winewaves

Henry's Drive Pillar Box White 2006

The aroma is so fresh, it glows in the dark. Just follow your nose to your glass. Here is an innovative way to use Chardonnay grapes.

Pillar Box White follows the successful model of Pillar Box Red. This boîte blanche combines great ingredients, talented winemaking, an immediately accessible slightly off-dry style and an everyday price.

The blend is 66% Chardonnay, 20% Sauvignon Blanc and 14% Verdelho, sourced from Padthaway Australia. Chris Ringland of Henry's Drive is credited as Winemaker and Dan Phillips of Grateful Palate imports and markets it.

Excellent value ($10).  Closure: Screw cap.  Alcohol content: 12.5%.

Style: Unwooded, juicy tart, light and zesty refreshment.

Tasting Notes: Appearance: Pale straw with a greenish tint. Aromas: Melon, lime, pear, plus grassy and flinty notes. The mouthfeel is citrusy tart and light-bodied. The sweet and sour lime and orange rind flavors are refreshing with just a touch of mineral and a clean well-balanced finish, albeit barely off-dry.

Comment: Spring forward, pucker up and clean your palate.

Winewaves reviewed Pillar Box Red 2005.

Woop Woop Chardonnay 2006

Unseasoned with oak, Chardonnay becomes more subtle and fruit forward in the nose, but then you really taste and feel the pure fruit intensity, and the finish is more refreshing.  What is really refreshing is when you find an unwooded Chardonnay that doesn't cost more than oaked ones.  After all, with oak barrels at $800+ each, one expects a discount for bypassing the wood.

Woop Woop* Chardonnay is a project between Penny’s Hill winemaker Ben Riggs and owner Tony Parkinson, imported by Seattle-based Epicurean.  The 100% Chardonnay fruit was sourced from Swan Hill, Victoria and McLaren Vale in south eastern Australia.  Yields this vintage were moderately light, at under 5 tons/acre.

Tasting Notes: Color: Light straw.  Aromas: Pear, apple and hints of gooseberry, lime and orange.  The mouthfeel is light-bodied with nice round citrusy fruity flavors which are intensely refreshing in the tart finish.

Outstanding value ($10).  Closure: Screw cap.  Alcohol content: 13%.

Winewaves reviewed the 2005 vintage of Woop Woop Chardonnay.

*Woop Woop is Australian slang for "the middle of nowhere".

Cape Mentelle Sauvignon Blanc Semillon 2005

This Australian version of a white Bordeaux is "something different" and turns out to be worth the detour, for its complexity and near perfection.

Cape Mentelle* Sauvignon Blanc Semillon 2005 is a 50/50 blend (actually 49/49 + 2% Chardonnay) of Margaret River fruit, half from the estate.  A minor portion of the lots (15%) underwent fermentation in new oak barrels. 

Tasting Notes: Color: Pale straw with a greenish tint.   Aromas: Lemony citrus, melon, and spearmint.  Light bodied, clean and somewhat minerally on the tongue, with grapefruit, white peach, ginger and flint essences that finish dry and palate-cleansing.

Excellent value ($15).   Closure: Screw cap.   Alcohol content: 13.7%.

Food pairing: Shrimp gumbo.

*Cape Mentelle is now part of the Moët Hennessy Wine Estates, having been established by David and Mark Hohnen in the 1970s.  The Mentelle namesake comes from the French brothers who charted the area.  Robert Mann took over as Senior Winemaker in December, 2005.

Premium 3 Liter Bag-in-Box Chardonnay - Hardy's Stamp Australia 2005 & Black Box Monterey 2005

After spending a couple of weeks with several premium Box Chardonnays in the refrigerator, I'm looking for more of them to try.  In addition to the benefits of lower cost per glass, freshness, convenience, and ease, there is another benefit: the easy to recycle box.

Instead of hauling four glass bottles to the recycle center, you can open the box, remove the bag and spout inside, fold the box and put in your curbside recycle bin (in Nashville glass is not permitted in the curbside bin).

Here's a tip: The bag inside is likely to have a glass of wine left in it when the tap stops.  Therefore, when you remove the bag to recycle the box, just throw that bag (and that last glass of wine inside) in your refigerator for later.  To get the remainder out, cut through the top corner of the bag and pour it out.  This last bit is perfect for cooking, and fine for drinking.

Hardy's Stamp Australia 2005 - Tasting Notes: Color: Light straw.  Peach, vanilla and whiffs of smoke introduce this light, slightly sweet, fruity and tart Chardonnay.  Alcohol content: 13.0%.  Excellent value ($14/3.0 Liter = $3.50/750ml equivalent).

Black Box Monterey Chardonnay 2005 - Tasting Notes: Color: Light golden straw.  Juicy fruity tropical aromas are merged with hints of buttersotch in this nicely dry, clean Chardonnay.  The apple and pear flavors are charged with lemon and tinted by oak.  Alcohol content: 13.5%.
Excellent value ($18/3.0 Liter = $4.50/750ml equivalent).

Constellation Brands owns Black Box and Hardy's.   Ryan Sproule, the Winemaker and Founder at Black Box could be credited with inventing the 3.0 Liter premium box wine category.  Constellation is currently the most aggressive marketer in this fast-growing segment.

Mollydooker "The Violinist" Verdelho 2006

The first 2006 vintage wine spotted in Nashville came to town highly rated, reasonably priced, and in short supply. Sparky and Sarah Marquis wasted no time bringing their new label Mollydooker to the USA, after they ended their involvement with Dan Philips' Marquis Philips label.

