Beer Porn

It’s tuesday and it’s raining. No better excuse to watch a silly short you tube video about Brew Dog’s End of the World.

This particular beer is both the most expensive beer ever made and the strongest, sitting at 50%, yep, 50%. To top it off its served in a taxidermy squirrel.

More Beer Porn. All of which can be found on the list at bloodwood

And to finish, another clip from Brew Dog,

Hope your having a great Tuesday,

Till next time

Kisses

MOV xx

2012 Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide Awards

This year my wine list for Bloodwood Restaurant was awarded ‘Best Short Wine List’!!

Why thank you very much SMH

XX
All Content © 2011 Mistress of the Vine

2011 Gourmet Traveller Wine List of the Year Awards

This year I entered my wine list for Bloodwood Restaurant into the Wine List of the Year Awards.

The result was… finalist in the ‘Best Short Wine List’ category and two goblets!!All Content © 2011 Mistress of the Vine

Recent Wines Tasted by Mistress of the Vine

I have a notebook that I carry with me pretty much everywhere, it contains all sorts of scribbles and ideas and to do lists that unfortunately just don’t ever seem to get completed but it is mainly full of tasting notes from various meetings with reps and trade tastings that I happen to get along to.

These tasting notes always start out very pretty with lovely headings and a format of “Appearance, Nose, Palate” and sometimes even have a  score attached. Then as the tasting goes on they become more and more illegible until it’s a mere scrawl, that even I can’t make out, whether I liked the wine or not!!

Quite a waste of time really.

So I thought it would be a good idea to get the tasting notes that I can read, out of the book and into the world!!

Here is a collection of what has passed my lips the last few weeks!

2009 Domaine des Espiers Sablet Cotes du Rhone

This is a recent addition to Bloodwood’s Biodynamic/Organic Wine List. This wine  made by Philippe Cartoux, in the Southern Rhone village of Sablet  is right next to Gigondas and produces wine of a slightly  more elegant quality than its neighbor.

A blend of Grenache (80%) and Syrah (20%) I have found that this wine really needs decanting as there is a certain musty almost brett like quality on the first nose that does blow off with some air contact. After that the nose shows dried herbs and potpourri like dried rose petals with some red fruit hiding there also.

The palate is beautifully balanced with a nice line of acidity and up front tannin structure, I also found black pepper spice and fleshy red fruit!!

A beautiful Cotes du Rhone and I gave it 4 x Kiss from the Mistress xxxx

2009  Marchand and Burch Chardonnay

Tyrone from Howard Park brought this interesting little number around the other day, a joint venture between  Jeff Burch and Burgundian wine maker Pascal Marchand. Marchand is a Biodynamic ambassador with over 26 years experience making and growing Pinot Noir in Burgundy and Burch, as we all know is responsible for the Howard Park and Madfish range of wines.

The 09 Marchand and Burch Chardonnay I found to be a very elegant wine with a nose full of cashew nuttiness and hints of lemon rind. The oak was nicely integrated  with a generous and creamy mouthfeel  and I give it 3 1/2 kisses from the Mistress. Very good indeed.

With the weather starting to get really damn cold all I yearn for at the moment is a big busty Shiraz, so it was quite fitting that on the first day  of winter the lovely Nina from Moortangi Estate popped by with her beautiful Heathcote Shiraz. Heathcote in my opinion is a wonderful region for Shiraz. I love the spicy characters that are so prevalent on the nose…. black and white pepper. Yum!!

2005 Moortangi Estate Cambrian Shiraz, Heathcote 

It really is great to see a recent release that has some bottle age. I feel that all I ever see these days are 2010 vintage wines, which is fine don’t get me wrong, I just have to comment on a company taking the time to age their wines, just a touch, (to get them to where they want them to be) before selling. I find it pleasing.

The nose of the Moortangi  Shiraz came complete with that Heathcote spice that I like so much. Black peppercorns and Cassia bark with some well-rounded dark fruit characters also. The palate showed  spice, medium acidity and nice length. It could have been a little more balanced, I found the tannins a little lacking for the amount of acidity but it didn’t worry me too much I still really enjoyed it and have listed it on my wine list and I give it 3 1/2 kisses.

Being a Sommelier, one of the best things about my job is food and wine matching… I love the way it makes you look at wine, the way it makes you de-construct it and look at the individual flavours. It’s also nice to spend time just thinking about food and wine matching. I don’t get to do it enough these days!!

