Taste the Barossa

At this point, I think I would be content just touring the wine regions of Australia. There are so many different regions, and they all produce such excellent wines! Barossa Valley was no exception. South Australia is one of the driest states in Australia. The Murray River hasn’t been flowing the last 4 or 5 years, but this year has seen a considerable amount of rain (especially with all the flooding in Queensland, Victoria, and northern New South Wales). The Murray River is now at 70% capacity with numerous lakes and such.  The rainfall that came this past summer was great for the region, but it also took its tolls. Many of the grapes in the Barossa Valley and surrounding wine regions were overly moist and actually molded. Some of the wineries embraced this and used those grapes for sweeter blends. But it also gave the wineries fewer grapes to make their usual wines with this year’s vintage. They were still able to produce good quality wines, just a much smaller amount of them.

The Barossa Valley is a very versatile area, most comparable to the Mediterranean climate. Whereas Margaret River produced fairly consistent conditions throughout the region and all the different vineyards, Barossa Valley is home to both ranges and valleys. Our guide said he’s witnessed wine tastings in which the tasters could actually pinpoint where the grapes came from within 100m… I’m not totally convinced that’s possible, but it certainly sounds cool! With over 800 grape-growing families in the region, the Barossa is mainly known for its Shiraz and big red blends (similar to McLaren Vale and Coonawatta), but then it also was awarded with the best Riesling in the world at the last wine show. The vineyards in the ranges are much more similar to those in Adelaide Hills, which is cooler and produce better white wines. The Barossa’s fame stems from what it has been able to achieve in such a small area.

The Whispering Wall

Our first stop on the Taste of Barossa wine tour was The Whispering Wall in Adelaide Hills. The dam was constructed in 1903, and upon completion they discovered the wall had perfect acoustic qualities. Our guide stayed on one side of the wall, and the rest of us went and stood on the other. Even though we were standing 140meters apart, you could literally whisper and it would travel to the other side with the same (if not louder) volume. There was even an Asian tour group that was boarding a bus in the parking lot, and we could hear them chatting from all the way on our side! Very cool spot… not to mention great views!

Whispering Wall

Yaldara Estate

Once we got into the Barossa Valley, we made our way to the first wine tasting of the day at the McGuigan Winery at the beautiful Chateau Yaldara.

Yaldara Chateau

Our first tasting was a Sauvignon Blanc, which I didn’t like. But then they redeemed themselves with a French oaked Chardonnay, which had a rich, buttery smell and tasted like vanilla and maybe even eggnog. Then we sampled a Miscardo (my first ever), which was sweet and light and had a clean finish. Pretty forgettable by the end of the day though. For the reds, we sampled the GSM and then the 100% Barossa Valley Shiraz, which was very peppery with large tannons. I’m still learning to appreciate the reds, but everyone else seemed content with its quality. After the whites and reds, we got to the interesting stuff. We tried a “fortified” VP wine (VP, short for vintage port because it technically can’t be labeled as a port in the Barossa), which is essentially a more concentrated wine with brandy in it. The VP was pretty sweet but full of flavour. Then we tried the tawny, which was straight up brown in color and smells very strongly of alcohol. Kinda intimidating for our first tasting session of the morning! Tawnies stop aging once bottled, but they allow for a longer window of drinkability. They keep in the bottle for up to 20 years, and are still a good drink for 5-6 months after opening the bottle.

Yaldura's wine cellar

Tanunda

This stop was probably just a way to drag out the day, but it was interesting because this little historical town revealed a good amount of Barossa Valley history. The region was first settled in the 1840s by British colonials and German Lutherans – the 1st non-convict settlement! Just walking down the tiny strip of main road, we saw some beautiful Lutheran churches and other relics of its history.

German Lutheran Church

***Peter Lehmann Wines***

This winery was my absolute favorite location of the day, not only for its excellent wines, but also for its romantic story of winemaking. In the late 1970’s, the Barossa was apparently yielding too many grapes, so the government offered to pay vineyards for the vines they uprooted. Peter Lehmann knew that the best grapes came from the oldest vines, so in 1979 he went out on a limb and contacted vineyards himself and offered to buy their grapes so that they wouldn’t uproot their century old vines. He held a strong passion for wine and even moreso for the potential of the Barossa Valley that he didn’t want to see crumble. In doing so, he essentially saved what is now Australia’s most influential and internationally recognised wine region. Because of his “Mentor” status in the region, Peter Lehmann has good relationships with over 150 winemakers as well as access to grapes from over 900 vineyards. Peter’s son, Doug, has now taken over Peter Lehmann Wines, but the woman hosting our tasting rolled her eyes and laughed when she said Peter still shows up quite often and can’t seem to give it up. It seemed like such a fun and inspiring environment to be a part of. You have to admire that man’s passion for wine and the Barossa!

