WINE: TALTARNI Brut Tache 2005

Type: Sparkling Rose
Origin: Victoria (70%) and Tasmania (30%)
Approx Cost: $17
http://www.taltarni.com.au/

After the surprisingly pleasant Clover Hill Brut made by Taltarni, I was interested in trying something else. Enter the Brut Tache.

Pale gold with a hint of salmon. Quite a pleasing colour. The mousse is all over the place and the bead is fine but burns itself out pretty quick. Interesting palate. Strawberries, passionfruit, pink apple. The finish is long and smooth but the flavours that carry on aren’t great at times.

This wine was extremely influenced by the food that was eaten with it. It did well with a very lemony chick pea salad, but died in the arse when tried with a dish driven by a basil pesto hummus.

I’m still waiting for a sparkling rose to wow me. From what I’ve had so far they’re never as enjoyable as the normal sparkling whites and are even sold at a higher price sometimes. This wine is really no exception. It’s okay, but I’d really only recommend it if you’re after a nice midrange Aussie sparkling rose. Can’t see myself getting it again.

85%

WINE: MAJELLA Shiraz 2004

Type: Red
Origin: Coonawarra
Approx Cost: $30

Majella is the man. There are some really tasty reds coming out of Coonawarra at the moment, but Majella is the one hitting the right notes for me. It’s such a delicious and distinctive taste.

The 2004 Shiraz is no exception. Nice and inky in colour. That very familiar Majella nose which you can almost bite into of blackcurrant, vanilla and mint. A palate which is just as expressive. Again, the juicy berry and currant fruits with a little bit of plum, oakey spice, mint and vanilla thrown in. Ah the mint. A nice finish which leaves you licking your lips.

It could probably do with a few years in the cellar but bugger it, it’s nice now.

90%

WINE: Yering Station Late Harvest Pinot Gris 2005

Type: White (sweet)
Origin: Yarra Valley, Vic
Approx Cost: ~$20
http://www.yering.com

Excuse the graphic imagery, but I am currently averaging about three orgasms a minute. Sitting in front of me is a plate of crackers and healthy portion of Délice de Bourgogne, a triple cream French Brie and a glass of Yering's Late Harvest Pinot Gris (with Lyrical Commission humming in the background). I first tried the LHPG at Yering a bout 12 months ago when I went out there for lunch. Yering's whole operation is pretty spectacular. It's wines are generally very good, their marketing is smart and their winery/restaraunt/cellar door setup is amazing. I'm a bit of a fan of lighter dessert-style wines, I find they're like a palate cleanser and a good way to finish the night without feeling like you've over done it.

I really like the colour of this wine, it looks like it's a friendly kind of wine. Don't ask me how a wine looks friendly. It just does. The nose gives a similar impression to a botrytis-style dessert wine, with hints of confectionery kerosene, but signs of melon and stone fruit are lurking without sinister intent. The mouth feel is slightly buttery and it opens beautifully on the palate. It's got a real nice round sweetness, backed with the above mentioned fruits and some very fain floral orange flavours. Lovely length and slightly kerosene/Sauternes kind of finish. It's really nicely toned-down, with enough sweetness to compliment food, but without being dominant, providing the wine with a great deal of flexibility. I really like it. And it's fucking sex with this cheese.

This would be interesting to try with a savory dish in some sort of culinary experiment. It works well with blue and soft cheeses and would be a pleasure on it's own.

90%

WINE: JOSEPH PERRIER Cuvee Royale Brut Rose NV

Type: Rose Champagne
Origin: France
Approx Cost: $70

I thought the normal Brut of this was a nice enough Non-Vintage so why not give the rose a go?

Very deep golden pink in colour; The mousse is fine-to-medium, pours well, with a fine, persistent bead; Quite powerful in taste, definitely not one of those subtle rose style wines; Green apple, rosehip, grapefruit; finish is a little confusing, toasty and acidic, muddled.

For $30 this would be a good rose champagne. For $70 I can’t see myself going there again.

88%

RESTAURANT: Devonshire Thai

Type: Thai
Location: 208 Devonshire St, Surry Hills
Booking Required: Rarely

The next stop on the Surry Hills Dining Experience (wow, that’d make a great name for a prog band) is… merry olde England? While the name may not be quite right at Devonshire Thai, the food certainly is.

After ordering a trio of starters—tofu with peanut sauce, prawn spring rolls and fish cakes—I was delighted to see them all arrive on the one platter. It’s only a little thing but it makes a nice difference to everything arriving separately on small dishes. They all tasted pretty good too. Perfectly fried but not at all oily.

Mains were also good. Beef jungle curry packed a fair amount of heat and plenty of flavour, and the chicken larb was very pleasing indeed with it’s citrus flavours.

