Hay Shed Hill 2009 Block 2 Cabernet Sauvignon

I like it when someone delivers you a ready made, straightforward but still rather elegant to a potentially thorny problem.

We weren't long back from Western Australia and I was trying to figure out how to include the wineries we'd visited over there into a purchasing schedule that didn't have much room for manoeuvre when the flier about the Hay Shed Hill Four Seasons Club arrived in the P.O. Box.

The beauty of those we'll send you a specified number of bottles at prescribed intervals wine clubs is that the buyer is saved the effort involved in deciding what he or she wants to buy. Someone else makes the decisions, but you've probably got the chance to try what you would have ordered in the first place and, most importantly, it takes the when out of the ordering equation.

In the end it all depends on whether you're interested in what they're offering.

In this case, an arrangement where you receive the Semillon Sauvignon Blanc in summer, their Sangiovese and Tempranillo in the autumn, Cabernet Sauvignon in the winter and Chardonnay in the spring looked pretty attractive at a first glance, though the $180 a throw for half a dozen wines seemed rather steep, so I did a bit of basic research, and a bit was all that was needed.

Apart from the autumn wines, the wines are drawn from their Block Series, wines made from single parcels of fruit from designated blocks that supposedly represent the best grapes on the property.

Fine, so how were they rated?

The SSB consistently rated 84 from Mr Halliday, the Cabernet ranged between 94 and 96, and the Chardonnay was the same.

As far as the pricing went, the autumn wines were $20, the SSSB $30, the Chardonnay $35 and the Cab Sauv $50, so I figured that $135 x 6 was $810, while four times $180 was $720, and the deliveries were freight free, so why not?

The SSB duly arrived, and made for quite sublime summer drinking, the autumn wines were acceptable without being overly impressive, but this one…

Hay Shed Hill 2009 Block 2 Cabernet Sauvignon (5* $50) Bright deep dense red in the glass, intense berry and blackcurrant notes on the nose and a complex palate built from a base of tightly wound tannins this wine provides ample justification for signing up for the Hay Shed Hill Four Seasons. Colour me highly impressed.

Fermoy Estate 2008 Yallingup Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot

There are times when you find yourself scratching the noggin and wondering what happened to that stuff you know you've got here somewhere but isn't where it ought to be. I was sure that I'd filed everything from the winery side of the Western Australia trip last year in separate folders in the filing cabinet, but when I went checking a minor detail there was no sign of a folder dedicated to material from Fermoy Estate.

There should, by rights, be a scribbled page of notes that produced the tasting notes and impressions noted here, but I was hoping for a price list or something similar that would verify that the wine I'd assessed as a bit young but had things in place to improve with age had the words Yallingup Vineyard on the label. Assuming it did, ten months or so has seen things fall into place rather nicely.

There are plenty of places to visit when you're wandering around Margaret River, even if you've decided to limit yourself to the places James Halliday has allocated five stars, and the decision to add Fermoy Estate to the list was partly based on Mr Halliday's rating, partly prompted by an assessment that they were happy to keep a relatively low profile, however difficult that may be given the quality of the wines and partly by the establishment's proximity to Cullen Wines on a day where the itinerary was centred around a tasting and lunch at Cullens before hitting the road to head back towards Perth.

Getting orders in to everywhere you want to buy from is rather tricky when you've got an extensive list of places you want to buy from, limited storage space and a diplomatic need to limit the number of cases in front of the wine rack.

There are, however, some offers you can't refuse, and dozens of the Fermoy 2009 Yallingup Vineyards Margaret River Semillon Sauvignon Blanc and 2009 Margaret River Sauvignon Blanc for $180 all-up including $30 freight was too good to miss, given the fact that Hallidayy had rated both at the 93 mark. I hadn't been quite so taken with a 4/5 rating, but then again at $7.50 a bottle you can afford to take a punt and prove yourself wrong.

In any case (actually, in both cases) I thought that the wines would go down well with the Merry frockster's lady friend, so a we'll go halves arrangement was fairly easy to negotiate.

Suffice it to say she liked them enough to save them for special occasions, so that when the end of the financial year offer from Fermoy had what looked like the 2010 equivalents a phone call was enough to ensure we were backing up for a restocking exercise.

You can't start on the whites until you can get 'em into the fridge, so I thought a good starting point this time around would be the...

Fermoy Estate 2008 Yallingup Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot (4.5* $20, sale $10) Dark red with purple notes in the glass, subtly pronounced cabernet character on the nose with some plummy merlot in there as well, berry flavours across the palate with ripe firmly rounded tannins and a lingering finish this 70% cabernet blend hit the spot rather nicely and left me regretting the fact that I only ended up with half a dozen. Somehow I doubt that I'll be able to reorder at the sale price.

Olssens of Watervale 2006 The Second Six

They don't make 'em like that any more. They can't get the wood, y'know.

Or, I suspect, in this case the Carmenère.