Mollydooker is Australian for "left-handed".  The label was designed by Sarah Marquis, who like her husband Sparky, is left-handed.  When she was a child, she was required to play the violin right-handed to avoid the scene depicted on "The Violinist".

Verdelho is also known as Verdejo in Spain (popular in Rueda), and is a delicate grape prone to fast oxidation. Sparky Marquis reports the composition of "The Violinist" 2005 is 100% Verdelho from 10-year-old vines in McLaren Vale. All the wine spent time on the lees, but malolactic fermentation was not allowed. A portion was fermented and aged 25 days in new French and American oak.

Tasting Notes: Color: Pale straw with a greenish tint.  Aromas: Sweet melon, mango, pineapple, lemon and hints of flint and smoke.  Tart and citrusy at first, then the bright fruit flavors evolve into a creamy and well rounded-off texture, which finishes crisp and clean.  Alcohol: 15%.

Closure: Screw cap.  Excellent value ($16).  Food pairing: Fresh cut fruit.  Cases produced: 1300.

Winewaves recently posted a picture of Sparky Marquis when he was in Nashville on July 18th.

Mollydooker Wines Arrive in Nashville - Introduced by Co-Owner Sparky Marquis

Sparky Marquis, who together with wife Sarah are introducing Mollydooker wines, escorted their first vintage into the Nashville market this past week. Mollydooker means "left-handed", which is how Sparky invites a handshake. Included in the 4-item line is the first 2006 wine spotted in Nashville, a white wine, a Verdelho called "The Violinist".  Reds are the main focus however, with a 2005 Shiraz called "The Boxer", a 2005 Cabernet called "The Maitre' D", and a 2005 Shiraz-Cab-Merlot blend called "Two Left Feet".  The clever labels, which play on the awkwardness of being left-handed, and which contain multiple levels of 1930's-rooted visual interest, are the idea of left-handed Sarah Marquis.

My first impression was strongly positive for all these wines. Look for full reviews and label shots of these wines, upcoming on Winewaves.

A rapid sellout of their first vintage is likely given that The Wine Advocate (Robert Parker) blessed the lineup with all 92+ ratings, the prices are affordable ($15 white, $20 reds), and the first year's release is only 30,000 cases.

Pictured left to right, above: Jeff Warzynski, Wine Manager, Frugal MacDoogal Wine Warehouse in Nashville; Sparky Marquis, co-Owner and Winemaker at Mollydooker.  Jeff is holding a bottle of "The Boxer" Shiraz, as Sparky holds a bottle of "The Violinist" Verdelho.

Winewaves recently reviewed the Marquis' previously released Marquis-Philips Shiraz 2004.  The Marquis-Philips label was the joint project of California importer Dan Philips and Sparky and Sarah Philips.  Philips now owns the Marquis-Philips label, while the Marquis' Grapes International imports Mollydooker to the USA.

Woop Woop Australia Chardonnay 2005

Woop Woop Chardonnay 2005 was made by Ben Riggs (Winemaker at Penny's Hill), from Southeastern Australia contract-grown 100% Chardonnay, and imported by Epicurean.  Woop Woop is slang for "the middle of nowhere", or what Tennesseans call "the boonies".

Vinification included cold fermentation and stabilization in stainless steel (Unwooded). 90 points. Color: Lemony straw, with a slight greenish tint. Aromas: Fresh tropical fruit, primarily pineapple, orange and grapefruit, backed by hints of spices (nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger) and cold blossoms. The mouthfeel is crisp, tart and dry with a nice round body. Tropical fruit and citrusy flavors echo in the crisp refreshing unsweet finish. Closure: Screw cap. Retail: $11. Value: Excellent.

Paringa Chardonnay/Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc 2004

Paringa White is 47% Chardonnay, 38% Semillon, and 15% Sauvignon Blanc

The fruit is sourced from the Hickinbotham's Clarendon estate and other vineyards in South Australia, produced by David and Dena Hickinbotham. Imported by the Grateful Palate. 87.5 points. Color: Light straw. Aromas: Restrained pear, citrus (lime, orange), and cold blossoms. The mouthfeel is light, tart, with a somewhat rounded-off and creamy texture. Flavors of apple, tart lemon-lime and nutty nuances lead to a crisp dry finish with echoes of fruit. Food pairing: Chicken Salad. Closure: Real cork. (A screw cap would be an improvement.) Retail: $11.  Value: Very nice.

Trevor Jones Boots White 2004

Trevor Jones White 2004 is imported by The Grateful Palate, and is a blend of Riesling and Muscat. Winemaker is Trevor Jones. 88 points. Color: Light straw. Pretty floral, lime and pineapple aromas lead to a juicy round mouthfeel, lightly sweet flavor, tart acidity, peachy-apricot flavors and nice minerality. Closure: Screw cap. Retail: $13. Value: Very nice

Four Emus Sauvignon Blanc Semillon 2004

Four Emus Sauvignon Blanc Semillon is a Western Australia version of a white Bordeaux. Winemaker is Ross Pamment. 87 points. Color: Pale straw. Aromas: Green grassy, parsley, oregano, peach and citrus (grapefruit. lemon). The mouthfeel is creamy smooth, tart and light. The flavors carry through grapefruit, lemon, melon and grass. The finish cleanses the palate. Food pairing: Deviled eggs with parsley. Closure: Screw cap. Retail: $8. Value: Very nice.