I am planning a Biodynamic Wine dinner at Bloodwood Restaurant in Sydney, in September with the Wine Maker from Higher Plane in Margaret River, Western Australia; so on Friday I sat with Chef Jo Ward and Chris from Vinous and we had a look at the entire range of their wines. Some were OK and some were great. There wasn’t a lot of middle ground with these wines. I either loved it or didn’t.

We started with –

2009 Higher Plane South  by South West Semillon Sauvignon Blanc

The nose showed raw almond, citrus and white petals. It kept making me think of ruby grapefruit segments both on the nose and on the palate.

I found lemongrass on the palate with really balanced acidity and nice weight. For the price this is an excellent wine and one of my favourite examples (of this  varietal blend) that I have seen for a while. 4 x  kisses from the Mistress

2010 Higher Plane Estate Sauvignon Blanc

It is probably not really fair to review this wine yet as it is not released or on the Vinous price list as yet.  To be honest I think that is probably a good thing as I didn’t feel this wine was ready at all. I really think it needs a little more time in bottle before we start sticking our noses into it!!

But what I did find was a potential for a fume style Sauvignon Blanc hiding in there. More of a smokey nutty quality than a fruit driven style. At the moment the wine was looking quite bitter, hopefully that will settle down with time.

I’m not going to kiss the Estate Sauvignon as I wouldn’t recommend it just yet.

2010 Higher Plane South by Southwest Chardonnay

The first thing I noticed on the nose was Golden Syrup, rose petals and sea salt. This would go great with food, as the palate really needed some extra flavours to pull what was already there. I found the nose really up front and the palate quite reserved. I would like to match this with Salt Cod Brandade.

The Higher Plane reds were also quite outstanding. I shall write about them soon.

OK kids… that’s enough for today!! I’m going to go find some wine to stick my nose in!!

Kisses MOV xx

All Content © 2011 Mistress of the Vine

bloodwood restaurant and bar

2008 Good Drop Flood Relief Shiraz

Mistress of the Vine loves a good cause, a good time and a good Shiraz, not particularly in that order but you get the drift. The other day I was sent a bottle of wine from a ‘notmetyet’ friend and instead of just adding it to the growing shelf of sample wine, tonight I gave it a whirl at Bloodwood.

The Bloodwood crew can be a finicky bunch, they defiantly know what they like and are really not bothered by telling the world about something they don’t, so when the entire crew praised this wine, I figured it was worth letting everyone else know about it too!

Let me put this into perspective — long busy night in the restaurant.  We all sat down to an amazing roast lamb meal (thanks Mitch)  and I cracked the 08 Good Drop Shiraz.  I then spent the next 5 minutes quizzing everyone as to whether they also smelt white pepper.

White pepper followed me around the bar, and after being assured it was not from our meal and after actually sitting down and tasting the wine I realised that the white pepper onslaught was coming from my glass. Awesome!

My tasting note read:

Nice deep ruby-red appearance, white pepper dominating the beginning of the nose which then led into dark red blackcurrant fruit, a subtle hint of mint. Medium to high alcohol, black peppercorns and a touch of smokey charred oak.

The palate was really fleshy with a noticeable smokey oak character, soft tannin structure but very balanced  in acidity and a ripper of a wine.

$3 from the sale of each bottle goes to help the flood relief in Queensland.

So in closing, this wine ticked all my boxes — a good cause and a good time was had from drinking this wine ( for the record it’s really great with roast lamb) and its a good Shiraz.

Nice one Martin.

Three kisses from the Mistress of the Vine xxx

Find this wine here

All Content © 2011 Mistress of the Vine

Rockstars of Wine

I am a big fan of The Spanish Acquisition for a number of reasons one being Katrina Miller, the Sydney representative who is a joy to deal with and always makes sure my wine arrives on time. The second reason is Mr Scott Wasley for introducing me to the Spanish grape Mencia.

The first time I tried this amazing grape was at a masterclass last year held by Scott and the first thing I wrote as my tasting note was Shit!!Fuck !!Wow!!

Mencia is a pretty weird grape when tasting for the first time. I kept trying to resemble it to something that I had tried before but  couldn’t. I kept finding roasted meat with oozing blood characters,  a light  red fruit character that made me think of Grenache then I would find lifted floral aromas that made me think of an elegant burgundy. The palate was so bold and up-front,  the tannin structure though light, grabbed me by the front teeth and told me to stand up and pay attention. I’ll say it again – Shit!! Fuck!! Wow!!

Since that day I have been pouring a Mencia by the glass at Bloodwood Restaurant in Newtown, I was a little worried at first,would people try it? Would they like it? The answer has been a resounding yes to both questions, it seems the people are just as enthralled by his variety as I am.

