fromthecellar
These eight producers have done the hard work of ageing wine for you.
2012 CALABRIA THE ICONIC GRAND RESERVE BAROSSA VALLEY SHIRAZ
Barossa Valley, SA
Aromas of cinnamon, red licorice and blackcurrant weave through French oak spice. On the palate, flavours of blackberry coulis and brambly forest fruits are complemented by finegrained tannins and a hint of white chocolate. Opulent, luscious and muscular.
What is special about this wine?
Its debut signified the dawn of a new era for Calabria Family Wines. Bill Calabria (OAM) dedicated countless hours to revitalising a block planted in 1914, and the cool spring and summer of 2012 granted prolonged maturation, yielding magnificent hues and flavours, culminating in this opulent wine.
How has this wine developed with age or over time?
Classic ageing characteristics of a 10-year-old Barossa wine are accentuated by a cool-climate edge and a savoury chinotto-like finish.
$175, calabriawines.com.au @calabriafamilywines
2014 MUSEUM RELEASE DRAYTON’S FAMILY WINES SHIRAZ
Hunter Valley, NSW
Pepper, plums, dark cherries and vanilla oak. Luscious, longlasting finish.
What is special about this wine?
Vintage 2014 is widely regarded as one of the Hunter Valley’s best, rated 10/10 by Langton’s Auction House. Wines from 2014 are highly sought after. They exhibit the most alluring aromas and exceptional depth of flavour. Their longevity is testament to the quality of fruit harvested that year.
How has this wine developed with age or over time?
Rich, powerful, bold, and smooth. Aged to perfection under cork, this wine has softened over the years, but has retained its punch and concentration. Ideal with roast beef, lamb shanks, barbecued vegetables or a cheese platter. Drinking beautifully now, it will benefit from further cellaring.
$80, draytonswines.com.au @draytonswines
2014 HOLLYDENE ESTATE RESERVE SHIRAZ
Upper Hunter Valley, NSW
The nose shows impressive intensity and complexity. Plum, blackberry, and charry French oak aromas lead into a medium-bodied palate offering bold flavour, fine tannin and excellent length.
What is special about this wine?
From a top-class vintage in the Hunter comes this aged shiraz, at its peak with a powerful core of plum fruit aromas lifted by baked earth, old leather, dried meats and cigarbox spice. A plush palate follows, tannins tucked in nicely behind waves of earthy, almost dusty fruit flavours before a burst of fresh acidity livens up the finish. – Angus Hughson, Wine Pilot.
How has this wine developed with age or over time?
The hue is good, although not deep, the light-bodied palate of red fruits with some tannin and oak support – James Halliday, Wine Companion.
$50, hollydeneestate.com @hollydeneestatewines
2016 HOOSEGG DOUBLE HAPPY CABERNET SAUVIGNON
Orange, NSW
A beautiful blend of strong varietal fruit and quality oak. Intense cassis fruit supported by cocoa, leather and mocha originating from the barrel ageing. Integrated tannins. A very long persistent finish. A wine of great quality.
What is special about this wine?
This wine came from 34-year-old vines with extremely low yields. A delightful lifted fragrance of violets, blueberry, raspberry and cassis, with a note of cinnamon. The palate is rich, elegant, intense and quite powerful, with abundant fine-grained tannins and lovely balance. It’s loaded with charm.
How has this wine developed with age or over time?
The wine has a considerable amount of very soft tannin with excellent balance, and providing it is cellared under perfect storage conditions, it will continue to age well for another 30–40 years.
$175, hoosegg.com @philipshaw_hoosegg
2017 MEADOWBANK BLANC DE BLANCS
Derwent Valley, TAS
From the cold, southern Tasmanian wilderness comes this pure and elegant aperitifstyle sparkling. One you would reach for alongside fresh oysters. The taste of the ocean with the sourdough yeastiness and acidic zing of this sparkling…heaven!
What is special about this wine?
Crafted by the dream team of Gerald Ellis, Peter Dredge and Mardi Ellis. We hand-pick grapes from the oldest chardonnay vines in our vineyard, then do as little as possible in the winery, allowing the wine to showcase an authentic sense of place.
How has this wine developed with age or over time?
After being matured in French oak, we leave this wine on tirage for five years. Yeast autolysis allows the creamy brioche flavours to develop and dance alongside the lemon/ lime acidity of the chardonnay, creating a refined, delicate fizz.
$85, meadowbank.com.au @meadowbank_tasmania
2017 TALTARNI THE PATRON
Pyrenees, VIC
The nose displays ripe red forest fruit accompanied by subtle notes of toasted oak and cigar box. This is transferred seamlessly through to the palate, delivering the power and concentration expected of a wine of this calibre.
What is special about this wine?
Blended from specially selected sites of both cabernet sauvignon and shiraz at the estate’s vineyard in the picturesque Pyrenees, this wine is scrupulously handcrafted to truly express not only the local terroir but also the spirit of Taltarni.
How has this wine developed with age or over time?
Mouthfeel improves in texture and volume as the tannins soften. Red fruit aromatics will move more to secondary characters of leather, truffle and chocolate. Colour will evolve from rich and dark brick red to brown tones.
$125, taltarni.com.au
@taltarni
2017 TYRRELL’S SINGLE VINEYARD HVD SEMILLON
Hunter Valley, NSW
Lifted, generous floral aromatics, showing a hint of bottle age complexity.
The palate is vibrant with an abundance of mouth filling citrus fruit. Fineboned acidity and an almost chalky finish.
What is special about this wine?
The dry-grown HVD Vineyard was planted in 1908 and features ideal soils for semillon: freedraining sandy soils over coarse river sand. The 2017 vintage was one of the best in recent memory and has produced wines of the highest quality.
How has this wine developed with age or over time?
This HVD Semillon is a wine of two lives. It begins as a bright yet soft wine with zesty citrus notes. Now at six years old, it has developed extra dimensions of concentration and layers of flavour.
$45, tyrrells.com.au @tyrrellswines
2002 CLARENDON HILLS SANDOWN CABERNET SAUVIGNON
McLaren Vale, SA
At 21 years of age it demonstrates a fully mature and lifted perfume of earth, lead pencil shaving, graphite, leather, chocolate and coffee crème across cassis and blackcurrant. The palate is multi-layered and silken in texture. The wine, at full apogee, looks sensational.
What is special about this wine?
It is made from almost 100-yearold cabernet vines.
How has this wine developed with age or over time?
2002 was cool and late to ripen and after 21 years in bottle it has developed an array of powerful, yet highly refined, characters. Prominent earthy overtones across the old vine cabernet expression are reminiscent of the Old World. Earthy underbrush aromas add significant splendor to the chocolate and coffee layering throughout the lead-pencil shaving and cassis flavours on the palate. $100, clarendonhills.com.au @clarendonhills