We sampled eight different wines, but I’ll spare you from having to read my reviews on each of those. But there are two wines definitely worth telling about! The very first wine we tasted was the 2010 Eden Valley Dry Riesling. Riesling was first planted in the Eden Valley in the early 1850’s. This area is located high in the Barossa ranges and is home to shallow, rocky soils, which later proved to be a natural home for Riesling – which Peter calls the “noblest white wine variety.” I’m usually not a fan of Rieslings because they are too sweet, but this one was drier than usual (hence its name), and actually became my favorite wine we sampled here. Certainly one to track down for later enjoyment!

The other more memorable wine of the day was the 2006 Black Queen Sparkling Shiraz. The sparkling Shiraz is a unique Australian wine style, first developed in South Australia in the early 1800’s. Peter Lehmann Wines started making a few cases each year in the 1980’s purely for the indulgence of the winemakers. They released their first sparkling Shiraz to the public in 1999 from their 1994 vintage, The Black Queen being a gambler’s card, but of course it was a hit. We heard more than enough about this sparkling Shiraz of the Barossa throughout our entire tour, so it was a climactic moment when we actually got to try some ourselves. It was amazingly refreshing with the perfect amount of zing. I can’t believe it hasn’t caught on in other regions!

After our wine tasting, we went to an adjacent room for a family-style lunch. We each bought or split wines from the Winery and picked at platters of various meats, cheeses and breads from the Barossa Valley. I sat with a young group from the UK that had met on a previous tour to Adelaide. English Andy and I shared a bottle of the 2008 Barossa Shiraz. It was comforting to know I was able to mingle and make friends on such a short tour. I’m really looking forward to the more lengthy ones now!

Langmeil Winery

We were given the choice at lunch to either sit and drink finish off our bottles of wine or meander down the pathway to the Langmiel Winery. The UK clan and I took our sweet time talking and then realised we didn’t have much time left, so we screwed the cap back on our wines and wandered over to the Langmiel: home of the oldest known Shiraz vineyard in the world.

Langmeil Winery

This tasting was less structured, so we were only served upon request. We sampled the Sparkling Ondenc Cuvee, Chardonnay, and Riesling… none of which I much cared for. Then we tried the Bella Rouge, which is a darker Rose made with Cabernet Sauvignon. Very good! Now running out of time, we decided to throw out some big guns and request the most expensive wines on the list. The Valley Floor Shiraz was dry with a medium/full body – typical of the Barossa Valley. I preferred the “Freedom” Shiraz, which is usually not available for tasting. This may be because I’m feeling especially patriotic after learning of Osama Bin Laden’s death, but then again it was a pretty remarkable wine. These Shiraz vines were family-planted in the mid 1840’s, are hand picked and pruned, and are dry grown – meaning they rely solely on natural rainwater rather than irrigation. The more water given to vines, the more fruit they produce; but the more fruit they produce, the lesser the quality of the grapes. Therefore these dry vines are very unusual and only used for the oldest vines, which produce the best quality fruit. The reason the Barossa is home to some of the oldest Shiraz vines in the world is due partly to Peter Lehmann’s initiative in preserving them, as well as the fact that the Barossa has never had any problems with phylloxera, a disease that can ruin the vines to the extent that they must be uprooted. This blessing is the result of both hard work and a little luck.

Seppeltsfield

The original Mr. Seppelt started this vineyard in 1851 proclaiming that it would not produce a single vintage until the vines reached the age of 100 years. Adhering to his wishes, Mr. Seppelt’s family released the first vintage in the 1970’s. These wines now go for as high as $1,500 per bottle, and you better be certain that they sell out as well. I guess his plan was successful, even if it was only his descendants who benefited from the cause. We didn’t actually have any tasting in this vineyard (shocking, hey?), but we managed to capture some amazing pictures of it.

the road to Seppeltsfield

Seppeltsfield Vineyard

Murray Street Vineyards

Andrew Seppelt is a 6th generation winemaker, who opened this small winery himself after working in the famous wine regions of France and the United States. So even though we didn’t get to try any Seppeltsfield wines, we were able to experience this fusion of the old and new that Andrew brought to the region. Our wine tasting took place on the outdoor patio of the winery, overlooking the beautiful vineyard.

