Some discussion on Wine

[lob]

One last rant from me on BUL beer.

Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. This (currently) overrated trendy white wine is stealing the Ozzy white wine market at the expense of the Hunter Valley:

http://tinyurl.com/pwvs3w

All the wine producers in the Hunter have to do is (a) source as much locally grown sauvignon blanc in Australia as they can find. Start planting plenty of sauvignon blanc in the Hunter also.

(b) Find a struggling small winery based in Marlborough New Zealand. Pay that NZ winery X amount of Dollars for Licensing rights.

(c) Make shit loads of Sauvignon Blanc wine in the Hunter Valley. Sell it as "Marlborough New Zealand sauvignon blanc." Print a small disclaimer on the label/box saying "Made Under License of Bob's Winery 234 Main Road, Marlborough, New Zealand, by Rip Off Wineries Hunter Valley NSW."

As totally absurd* as the above sounds, this is EXACTLY what currently happens with beer. Stella Artois: (a) 100% made in Australia. (b) License provided by the brewery in Europe. And (c) Sold as Belgium Beer! Packaging references Belgium, Europe, History: Since 1366. Small disclaimer, printed on the underside of the case/slab, or back-label of bottle is the only reference to being an Australian product.

*Actually, maybe not totally absurd; There is an Australian wine product sold as NZ Marl Sav Blanc. It's made from Imported and Local grapes. I noticed it recently at 1st? Choice. (I'll look for it next time I'm in 1st Choice or Dan Murphys, and post details of this so-called NZ Marl Sav Blanc here.) Like BUL beer, the disclaimer about being made in Australia was in very small print. Makes sense, Lion Nathan and Fosters are both heavily involved with wine. What they can get away with in beer, wine also. Hey, everything is probably up for grabs.

I might go into business selling arctic water. I'll register the business name "Arctic Circle Water." All I have to do is pay some Eskimos in the far north of Greenland $100 for license rights. The packaging will have pictures of Greenland, glaciers, umm fake “hollywood-looking” happy Eskimos. Maybe a polar bear. Some disclaimer in small print somewhere; Base of the bottle might be a good spot. Naturally, I'll just bottle it from my sink tap here in Canberra.

It's a joke. At the very least the labeling of these BUL products should be much stricter so that the average person can discern the country of origin without the use of a magnifying glass. Probably a largish Australian Map with Made In Australia written underneath it. Even better though, just outlaw BUL beer. European beer, or French wine, or Italian shoes, or f***ing truffles from Japan, etc etc, should be just that. Made in those countries and EXPORTED to Australia. Not made in some shoddy factory in Liverpool NSW and deceptively packaged to look like an IMPORT. As for the inevitable arguments about global warming, freshness of the product etc. Start f***ing making some nice Australian "fancy" beer. These mega-swill companies that sell "what-looks-like-imported-beer" have billions of dollars to employ the best brewers and marketing people in the country and they can't even create a good locally made product with it's own distinctive branding. Sorry, forgot about Crown...

[Geoff]

Go, Lob, go!

[lob]

I had to pick my wife up from a party (work do) today, and on the way home called into Rivett shops to buy a bottle of wine (for a Risotto dish.) Found 2 Hunter Valley Wines giving MARLBOROUGH equal footing. To be fair, the Pepper Tree Semillon Sauvignon Blanc had 33% Sav from NZ (67% Sem from the Hunter.) However, the See Saw Semillon Sauvignon Blanc was 15% NZ sav, and 85% Hunter Valley semillon.

http://www.seesawwine.com/
"Semillon from the Hunter Valley, Australia meets Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand to create a blend offering the best of both worlds, a perfectly balanced wine with an appropriate name — See Saw. Chill it down, drink it up, enjoy it now."

OR, how 'bout: "Hunter Valley wine with a few drops of Marlborough Sav."

Only a guess, but given the popularity of NZ Marlborough Sav at the moment, don't be surprised if there are a flood of these Hunter Valley wines containing as low as 5% Marl Sav Blanc in the next few years. The one I saw at 1st Choice I'm pretty sure was 100% Sav Blanc, an Aust/NZ Blend, made in the Hunter. But, Marlborough was the only thing I saw in large print on the label. Or, they really could just go the whole hog and make it under license: Sell it as NZ Marl Sav Blanc, but make it in Australia with 100% Hunter Valley grapes. (With a very small printed disclaimer.)