I've written elsewhere about the circumstances that brought us to the Olssens of Watervale cellar door, but it's worth reiterating that the drive is the sort of thing that's likely to deter any but the most determined traveller.

The continued absence of a website seems almost inexplicable in the twenty-first century and it took a while for an order to go in, but given the fact that a consultation with Mr Halliday's tome revealed a range that largely sat in the $20-$30 bracket and was consistently rated in the 93-94 range I was always going to get there eventually.

The highlight of the visit to the cellar door was my encounter with The Olssen Six, one of the few examples of a Bordeaux blend to feature all six of the classic Bordeaux varieties. There are others that go close - the Cullen Diana Madeline being one notable example - but four out of six or five out of six ain't six out of six. You're not going to get that perfect six unless you can lay your hands on some Carmenère, and it seems, from what I can gather, that there are a mere half-dozen or so vineyards in Australia where the variety is grown.

I've still got five bottles of The Six lurking in the cellar fridge with the next rendezvous with one pencilled in for some time around 2014. My note from the bottle we sampled in October 2010 reads:

Olssens of Watervale 2006 The Olssen Six (5/5 $60) Possibly unique blend of  Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Carmenère and Petit Verdot. From the first whiff there's a considerable Wow! factor. Intense, focussed, layered and elegant, a wine to savour at length and leisure.

At around $30 cheaper, its little brother doesn't have quite the same depth but there's plenty on offer here as well.

Olssens of Watervale 2006 The Second Six (4.5/5 $28) Deeply red in the glass, with complex notes across the nose and an acrobatic balance of red and black fruits across the palate this doesn't pack quite the same punch as its sibling but comes across as well weighted with a pleasing depth of flavour and a lengthy finish which, again, encourages the drinker to take some time over the end of the bottle.

Helm 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon

Since I'm writing these notes (largely) as a personal record of what I've tried that can be used when orders go in to wineries there's a pretty fair argument against posting anything about this one.

Frosts in November 2006 meant that only 380 cases of this one were produced, so you wouldn't expect stocks to last too long. On the other hand, of course, given the fact that Helm ships their wine in boxes of ten rather than a dozen (not sure why, and forgot to ask when we were there) I guess that'll make other decisions a bit easier, won't it.

Helm 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon (4.5* $32) Bright red in the glass, with an interesting mix of elements on the nose there's plenty of varietal character across the palate with earthy notes rather than mint character, fine tannins and a rolling lengthy finish. They'll be out of the '07 shortly, but will be watching for the '08.

Pfeiffer 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon

Given the fact that the object of the exercise is to keep track of what I've been drinking ith a view to figuring out future orders it makes sense to complete a stocktake every now and then, and figure out some way of keeping track of what you've actually got.

I've had a couple of attempts at something along those lines over recent years, and each time the wheels have fallen off due to an inability to put things in place to monitor stock levels, and keep track of what's been consumed along the way.

Returning from the recent southern odyssey the first priority was clearing the decks for the new kitchen, which meant that for three or four days we were operating on reduced cooking facilities, which was a fair excuse for hitting the takeaway options and clearing leftovers out of the freezer and an even better excuse for making a bit of space in the wine rack by clearing out bottles that have been there for a while, which usually means they're the last survivors of dozen lots, so in most cases I've already got something along the lines of a tasting note.

With the new kitchen in place it was soon obvious that we were looking at a far better photographic environment when it came to capturing images of wine bottles, and much of the time since the electricians finished their end of the job has been devoted to the photographic side of recording what's on hand. That process isn't totally complete, but with the new database (Hughesy's Cellar) almost up to date and the possibility of a second (Hughesy's Wine Archive) under consideration, most of the stock that's been lurking on the floor of the office relocated to the wine rack and the ability to look at current stock levels by variety, a Saturday night rump with a potato casserole looked like a reasonable excuse to start a serious assault on the April Pfeiffer C2 Club selection.

With winter seemingly upon us and a stock of Cabernet Sauvignon around the dozen mark, starting with the 2009 Cabernet seemed a logical move, given the suitability as a food match and the possibility of needing to build up stocks.

Pfeiffer 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon (4.5* $22.50 Wine Club $20.25) Deeply purple in the glass, varietal mint on the nose with blackberry and rounded tannins across the palate, this worked well with the steak and delivered something to savour after the meal was done. Nicely structured, very easy drinking and a definite reorder candidate.

Whiskey Gully 2005 Upper House Cabernet Sauvignon

We were headed for the Granite Belt a bit over twelve months ago, and while, in my host's words, there's a winery for every week of the year, the visit was about renewing old acquaintances, introducing new life partners and that sort of thing rather than maxing out on the tasting opportunities.

A quick look at the options meant that we arrived with two places to visit, and one of them was Whiskey Hill Wines, which seemed to be an operation strong on character that was probably worth a visit.

So we did.

The operation hosts an eatery where Friday nights are apparently in the substantial range, and Saturday morning probably wasn't the best time to be calling, but the proprietors' daughter was friendly after an extremely late night (Dad was cleaning the kitchen and not overly impressed by the world at large), the collection of stringed instruments on the walls intriguing and the wines worth a look. We escaped with a couple of bottles, including this one, and would definitely go back if the place is still in the same hands.

