Preamble Tasting October 1999
Wines of the Week of the Year
John Heavey
1. Federspiel Gruner Veltliner, Austria, 1997
£6.99
2. Wynn's Coonawarra Riesling, 1998
£7.99
3. L'Avenir Riesling, Vin d'Estelle by van der Stell, South Africa,
1997 
Blend of Riesling, Cape Riesling and Viognier.
£4.49 Dunnes
4. Castello Vecchio Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, 1997
Beautiful warm nose, hint o tobacco. Rich, fruity, intense. Lovely mouthful,
but a teeny bit of unpleasant bitterness at the end. Great with food..
13%
£7.50
5. Mont Gras Reserve
Tasted blind. Initial thoughts were Malbec, maybe from Languedoc. But
this is Carmenere, the merlot of Chile. Very fruity . Not my cup of tea.
£9.99
6. La Cetto, Mexico
Again, tasted blind. Fruit and pepper, dense, dark, Black fruit gums.
Petite Sirah, which is apparently no relation to the Syrah.
£5.99
7. Chateau Gres St. Paul 1997
Light cherry red. Lovely nose. Stern, some mid-palate bitterness. Good
grip, smooth, fruity, soft tannins. A little black pepper. From Languedoc,
this is Syrah with a dash of Mourvedre.
£7.95
8. Hamilton-Russell Pinot Noir 1997
Light. Beautiful farmyard nose. Strawberries with a little cream. Good
grip. Complex. Balanced, wonderful. (1998 is promised to be great.)
£13.99
9. Nekeas Tempranillo/Cabernet, Navarra, 1996
Lovely clear dark red. Big warm nose, toasty oak. Warm,fruity, good acid,
bit of burn. 12.5%
£6.99
10. Pedroncelli Mother Clone Zinfandel, Sonoma, 1995
Lovely, quite Burgundian colour. Spice and pastilles on the nose.
Sharper on the palate at first. Becomes fruity, peppery, lovely soft tannins,
lots of spice and good burn - and I don't like Zinfandel.
£10.99 Dunnes - RRP £12.59
11. Zenato Valpolicella Superiore Ripassa 1996
A gorgeous deep red. Bit closed up. Lovely, big, fruity. Less amaro
than expected, good tannins.
£9.95 Searsons
12. St. Hallett Old Block Shiraz, Australia, 1995
Deep, quite solid colour. Big beefy nose. Quite stern. Needs some
time, but still stunning today. Berries, peppers. Will keep for ages.
£15.99 (said to be on sale in Dunnes for £13.99)