Maybe someone should bring this to the attention of one of the more ethical/caring politicians, say Bob Brown. Private Members Bill to amend labeling Laws?

[drsmurto]

Lob

The Adelaide Hills is flush with Sauvignon Blanc, its what the region is best known for.

Cheers
DrSmurto

[warra48]

Sauvignon Blanc is one of my least favourite white wine varieties.
I just don't like the fruit salad or grass flavours.
The cheapies the In Laws get through their wine club are what I call "battery acid" (I've told them, and they know my opinion, I don't hold back).
Reminds me a lot of why I don't like Amarillo hops either (dons flameproof suit).
Chardonnay is OK, but you have to pay to get quality, the cheapies aren't up to scratch.

For me, you can't beat either a young Riesling, a 10 or so years aged Riesling, or a 10 to 15 years aged Semillon.
Each of these also happen to be the best priced of all the whites.

As for marketing, thruth, standards, integrity and morality went out the window long ago. Most things now, including politics, are driven by money, ego, ignorance, or a desperate effort to hang on to power at any cost.

[drsmurto]

Off topic but I didn't start it

Agree with you to a point Warra (we will never agree on amarillo!), i don't like acidic sav blancs but the fresh, fruitiness is perfect for the warmer weather, pre bbq drink etc. I prefer them not to be overly grassy (a bit like too much cascade dry hopped IMO) and to finish dry.

As with all things, there are a lot of terrible wines out there.

Chardonnays are coming back into vogue. I am very picky when it comes to them, the amount of oak has to be just right for me to drink it, too much and its like chewing on a barrel, too little and it doesn't taste like anything. Un-wooded chardonnays are pointless.

I have a few dozen Clare valley rieslings, again for the warmer months. Fresh or aged, both are beautiful.

And to keep it going so far off topic its ridiculous, what are your thoughts on varieties such as sangiovese, tempranillo, duriff etc. Just bottled my sangiovese - 6 cases. Still too green but it has promise and for my first attempt i am pretty chuffed. Loving these 'new' varieties. New for Oz that is. They are just so easy to drink, fresh, fruity and a nice change from the collosus that is the typical aussie shiraz.

And yes, I am as much a wine snob as I am a beer snob. At last count i had 25 dozen!

[lob]

I like anything from SA or WA (esp the Reds.) Hunter Valley NSW is a strange place though. I think they planted too much Chardonnay when it was in vogue in the 80s and 90s. Too much second-rate wine produced in stainless steel tanks with wood chips added for "flavour". And, I agree NZ Sav Blanc is overrated. Been drinking a little of it lately due to it's availability and cheap price [Montana for $12 at Coles in Canberra. For some reason it's $4 more expensive at 1st Choice. Odd.]

For NZ Sav Blanc, if you want reasonably good wine at a cheap price, I'd stick with Oyster Bay (around $16) or Montana ($12 at Coles.) There's a flood of horrible ones for around $10. Probably all produced by Fosters. Overrated, but still better than Hunter Valley whites. Ten years from now when Sav Blanc is out of vogue, Marlborough will probably start to resemble the Hunter Valley. S'pose they could import 10% of the grapes from the latest trendy area, say Clare Valley SA, add it to their Sav Blanc and call it "Clare Valley Reisling-Sav." I'm such a cynical bastard : )

[warra48]

DrS,
Those new grape (for Aus) varieties are great, in my view.
They are ideally suited to our generally warmer climate (by European standards).

I turned away from Aus Shiraz a while back, when they got to around 15% AAV, or even more. Ridiculous, unbalanced, mono dimensional wines. Started collecting Cabernet instead.

Having said that, I'm still enjoying Shiraz from my cellar of mid 90's vintages. They've mellowed, integrated, and developed some complexity. Great with slow roasted lamb or standing rib beef roast.

The Hunter Valley is strange for a wine region. Theoretically, it's all wrong. Their Shiraz can be very good, but I feel the absolute best they produce is Semillon, which is world class. It does need to be aged to get the best out of it. For example, McWilliams Mt Pleasant Elizabeth is an absolute bargain, and it cellars beautifully.

Just downed a couple of pints of your Hobgoblin recipe. Lovely smooth malt quality, with a nice edge of roastiness now it's been in the bottle for close to 3 months. Not sure it's an exact clone, but it's a good ale in its own right. I do love WY1968, which is what I used here.

[gregb]

I've split the wine discussion out of the Beer fraud topic here.

Cheers,
Greg