WG+M Travel Blog

Feb. 14th, Valentine's Day- Our visit to the Clare Valley saw our party leaving early in the morning once again. This time Nathan and I spent the two hour drive sleeping, he with his sunglasses firmly placed over his eyes in the front seat and me with my iPOD in the back. We arrived on time at Grosset to meet Stephanie, Jeff Grosset's partner and the winemaker of Mt. Horrock's. She briefly showed us around the facilty, which was gearing up for harvest, and took us inside for a tasting. Inside the cellar door Stephanie showded us her Watervale riesling as well as two from Grosset- the Polish Hill and the Watervale (all were 2006). Also available were a Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon blend, a Chardonnay, a Pinot Noir from the Adelaide Hills and the Gaia red blend. Finally she showed us her Cordon Cut Riesling, a late harvest riesling and really the star of the tasting. It was delicate, with notes of creme brulee and vanilla, lemon zest and orange- it was the kind of dessert wine you could drink a whole bottle of. With the tour and tasting ending so briefly- Jeff wasn't there- we decided to stop at one of our favorite wineries- Kilikanoon. We didn't have an appointment and they don't have a cellar door but I made a few calls and got us in. The winemaker, multitalented Kevin Mitchell, was off picking grapes for harvest so we were left to taste with the marketing manager. For those of you who have never had Kevin's wines shame on you, they are some of the finest in Australia, if not the world. From the Lackey, his inexpensive, export-only shiraz, to his higher-end wines such as the Oracle or M Reserve the wines of Kilikanoon exist on another plane. In the tasting room we tried a lot of wines we knew: the Prodigal Grenache (a pinot noir on steroids), the Medley (a red blend), the Killermans Run Shiraz (20 second finish for 20 bucks) and the Oracle Shiraz (teeth staining intensity). We also tried a few new wines: the Duke Grenache (a foil to the Prodigal) and an incredible Muscat. We were also sent home with some wonderful artisan olive oil and if all goes well we might soon be exclusive retailers of this fantastic stuff! Not bad for an appointment thrown together. Next it was on the venerable Jim Barry estate, home of the famed Armagh and Mcrae Wood Shiraz. Here we met Peter Barry, son of the late Jim Barry, a no nonsense, straightforward guy who, quiet frankly was a shock to meet at first. Peter took our group on a tour of the winery which was bustling with activity and then moved us to a private room for a tasting. We were treated to two fantastic rieslings- the Lodge Hill and the Florita. Then we tried to wonderful wines bottled in whimsical packages- the Sily-Mid-On white blend (its a Cricket term for the hardest position to play) and the Cover Drive Cabernet (also a Cricket term and a stout wine). On a side note the Aussies have the number one ranked cricket squad in the world and they are obviously mad about the sport, they have, however lost every match since I have been in this country (two to hated England and one to New Zealand). Finally we tried the big boys- the 2004 Mcrae Wood Shiraz (a stunner- the 2003 we have in the store is amazing because it is composed of Mcrae Wood and Armagh since they made no Armagh in 2003). The 2004 Armagh was simply incredible- the 98 points Parker gave it are richly deserved (I might give it a perfect score and my wine of the trip). When we finished the tasting Peter offered to take us to lunch, so we grabbed some of our favorite wines and carried them in the car to one of Clare's oldest hotels. Here we were hardly aware of the treat we were in for- meeting us for lunch was Peter's uncle, Jim's brother Brian Barry, one of Australia's most famous tasting judges. Brian, now retired, was able to tell us story after story about tastings involving the country's most celebrated wines- Penfolds Grange, Henschke Hill of Grace, etc. Once again it was an amazing honor for us to be included in this type of event. I like to think of WG+M as a family and I like to think that I treat my customers as such and to be treated by the winemakers of this country in the same way was both unexpected and impressive. I will most definately return to the Clare Valley and to Australia. I hope all of you reading these reports will find room on your tables for Australian wine or room in your travel plans for a trip here- you won't be disappointed. Anyone want to come with me next time . . .