Now to be fair the producer of the wine that made me lose my mind last year is the man with me in the picture above. He is Ricardo Perez Palacios or D.J.P which means Decendientes de J. Palacios.

This man is an incredible winemaker, making some of the finest and rarest wines in the world. I was lucky enough to meet him and have lunch the other day at the awesome Universal Restaurant ( for the record Christine Manfield is a god when it comes to food)

Spiced Pork Belly and white figs…. It didn’t last long.

Then we had king fish and mushrooms…

Which also didn’t last long..

But I have, as often happens been distracted by food… yes back to the important stuff…….. WINE!!

Ricardo  and his uncle Alvaro make Mencia in the Bierzo region in Spain.The ‘Petalos’ ( which is the wine I pour at Bloodwood) is a blend from all his vineyards and can be considered  his entry level wine, though the quality is amazing  – having spent 6 months in oak, it is a great way to fall in love with this variety however the big guns are the Single Vineyard Wines, which come from only 3 separate vineyards and only a tiny amount is made every year.

They are -Moncerbal, Las Lamas and La Farona.

Tasting notes for these wines are as follows –

I was incredibly surprised at how amazing the differences are of these three wines, considering the vineyards are right next to  each other. Talk about Terroir, you really don’t get a better example than these

2008 D.J.P Petalos Mencia

Lovely fruit on the nose with a touch of earthiness and a hint of blood, second time round I got loads of red cherry skins. The palate showed minerality with fine silky tannins, low acidity and a delightful meaty steak quality.

Four x Kiss from the Mistress

2006 D.J.P Corullon Mencia

Savoriness on the nose, clay and earth characters, then blood and bone. Fleshy on the palate,with rounded soft tannins low acidity and a hint of minerality.

Four x Kiss from the Mistress

2007 D.J.P Corullon Mencia

Floral and red rose petals, a slight oxidation quality with older fruit such as muscatel; more distinct and upfront tannin structure.

3 x Kiss from the Mistress

2007 D.J.P Moncerbal Single Vineyard Mencia

Really red fruit driven, fleshy cherry almost maraschino esq, hints of chocolate biscuit and a soft delightful balanced tannin structure. Nice acidity that works and fleshy red fruit all over the place.

Four x kisses and a slap on the bum from the Mistress

2007 D.J.P Las Lamas Single Vineyard Mencia

Really meaty and very complex. I couldn’t get past the roasted steak quality on this one. Elegant on the palate with soft glorious yet gripping lengthy tannins and minerality.

Four x kiss from the Mistress

2007 D.J.P La Farona  Single Vineyard Mencia

A fresher nose than the last 2, earth and a tiny hint of smokey tobacco. Red flesh noticeable on the palate, minerality and up-front tannins. Really bloody complex and balanced. I could have my nose in this for hours.

5 x Kiss from the Mistress.

The La Farona was one of my favourite wines of the day and it had nothing to do with the price tag ( which was really up there) I could see this wine just getting better and better with age.

The title of this blog post is “Rockstars of Wine” not Rock star of wine, there was another “rock star” there at lunch that day, his name is Telmo Rodriquez and he is the true definition of wine royalty…

Telmo is the King of Tempranillo. He makes it all over Spain along with a few other varieties and probably the best dessert wine I have tried in a very long time.

I have a lot to say and quite a bit of praise for this “rock star” but I feel he deserves his own blog post….. So till next time

Kisses

MOV xx

All Content © 2011 Mistress of the Vine

Floodlight Dinner 31st January 2011

It has been a while since Mistress of the Vine has stepped into a fine dining restaurant and not been there to eat.. The world of the 2 hatter is far from how I roll at the moment, so as you can imagine it was a slight shock to the system when I arrived at Rockpool restaurant last night to help out  for the Floodlight dinner.

To give you a bit of background, last month Queensland was hit by the most  devastating floods Australia has seen since the seventies. Thirty people died  and at one stage over 500 people were missing. Most were found though, at the last count 9 people were still unaccounted for. Over 21, 000 homes had some form of flood damage, with 3, 600 homes evacuated. The damage bill for the QLD floods has been estimated at over 5.6 billion dollars which is devastating, when you think we have gone straight from a global financial crisis  into a natural disaster; brings a tear to your eye doesn’t it.

