Larchet’s Australian Premium Wine Collection

Australia is a nation of vast plains, few people and towering ambition.

“We’re a country nearly the size of the United States, but with only 20 million people,” notes Chris Hatcher, chief winemaker for Beringer-Blass Australia. “Anyone who wants to have a successful business must export.”

Indeed. Over the past two decades, American wine merchants have nearly drowned in a sea of Australian wine. Willingly, I might add.

The Aussies produce prodigious amounts of very good to sensational wine at prices that would make a Napa Valley vintner cry. The low prices are abetted in no small measure by an exchange rate that delivers two dollars Australian for every one dollar U.S.

Pricing aside, Aussie wines can stand on their own. When they first appeared in this country, it was at the behest of large wine companies savvy in the international arena. Penfolds, Rosemount, Wolf Blass, Lindemans. Cruise the wine section at any major supermarket and you’ll find any or all of these wineries represented.

Of more recent vintage is the emergence of Australia’s boutique wineries – small operations that have neither the staff nor the knowledge of world markets to ply their wares outside the mother country.

A handful of entrepreneurs – based largely in the Western United States – have risen up to accept the challenge of scouring Australia for obscure but high quality wines to import to the United States. What they have brought to a growing legion of grateful wine consumers is fabulous wines at often ridiculously low prices, compared to like wines from California.

One such “boutique” importer is John Larchet of The Australian Premium Wine Collection. I make it a point to catch up to Larchet a couple of times a year to see what’s new and exciting in his collection of Aussie wine gems.

Generally these wines are just off the boat and quantities are limited, so time is of the essence. I always try to taste the new wines and formulate my recommendations before the wines are literally swallowed up by loyal TAPWC customers.

These wines are not always easy to find, though the internet has made locating them less arduous than in past years. The best places to look for them are in fine wine shops or restaurants that trend eclectic on the wine list.

Larchet has an interesting “availability” chart on his website, www.tapwc.com.au, that monitors availability of his wines by showing full or partially full wine bottles, depending upon the wine and how much of it is left.

Should you not be able to find any of the TAPWC wines, the same principles are in play with any number of small importers who specialize in boutique Australian wineries. One I find nearly comparable to TAPWC in quality is Scott Street Portfolio.

Mention of either of these two importers is something of a guarantor or quality, for the wines for each portfolio were hand-picked by experts with very sharp palates.

This week’s Tasting Notes are dedicated to a few of the outstanding new TAPWC wines I tasted recently. They were just off the boat, as Larchet would say. Happy hunting!

Tasting Notes

Wines are rated on the 100-point scale. The higher the rating and the lower the price, the greater the value. Wines selected for review are chosen because they represent outstanding quality or value, or because they should be avoided. Every attempt is made to cover a broad range of consumer interests, from simple but well-made quaffing wines to rare gems for the serious wine cellar.

The Wishing Tree 2002 Shiraz, Western Australia ($9) – Few wines that retail for less than $10 are worth going gaga over, but this is one of them. It gives you loads of ripe, dark fruit, black pepper spice and a succulent mouth feel at a low cost. If you’re looking for a house wine guaranteed to win compliments, but a case.
Rating: 86

Pikes 2001 Luccio, Clare Valley ($18) – A wonderful bistro wine, Luccio (Italian for pike fish) has the lifted cherry aromas of sangiovese (62 percent) combined with the richness and body of cabernet sauvignon (19 percent) and merlot (19 percent). A most pleasing wine.
Rating: 87

Hill of Content 2001 Grenache Shiraz, Clare Valley & McLaren Vale ($12) – Want a fabulous $12 red, look no further. It’s spicy, succulent and fleshy, and elegant enough to pass for a much more expensive wine.
Rating: 89

Clonakilla 2002 Shiraz, Hilltops ($20) – A little too much heat (15 percent alcohol) to be described as well balanced or elegant, but it’s an interesting wine nonetheless; a smoky, gamy, spicy Rhone-like shiraz that has good color and depth and plenty of character.
Rating: 89

Pike & Joyce 2002 Pinot Gris, Adelaide Hills ($17) – Though this grape variety is not widely planted in Australia, it does appear to have promise. Winemaker Neil Pike, a fan of Italian pinot grigio, probably would have preferred a crisp northern Italian style, but what nature gave him was more along the lines of an Oregon pinot gris, with richness and weight on the palate and the pleasing aroma of peaches.
Rating: 90

Hill of Content 2002 Pinot Noir, Mornington Peninsula & Adelaide Hills ($13) – Resist the temptation to not take this pinot seriously because of the price. It’s a beautiful wine, particularly for those pinot fans who appreciate a complex, earthy nose. It has excellent depth, bright fruit, multiple layers of complexity and a nifty pepper note. A steal at the price.
Rating: 90

