Hi,

I just had a nice lunch at Keng Hsin place's last Friday. The timing was really amazing. Just like what Brian said, it must have been divine intervaention for us to have a short day for us to have lunch. We were so busy once school started and had to postpone our lunch a couple of times. So last friday's short day was really good.

First, the food. Brian brought back leg of ham from New Zealand and it tastes wonderful. Keng Hsin surprised us with his pickled artichoke infused with premium olive he brought back from Melbourne. I don't know Brian but the the artichoke is perfect match with my Teochew taste bud.

We started the session with a nice and trustworthy bubbly - Keng Hsin opened a bottle Jacob's Creek. I have forgotten how good and reliable this bubbly is after drinking better bubblies. It went especially well with the artichoke. This is a good drink to have during this festive season.

The red is aways the star of the day. We opened a bottle of Taltarni Three Monks Cabernet Merlot. I know, the name is interesting or weird, depending on how you looked at it. Well, I thought it is befitting for Keng Hsin, Brian and me. This is a good wine to celebrate our friendship. Ok. About the wine. On the nose, it unmistakably Cab with its herbaceous, brambly scent follow by a whiff of spice and vanilla. Well, the best part is always on the palate - abundance of blackcurrant with fresh forest and tobacco box. The back palate is full of mocha and rich vanilla. It is absolutely delicious! worth every cents of the $30 for this bottle. And for a while, I thought it reminded me of the Villa Maria in my previous post.

It took me too long to craft this blog and I think I have written enough. The following are the technical details of the wine. Enjoy!



Taltarni Three Monks Cabernet Merlot, 2004

Taltarni Three Monks 2004 characterizes Taltarni’s distinctive style of opulent flavours, structure and cellaring ability. Sourced from cool climate regions including Victoria’s Pyrenees and Strathbogie Ranges the inclusion of Cabernet Sauvignon provides layers of rich cassis and roast chocolate flavours while the balance of Merlot adds palate weight from the luscious concentration of plum and red cherry fruits.

A period of malolactic fermentation followed by 12 months ageing in a combination of 2-3 year old and 15% new American oak creates a wine with a subtle assortment of nutmeg, cinnamon and cedar spice.

Three Monks is one of Taltarni's newest additions to the portfolio and already a crowd favourite.

Winemaker Comments
Colour: Deep black cherry
Nose: An alluring assortment of uplifted black cherries, dark
berry fruits, scorched almonds, coffee, tobacco leaves and licorice
allsorts.
Palate: A well-structured wine with layers of plump plum and
blackberry fruits. A mix of savoury spices, subtle herbs and firm,
dusty tannins balanced by good natural acidity.
Serving Suggestions: A perfect accompaniment to a veal ragout.
The explosion of rich fruit flavours in Taltarni’s Three Monks 2004
makes it ideal for immediate enjoyment whilst young and fresh,
but offers the complexity and structure to age gracefully for many
years to come.
Wine Analysis
Acid: 6.3 g/L pH: 3.63
Alcohol by Volume 13.5%
Harvested: April 2004
Bottled: November 2004

Hi,

Today's topic is about an interesting winery in Yarra valley, Victoria, Australia. The Domaine Chandon Green Point. The winery is just a short drive from Melbourne. My friend, Keng Hsin made sure that it is one of those most visit winery when he went there for holidays with his family.

In his words, the place is more beautiful than what we saw in the website and TV. The winery is famous not for its still wines but its bubblies - sparkling wine. The winery is established by Moet & Chandon in 1986. The Moet & Chandon from France. As you would have expected, the company transferred their wine making techniques from France to their subsidiary in Australia and produced a very interesting and fine bubbly that oozes French artisan style and reflects the terroir in Yarra.

You would be disappointed if you were to compare this bubbly with its French cousin in Champagne. In fact, that would be a tad unfair to the Chandon Green Point. Last Friday, when Brian , Keng Hsin and I gathered to share our wine, Keng Hsin uncorked the bottle that he lugged back from Australia. Just like Brian, he resisted the temptation of uncorking it before we met and I am fortunate to have a drink of this excellent bubbly. Apologies to Keng Hsin. I was so overwhelmed by Brian's Villa Maria that I have not spent time writing about this wine.

