Matson’s – Frankly Wines

I recently attended Liberty Wines Ireland’s Autumn Portfolio Tasting, and while I focused on new additions to their portfolio (watch this space), I couldn’t resist trying an iconic Aussie red, Balnaves Coonawarra Cab

Coonawarra

Coonawarra, as some regular readers might know, is my favourite red wine region in the world. It is home to one of the most identifiable and excellent Cabernet Sauvignon-based wines, though Shiraz, red blends and Chardonnay also do well here. What is the Coonawarra style? Basically it’s blackcurrant and mint / menthol / eucalyptus, all entwined around a robust structure. The wines often need several years to approach their drinking windows, but then “all good things…” More accessible styles are also made, to be drunk when younger; for example, Katnook Estate’s Founders Block and Wynns’ The Gables.

So what makes Coonawarra so special? It’s a combination of things, but principly it’s the soil – terra rossa over limestone – and a relatively (for South Australia) cool climate. Terra Rossa is a clay and silt dominated soil that drains well and has a neutral pH. The Coonawarra strip is a cigar shape which follows the main Riddoch highway north to south – or more accurately, the highway follows the top of the ridge as it’s the firmest and best-drained route.

Grapes were first planted by John Riddoch (after who the highway was named) back in 1890, though until the middle of the twentieth century they were mainly used for Shiraz-based fortified wines. This situation began to change with the purchase of Riddoch’s original cellars and some land by Samuel Wynn in 1951. Along with Penfolds, Wynns was a major force behind the transformation of the Australian wine industry and the move away from fortifieds. Wynns Estate’s top Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon is also named after John Riddoch.

Balnaves

The Balnaves family planted their first vines in the south of Coonawarra in 1975. Since then they have expanded their holdings to 58 hectares, of which around 40 hectares are Cabernet Sauvignon. For the first twenty years they were highly regarded contract growers rather than full-on wine producers, but that changed with the recruitment of former Wynns winemaker Pete Bissell and construction of their winery. He “retired” in 2020 but still works as consultant winemaker with head winemaker Jacinta Jenkins. The Balnaves family are still involved, as second generation Doug and his children Pete and Kirsty run the business and manage a further 300 hectares of Coonawarra vines for other growers.

Their vines are organised into small blocks of one to two hectares, depending on aspect, vine age, grape variety, specific soil types and other qualities. Picking and vinifying them separately gives the winemakers a detailed palette from which to build complex and appropriately structured wines. The best Cabernet grapes in the best years go into a bottle called “The Tally”, named after the book for recording the number of sheep sheared by a shearer in a two hour period. When I visited various Coonawarra cellar doors back in 2000 I overhead locals discussing their livestock as well as their vines – both are part of the way of life there.

Balnaves Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2019

Balnaves Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2019 bottle shot

For the 2019 vintage Cabernet Sauvignon grapes were selected from the Dead Morris and Old Paulownia blocks, co-fermented with 4.8% Dunstan Petit Verdot. Maturation was for 18 months in French oak barrels, just over half of which was new. This oak regime does not overwhelm the fruit, however, but rather helps to add structure, perfume and elegance.

The wine is classic, and classy…somewhere in between the restraint of Pauillac and the power of South Australia’s warmer regions. The nose has intense notes of cassis and blackberry, surrounded with pencil shavings and vanilla. There’s no mistaking this for anything other than Cabernet. These notes continue onto the palate which is rich but not jammy – acidity and tannins keep everything in order.

A fantastic example of Coonawarra Cabernet!

ABV: 14.5%
RS: 0.4 g/L
RRP: €41.99
Stockists: wineonline.ie, Thomas Woodberrys Wines, Blackrock Cellar, The 1601, Matson’s
Other Balnaves wines available in Ireland: Coonawarra Cabernet / Merlot (blend), “The Tally” Reserve Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon

Logo emblema VT

The Spanish team (now with added Polish) at Vinostito have put a firm focus on low intervention winemaking – not for the sake of it, but for the authenticity and excellence of the wines it can produce. Of course they have an extensive selection from Spain, but also other countries such as Portugal, Germany, France and Italy.

Here are five which really piqued my interest at October’s SPIT festival:

Weingut Immich-Batterieberg CAI Mosel Riesling 2016 (11.5%, RRP €21.50 at 64 Wine, Glasthule; Loose Canon, Drury St; Baggot Street Wines, Ballsbridge; Green Man Wines, Terenure; Kelly’s Off-Licence, Clontarf)

immich batterieberg riesling kabinett cai

Immich-Batterieberg is one of the oldest estates in Germany’s Mosel, being noted in the first, second and now third millennium. The Immich family themselves began making wine back in 1425, and were instrumental in the creation of the Batterieberg between 1841 and 1845 using lots of explosives!