Murray Street Winery

My favorite wine from this location was the 2006 Sophia signature Shiraz, which our host, Jason, claimed is “exactly how Shiraz should be,” which is just fine by me. Although I particularly liked how he described his affection for the 2006 Benno: “I’ll stick it on cornflakes.”

Post Wine Tour

When we were dropped back off at our accommodations, the driver was a little awkward when he realized he had accidentally given the rest of my and Andy’s Shiraz to another couple who left before us. I probably should have been a little more annoyed, but it actually got me off the hook for making dinner plans with the UK group. Instead my local Adelaide friend, Christian, gave me a speed tour of Adelaide including Glenelg Beach (where we had dinner), the cricket stadium (which they are expanding by 20,000 seats to accomodate the Australian Football League games), and some Gothic-style churches among other things. Early to bed and early to rise! My pickup for Kangaroo Island is at 6:20am tomorrow…

Wine’s good for the health

Eager to see some more of Margaret River, Britt and I set off early for breakfast, only to realize the wineries don’t open until around 10-10:30am. Just as the gates opened Britt and I were at our first winery, ready to go. Leeuwin Estate was our first stop for the day. This was recommended to us by the guy at the front desk of our hostel because tastings are free, and these are really nice wines. I like his logic! They first planted their grapes in 1974-75, and their first vintage year was in 1979. Though it sounds pretty recent, this is actually one of the oldest vineyards in MR. I loved every single wine at Leeuwin’s. My favorites were the Siblings Sav Blanc, Classic Dry White (Sav Sem Chard Riesling blend), and the Prelude Vineyards Chard. The Art Series were very nice as well, but they were geared more toward impressing wine critics rather than appealing to the lay drinker’s taste. (That would be me, by the way.)

Up next was the Voyager Estate, another recommendation by the guy at the hostel. This winery had a beautiful entrance, complete with rose bushes and a gazebo alongside the rows of grapes. I felt a little awkward just asking for samples at this one without buying anything though. But it was worth it! I tried another Chenin Blanc, and although it was fairly dry, it still tasted like a tropical fruit bomb. I wasn’t too much of a fan. My absolute favorite (perhaps of the day) was the Tom Prince Sav Blanc Sem. Winemakers usually don’t oak this blend of grapes, but this particular one was a playful experiment (many in the area are experimenting with oaking now) which turned out fantastic! Yum!

Before we got too lost in our wine tastings, we decided to check out some of the beaches along Caves Rd. In particular, we wanted to see Surfer’s Point because MG is currently flooded with surfers from all over the world for a surf competition this week!

 

Surfer's Point

 

After intermission, we jumped back into the wine tastings. This time we went to the Cullen Winery, one of the 4 original vineyards in MR (40 years old). If anyone is planning on going to MR anytime, I would strongly recommend this vineyard for morning tea or lunch (with a bottle of wine, of course). It was a beautiful area with a back porch overlooking the vineyard and picnic tables along the side of the winery shaded by some trees. So relaxing!

 

Cullen Wines

 

The next vineyard did not come as a recommendation to us. I held a particular interest in the Knee Deep vineyard because we served the Sem Sav Blanc at the Russell Wine Bar. It’s too sweet for me, but I thought it would be fun to see where all those bottles come from! Apart from the one that we stocked at the wine bar, I pretty much liked every other wine. My favorites were Kim’s Chardonnay ($28 per bottle) and Kelsea’s 2008 Reserve Cab Sav ($45 per bottle). And it was such a cute little spot… and nice employees 🙂

 

Knee Deep Wines

 

Once we were satisfied with the selection (and caliber) of vineyards that we went to, we took one last pit stop at The Grove. I saw a really delicious looking liqueur yesterday that I really wanted to try… so I did. It’s called the Limeburners whiskey liqueur made with karri honey. SO good! I wanted to buy some, but a small bottle was $80, and I was feeling cheap. But I’ll be sure to remember the name! Since we made a respectable dent (and all the wineries were closing), we took to the road. Back to Perth! Scratch that… How about a nights rest in Bunbury first? We arrived in Bunbury surprisingly earlier than we had predicted, and even managed to catch the sun setting over the Indian Ocean!

