Winemaking at Cobaw Ridge

Tasting Notes |Lagrein

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Tasting Notes

Cellar door: Current release

2006 Tasting Notes

2006 Cobaw Ridge Chardonnay

Brilliant light gold/green in the glass. Subtle nose of melon, showing complex barrel fermentation characters. Vibrant on the palate with complex mineral characters and fine acidity. Fantastic length.
Winemaker: Alan Cooper

Pale yellow; attractive open nose, mildly exotic with hints of spice and ginger; soft, fullish flavour, some lees character with touch of exotics on finish; good length, balanced understated oak and alcohol. Distinct improvement on the 2003 - much more delicacy and subtlety. It need a shade more concentration and grip to propel it up to the next level. Remington Norman MW

2005 Tasting Notes

2005 Cobaw Ridge Pinot Noir / SOLD OUT

James Halliday, Australian Wine Companion 2008 Edition.
Powerful, intense dark plum and accompanying black cherry; a long palate sustained by fine tannins; should develop very well with age.
Rated: 93 out of 100

Full colour; closed nose, hints of dark kirsch cherry; youthful flavours, refined tannins, good length and a firm core of ripe fruit. Still very closed - needs a few years to express itself; one can see the promise here. The wood is much better judged than in the 2003 - altogether better structured and balanced. I don't know how young/old these vines are, but the wine will gain in richness and interest as the vines age.
Remington Norman MW

There’s a lot of stalk, spice and tannin here and accordingly it needs a fair bit of breathing to show its wares. Indeed I thought it was fairly rough at first and came back to a major surprise. I now reckon this will perform really well given a few extra years in bottle. It tastes of stalks, red and dark cherries, pine and dried leaves. It’s tightly focused persistent. It has all the credentials to mature well.  Campbell Mattinson
90/100

2005 Cobaw Ridge Shiraz/Viognier

James Halliday Australian Wine Companion 2008 Edition
"Listed in the best of the best by Variety." Generous, soft, velvety black cherry, plum and blackberry fruit; fine tannins and supporting oak.
Rated: 94 out of 100

GOURMET TRAVELLER WINE : June /July 2008 Edition Ken Gargett : Big red 2008 : Shiraz Macedon Ranges : Emerging Star 2005 Cobaw Ridge Shiraz Viognier.

WBM 100 : Cobaw Ridge Shiraz Viognier vintage 2005 : 94 / 100 - Tyson Stelzer. The Reputation of the Macedon Ranges Shiraz is on the up, and cool, spicy wines like this are taking it to new altitudes. The key here is elegance. This is a definitive cool climate style with layers of fragrant spice, white pepper flavours and very fine tannins.

Good colour; open nose, quite smoky and showing oak char and white pepper; clean attractive flavours with soft tannins, balanced alcohol and dense ripe fruit core; good length. Elegant with good varietal character and some complexity. Very attractive. Rather more complete, I think, than the 06.  Remington Norman MW

 The WINE FRONTAlmost beguiling. Exotic, floral, peppery aromatics lead to a complex palate chocked full of black cherry, kirsch, woodsap, pepper and bay leaves. It's a lively wine with lots of drying tannin, the odd note of game in keeping with the riot going on all around. I suspect that it will come to dry out, but as a young-ish wine it puts on an excellent display (though it desperately needs to be decanted).  Campbell Mattinson 92/100 Drink: 2009-2013.

                                                                                                               
2005 Cobaw Ridge Lagrein

Considerable density and structure coming with greater vine maturity and expectations of the variety; blackfruits.
Rated: 90 out of 100

James Halliday Australian Wine Companion 2008 Edition

WINEWISE Volume 23 Number 3..August 2007 Recommended 2005 Cobaw Ridge Lagrein SILVER. The Cobaw Ridge Lagrein is worthy of note. It presents well with a dense colour and fresh blueberry fruit. It's better than many Italian examples we have tasted.

Opaque, fine full black cherry hue; firm peppery nose, fleshy sweet fruit; tight palate, plenty of guts, firm but silky tannins supported by well integrated oak; black fruits dominate; mid weight despite its seeming bigger; good length. In character wine is reminiscent of young Mourvedre. Needs another 2-4 years to reach peak, but succulent and delicious now. As the vines age, the wine will deepen and gain in concentration.    Remington Norman MW

Cobaw Ridge Lagrein 2005 : From one of the variety's pioneering supporters, works well in the cool granite of Macedon. Complex cherry and lighter red fruit aromas, musky rose petals and herbs. The palate is built around fresh acid and gently chewy tanins. Finishes assertive. 90/100 - Nick Stock

DIAM closure : Our wine is bottled under DIAM to retain it's purity and integrity. The Diam closures are going in to often the more expensive and exclusive bottles of wine." -- Oeneo Closures, producers of DIAM, website at: www.oeneo.co.uk .