All in all a nice meal and a nice, small place. A step above your average suburban Thai, but probably not as good as fellow Surry Hills Thai purveyors, Spice I Am and Benzin. Service was a tad clumsy but nice overall and the price was also pretty good. If this wasn’t near Spice I Am and Benzin then I’d come back to this place quite a lot, but, well it is. Can’t argue with geography.

RATING: Okay, may go back.

WINE: MOUNT PLEASANT ‘Elizabeth’ Semillon 2002

Type: White
Origin: Hunter Valley, NSW
Approx Cost $15

After the delicious Lovedale the other day, I couldn’t pass this up when I saw it on the wine list at a restaurant.

Very dark straw with a bit of green in it. Nice floral and lemon nose. Palate has a big lemon and lime kick to it. Finish is okay, but a little jarring.

A good buy if you want a nice, cheap Semillon to consume and not think too much about, but nowhere near the Lovedale.

87%

WINE: Oakridge Estate Chardonnay 2005

Type: Chardonnay
Origin: Yarra Valley, Vic
Approx Cost: $15-$20
http://www.oakridgeestate.com.au

About two years ago this wine popped up on the radar after winning a plethora of awards at numerous respected wine shows. It had been ranked higher than some of the biggest names in Australian chardonnay, including Giaconda, Penfolds Yattarna and Bannockburn. At the time I was cynical and refused to be sucked in by the hype and I'll be honest, I'm not a massive chardonnay fan.

However I picked up a bottle of the '05 last night on the recommendation of a co-worker and had it tonight with a prawn and leak pasta dish. It was delightful. The nose smells like fresh bread and nuts, hints of oak and good rich fruit. The palate is long and refined with a small hint of butteryness. The balance between fruit and oak is exceptional and the grapefruit flavours linger, without any bitterness or unwanted acidity. It reminds me a little bit of bollinger, without the bubbles.

For the price, this wine is well worth getting. It'll hold up beautifully next to a plate of barramundi and it'll nicely compliment a plate of prawns. It's one of the few chards I've tried at a reasonable price that's really grabbed me.

90%

WINE: MOUNT PLEASANT ‘Lovedale’ Semillon 1996

Type: White, Semillon
Origin: Hunter Valley, NSW
Approx Cost: $45
http://www.mountpleasantwines.com.au/

Well, with the hope of doing a kinda interstate simultaneous booze review (ISBR) with Jobe, I went to work (a bottle shop) with the ambition of buying a Lovedale Semillon. I asked the boss if we had any to my surprise he said: "yes." He went out to the dungeon where he stashes all the good shit and fetched me a bottle of the '96 Lovedale which had been sitting there for about 4 years, since the last owners had the place. He cut me a bit of a deal on it and told me it'd be looking pretty good. Jeremy Oliver's book (not the best) gave it 96/100 and recommend drinking 2008 onwards. 2007's close enough.

I went round to a friend's place after work with a pack of sushi and sashimi and opened the wine in time for the budget highlights. The good quality cork had shown no signs of deterioration and the opening nose was delightfully complex and interesting. My first impression of the taste was: "hey this thing's fuckin spritzy, it's got bubbles", my friend agreed. we poured a third glass and let it sit. After 10 minutes it had been lined with bubbles. How peculiar. Once the spritzyness had passed it left a pretty interesting, all be it short, palate of melon, honey suckle and some floral notes. The citrus Jobe experienced with the 2000 had softened and revealed a very elegant silkiness. It had probably gone in the cellar a bit long, or it could have been a dud bottle.

Overall there were definite signs of it being a really good wine. It had the characteristics of a really nice aged semillon. It had just passed it's prime by the time I got to it. Do as Jobe says, get as much of this and the Vat 1 as you can and enjoy some of the world's best value wine.

WINE: MOUNT PLEASANT ‘Lovedale’ Semillon 2000

Type: White, Semillon
Origin: Hunter Valley, NSW
Approx Cost: $35?
http://www.mountpleasantwines.com.au/

I’m comin’ straight outta the Hunter with a single-vineyard Semillon. Hmm doesn’t quite have the same ring to it as the original. NWA were right to not write that song about this wine. Still, it does deserve some sort of musical dedication because it’s bloody fantastic.

Slight straw with a touch of green in colour. Aromas of lemon, lime and grass. And then the glorious taste. Lemon and lime with a hint of grapefruit and peach, all deliciously rounded off with some nice honey notes. Beautifully long, clean finish.

This is an outstanding example of why Hunter Valley Semillon is so highly regarded. Hard to pick between this and the also excellent Tyrrells Vat 1, so don’t even bother. Do yourself a favour, pick up both and fuck the police.

95%

WINE: D’ARENBERG ‘The Custodian’ Grenache 2004

Type: Red
Origin: McLaren Vale, Australia
Approx Cost: $18
http://www.darenberg.com.au/

I think this is the first 100% Grenaches that I’ve ever had. Inexperienced, but I’ll press on.