 

Bunbury sunset

 

I could get used to this!!!!!!

Margaret River: In vino veritas!

Margaret River… where to start???!?

Bushtucker Winery and Brewery Tour

Britt and I decided to start off our escapade in the wine region with a proper tour to ensure that we were well informed before venturing out on our own. The Bushtucker Winery and Brewery Tour picked us up from our hostel around 10am (1^st dibs on seats!) and then made a loop to pick up the rest of our 14 person group from each of their respective accommodations. We lucked out with Silvano was our tour guide… Not the most politically correct Aussie in the world, so obviously I loved him!!!! Our group consisted of visitors from all over Australia, as well as England, Germany, and Canada. It was quite refreshing having an Aussie make fun of the Canadian rather than picking on us Americans… we get plenty of that! As soon as she told Silvano she was from Quebec, he responded with “Oh, Quebec! The gay part!” Pause for laughter from the bus, then adding with a sense of nostalgia: “Ah the days when gay meant happy and pansies were flowers.”

our tour guide, Sylvano

Bushtucker tour group

Now for a brief background… Margaret River is possibly the most well known wine region in Australia, located about 4 hours driving distance south of Perth. In comparison to other wine regions around the world, this area is still relatively new to the industry. A professor by the name of John Gladstone actually discovered the areas favorable climate while performing research on the soil. The average temperature in MG is about 28-30 degrees Celsius with zero frost in the winter. It’s also surrounded by 3 different oceans, which ensures that a breeze will flow continually from at least one of these. Professor Gladstone also discovered that the soil composition closely resembled that of Bordeaux, France. Backed with scientific data, many families moved to the area to start their own Bordeaux-like vineyards. Vasse Felix was the first vineyard to open in MG as recent as 1967. Similar to Bordeaux, the winemakers of MG are most successful with their Semillon Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Shiraz varieties.

Bettenay’s Wines

This was our first tasting of the day. Silvano started us off by teaching us the proper way to sample a wine: Holding the wine glass with your thumb and forefinger pinching the stem and your other fingers on either side of the base, you swirl the glass in order to let the wine breathe. This allows all the complex flavors to surface so that you really get the full effect. After swirling, you stick your nose into the glass and take a nice deep whiff. Then you take a big ole swig and let it rest in your mouth for 3-5 seconds before swallowing.

I’m not sure if it was just because I had a fresh palette, but this was my favorite winery of the day! Desiree, a French woman, was our hostess. She talked us through 2 of their whites, 2 reds, a white dessert, a red dessert, and 2 ports (1^st flush and hot flush). I’m not very big on dessert wines and I’ve only tried a port once before, so that was different for me. However I loved their Sem Sav and Cab Sav! I would be confident in ordering any of their wines if I were to see Bettenay’s listed on a drink menu.

Bettenay's Wines

Bettenay's Vineyard

Knotting Hill Vineyard

The vineyard takes its name from the unique knots used in its fencing. With over 600km of fencing, there are roughly 1,200 figure-8 knots that were individually tied by hand. Quite a lot of work!

Sandra was our hostess for this particular tasting. She was very cute and friendly, but she rushed through the tasting a bit and let us rely on pre-written tasting notes rather than explaining them to us. These wines were a bit too sweet for me, but of the lot, I strangely think I preferred the Verdelho best (yummy hints of pear) and their award-winning Cab Merlot. (They also won awards for their Shiraz and Cab Sav).

Knotting Hill Vineyard tasting entrance

Knotting Hill Vineyard

Bushtucker Lunch at Knotting Hill Vineyard

KH hosted our delicious lunch prepared by the Bushtuckers tour. We were given roast beef, wild turkey, and cured kangaroo meats, accompanied by pumpkin bread made with tomato, herb seeds and melted cheese on top. The highlight for me was what aboriginals call “bill-yun-gah” (I’m not really sure how to spell it) which translates to “hot in, hot out.” It’s a spread made with Tasmanian bush peppercorn, olive oil, and cashews. The anticipation made it seem far worse than it was in actuality. The real interesting part was the 2 desert limes (miniature bush limes) that each of us were given to finish our meal. The grape-sized “limes” are known to serve multiple functions by the aboriginals: it’s a palate cleanser, breath freshener, digestive aid, and even a tooth whitener! Certain to shock your senses, the lime was super condensed with sweetness, but also tasted more like the chalkiness of the lime zest rather than the citrus itself. Very curious!

