Aussie Wines!

One of the advantages of writing wine reviews is that people send you their wines to try. I write articles for a local magazine in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney called The Beast and from these reviews, I receive a few e-mails per month. One of the guys who works for BackVintage Wines, Michael, contacted me about their wines.

Apparently their boss hates it when someone says this, but they’re basically cleanskin wines. Now when people think of cleanskins, they think of $3 bottles that are leftovers, but there are many cleanskins out there of varying quality. So how do you make sure you get the decent stuff? Get a Master of Wine (Nick Bulleid, MW) to select your wines for you. That way you know that you have a bloke with an accredited palate behind your label.

I was sent two wines to try, their 2008 Margaret River Chardonnay and 2008 Yarra Valley Coldstream Pinot Noir. The Chardy will set you back $12.99 per bottle and the Pinot is $14.99 per bottle. And yes I know the pic isn’t of either of the bottles, but go with it.

The Chardonnay, I am told, is declassified fruit from a producer that normally sells a $65 Chardy. This stuff apparently just barely missed the cut. This is the first of the two wines that I tried and I thought it was very good value, especially for $13. It’s got fantastic length to it, a really beautiful mouthfeel, without being overly oaky or buttery (which often turns people off Chardonnay). Don’t get me wrong, there’s oak there, but not a lot of it and it’s well integrated. There’s also a nice acid backbone running through this wine. Lovely citrus, ripe peach and melon flavours come through - it’s not too shabby at all. If you’re a Sauvignon Blanc drinker, this is not for you. But if you normally drink $20 - $30 Chardonnay and are looking for an every day quaffer during this global financial crisis, this is something you should check out. 89 points.

The Pinot also opened up very well. It has a really light colour, even for a Pinot. Then I stuck my nose in the glass and was pleasantly surprised too. It has a beautiful gamey nose, reminding me of some of the $50ish Pinots that I’ve tried over the years. The palate didn’t quite follow through though, it’s quite short in length and very light in flavour. Now this isn’t always a bad thing, but I’ll admit I was expecting more given the nose. For $15, it’s certainly worth looking at, especially during summer when you want a really light red, but don’t expect it to bowl you over. Just remember that Pinot is an expensive grape to produce since the berries are small and fickle, so if you’re a Pinot fan, it’s good value for money. 87 points.

So yes, they’re still cleanskins, but they’re some of the better cleanskins out there and are very good value for money. Check out www.backvintage.com.au for more details.