So last night the hospitality industry in Sydney rallied around to do our bit. The brainchild of Colin Fassnidge from the Four in Hand Restaurant and Phil Wood of Sydney’s Rockpool Restaurant, which from my understanding came about from an afternoon at the pub and twitter!! The evening was a who’s who of the Sydney restaurant scene. There was Alex Hubert from Bird Cow Fish who organized all the prizes and auction items, James Johnston from World Wine Estates who organised the wine for the event; chefs from Pendolino, Balzac and Lucios. Sommeliers from Cotton Duck, Quay,Bilsons and Love Tilly Devine and  Owners and Restaurant managers from Tabou, Buzo and the Four in Hand and of course little old me representing well… me and of course bloodwood.

The evening was Mced by Simon Thompson and Simon Marnie, who did a great job by spurring all that attended to spend a fortune; we ended up raising over $70, 000 dollars and as the evening was entirely sponsored –  Neil Perry donated Rockpool, all the food was donated and  as we all donated our time, every single cent of that $70,ooo heads straight up north to help our fellow countrymen and women in need.

A very enjoyable night for a  worthy cause and big well done and pat on the back for all who made it possible. I feel very proud to be a part of my industry today.

Kisses MOV xx

All Content © 2011 Mistress of the Vine

Sharing the love

I have tasted a hell of a lot of wine in the past few weeks, some great, some good, some terrible and some that needed more than soap to wash away the foul words that came out of my mouth… following spitting them out.

So its time to share! Lets start with the great ones!!

I had the chance to meet with Kerrie Thompson of KT Wines the other week and what a charming lady she is! Kerrie makes her wines out of a small corner in the Skillogalee winery from organic vineyards in the Clare Valley. I loved almost all of them and if it was possible to list all of them I certainly would have.  A few stood out over the others, in the range one in particular was the

2010 Peglidis Vineyard Watervale Riesling, Clare Valley, South Australia

Such a pretty wine this is, with intoxicating floral aromas dominating the nose and a hint of refined musk hiding in the background like  a pair of expensive silk knickers. The palate had lively  balanced acidity but not at the expense of texture, with an appealing amount of length to follow.

A very well made rounded wine and an excellent example of Riesling.

I give this wine 4 x kiss from the Mistress

I also was lucky enough to meet with the very animated Sergio Carlei and looking at his wines was a joy! I have ended up listing both his Green Vineyards’ Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir, which is a faux par maybe- I can almost hear the shocked cries of sommeliers all over… but who cares, they are great wines!

2008 Carlei Green Vineyards Pinot Gris, Port Phillip, Victoria

This is a very good barrel fermented true Gris style. The colour is what hits you first, with its blushing, slightly pink glow. The nose shows integrated fruit, spice and lovely floral characters and is very refined. The palate works lovely with food and I truly enjoy the hint of apple that pokes its head out at the finish.

3 x Kiss from the Mistress for this one.

I’ll get back to you with the rest. Its time for some dinner and a glass of wine!

Kisses

MOV

All Content © 2010 Mistress of the Vine

MIA

Hi kids… Sorry I have been missing in action for the past few weeks, l have been a very busy little mistress. My wine list for Bloodwood Restaurant and Bar is finally finished (check it out here at www.bloodwoodnewtown.com) and the response has been overwhelming. Who would have thought there would be so many amazing organic and biodynamic vineyards out there!

Writing this list has opened me up to a whole new world of wine. Wine that is not over worked, with distinct varietal and regional expression- you can almost taste the love of the vine. This wine list has proved to me that my love affair with the vine has the ability to grow and flourish like the vine itself.

One comment that has stayed with me over the past few weeks comes from Ron Laughton, the winemaker for Jasper Hill; he says that his wines are “proof that terroir exists in the new world” and I thoroughly agree. Yes it may be an expression of under irrigation but the distinct characteristics of his two sites – Emily’s Paddock and Georgia’s Paddock are remarkable and incredible proof of terroir.

I have also been surprised by the ability to buy these wines at a reasonable price (Jasper Hill is an exception!). It has enabled me to pass on these savings to Bloodwood customers. I must admit I was worried at the conception of this list as to whether I would be able to write something that was affordable,especially as my restaurant is situated in Newtown and not Circular Quay – a lot of the guests are price conscious, one great example is my pouring Shiraz. The 2010 Battle of Bosworth Shiraz is listed at $35. It will not blow your mind but it is a great quaffing Shiraz that is honest and has depth. It also is preservative free so for all those people who suffer from an intolerance to sulfur, well they can just shut up and drink the Bosworth.

I shall be passing on all my new-found biodynamic knowledge in the next few weeks in the mean time pop into Bloodwood, say hi and enjoy some Lafarge, KT, By Farr, Jasper hill, Carlei, Cullen to name a few.

Untill next time.

Kisses

MOV

All Content © 2010 Mistress of the Vine