Cellaring wine to advanced age isn’t my thing. No patience, cellar conditions OK at best, and I like primary fruit flavours. Margaret River Shiraz has never floated my boat. And I have no idea where this bottle came from. A random buy from my youth? A generous guest from days gone by? An X file?
Whichever way you look at it, it’s a chance to see how a relatively modest wine from a good producer and vintage ages. And it has done OK.
At the pop of the cork, this immediately smells like Worcestershire sauce, with a minty undertone speaking of a wine still alive. To my surprise an hour of airtime doesn’t see this fall apart, quite the opposite – blueberry and boysenberry fruit comes up, with some baked earth, making this a delight to drink. Tannin and acids are well resolved, and while there isn’t a mile of length, this is a beautifully drinking medium bodied mature wine, well beyond my lowly expectations.
About $20-$25 on release I would guess. Nice drink.
My Christmas Day selections this year:
Ployez Jacquemart Selection Rose: Lovely – just right, and its pinkness was Christmas-appropriate. And it won over a non champagne crowd with its delicate strawberry and lemon notes. Ployez Jacquemart Brut 2000: Served too warm – tasty nonetheless for being Christmas day. Another bottle will get consumed very shortly. Auburn Lowburn Riesling 2010: Improving out if sight with a year’s age (personal interest disclaimer on this label). Primo Estate Joseph Sparkling Red 2010 disg: My favourite disgorgement of this wine so far. Sweeter and fruit-fresher than earlier versions, although the alcohol seems to stick out a little more these days. Still…I like it a lot. Zilliken Saarburger Rausch Auslese 1993: A cellar release from 2010. Best bottle so far out of a sixpack. Shows its pradikat through weight rather than sweetness, with juicy acidity balance perfectly by racy green pineapple and lemon fruit which is nly now showing signs of its 18 years of age.
Cellar database says I bought this in 2005 out of a Sauternes tasting which was to showcase the 2001 vintage, paired with foods you might not expect. Smoked Salmon was a surprise match for some of the more elegant versions, as was a pork leg in a cream sauce. I have vague recollections of this being a standout in a strong lineup that included names liek Rieussec, Giraud, Climens, and even d’Yquem despite being 2eme cru classe among Sauternes, not exactly a lofty status in that company.
6 years on, I think there must have a dent in my palate - nowadays, Sauternes consistently smells and tastes like plasticene. Perhaps some supressed childhood experience with sweet foods coming to the fore.
The luxurious texture of the D’Arche is immediately apparent, powered by the 14% alcohol. The (plasticene infused) fruit set is cumquat, orange and apricots, set in a marzipan, almond like oxidative style. A wave of front palate richness sweeps by to a back palate with a fair bit of varietal freshness about it, in the form of cut grass and lime zest. The acids appear to have settled a bit, but as a 10 year old wine this s remarkably youthful.
An unusual palate shape, in a wine style that seems oxidative in its making. Alcohol makes it hard to get through a full bottle between two, but pleasant nonetheless. This is ageing very slowly and will keep much longer. If it doesnt taste like plasticene to you, then you might enjoy this.
Cheers
Andrew