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What's Hot - Quaffers
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| RATING: 95 |
VALUE:  |
CELLAR: Drink Now - 3 years (2011 - 2014) |
ALC/VOL: 14.50% |
TASTED: 6 Apr 2011 |
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The new vintage of this very popular wine continues to deliver richness and depth rarely seen at $15, even in today’s over saturated market place.Its comic strip inspiration reflects the 'good ol' fashioned fun' of the 1950's: On one side, Jane, a gorgeous red head with a hibiscus in her hair, longs for the attention of the gallant air force Captain. Turning the bottle, the Captain declares he's just spotted 'a genuine Bobby Dazzler' (Aussie slang for a 'real beauty'). Unfortunately, he and his mates have their minds on other things - namely a new Shiraz they’re now tasting and Jane is left with no alternative but to join the party! More importantly, the charisma of the label actually extends to what's inside the bottle. The Bobby Dazzler Shiraz is characterised by Ben Riggs' now trademark, exuberant, 'joosy', full flavoured style and offers velvet smooth tannins and a complexity of aroma and flavour unexpected at this price point. While not specifically created to target a particular market demographic, the wine (and the label) will no doubt appeal to the young or the young at heart and will not be easily forgotten.
An exuberant full bodied red that delivers outstanding value.
Totally opaque black crimson colour with deep black crimson hue. Excellent perfumed lift with aromas of ripe blackberry, dark plum, liquorice, confectionary and spice. Full bodied possessing excellent richness for it’s price point the palate boasts a voluptuous flavour profile of ripe blackberry and liquorice followed
by some dark plum and confectionary. Spicy back palate. Velvet smooth tannins. Superb concentration and depth with very long aftertaste of blackberry, liquorice, confectionary and spice.
Drink over the next 2-3 years (2011-2014)
Alc 14.5%
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Retail
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A$17.74 |
Bottle Price
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A$14.99 |
Dozen Price
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A$174.00 |
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| RATING: 94 |
VALUE: |
CELLAR: Drink Now - 5 years (2012 - 2017) |
ALC/VOL: 14.00% |
TASTED: 12 Oct 2012 |
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Established in 1964 by a group of local vine growers, the Labastida cooperative has 152 members in control of 1,330 acres of vines. With such an immense terrain, it is one of the largest wineries in the Rioja to supervise their production from vine to the bottle. This wine was aged in French and American oak barrels for 4 months then racked into concrete tanks to be decanted naturally prior to a light filtration before bottling.
100% Tempranillo from 25 year old vines, it displays an opaque black, dark red colour with deep dark crimson red hue and offers aromas of black cherries, some earthy notes, a touch of liquorice and spice. Medium to full bodied the palate reveals generous flavours of ripe dark cherries along with some blackcurrant, liquorice, cedar and earth followed by a spicy back palate. Dryish finish with solid firmly constructed tannins but in balance. Long aftertaste of ripe dark cherry, blackcurrant, a touch of liquorice, earthy cedar and spice.
Enjoy this for its vibrancy now or cellar 4-5 years (2012-2017).
Alc 14.0%
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Rec
Retail
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A$19.51 |
Bottle Price
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A$14.99 |
Dozen Price
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A$179.88 |
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| RATING: 93 |
VALUE: |
CELLAR: Drink Now - 4 years (2012 - 2016) |
ALC/VOL: 14.00% |
TASTED: 23 Nov 2012 |
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Direct imports. 2010 Rhone: Quality best since 1990. Crops well down. Good cellaring. Prices stable.
Bizard - One of the top values of the vintage to date.
Long term surveyors of the Rhone viticultural landscape are ranking the 2010 vintage alongside 1990, others drawing comparisons to 1978. Regardless, the consensus that these are three of THE top vintages in modern times is not up for dispute. If you enjoyed the 2009s, the 2010 wines embody their ripeness and concentration, but add more freshness and acidity to the mix, overall slightly elevated alcohols (some special cuvees rising up to 16.5%)! and ripe, balanced tannins for good mid to long term cellaring. Growers tended to keep fruit on the vine until the phenolics, of which tannins are some of the most important, were fully ripe, specifically to avoid the overly drying tannins some commentators disparaged in 2009.
Here is Robert Parker commenting, undoubtedly one of the world authorities on the Rhone (such is his passion for the region, he has now divvied up the Wine Advocate to other writers, himself choosing purely to focus on this part of France, as well as Bordeaux). “As I predicted last year in Issue 197, 2010 is a great vintage that is extremely close in quality to 2007. The wines are not as exuberant, flamboyant or unctuously textured as the top 2007s, but they have the advantage of being slightly more delineated/ focused with greater freshness. They are just as high in alcohol as the 2007s, but the fermentations of the 2010s were easier, and the wines come across as having slightly higher acids. The downside is that after abundant crops in 2007 and 2009, the 2010 harvest was tiny, largely because the Grenache crop had significant losses due to problems during and after the flowering. It was down by 30-40%, which has made the production levels of most of the Grenache dominated wines much smaller than normal”. This last point was the only potential downside (for producers) and one might have expected some significant price increases passed on to consumers. It would be justified. In fact, the crop level was reduced by coulure (fruit not developing from flowers) to one of the lowest in recent memory.