The daughter, however, was looking to relocate to France, and Mum and Dad had put the place on the market. While I'm inclined to go back I'll be checking local sources for info before doing so.

Whiskey Gully 2005 Upper House Cabernet Sauvignon (4* $26) Quite attractive retro style red if you like that style, which I do. While there's nothing wrong with the wine, which packs most of the requisite elements into the glass there's nothing that makes me stop and take notice either. Long finishing steak or roast beef style that won't have you racing out looking to buy it by the pallet but does its job quite satisfactorily.

The 4* rating translates to: I should buy this, but there may well be constraints that prevent me from doing so. The constraints run in at an unwillingness to shell out for a dozen, uncertainty about the current state of play at the winery and a website that doesn't seem to have been updated in a while.

Lenton Brae 2009 Cabernet Merlot

I wasn't quite as taken by this one when we were at the Cellar Door, but sitting down with a bottle some six months later I'm starting to wish I'd indulged in, well maybe not a whole case but definitely a few more than a mere three. Still, having jumped on board for dozens of the No Way Rose and the Southside Chardonnay at substantial reductions, lack of space in the rack was an important consideration.

Lenton Brae 2009 Cabernet Merlot (4.5/5 $25) Works very well as a softer, drink now style and that;s definitely the territory this one's aimed towards. Notes on the winery website confirm the intention, and with a fragrant nose, softly rounded palate with the tannins subtly folded into the mix and a lengthy finish. Possibly not one for the long term, but as a medium-bodied style to drink over the next year to eighteen months (which is about all you can expect in this environment unless I can manage a substantial increase in refrigerated cellar capacity) it's hard to see how you could go much better.

Brown Brothers 2004 Shiraz Mondeuse & Cabernet (Relocated)

Some things stick with you.

On my first visit to Brown Brothers in January 1980 I ran across this blend with the helpful and very informative bloke in the cellar door giving me the drum on Mondeuse. I'd already let him know I was interested in varietal wines, and Brown Brothers seemed, at the time, like Varietal Central. That's changed a little over thirty years, but the changes have largely taken the form of other people heading down the varietal path rather than Brown Brothers changing direction.

Inquiries as to the possibility of tasting Mondeuse on its own produced an explanation that the variety was far too muscular as a stand alone proposition unless you were going to give it an extended spell in the bottle to settle down, but in a blend it adds intense colour and substantial tannin. I haven't run across this one all that often over the intervening decades, but I managed to fit a bottle into an order placed in May '09 and while it could have sat quietly in the wine fridge for another couple of years,

(a) I needed the room for a Houghton C.W. Ferguson;

(b) It's coming up to seven years, not optimal perhaps but it's had some time; and

(c) I was disinclined to wait much longer.

Brown Brothers 2004 Shiraz Mondeuse & Cabernet (4.5* $40) Deep full-bodied red, complex notes on the nose, focussed, smooth and balanced across the palate with everything playing nicely together. At just over 50% Shiraz, with the other two sharing the rest close to evenly you can taste what the Mondeuse brings to this rather wonderful blend. I would love to have the wherewithal to try one of these at fifteen, twenty or twenty-five years.

Houghton 2007 C.W. Ferguson Cabernet Malbec (Relocated)

We weren't planning on getting to the Swan Valley when we headed west, so visits to Sandalford and Houghton were a bonus. I first encountered this wine in association with a Vinturi, and based on that experience was more or less forced to buy a half-dozen of these. The Vinturi prompted the purchase and the purchase in turn prompted the subsequent acquisition of a Vinturi.

Houghton 2007 C.W. Ferguson Cabernet Malbec (4.5* 19 points $41.25, at least that's what I paid) Deep purple-red colour, Cabernet varietal notes in the nose modified by the Malbec element. Massive. magnificent, still very young and in ten years time may well be rated at 20. Memo to self: There are five bottles left, get them into the wine fridge.

Baileys of Glenrowan 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon (Relocated)

Under normal circumstances I'm wary of the offshoots of the big corporates, but Baileys of Glenrowan occupies a special place in my personal wine iconography, thanks to the old HJT Liqueur Muscat, whichexplains the apparent inconsistency. I joined the 1870 Club because the freight free delivery would probably keep me in Liqueur Muscat and Tokay (along with thje odd bottle from Pfeiffers), but the 1904Block and 1920s Block Shiraz have found a niche in the wine fridge, and I may well be back for more of this one.

Baileys of Glenrowan 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon (4.5* $25) Arrived as part of 1870s Club shipment, and presumably available cellar door or phone call only, since it doesn't appear on the website. Surprisingly soft (I was expecting something substantially bigger) fruit-driven style with smoothly rounded tannins and a very moreish mouth-feel. May not be one for the long haul, but could well be part of a reorder after I've tried the other three reds in the pack.