnay as an absolute classic wine. The competition here was fierce, but in the end when the votes were counted, the choice was clear. Penfolds Yattarna yet again performed and gave substance to its massive price tag by coming in at number two. It was in a position that it really only could lose, but it came in trumps. Te Mata Elston was deservedly the top kiwi wine. It featured in the top three wines for 9/15 tasters. The top ranked wine using this statistic. It appealed to everyone and is a bargain wine at less than half the price of the top two. It is holding up well and showing no signs of decline. Fantastic value for money Rosemount Roxburgh was a huge surprise. Before the night, I expected this wine to be in the bottom half when the votes came in. Any negative comments I had heard beforehand about ‘too much oak', ‘old fashioned' etc seemed totally un-foundered. This wine dazzled, and stunned drinkers with its massive frame and generous complexity and structure. Morton Estate Coniglio sure made an impression, especially with me. It is an outstanding wine, which I think would impress even more in a drinking environment over a comparative tasting. It is subtle and complex, and a totally first class wine. New Zealand's most expensive wine, as with Australia's is not all hype. Neudorf Moutere Chardonnay I feel suffered from just being too young. It is absolutely massive. The intensity and concentration of this wine is unbelievable. But at the same time it is so finely structured. This is a must buy for the cellar. In 4 years time it will be deadly. Potential plus. This caused ripples of "wows" to flow through the rooms, and plenty of discussion. Absolutely top notch wine. Bannockburn was a classy number and I think was overpowered by the bigger wines that followed. But I picked this wine as a stunner, elegant, concentrated and seamless. This seems to be a really good chardonnay, which was received very well. Orlando St Hilary. Well what can you say? This $18 wine was slipped into a line-up of the most prestigious chardonnays in Australasia and not one out of the fifteen tasters picked it as the ‘cheap 00 Orlando St Hilary'. What greater accolade do you need than that? This is one classy wine at one sharp price. The Kumeu River was the most controversial wine of the night. Some loved it. Some panned it, or questioned if it was on the downhill slide. From my point of view, I feel it was at peak, and showing very well. Where as the other wines, except the Yattarna were still ascending. A mature wine, to drink up now and enjoy for its unique character and classy palate. The Clearview seemed a little shy tonight. Usually a super opulent showing, this wine showed stunning texture and a seamless mercurial palate. Perhaps I expected it to show a little better as I am a big fan of this vintage of Clearview. But it is in against the big boys here. The Cloudy Bay is still a bit raw but shows massive potential. I love the flavours in this wine, they are super. A little chunkier than most of the wines tonight, but the flavours and texture are mouth watering and compelling. This wine to me is one of the best chardonnays to be released this year, outside the big kiwi three of Te Mata, Kumeu River, and Neudorf. The Vasse Felix impressed many people with its size and flavours. To me it was a little out of its league in this company, a little disjoined and chunky. That said, many at the tasting disagreed with me and rated this wine highly. So in the end the kiwi in us was disappointed that the top gong went to Australia. As Coroyln commented, we need to arrange a Sauvignon Blanc version in a hurry to restore national pride. |
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| Last Updated ( Friday, 04 February 2005 ) |
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