I recently attended a Taste of Australia. Many areas and styles from down under were represented. I asked about the recent fires and how the wine industry was coping. Most felt that fires were common during summers and downplayed their effects. Hopefully, they are correct and we won’t see a downturn with the Aussie wine industry. I would be more concerned with the rise of the dreaded funnel spiders which I read were becoming a problem. One vendor told me spiders were not a concern but if ever I visited Australia to “watch out for the sharks.”
White Wines
On to the wines. I started with the whites searching for a good Sauvignon Blanc (or a Semillon Sauvignon). but this seemed a challenge. Most of the Sauvignon Blancs lacked acidity and the cut grass note most Sauvignon Blancs are famous for so I moved on to Chardonnay. Most of the Chards had a distinctive matchstick flint reductive odour which was not unpleasant and added to the popcorn/caramel oaky notes balanced with yellow fruits and a decent acidity. One notable Pinto Grigio was tasted. It had a copper-like tinge to the colour and had notes of stone fruit and peach, pear, apple on the palate with good acidity. I was starting to get into a groove and then spied a booth from Margret River.
For those unfamiliar with Margret River, it is on the southwest side of Australia near the City of Perth. The vineyards get cooling effects from the confluence of the Indian Ocean and the great Southern Ocean. Most wines are made in a Bordeaux style. This is a must-visit area for myself though I am terrified of spiders. I figure you can escape the spiders by going into the ocean but that leaves yourself exposed to the sharks. Anyway, I digress. The first wine I tried was a 2018 Sauvignon Blanc Semillon blend. The wine had typical notes expected of ammonia, cut grass and passion fruits with the acidity of medium-plus and tropical fruits on the palate.
Red Wines
Transitioning from the whites, I move on to the reds, I started with a few Pinot Noirs from Victoria. This area has been devastated by the recent fires and hopefully, any Wineries destroyed will be able to recover and my heart goes out to anyone who has lost family, friends, livestock and property.
The Pinots showed good high acidity with soft tannins typical of this varietal with oak indicators of cola, soft red fruit on the nose and palate with medium alcohol. I enjoyed most of what I tasted though nothing stood out. I found a few interesting Cabernet Sauvignon wines from Coonawarra in South Australia. One of my favourites was a 2016 Nugan Estates Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine was a deep ruby bordering on a purple colour. It had medium-plus alcohol exhibiting blackberry, black plums, mulberry, black currant, leather, cloves, and vanilla. It is apparently vegan-friendly. Unfortunately, it is not available at the LCBO. Hopefully, they bring it in one day in Vintages.
I return to the Margret River booth and tried a 2017 Cabernet Merlot blend finding notes of cassis, blackberry, black plum and vanilla. Medium to medium-plus alcohol, medium-plus tannin with plenty of black fruit. I also tried a 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon which had notes of chocolate, black plum, cassis, leather with medium-plus tannins, medium acid with plenty of dark black fruit to match with the oak flavours. This wine was my favourite of the night.
Overall the event was enjoyable. I tried twenty-five wines during the afternoon and re-affirmed why I explore and purchase Australian wines.
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