Thanks for the info Ric!

quote:

Originally posted by TORB:
Most Australians have too much sense (and not enough money) to pay inflated prices for plonk so that they can have urinal bragging rights about what they have drunk.

quote:

Originally posted by TORB:
FYI, Mollydooker sold their entire 2007 vintage in three days. That was both the quantity allocated via their website, and the amount set aside for wholesalers.

I have to call BS on this one, Ric. Who is your source? I was on the MD mailing list and I saw emails one per month over the past two years doing promos to attempt to sell backlogs of wine.

quote:

Originally posted by Dave Canada:

quote:

Originally posted by Berno:

quote:

Originally posted by Dave Canada:

quote:

Originally posted by Berno:
Look for Two Hands Ares '05. Runs about $130-140. It's in my top 10.

Wish I could agree with you...I have not had good experiences with Ares, Astralis or Velvet Glove....so overtly acidified, unbalanced, tonnes of alcohol...
For me, if you are going to go high end in Australia it has to be Grange or hill of grace

For the Ares, you had a bad bottle. The 05 was, at the time the most balanced bottle of wine I had tasted.

I have had other mollydooker wines and have never been a fan. I really get the note of acidification in these wines

Have you decanted them? What vintage? Mollydooker may be too over the top for the old school crowd here, but damn, I have enjoyed my bottles tremendously.

On a side note, has Velvet Glove been rated? I can't find a Tanzer rating.

How well do most of these Aussie cult wines age?

quote:

Originally posted by elmo:
How well do most of these Aussie cult wines age?

Well, most of this stuff does not have a long track record.

However, wasn't Grange the original Aussie cult? It ages beautifully, does it not?

quote:

Originally posted by Sticky2:


Well, most of this stuff does not have a long track record.

However, wasn't Grange the original Aussie cult? It ages beautifully, does it not?

Sticky2, not only does Grange age well, it requires aging. I'm not sure the wines people have listed above are even remotely in the same style as Grange , thus would require or improve greatly with decades of cellar time.

As an fyi. Garagiste offered Invictus Hazyblur...about 6 months ago for $87 a pop. Parker gave it a 97. The review is in the public domain:

"Hazyblur’s flagship is the 2005 Shiraz “Invictus” Barossa Valley. Sourced from vines at least 50 years of age from the Ebenezer region of Barossa (thought by many to be the finest sub-region of the Valley), the grapes were dried on racks for one week prior to crushing. The fermented juice was aged in 100% new French and American hogsheads for 16 months. The wine is deep crimson/purple with a brooding bouquet of toasty oak, lavender, pencil lead, truffle, plum, blueberry, and blackberry liqueur. Opulent, even voluptuous on the palate, this Shiraz has all the right stuff but will need 8-10 years of additional cellaring to reveal all of its powerful personality. The wine has enough baby fat to accompany a grilled, dry-aged prime rib-eye but this is one case in which delay of gratification will be well rewarded."

quote:

Originally posted by wine+art:
...I'm not sure the wines people have listed above are even remotely in the same style as Grange , thus would require or improve greatly with decades of cellar time.

Grange should not be considered to be cult in the first place any more than 1st or 2nd growth bordeaux.

quote:

Originally posted by Stevey:

quote:

Originally posted by wine+art:
...I'm not sure the wines people have listed above are even remotely in the same style as Grange , thus would require or improve greatly with decades of cellar time.

Grange should not be considered to be cult in the first place any more than 1st or 2nd growth bordeaux.

I do not disagree.

there are numerous fine Aussie wines that don't get exported, but to qualify as a cult wine, you have to register in the big export markets IMO. Although there may be one or two exceptions - I can only think of Mount Mary.

Anyway, want to get mighty close to Grange at a fraction of the price? Try RWT, Bin 707. Also try St. Henri. Same with Hill of Grace, instead try Keyneton Estate for 1/3rd the price.

quote:

Originally posted by PDNNYC:
Anyway, want to get mighty close to Grange at a fraction of the price? Try RWT, Bin 707. Also try St. Henri.

Very good call.

I agree about the Mount Mary Quintet. Excellent wine that few outside OZ know about.

Another wine very much worth mentioning is the Hickinbotham cabernet from Clarendon Hills. The 2002 is excellent.

i've stared at it a few times:
1997 vintage

quote:

Originally posted by Stevey:
If not already mentioned above, other "cult" possibilities:

Wild Duck Creek Duck Muck

this is probably not considered a "cult" but the kay brothers block 6 amery vineyard is one of my favorites

quote:

Originally posted by Stevey:

quote:

Originally posted by wine+art:
...I'm not sure the wines people have listed above are even remotely in the same style as Grange , thus would require or improve greatly with decades of cellar time.