Elderton 2001 Tantalus, South Australia ($14) – While not in the same league with the $70 Elderton Command Shiraz, Tantalus nevertheless puts a good foot forward for this exceptional Barossa Valley producer. Winemaker Richard Sheedy skillfully blends cabernet sauvignon from McLaren Vale with shiraz from the Barossa and achieves a beautifully structured, elegant red that is ripe and full in the mouth without being jammy. Lovely cedar pencil nose, layers of blueberry, raspberry, currants and pepper spice as a nuance. Exceptional for the price.
Rating: 90

Joseph 2002 Pinot Grigio d’Elena, Clarendon ($21) – Winemaker Joe Grilli named this wine (this is the second vintage) after his youngest daughter, Elena, so it had better be good. Grilli seldom disappoints. He came up with a crisp, dry, chalky pinot grigio that would stand the test in the demanding northern Italy region of Trentino-Alto Adige.
Rating: 90

Pike & Joyce Chardonnay, Adelaide Hills ($18) – Love the hint of butterscotch on the nose. This is a rich, highly nuanced chardonnay that is elegant and clean and hits all the right notes. Beautifully balanced and complex, this is a good example of a chardonnay that doesn’t have the appearance of being contrived although the winemaker used all the tricks of the trade. Rating: 91

Cardinia Hills 2001 Shiraz, Central Victoria ($22) – Shiraz from a cool climate such as Victoria runs counter to the conventional wisdom about Australian shiraz. Leaner and more elegant, they can still be every bit as intense. Cardinia Hills’ ’01 is earthy, with bright fruit, dried herbs and mint leaf on the nose. The palate has length and persistence.
Rating: 91.

Clonakilla 2002 Viognier, Canberra ($25) – I may be rating this rare Australian viognier (vineyard plantings are growing, but this white Rhone grape variety remains a novelty Down Under) a tad low because it shows a bit of heat on the finish, but generally speaking it is produced in a leaner European (French, actually) style and much lower in alcohol than most California viognier. With fresh peaches and honeysuckle on the nose, good viscosity and palate structure without being heavy and ponderous, this is an excellent food wine despite the slightly coarse finish.
Rating: 91

Pikes 2002 Viognier, Clare Valley ($19) – Rich, ripe, succulent viognier that goes right to the brink of going over the top, but pulls up just in the nick of time. Reminds me a great deal of the glorious Eberle Viognier from Paso Robles, which should be taken as a very high compliment. For connoisseurs of this white Rhone grape, at this price the Pikes is one of the world’s great bargains.
Rating: 92

Seville Estate 2000 Pinot Noir, Yarra Valley ($22) – Very interesting pinot. It’s unfiltered and therefore ever so slightly cloudy, which in no way harms the wine or diminishes quality. With an intriguing forest floor bouquet, bright fruit, persistence and intensity of flavor, the Seville is an elegant, pretty pinot that further enhance Australia’s growing reputation for quality with this difficult grape variety.
Rating: 92

Pike & Joyce 2002 Sauvignon Blanc, Adelaide Hills ($17) – This new venture is a partnership between an accomplished winemaking family (Neil and Andrew Pike) and a longtime Adelaide Hills farming family (the Joyces). What a start. From a vineyard planted in Lenswood at an elevation of about 1800 feet, where apples have been grown in the past, the first Pike & Joyce Sauvignon Blanc is a beaut. It starts with a complex nose of minerals, dried herbs and gooseberry, shows a good deal of flint on the palate and finishes crisply.
Rating: 92

Frankland Estate 2002 Isolation Ridge Riesling ($18) – This superb riesling from Western Australia tilts toward the Alsatian style, which offers generous viscosity and mouth-filling fruit laid over a firm core of acidity. The distinctly floral nose is another dimension to this outstanding wine.
Rating: 93

Brokenwood 2001 Graveyard Vineyard Chardonnay, Hunter Valley ($28) – This subtropical region north of Sydney can be brutally difficult for the chardonnay vine, which is vulnerable to rain, heat and humidity. But when the Graveyard Chardonnay is good, it’s really good. Produced in an oxidative style, it will blossom after exposure to air, gaining richness and complexity in the glass or decanter. Stunningly complex aromas of butterscotch, honey and roasted nuts.
Rating: 94

Grosset 2002 Watervale Riesling, Clare Valley ($25) – There is little doubt that Grosset’s edgy Polish Hill Riesling is the star, but the Watervale, from a slightly warmer microclimate, would play second fiddle nowhere else in Australia. Solid acid backbone with more flesh than the Polish Hill. One of Oz’s finest dry rieslings.