The Local Nose tasting
08 March 2013. Le Vigne, Singapore.
A wine tasting organised by
The Local Nose group in
Singapore. As far as I gathered on the night, they are group of wine enthusiast
in Singapore who regularly organise tasting events, showcasing the wines of
particular local, independent wine merchants that they support. This tasting
featured wines stocked by
Le Vigne, a small wine merchant focusing on good
value, everyday drinking wines at around the $30-50 range mostly from the new
world - though I did spot some rather smart Chataeuneufs lying around on the
shelves.
The tasting notes below are in the order I tasted them.
The prices indicated are retail in Singapore Dollars by the bottle at Le Vigne,
though they do offer 10% discount on all cash and carry purchases.
Finca Flichman Extra Brut
$41.50 | B
An 80/20 blend of Chardonnay / Malbec made using the
Charmat method, more commonly associated with the production of prosecco.
Golden, salmon tinge; strawberry and peach fruity nose,
with slight bready / developed characters. Palate is fruit dominated, quite
large but feels slightly thin and dilute; medium low acid, its passable as an
aperitif. Lacks bit of brightness and zing for my liking.
2008 Bald Hills ‘Last Light’ Riesling. Central Otago, NZ.
$49.90 | B+
Lemon zest and blossoms on the nose, with a hint of
petrol / kerosene; slightly waxy lemons too, with candied peel aromas, like air
freshener. Gently off dry, perhaps in the 10-20 g/l range; fat lemony flavours
with a grapefruit pithiness on the finish. High acidity makes it feel zingy and
effectively dry on the finish, its got good fruit concentration to keep things
interesting; a pretty, ageworthy wine.
2011 Mount Brown Sauvignon Blanc. Waipara Valley, NZ.
$41.70 | B+
Served blind. Citrus and green guava, with a touch of
tropical fruit sweetness coming through, subtle leafy / grassy undertones. On the
palate, the greenness becomes more obvious; flinty, minerally and quite
textured in style; not your usual opulent fruit-driven NZSB, more of a mature,
ripe Pouilly Fume.
2009 Mount Brown Pinot Noir. Waipara Valley, NZ.
$49.50 | A-
Dark cherry with sweet prunes, earthy and sweet spices,
with star anise dominating; a lick of sweet oak and even cedar / incense woods
completes a very polished nose. Fruit is bright, morello cherry and kirsch,
with wild strawberries on the palate, nice ripeness of fruit with slight
crunchy acidity; hint of blackpepper and sweet spice on the finish. A full
bodied style with good flavour concentration and velvety texture. Its complete,
very classy & poised.
Castello Albai Joven. Rioja, Spain.
$26.50 | B
Dark fruit compote, quite sweet and cooked; very apparent
oak treatment shows through the prominent sweet vanilla and coconut notes, bit
too brash, somewhat unappealing for me. Fruit is sweet and juicy, large on the
entry but fades very quickly; feels thin on the mid palate, gritty and rough on
the finish. Rather simple flavours on show, somewhat agricultural in approach,
not pretty.
2011 Finca Flichman Reserva Malbec. Mendoza, Argentina.
$37.50 | B+
Sweet dark fruit, blackberry and blueberry compote
dominates along with fragrant violets and cassis notes; lifted aromas. Fruit shows
dark plums and blueberries, its ripe but feels quite heavy and alcoholic;
bitter chocolate on the finish. Medium low in acid, theres a rather unpleasant gritty
/ coal dust note on the finish; over extracted in my opinion, lacks balance.
2010 Gran Bajoz Vinas Viejas. Toro, Spain.
$47.90 | B+(+)
Part of Pagos del Rey’s operation (same parent company as
the Castillo Albai above), Gran Bajoz is their top Toro wine.
Dark fruit, blackberry, dark plums and bramble; dried
herbs / garrigue, coffee and dark chocolate; with some hefty sweet oak notes,
almost charred / BBQ notes; brooding, makes you expect a huge wine. Prunes and
blackberry carry through on the palate; bags of fruit, nice concentration and
staying power on the mid palate; obviously extracted, it is trying to be a big
wine and just about pulls it off. Medium acid, ripe, sweet but chunky tannins,
this will reward medium term cellaring; drink now – 2018+
2010 Vinaceous ‘Red Right Hand’. Multiregion blend,
Australia.
$61.50 | B+
A blend of McLaren Vale Shiraz (79%), Grenache (15%) and Western
Australia Tempranillo (5%), if not anything else, it is novel.
Sweet blackcurrant and blackberry jam, it is overtly (and
intentionally?) sweet and confected in style; fragrant but a bit too brash for
me. Fruit shows red plums and blackberry; its ripe, quite alcoholic and sweet; low
acid, decent mid palate weight, finishes quickly. Drink young to capture the
sweetness.
Overall: Interesting selection of wines, but this being
my first review from Singapore, its clear that I must recalibrate my scale for
value for money. Wines aren’t cheap here: at the moment, the Finca Flichman
Reserva Malbec is being offered by Waitrose in the UK for £6.99 or approx. $14
(down from £8.99, approx. $18). Similarly, the Mount Browns retail in the UK
for £10-15; its more than twice that here. That said, it was great getting to know some of the Local Nose crew - it was a fun, convivial occasion all around. I even managed to pick up some interesting bottles from Le Vigne ...
Links:
Le Vigne – tasting venue and stockists for all the wines
above
72 Namly Place, Singapore 267220
T: (65) 64620053 E: le_vigne@singnet.com.sg
Open 7 days a week 12-18.30