Grange should not be considered to be cult in the first place any more than 1st or 2nd growth bordeaux.

Now, of course it moved beyond cult status, but back when it was just a side project of the wine maker? It would have to be the original Aussie cult, that has established an impressive track record. Why not?

quote:

Originally posted by Sticky2:

quote:

Originally posted by Stevey:

quote:

Originally posted by wine+art:
...I'm not sure the wines people have listed above are even remotely in the same style as Grange , thus would require or improve greatly with decades of cellar time.

Grange should not be considered to be cult in the first place any more than 1st or 2nd growth bordeaux.

Now, of course it moved beyond cult status, but back when it was just a side project of the wine maker? It would have to be the original Aussie cult, that has established an impressive track record. Why not?

Why not what?

The question is not what was a cult wine, it is what is a cult wine, right?

The question was posed... How many pricey cult wines never get exported... I think.

Grange was been on the market for over 50 years now, is not difficult to find, there is no waiting list required, and is sitting in most of the better wine shops waiting to be purchased. Much like First Growth Bordeaux, it has become the bellwether wine for it's region, and I do not think of a bellwether wine being of [I]cult status.

quote:

Originally posted by winemuser:
I agree about the Mount Mary Quintet. Excellent wine that few outside OZ know about.

Another wine very much worth mentioning is the Hickinbotham cabernet from Clarendon Hills. The 2002 is excellent.

Just out of curiosity, does anybody have any idea why Parker threw Mount Mary under the bus?

Moo

quote:

Originally posted by Sacred Cow:
Just out of curiosity, does anybody have any idea why Parker threw Mount Mary under the bus?

LOL!

quote:

Originally posted by Sacred Cow:
Just out of curiosity, does anybody have any idea why Parker threw Mount Mary under the bus?

Moo

Golf&PinotNut might be able to chime in on that.

quote:

Originally posted by wine+art:

quote:

Originally posted by Sticky2:

quote:

Originally posted by Stevey:

quote:

Originally posted by wine+art:
...I'm not sure the wines people have listed above are even remotely in the same style as Grange , thus would require or improve greatly with decades of cellar time.

Grange should not be considered to be cult in the first place any more than 1st or 2nd growth bordeaux.

Now, of course it moved beyond cult status, but back when it was just a side project of the wine maker? It would have to be the original Aussie cult, that has established an impressive track record. Why not?

Why not what?

The question is not what was a cult wine, it is what is a cult wine, right?

The question was posed... How many pricey cult wines never get exported... I think.

Grange was been on the market for over 50 years now, is not difficult to find, there is no waiting list required, and is sitting in most of the better wine shops waiting to be purchased. Much like First Growth Bordeaux, it has become the bellwether wine for it's region, and I do not think of a bellwether wine being of [I]cult status.

No reason we can't sway out of bounds slightly while still providing perspective on the topic.

If picking a wine to showcase an Aussie's potential of ageability, I would choose Grange. Now, even the early vintages have held up remarkably well when it was just a cult, correct?

You made a good point when you said these new "cults" are a different style. Certainly, but there is no reason I see that a high end Australian wine made up from a good portion of Syrah will not have ageability as Grange has shown Australian based wines can be very capable in this respect. Make sense?

quote:

Originally posted by Sticky2:
Now, of course it moved beyond cult status, but back when it was just a side project of the wine maker? It would have to be the original Aussie cult, that has established an impressive track record. Why not?

Well, I wasn't alive in the 50's when Grange was just a side project but I would imagine that it wasn't very expensive back then which would disqualify it from being cult.

quote:

Originally posted by Stevey:

quote:

Originally posted by Sticky2:
Now, of course it moved beyond cult status, but back when it was just a side project of the wine maker? It would have to be the original Aussie cult, that has established an impressive track record. Why not?

Well, I wasn't alive in the 50's when Grange was just a side project but I would imagine that it wasn't very expensive back then which would disqualify it from being cult.

Pricing alone does not determine a cult, plus, the definition has never been strict.

Sacredcrow, I recall the winemaker of Mount Mary did not want RP to taste any of his wines and had been critical about some of his ratings of certain wines. Parker did eventually taste several of Mount Mary's wines, none of which scored over 80 points.There was an interesting thread on the squires board a few years ago dealing with this issue.

Yeppers, that is the thread I was referring to. As a matter of fact, once I take my tongue out of my cheek, more than one of the forum members here were thrown off the pantload board due to that thread.

In other words, an inside joke amongst us old timers, of which you are one. But the tongue in cheek nature of my posts can be rather difficult to detect at times. Just can't slip anything past that GreenDrazi and Vinole though.

Moo