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Summer 2000 Wines at Oddbins

A selection of wines available at Oddbins in Summer 2000. (27/8/00)

Tasting Notes

Tasted in August 2000. Click to locate stockists:

Sparkling Wines

Cave de Lugny Crémant de Bourgogne (Burgundy, France) NV: A foaming mousse. Very herbaceous nose. Quite sharp and acidic on the palate, hollow midpalate, slightly bitter finish. I've had much better Crémant than this. 11/20

Cantine Gemma Moscato (Piemonte, Italy) 1999: A lightly sparkling wine. An obvious grapey, aromatic Muscat (Moscato) nose. On the palate it is gently pétillant, richly sweet, with low acidity. No obvious faults, and may appeal to some, but it's not my style at all. 12/20

White Wines

Les Brémailles Touraine Sauvignon Blanc (Loire, France) 1999: Grassy and herbaceous nose. Served too warm, so didn't show well. Insufficient acidity, a flabby mouthfeel, uninteresting. 12/20

Domaine de Renaudie Touraine Sauvignon Blanc (Loire, France) 1999: A richer nose, grassy but with some pithy white fruit. Also served too warm. Pleasant fruit on the palate, much more correct acidity, leading through to an acceptable finish. Might be good, but I'd find it easier to assess at the proper temperature. 14?/20

Bleasdale Sandhill Verdelho Langhorne Creek (South Australia) 1998: A grassy, faintly aromatic nose. On the palate somewhat neutral, but technically correct with good acidity and a pleasant weight. Might make a pleasant summer quaffer. 14.5/20

Penny's Hill Chardonnay (South Australia) 1998: This has a pleasing nose, with fresh tropical fruit aromas mixing it with buttery, spicy oak. The initial promise doesn't come through on the palate, with bitter, spicy oak dominating, although some lemony acidity lies underneath it all. With a little more time this oak may integrate to make a nice wine - or it might just fall apart. 14.5/20

Red Wines

Felline Primitivo di Manduria (Puglia, Italy) 1998: A pale purple-red. The nose reeks of American oak, with liquorice and spicy vanilla aromas. On the palate quite a thin-bodied wine, with some black fruit, oak and spice. Unimpressive finish. 12/20

Enclave des Papes Cuvée Speciale Côtes du Rhône (Rhône, France) 1999: A blend of Grenache (60%) and Syrah (40%). Moderate intensity of colour, a red-purple hue. Nose has white pepper Grenache and some black fruit. On the palate a medium body holds some typical Grenache white pepper, together with pleasant fruit. Finishes cleanly. 13+/20

Deakin Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz (Victoria) 1999: Lovely nose of plums and liquorice - very promising. On the palate plump, plummy fruit. Well balanced, structured wine with an opulent mouthfeel. Quite delicious, good quality/price ratio. Buy to drink rather than keep. 16.5/20

D'Arenberg Footbolt McLaren Vale (South Australia) 1998: A lovely nose of fresh blackberries with a dollop of oak. The palate doesn't quite live up to the promise. Medium bodied, subdued fruit. 15/20

D'Arenberg Custodian Grenache McLaren Vale (South Australia) 1997: Very appealing nose of spicy black fruits. On the palate this wine has excellent structure, with opulent fruit, firm tannins and pleasant background acidity. Quite spicy, with a classic Grenache 'white pepper' aspect to the palate - more so than the 1996. Would buy this - would happily keep a year or three. 16/20

D'Arenberg d'Arry's Original McLaren Vale (South Australia) 1997: A more subtle, muted nose to this Shiraz-Grenache blend. A more subtle palate, with nicely integrated black fruit and oak. Hints of shiraz black pepper this time! Pleasant. 15/20