 2011 As sweet wines go, they don’t get any stickier than this! The grapes were so botrytis ravaged at harvest that we wondered if we had waited too long (bugger, he’s done it again!) but then on the last day of May, the “in for a penny...” attitude took over and instructions were issued to select only the most raisined bunches and discard any which still contained green berries. The juice which dribbled slowly from the press was beyond expectation, well into unchartered territory at a whopping 53° Brix! The ferment was painstakingly slow and the wine almost thwarted efforts to clean it up for bottling. The result - one of the sweetest wines ever made in this country.Massive golden colour greets the eye and with normal glass swirling, the treacle-like viscosity is sufficient to prevent the surface of the wine from breaking. Molasses and double cooked toffee leap from the glass while it is still on the table and on closer inspection it reveals notes of waxy gardenia flower, chopped fejoa skin and dewy rosebuds in November. Chewy fruit straps and marmalade bubbling on the coal range just as lumps of crystallised ginger are added spring to mind and the tropical notes of super-ripe Sauvignon are reminiscent of a roadside stall in Queensland. When spooned into the mouth it pushes the cheeks out with sheer density and gentle chewing is required to divide and move it over the tongue. Blueberry jam, manuka honey, baked Alaska and crème brulee all rolled into one badger the taste buds and overwhelm the senses like armed militia in a North African state. The sugar is felt rather than tasted as the wine sticks delightfully to the palate like parata bread in a tandor oven yet it achieves deft balance courtesy of a prickly quill of frizzy acidity, an artefact of the shrivelled grapes and the gritty creaming soda edge keeps it clean and fresh in the finish. You won’t want to make this your regular tipple but treat yourself occasionally, as you would with a holiday romance. Solicitation, seduction, satisfaction.
2009 After writing 3 sets of tasting notes for these “sticky” mothers-of-all-wines, I am fast running out of superlatives! Each is different but I have come to realise they owe little of their enormous character and flavour profiles to their varietal heritage. Of more importance is the ripeness of the grapes at the point at which botrytis sets in, the weather thereafter, the steel-balled patience of both viticulturist and winemaker and finally the fermentation environment provided and maintained for the yeast to grow and carry out their ancient biblical conversion. The generous pond of deep golden colour, like the swish of the Vicars stole on Sunday morning, heralds the serious nature of what is to follow. From the glass rises sweet honeydew melon, frangipani, and lush dried apricot aromas. Butterscotch, pungent rose water and crystallised ginger show classically what happens when the blessed rot invades defenceless ripe grapes. The first impression to thump home on the palate is the viscosity –thick, creamy and uncommonly good, you can feel the tackiness between the tongue and cheek as if it might set at any moment. At the same time the wine is tantalisingly prickly like shattered ice swirling in a margarita mix during blending. Huge intensity with gushy flavours of sticky-dried figs and oven-fresh hokey pokey overwhelm the senses with a liveliness not seen since Iggy Pop first hit the stage bare-chested. Powerful acidity engenders balance yet is so rounded and rolled into the myriad of other parameters that it is hard to identify in this truly seamless wine. A truly heavenly creature!
2009 If parting is such sweet sorrow, reunion is surely the stuff of song writers and poets and can ironically but easily evoke true tears of joy. It has been 5 years since we produced a sticky from this underdog variety and I have missed it like a left arm that’s been blown off in a war. It could be the kind of emotional force on which the Rocky movies were premised but I struggle to find words to describe the first joyous moment of imbibing; as two old chums were reunited. The hue is rich and static as it glows like the Wairarapa Bow –an iconic windblown cloud formation- illuminated by the full moon in springtime. The lush nose springboards from the glass and encapsulates the attention with heady aromas of boiled caramel lolly, overripe apricot kernel and fresh gingerbread men resplendent with M&M jacket buttons. Some unabashedly brash yet sexy perfume allures and melds with lemon-honey dripping from hot crisp rye toast and there are hints of banana-bike chews and the muffled scent of sweet pumpkin pie. The palate is thick and lush and shows superb balance. Over the years, many drinks have been described as an “orgasm in a glass” but I am warning you, hang onto your belt buckles, this is exquisite! The seamlessness is such that it is almost impossible to distinguish the individual elements that make it so. A surreal combination of unctuous sweetness, single minded acidity, heavy handed fruitiness and a corrugated iron structure all bowing in unison before a pleated phenolic curtain is guaranteed to bring the house down as the senses rise in a standing ovation. In a daring attempt to ensure the geodesic balance was achieved, the alcohol was left deliberately low at 8%, stranding the residual sugar at a heart stopping 250g/l. A jug of this, a loaf of onion and parmesan ciabatta and thou…
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Our dessert wines are available in 375ml bottles only. We believe our dessert wines are best served at approximately 8-9 degrees Celsius. |
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