I is for Interlude
Now, I am not a slavish acolyte of Robert Parker (unlike most of the wine merchants in Singapore) nor am I in the habit the extolling the virtues of the highest rated (by Parker) bottle of wine in my wine fridge (which would be vulgar).
What I am though is a complete idiot when it comes to a bargain and I would only shop twice a year in London (Christmas and summer sales - there are friends of mine in London whom I see only at Selfridges during the sales), cut coupons from newspapers if I had the time and drive 10 miles to save 20 cents. You know what I mean.
What I like even more than a bargain is to buy something at what I thought was the normal price and then come home to find I’d bought a complete bargain. A few months ago, I went over to Enoch’s (see my earlier blog) and we had an excellent bottle of Kilikanoon Oracle Shiraz 2001 which I enjoyed and which was rated 95 points by Parker.
A couple of weeks ago, I had to go in to work on a public holiday and bumped into a similarly unfortunate colleague. He told me one of the wine shops in the mall downstairs was having a relocation sale and while he had no space in his fridge, he thought I should go have a look. I did and bought a few bottles of Mclaren Vale cabernet sauvignon (as well as something else which I will mention later) at a small discount but spotted a single bottle of Kilikanoon Oracle Shiraz 2002 left on a shelf.
Now as you well know I am not a big fan of Australian Shiraz and if you believe James Halliday, 2002 in general was not as good a year for Australian wines compared with the previous year. Still the bottle was going at a 15% discount and you know me and bargain. Off the shelf it went and out came the credit card.
I was surfing the Net yesterday to have a quick look at something else I bought at the sale (a cheap Australian Shiraz from Brokenwood, not the Graveyard but the 2001 South Australian varietal blend - I know, I know, I don’t like Australian Shiraz but it was a sale and I was being stupid) before taking it with me to dinner.
Imagine when I read this about my other purchase:
“Equally profound is the 2001 Shiraz Oracle (95 points), one of the flagship wines of Kilikanoon. From low yielding 40-year-old vines, produced in open top fermenters, and aged 24 months in 50% new French oak casks, there are 1000 cases of this spectacular Shiraz. A dense purple color is accompanied by a sumptuous perfume of crème de cassis, blackberry liqueur, scorched earth, smoke, graphite, and espresso. There is tremendous density, remarkable full-bodied power, good underlying acidity, and a big, fleshy full-throttle finish with fine acidity as well as sweet tannin. While still young, it should age for 10-15 years. Amazingly, the 2002 Shiraz Oracle (96 points) is slightly better. Boasting extraordinary intensity to its graceful, blackberry, coffee and roasted meat characteristics, this unctuously-textured, seamlessly built, massive Shiraz possesses terrific purity, a multi-layered texture, and a long, heady finish. The alcohol, level must be between 14-15%. The tannin is covered by considerable glycerin, so this wine can be drunk now, and will keep for 12-16+ years.”
How do I feel about having 96 point wine in my fridge? Certainly it is a bit of a jump - I think I have a couple of 90 pointers which are the next highest rated wines in there, including a single bottle of Antinori Tignanello 2000. And I am quite sure the Oracle 2002 will not be the bottle of wine that I would most look forward to drinking - I can think of at least half a dozen bottles in there I would probably classify as “more eagerly awaited”.
Like the Michele Chiarlo Barbaresco 1997, the Masi Recioloto 1998, the Bricco dell’Ucellone 2002, the aforementioned Tignanello or even the half a dozen bottles of La Mora Barolo 1998 which I bought cheap and intend to age for a long time before drinking.
Still Parker is Parker and a 96 pointer is a 96 point wine, after all. At 15% discount, which works out at S$55 (about £18), I would buy a wine like that again and again. And again. Every day.
What I am though is a complete idiot when it comes to a bargain and I would only shop twice a year in London (Christmas and summer sales - there are friends of mine in London whom I see only at Selfridges during the sales), cut coupons from newspapers if I had the time and drive 10 miles to save 20 cents. You know what I mean.
What I like even more than a bargain is to buy something at what I thought was the normal price and then come home to find I’d bought a complete bargain. A few months ago, I went over to Enoch’s (see my earlier blog) and we had an excellent bottle of Kilikanoon Oracle Shiraz 2001 which I enjoyed and which was rated 95 points by Parker.
A couple of weeks ago, I had to go in to work on a public holiday and bumped into a similarly unfortunate colleague. He told me one of the wine shops in the mall downstairs was having a relocation sale and while he had no space in his fridge, he thought I should go have a look. I did and bought a few bottles of Mclaren Vale cabernet sauvignon (as well as something else which I will mention later) at a small discount but spotted a single bottle of Kilikanoon Oracle Shiraz 2002 left on a shelf.
Now as you well know I am not a big fan of Australian Shiraz and if you believe James Halliday, 2002 in general was not as good a year for Australian wines compared with the previous year. Still the bottle was going at a 15% discount and you know me and bargain. Off the shelf it went and out came the credit card.
I was surfing the Net yesterday to have a quick look at something else I bought at the sale (a cheap Australian Shiraz from Brokenwood, not the Graveyard but the 2001 South Australian varietal blend - I know, I know, I don’t like Australian Shiraz but it was a sale and I was being stupid) before taking it with me to dinner.
Imagine when I read this about my other purchase:
“Equally profound is the 2001 Shiraz Oracle (95 points), one of the flagship wines of Kilikanoon. From low yielding 40-year-old vines, produced in open top fermenters, and aged 24 months in 50% new French oak casks, there are 1000 cases of this spectacular Shiraz. A dense purple color is accompanied by a sumptuous perfume of crème de cassis, blackberry liqueur, scorched earth, smoke, graphite, and espresso. There is tremendous density, remarkable full-bodied power, good underlying acidity, and a big, fleshy full-throttle finish with fine acidity as well as sweet tannin. While still young, it should age for 10-15 years. Amazingly, the 2002 Shiraz Oracle (96 points) is slightly better. Boasting extraordinary intensity to its graceful, blackberry, coffee and roasted meat characteristics, this unctuously-textured, seamlessly built, massive Shiraz possesses terrific purity, a multi-layered texture, and a long, heady finish. The alcohol, level must be between 14-15%. The tannin is covered by considerable glycerin, so this wine can be drunk now, and will keep for 12-16+ years.”
How do I feel about having 96 point wine in my fridge? Certainly it is a bit of a jump - I think I have a couple of 90 pointers which are the next highest rated wines in there, including a single bottle of Antinori Tignanello 2000. And I am quite sure the Oracle 2002 will not be the bottle of wine that I would most look forward to drinking - I can think of at least half a dozen bottles in there I would probably classify as “more eagerly awaited”.
Like the Michele Chiarlo Barbaresco 1997, the Masi Recioloto 1998, the Bricco dell’Ucellone 2002, the aforementioned Tignanello or even the half a dozen bottles of La Mora Barolo 1998 which I bought cheap and intend to age for a long time before drinking.
Still Parker is Parker and a 96 pointer is a 96 point wine, after all. At 15% discount, which works out at S$55 (about £18), I would buy a wine like that again and again. And again. Every day.
posted by porcorosso at 11:09 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home