Tuesday, June 5, 2012

TALKING (BACK) ABOUT WINE

Some friends came around for dinner on Saturday. They generally bring an interesting and hard-to-find wine and this time was no different.
The wine was Clevedon Hills 2004 Syrah.


I was pleased as I knew about this label but had never tried the wines before.
I opened and decanted to aerate the wine and let it breathe awhile before dinner.
The aroma was promising. It was reminiscent of an older but good Australian Shiraz, kind of like the 10 year old Barossa Valley wines we have in the cellar.
There was still fruit there but also a strong acetic tone which, on evaluating again was in the nose as VA (volatile Acidity) in too high a proportion.
The wine wasn't spoiled and, with food (Asian lamb dish) worked OK but would not have been that pleasant if drunk on its own.

The overall impression?

  • Smells like an old Aussie
  • Is acetic
  • Has excess volatility
  • Is (a) Red (neck)
Hey it sounds like somebody .........

..... that's right, Clevedon Hills is Leighton Smith's wine.



2 comments:

Twisted Scottish Bastard said...

Sorry to say I've never heard of Leighton Smith.

The wine doesn't sound like one I'd enjoy...do you reackon it was a bit corked?

THE WINE GUY said...

Leighton Smith - see here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leighton_Smith_(radio)

He is a right wing (some say redneck) talk back host on ZB)
He is an opinionated and conservative misogynist but radio talk back listeners like that sort of thing.