Do you remember the days when you were young and you hung out with your mates all day long without even thinking twice.  Sadly, as age catches up and everyone else has different priorities, it seems harder and harder to catch up with old mates… which is all the more reason to treasure these gatherings and drink good wine! 😀

Recently, my uni mates and I arranged for a long overdue catch up (like all good 3 Michelin stars, we had to book over 1 month in advance).   The location was a nice private kitchen in TST and we decided to have a mini vertical of a chateau that is currently gaining superstar status, Pontet Canet.  Like all good wine tastings, we choose an Italian to get warmed up (after some bubbly of course) and a strong Aussie Cab Sauv to make sure we were all tipsy at the end of the night.

After a quick taste, it become blinding obvious that PC 2001 was denser and needed more time so we enjoyed the wines in this order; Chianti Classico, PC 2002, PC 2001 followed by Majella Coonawarra

Overall, it was a great night which was also educational the difference in vintages was more pronounced when tasted side by side.  Bravo to my friends who brought the wines and I can’t wait for the next gathering!

Nose: very fruity nose of black fruits and cassis, hint of herb and mint,

Taste: medium bodied, a bit light for a Chianti, low acidity, easy to drink but a bit hollow on the mid palate.

Finish: short finish of 10 second

An OK bottle but I felt it was lacking the usual Chianti fruitiness.  Perhaps it would’ve benefited with more aeration?

Nose: liquorice, dense red fruits and a hint of blackcurrant and mint,

Taste: red fruit and wine gums, slightly tannic, good fruit and medium bodied,

Finish: 20 second finish

A good wine.  The wines are easy to drink and delicious when paired with food.

Nose: denser than 2002, black fruits, creme de cassis, hint of herb, sweet black fruits like blueberry, hint of vanilla

Taste: sweet red fruit, slight tannic dryness,  this is still a young wine! Medium bodied and with a very good and silky texture

Finish: 30 second fin with a coffee aftertaste.

A very good wine with nice fruit.  I was amazed at the finish when I sensed some coffee aftertaste…

Nose: oily texture, concentrated black fruits, alcoholic nose, hint of medicinal cough syrup

Taste: sweet cabernet sauvignon made in a new world style, not tannic, very fruity with a slightly reductive nose.

Finish: 15 second finish

A solid wine which expresses Coonawarra Cab Sauv well without being overextracted.  Shame we had it after the 2 PCs!