The Grove Liqueur Factory

This was without a doubt the most entertaining stop of the day! My expectations were set high because even before we departed from the bus, Silvano fed us stories about one of their employees being in the witness protection program, and another one who stocked their pond with piranhas (which then ended up eating their stock of crocodiles). I honestly still have no idea whether he was joking or not.

The Grove Liqueur Factory

Regardless, I was definitely thankful for our massive feast because The Grove certainly took good care of us with their ports, liqueurs, and cocktails. Nicholas was our host for this tasting… again, such a funny guy! Blasting through the list, the Semillon port was a zinger but nice, the Shiraz port was sweet but soft, and the chocolate port tasted exactly like a dark chocolate filled with cherries. All the liqueurs were made with natural fruits with no additives or extra flavoring. And they still use foot crushing! We sampled their strawberry liqueur, first by itself and then with ginger ale. I thought it was quite nice by itself to be honest. Then Nicholas busted out the macadamia nut liqueur. YUM! On top of the macadamia nut, he added coconut liqueur, milk chocolate liqueur, and cream. It was beautifully layered, but he had to serve it to us stirred because apparently shots and shooters are now illegal in New South Wales, Queensland, and Western Australia. (Pretty sure they still serve them everywhere though!) Up next was the Turkish Delight, which tasted like rose water. Interesting, but not my favorite. Finally, we ended with a Lemon Cheesecake: Lemoncello, white chocolate, and vanilla liqueurs. This can also be served with cream, or lemon and lime bitters. Nicholas wasn’t shy to add that it’s “nice on ice cream… served on your partner.” I wonder what else he slid in there when I wasn’t fully listening, HA!

lemon cheesecakes

Churchview Estate

This tasting was especially cool because our host was “young Greg,” the winemaker himself! I wasn’t absolutely in love with these wines, but we got to try some really interesting varieties, including Chenin Blanc (which I’ve never even heard of before!) and a Noble Riesling. He even opened bottles of 2009 St Johns Vintage Brut (only 200 cases made) and 2009 St Johns Zinfandel (only 150 cases made) that usually are not allowed for tastings. Talk about special treatment!

Chocolate and Cheese Factories

I’m not too keen on chocolates myself, but most people seemed to relish in this little detour. There are milk chocolate, dark chocolate, and white chocolate tastings as soon as you enter the door. Then there is an entire world of chocolates available for purchase, including everything from rocky road brownies to chocolate massage oils… weird!

The cheese factory was quite a bit smaller than I expected. They laid out a couple trays of cheeses for us to try… my favorites of which were the garlic and herb crumbled feta as well as the chili cheddar (similar to pepperjack). Short but sweet.

Bootleg Brewery

In the spirit of our tastings, Britt and I decided to grab a sampler tray of the Bootleg’s beers. The Sou’ West Wheat was my favorite beer. It’s pretty basic, but I think I prefer basic when it comes to beers. I also really enjoyed the Wild Ginger Wheat Ale, which was a seasonal beer, only on tap! Britt’s favorite was the Hefe (Hefeweizen – German style of beer), which was also my absolute least favorite. We discussed my taste-buds with the brewer, and I learned that it’s not the hops I dislike but rather the particular type of yeast used in German-styled beers. Hence the reason I can’t stand Heineken, Hoegaarden, etc. To each his own. Perhaps our greatest effort of the day was trying the Raging Bull (7.1%). Silvano described it best: 1^st sip is like a coffee bean in animal feces, 2^nd sip is like burned rubber, but then 3^rd sip is intensely flavorful with hints of malt, chocolate, coffee, yada yada. It was super heavy but I can see how some people might like it.

The tour definitely kept us busy all day, but it was a nice way to learn about the region and sample some really good wines. Tomorrow we will fill in the blanks with some of the other wineries we were hoping to see. Perfect!