Inky purple with a bit of deep red. Quite a juicy wine. Lots of berry and currant flavours with some oak and spice thrown in, with a little vanilla and mint on the finish. I think this can do with a bit of age. The tannins are a bit sharp.

Tasted nice with a warm Indian curry. It was a pleasing experience for my first Grenache, but I don’t think it compares to other reds. If I find one highly recommended then

88%

WINE: MOET ET CHANDON Millesime Blanc 1999

Type: Champagne
Origin: France
Approx Cost: $100
http://www.moet.com/

A gift from some people at work. Wonderful. Moet is a champagne house that I have A LOT of time for. I believe the Millesime Blanc is made only during above average vintages and is supposed to be the best that the winemaker can do, but I could be wrong. I was never one for research.

I had this a few months ago and thought it was okay, but the place I got it from was a bit suss and nothing ever tastes great from there.

Mid straw with a green hue. Fine, persistent mousse and bead. Tastes quite nice. Green apples, pears, caramel and spice.

I like it, but I don’t think it really offers anything special. And for this price you want it to.

88%

RESTAURANT: Chilli Man Thai

Type: Thai
Location: 24b Letitia St, Oatley
Rooking Required: Usually.

My local Thai joint. Always packed out with people, but that has more to do with the lack of other options around here and the fact that the restaurant is tiny.

They do good food, but not great food, at a good price. If it wasn’t close to me I wouldn’t go out of my way to get the food, but at the same time I do enjoy eating it.

Good entrees, especially the golden bags and tofo tod. For the mains it really is trial and error about what to pick. I like the beef salad, chicken larb, pad thai, beef green curry, lamb basil and a few others. Duck red curry was a disappointment.

Service is pretty average so takeaway is a better option.

RATING: Okay, may go back

WINE: BLUE PYRENEES ESTATE Vintage Brut 2001

Type: Sparkling White
Origin: Victoria
Approx Cost: $18
http://www.bluepyrenees.com.au/

The 2000 vintage of this was one of my favourite wines for under $20. It had a fantastic crispness and a great selection of fruit behind it. So I was nicely surprised when I noticed that the bottle I had in the fridge was the 2001.

I don’t remember the 2000 being closed by diam but I could be wrong.

Good mousse and bead for an Aussie sparkling. An attractive pale straw colour with a slight copper hue. Different taste. It still has all of the grapefruit, lemon, peach and apple, but it’s a lot sweeter; not as crisp. Finish isn’t great.

It’s still good, but just not as good. It’s almost like the tried to bring in more finesse with this vintage, but the crispness and bold fruit flavours is what made the 2000 such a good wine.

87%

RESTAURANT: Shang Hai Yangzhou House

Type: Chinese
Location: 177 Forest Road, Hurstville
Rooking Required: No.

The last time I came here I enjoyed it but didn’t really notice anything special about it. But something was different this time. Maybe different food was ordered, maybe it was because it was dinner instead of lunch, maybe I was excited about the prospect of the 4 day Easter long weekend approaching when I went. But whatever it was, the second time around was an amazing experience.

The menu at this place is a monster. It has as many choices as most Chinese places (ie shitloads), but has a large picture for EVERY DISH on the menu. The resulting photo album is half the size of the table.

Went for the turnip cakes, fried dumplings, some sort of strange egg roll and a steamed dish I forget (dumplings?). All were fantastic. Chinese Noodle Restaurant were my favourite dumplings until now. A lot cleaner and crispier in taste. I couldn’t get enough.

Service wasn’t great but at places like this I don’t think you can expect much. Made up for it in value, which was nothing short of outstanding.

Two dishes into the meal Calypso and I began to debate whether or not to give out an illustrious “Will constantly return to” grading (only our second ever). When the dust settled and I had time to reflect, I decided that it was worthy.

RATING: Will constantly return to

RESTAURANT: Pizza e Birra

Type: Italian
Location: 500 Crown St, Surry Hills
Rooking Required: No bookings. Tends to get busy later in the evening.

Next step on the Surry Hills odyssey is the well-regarded Pizza e Birra.

Combining traditional, delicious pizza with Australian-style beer at a good price in a nice location sounded too good to be true. But it really wasn’t.

We entered the gorgeously renovated warehouse with dim lighting before the late evening rush and headed to our table with a more than healthy appetite.

A big stumble at the start of the evening with the waiters taking the order of tables that came in after us before ours, forcing us to wait for a while. But once we got past that the rest of the evening went smoothly.

A good menu combining all of the elements of Italian food: pizza, pasta, seafood, wine. But we were here for the pizza. Good wine list too. Some good local and Italian choices with a bit of a mark up. But we weren’t there for the wine. It’s all about the house beer.