While Grenache suffered from cold weather in June, Syrah (Shiraz), Carignan and Mourvedre were ‘able replacements.’ Even the Cinsault was of the highest order. The fabulous quality and foreseeable potential of the 2010 vintage in the Rhone has been acknowledged world-wide and so the wines are being snapped up at an unprecedented rate. What will make it into Australia is uncertain. But then, choosing from a vintage like this should be akin to shooting fish in a barrel. Chateau Bizard takes our focus further north than usual, with three exceptional buys from little known Coteaux du Tricastin, (recently renamed Grignan-Les-Adhemer) in fact the northernmost winegrowing AOC of the Southern Rhone, “... better known for its gorgeous black truffles than high quality wines,' according to Parker. He does note one exception to this rule: Chateau Bizard.
The 2010 Chateau Bizard Trifecta are three reasons to save up for as many 2010 Rhones as cellar space will allow. This is truly a classic year.
Established in 1862, it is located in Allan, fairly close to the Rhone river corridor, just south of Montelimar, in the centre of a natural amphitheater delimited by the Montagne de Raucoule, La Grangette and the Serre de Courrent ranges. The area benefits from the Mistral wind, which wards off any vine disease and also moderates heat. Parker has summed up Bizard's wines as 'remarkable values... delicious, fruit-forward reds that sell for a song.' We shipped the 2009 wines from this estate and they hit the bulls eye then for undervalued early drinking pleasure. 2010 is right on target, but with more substance and structure in the wines for extended cellaring - wines to get you through the dearth of 2011 Australian reds and beyond with minimal outlay. And once again, we've dealt directly with the winery to ensure just that.
Chateau Bizard: Cross road between North and South.
As the northernmost appellation of the Southern Rhone, the Cotes du Tricastin offers the perfect field for understanding how Syrah (Shiraz) and Grenache behave smack bang in the middle of the Rhone valley. Travel a few miles north, and you're in Syrah stronghold. Move several miles south, and Grenache is king. It's no surprise vignerons have been roused by this viticultural tipping point. Set within a natural amphitheater, the owners of Chateau Bizard have exploited the wealth of possibilities offered by the surrounding hills. Named after their respective locations on these slopes, the philosophies behind their three cuvees differ slightly.
La Grangette is Bizard's Grenache dominant wine, for which the grapes come from the hamlet of the same name, at the foot of the Serre de Courrent. A judicous addition of Syrah brings some spice to this "vin de semaine" (wine for the week) making it the most 'Mediterranean' of the three cuvees on offer.
Tasting Note….
Very deep dark crimson red colour with crimson purple hue. Lifted top notes of ripe raspberry are followed by some liquorice, meaty characters and spice. Whilst not as rich and dense as the Montagne de Raucoule the palate is nonetheless very flavoursome. Medium weight with dark raspberry dominate followed by a hint of liquorice, some dried meat and a spicy finish. Fine grained tannins with long dark raspberry, liquorice and spice aftertaste.
Drink over the next 3-4 years (2012-2016)
Alc 14.0%
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Retail
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A$ |
Bottle Price
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A$14.99 |
Dozen Price
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A$174.00 |
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| RATING: 92 |
VALUE: |
CELLAR: 3 - 4 years (2015 - 2016) |
ALC/VOL: 14.00% |
TASTED: 23 Feb 2012 |
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Last of the 2009 Rhones.
Not long after Robert Parker began his assessment of 2009 Rhone in October 2010, he was commending winelovers to buy up. "This is the type of vintage consumers will love as the wines are fruit-forward, full-bodied, relatively high in alcohol with low acidity and sweet, well-integrated tannins". In this final shipment, traversing a range of terroirs the quality and value is obvious. They are wines that put Australian Grenache blends back in their place as the antecedents of these Southern Rhone archetypes. Now the treasure trove is drying up. One proviso on Parker's comments below: many of these wines were tasted before bottling. In this state, he tends to underrate wines initially, only to add points after they spend time in the bottle. The wines have rested since shipping and are now blossoming beautifully.
Tasting note:Excellent opaque dark crimson red purple colour with deep crimson purple hue. The nose displays lifted notes of raspberry and dark cherry followed by some liquorice, dried meats and spice. Medium weight the palate has blossomed with 12 months in the bottle. Good generosity with flavours of inky black cherry, raspberry and spice are followed by some meaty back palate characters. Dry finish with fine grained balanced tannins. Aftertaste of dark raspberry, spice and earth. Cellar 3-4 years (2015-2016) 14.0%
Other Reviews… The 2009 Cotes du Rhone-Villages Vincent de Catari, a blend of 80% Grenache and the rest Carignan and Syrah, reveals a plum/ruby color along with notes of strawberries, black cherries, crushed rocks, garrigue, licorice and incense. Medium-bodied, richly fruity, pure and well-balanced, it can be enjoyed over the next 3-4 years. 87-89 points
Robert Parker – The Wine Advocate
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Retail
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A$ |
Bottle Price
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A$14.99 |
Dozen Price
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A$174.00 |
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