The CAI is a Trocken, i.e. dry style of Riesling, with an alcohol of 11.5% which is higher than many sweeter wines, but remains modest. It isn’t bone dry, however, with just a touch of residual sugar which enhances the attractive, zippy fruit. Full of Riesling Goodness!

Weingut Immich-Batterieberg Escheburg Mosel Riesling 2016 (11.0%, RRP €29.00 at 64 Wine, Glasthule)

escheburg

Compared to the CAI, this is somewhat drier, still young and tight – waiting for its wings to unfurl. It’s made from superior grapes which don’t quite make it into the single cuvées. The steep slate vineyard soils really show in the minerality of the wine, even though the minerals themselves are not technically soluble enough to be absorbed by the vines. This is a fairly serious wine which would be at its best with shellfish or after some years to develop and open out.

Casa da Passarella Descoberta Dão Branco 2017 (13.0%, RRP €16.50 at On The Grape Vine, Dalkey; Martin’s Off-Licence, Fairview; Lilac Wines, Fairview; Baggot Street Wines, Ballsbridge; Blackrock Cellar, Blackrock; Matson’s, Cork)

casa passarella

Dão wines aren’t particularly well known in Ireland, though they deserve more attention. The region is situated about a third of the way down the country from the northern border and roughly equidistant from the Atlantic and the eastern border with Spain. It sits on a granite plateau topped by well drained sandy soil – not too bad for quality wine! This is a blend of local speciality Encruzado plus some Malvasia Fina and Verdelho. It’s quite different from the by-the-glass selection in your local pub, with a lovely mouthfeel and richness to it, but not oiliness. A dry, textured finish seals the deal.

Suertes del Marqués Trenzado 2016 (13.0%, RRP €25.00 at SIYPS, Baggot Street Wines, Ballsbridge; Blackrock Cellar, Blackrock; The Corkscrew, Chatham St; Clontarf Wines, Clontarf; Lilliput Stores, Stoneybatter)

trenzado

I’ve reviewed this wine at least once before, but no apologies for repetition will be forthcoming as it’s so damn good – and so damn interesting – that it never disappoints. Suertes del Marqués are a relatively new outfit but they have access to plenty of older vines – the ones for this blend range between 10 and 150 years old, all in the Valle de La Orotava of Tenerife. I say “blend” as the majority of the wine is Listán Blanco (aka Palamino of Sherry fame) but there are also dashes of Pedro Ximenez, Albillo Criollo, Gual, Marmajuelo and Malvasia. As pictured on the front label, the vines are (mainly) trained with the traditional trellis system of cordón trenzado after which the wine is named.

For anyone studying wine this is a great example to do a model tasting note for as it shows so many different types of aroma and flavour: various citrus fruits, nuts and sea-washed pebbles on the nose, with the same on the palate but also a slightly waxy character. It’s a fairly different wine but it’s one that’s easy to like and to love.

Luís Seabra Vinhos Xisto iLimitado Tinto 2016 (12.0%, RRP €22.00 at Sweeney’s, Glasnevin; 64 Wine, Glasthule; On The Grape Vine, Dalkey; Martin’s Off-Licence, Fairview; Lilac Wines, Fairview; Baggot Street Wines, Ballsbridge; Green Man Wines, Terenure; Matson’s, Cork)

luis seabra vinhos xisto ilimitado

Luís Seabra makes a fantastic range of wines in Portugal’s north, the Douro Valley and Vinho Verde regions. His Douro wines are very different from the normal big reds found there, with lots of fruit, oak, tannin and alcohol. His wines are lighter and judiciously oaked, but don’t lack in flavour or length. As “Xisto” is the Portugese for “schist”, it’s not too hard to guess what type of soil the vines are planted in!

This 2016 is a blend of several grapes, some of which are coplanted in old and almost forgotten plots: 30% Touriga Franca, 20% Tinta Amarela, 20% Tinta Roriz, 10% Rufete, 10% Tinta Barroca, 5% Malvasia Preta and 5% Donzelinho Tinto. Luís’s approach to grape variety selection and winemaking both lead to his wines being very interesting and very fresh.

I was browsing some new additions to the shelves of Baggot Street Wines in early 2018 and noticed several wines from Luis Seabra in Portugal. What really caught my eye was the “REPROVADO / DISAPPROVED” warning notice on the back label of the 2015 Tinto – the first time I had ever seen anything like that on a wine label.

Speaking to the man himself a few weeks later at the Vinostito portfolio tasting, he recounted that when the wine was not allowed the Douro classification due to being “untypical” of the region, he sought permission to put a warning label on. The wine authorities had never received such a request previously, but they allowed it.

For the 2016 vintage (above) the Tinto was immediately given the Douro badge – I think the wine authorities learned their lesson!

The SPIT series:

Tag: Matson’s

Balnaves Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon [Wine Review]