We kicked things off with the perfect starter. An antipasto plate piled with cheese, bread and cured meat. I was concerned that because this place is fairly cheap they might skimp on the quality of their ingredients, but everything on the plate was good.

Great pizza too. The Proscuitto comes topped with plenty of slices of the meat, shaved parmesean and rocket. It’s a simple topping that I’ve had a few times before, but Pizze e Birra really nail it. Tried a couple of the others and they were also impressive. The bases are perfectly crisp when you bite into them, but aren’t TOO crispy or chewy like many other places that claim to be authentic.

The house beer (simply called ‘Birra’) isn’t bad. An Australian pale ale with some good fruity flavours and a lot of hops. Unfortunately a fair bit of sediment too. But you have to give them credit for at least having a house beer.

Finished off with the tiramisu, the yardstick for every Italian restaurant. Here it is pulled off very well. Also a nice Belgian chocolate torte with cognac custard on the menu that holds its own.

A good very nice evening at a very good price. While the service was a little sporadic, the food is fantastic and the pizza is some of the best I’ve ever had.

RATING: Will return to

WINE: CLOVER HILL Brut 2002

Type: Sparkling White
Origin: Tasmania
Approx Cost: $30
http://www.taltarni.com.au/

So the headline sparkling from out good friends at Taltarni wines. Okay, so maybe they aren’t really our friends and maybe there is no “us” just me. I don’t even know if this is the headline sparkling. And maybe I don’t remember if I like Taltarni wines or not. It’s safe to assume that I didn’t do my research here.

Anyway. I’m surprised by how fine the mousse and bead are. Rare for an Australian wine. Not super fine but still good. I forget the colour because it is now all gone and I forget to look at the colour. Mid straw from memory. The tasting notes on the website say it has a “Champagne hue”. For a sparkling white wine? How very odd.

The taste is overwhelmingly of dough and toast. There is the faintest of hints of stone fruits in there somewhere, like a peach rubbed against a slice of bread, but it’s barely noticeable. Long, bready finish.

I don’t mind this.

88%

WINE: GAPSTED WINES ‘Ballerina Canopy’ Chardonnay Pinot Noir NV

Type: Sparkling White
Origin: Victoria
Approx Cost: $30
http://www.gapstedwines.com/

An odd one. Towards the higher end of the Australian sparkling market. And no mention of this wine on their website.

Initially a fine mousse, which turns very heavy and dissipates. The bead also starts off fine but then grows and struggles under its weight. Light gold with a hint of green. Very fruity on the nose. Fruity on the palate. Citrus and peach with a little toasty kick towards the end. Creamy. Good length on the finish.

For $15 this would be a great wine, for $30 it is just middle of the class.

87%

WINE: FOX CREEK ‘Vixen’ Sparkling Burgundy NV

Type: Sparkling Red
Origin: McLaren Vale, South Australia
Approx Cost: $20
http://www.foxcreekwines.com.au/

Quite a unique blend, it’s made up of a mix of Shiraz, Cab Franc and Cab Sav. Wasn’t expecting much of this wine but it turned out to be very good indeed.

Midnight dark plum in colour. I think there is a bead in there somewhere but good luck trying to see it. Maybe it’s not, I dunno… Smells fairly herby, which is reflected in the taste. Blackberries dominate with a pinch of sugar, aniseed and assorted herbs. Reminds me a lot of the delicious Majella Sparkling Shiraz, but not quite as good.

I actually like the idea of this wine. It’s a unique taste and a well-made wine at a good price. One of the better Aussie sparkling reds that I’ve tried.

89%

WINE: BAY OF FIRES ‘Tigress’ Pinot Noir Chardonnay NV

Type: Sparkling White
Origin: Tasmania, Australia
Approx Cost: $20
http://www.bayoffireswines.com.au

I bought this wine completely forgetting that I have tried the headline sparkling from Bay of Fires (Arras) and wasn’t really impressed.

Very pale gold hue. It could do with a few days in the sun. Average mousse and a heavy bead which burns out fairly quickly. Orange and honey on the nose. Similar taste to the Arras, with the green apple and citrus to begin with, followed by a toasty finish. A bit of creaminess too.

I suppose it’s okay. I’d pick this up over the Arras, since it’s half the price and the quality is only just behind. But I wouldn’t pick it over many other wines.

86%

WINE: POL ROGER Brut NV

Type: Champagne
Origin: France
Approx Cost: $50
http://www.polroger.com/

I’ve had a couple of run-ins with Pol Roger and they were all positive. Definitely a consistent and value-for-money Champagne house.

That said, I wasn’t expecting this taste. Heavy gold/straw hue. Pours with a decent mousse and a bead that lasts well. But a lot more peach and toast than I remember. That’s followed by a sharp bite and a finish that is almost like beer. Very odd. Tastes like a mix between a Moet and Bollinger. It has both the crispness and the refined boldness.

87%