Here it is. The wine glittered in the afternoon sun in beautiful light gold accompanied by strings of pearly bubbles. I could smell the wine at a distance as it flooded the whole room with sweet scent of floral and fresh apple aromas, the most unusual thing. The slight sweetness followed through on the palate without becoming overbearing and balanced with a clear, crisp acidity at the back palate that gives this wine the its back bone.

Make no mistake, this is a very good bubbly. It is more like a very good Prosecco than a Champagne. I think Keng Hsin liked it but I think he probably prefers it to be more like a Champagne.

Anyway, the bottle that he brought back to Singapore is only available in Australia. The one you get in Singapore is one level lower than this. So next time if you are in Melbourne you may just wanna swing over to Green Point, pick up a bottle and have a nice picnic at Green Point.

Salut

Sam

Hi,

Happy New Year! It has been a great New Year.

Drank a bottle of nice Cabernet-Merlot from Villa Maria last week. It is a 2002 Reserve Villa Maria Cabernet Merlot. It is really nothing like a New Zealand Cab at all. Strong blackberry, floral cassis and cedar vanilla on the nose which follow through with the taste, only better. the intense flavours of blackberry intermingled with the melange of rich vanilla and earth and mocha makes the wine luscious and simply delicious. If I were to do a blind tasting, I would have rate it as a very good Australia Cab.

It is so unbelievable and I have my friend Brian to thank for that. He brought it back all the way from NZ and resisted the temptation to uncork it before we met. He bought it at NZ$59 but we all know that it probably will cost a lot more if it get here at all. So far I have not seen this wine in the market but I bet someone will bring in soon. With the high quality taste and the on going good reputation of NZ wine, I estimated that the price will be around $100 - $150 in retail.

That is why I am so grateful to my friend Brian.

Anyway, if anyone offer this wine to you, remember to savour it slowly and enjoy every drop.

I have the technical details in the following.

Cheers,

Sam

Villa Maria Reserve Hawkes Bay Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot 2002

Bottle Size: 750ml Variety: CabSav/ Mer/Mal Vintage: 2002 Region: Hawke's Bay Vineyard: Various Country: New Zealand Alcohol: 14.5% pH: 3.55 Total Acidity: 6.30g/L Residual Sugar: Nil Sweetness Indicator: Dry Cellaring Potential: 2010 to 2012 Serving Temperature: Room Temperature

Viticulture
The 2002 season in Hawke’s Bay was terrific for ripening Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot varieties. A long warm autumn period ensured clean and healthy fruit with ripe flavours and tannins. This vintage will be remembered as a classic year producing bumper yields and outstanding quality.

Vineyards
Fruit for this wine was sourced across Villa Maria’s three Gimblett Gravel vineyards, Ngakirikiri (60%), Twyford Gravels (30%) and Omahu Gravels (10%). Each of these vineyards produce slightly different styled wines, providing for an array of blending options. Villa Maria manages these vineyards to precise crop levels (2-2.5kgs per vine), and employs assiduous viticultural management activities, namely, leaf plucking around the bunch zone, timely trimmings of the canopy and irrigation practices to ensure ripe, clean and intensely flavoured fruit.

Winemaking
Hand harvested into small picking crates the fruit was carefully transported to Villa Maria’s premium winery in Auckland for processing. Each fruit parcel was individually fermented in open top fermenters. Traditional hand-plunging techniques were employed to ensure the optimal extraction of colour, tannin and flavour. After the fermenters were pressed and malolactic fermentation concluded, the wines were racked to oak barriques for maturation. After 18 months in new French and American barriques the wines were selectively blended, stabilised and bottled with minimal filtration. The bottled wine was then matured for a further 12 months before being released.

Winemaker's Comments
Deeply coloured this perfumed wine is rich with blackberry, plum, black-olives and floral violet aromas. On the palate the wine is richly concentrated and balanced with a ripe and chewy textured tannin structure. This wine will mature well over the coming years (March 2005).

Food Match
Matches well with intense and highly textured red meat, particularly beef and kangaroo. Also is an ideal accompaniment to richly flavoured cheeses.