 

Lagrein

Lagrein is almost unknown in Australia, the variety originates from Sud Tyrol - Alto Adige in the far-north east of Italy. Cobaw Ridge in the Macedon Ranges produced the first commercial quantities in Australia.

1998 Cobaw Ridge Lagrein "Best Wine of the Show" The Australian Italian Wine Awards

at Mildura Grand Hotel 18 November 2000 Mildura

For more about Lagrein's history in Australia, see:

Lagrein - a new winegrape variety for Australia

.

Cobaw Ridge held a tasting of their wine and 15 Lagreins from Italy's best producers, also noted to be the largest tasting of its kind outside of Europe in the Southern hemisphere.

Here's what James Halliday had to say:

"Several things emerged: first, the aroma and flavour of the Cobaw Ridge wines is utterly typical of the variety. Second, the grape has emphatic character, which binds the wines of both countries into a coherent, tightly knit group... it is also abundantly clear the wines have a long cellaring potential.

The '99 Cobaw Ridge is still a bright purple-red, and looks every bit as youthful as the 2002. How long the vivid fruit aromas and flavours - raspberry, cherry, plum, will take to subside is anyone's guess. Having initially had a few doubts about the legitimacy of the variety - was it just a novelty or was it really worthy of attention - I am now a convert to the cause."

"I am now a convert to the cause."
-- James Halliday, 'Pucker up for Kyneton’s wild Italian... Lagrein', Weekend Australian, March 6-7 2004

www.winepros.com.au article: Cobaw Ridge, in the Macedon Ranges June 08 2004

Lagrein tasting with Nelly and Alan Cooper, Max Allen and James Halliday

Along with a number of other fantastic reviews:

"Long Live Lagrein" -- Tim White (personal communication)

Best Australian Italians: “Cobaw Ridge – a tightly focused, structured, savoury lagrein” -- Jeremy Oliver, 'Australian Winemakers Are Out To Beat The Italians At Their Own Grapes', Qantas magazine The Australian Way, July 2004

"LAGREIN an old Italian grape moving Down under" -- Nino Borsari (wine writer), 'La Dolce Vita - Italy Down Under', The National Magazine Of Italian Australian Affairs And Culture, Spring Summer 2004

Quotes from previous Cobaw Ridge Lagrein vintages:

"2003 Cobaw Ridge Lagrein -- The obscure red lagrein grape originated in Italy's north - east and is planted in a few Australian vineyards – but none yet matches the quality of the lagrein from this Macedon Ranges producer. Seductive, crisp, perfumed with violets and cherries this exceptionally well-balance, fine, medium-bodied red wine is a real beauty."
-- Max Allen, 'Taste', Weekend Australian, February 5-6 2005

"Cobaw Ridge in the Macedon Ranges has pioneered the grape variety in Australia and has had considerable success with it: 2003 Cobaw Ridge Lagrein "A much more serious offering from considerably older vines... Vigneron Alan Cooper has crafted a much richer wine..., full of blood plum, mint, black cherry, red rose and dusty oak off in the background. Crystal clear palate showing great clarity of saturated fruit and a driving backbone of herbal acidity and very fine tannins on the finish. Great definition and balance. A terrific wine, to be enjoyed with or without food, that will age over the medium term."
-- Andrew Wood, DIVINE Food & Wine, Issue 39 March/May 2005

"2003 Cobaw Ridge Lagrein: Delectable : from the Macedon Ranges."
-- Bob Hart, 'eat,' Weekend Herald Sun, June 18, 2005

"The cool climate grape variety can be built firm with ageing ability."
-- Jeni Port, 'Wine Style', The Age, June 25, 2005

HIGHLY COMMENDED
-- Australian Alternative Varieties Wine Show, November 2005

Ralph Kyte-Powell and Huon Hooke, The Penguin Good Australian WINE GUIDE 2007
Lagrein is a rather obscure grape variety native to north-east Italy. Alan and Nelly cooper have made a specialty of it in their vineyard. We can only think of two other Australian examples. Good on 'em for showing such innovative spirit.
2004 Cobaw Ridge Lagrein This is always a very distinctive wine. The '04 has deep colour and there was a wee tingle of gas opening, but the initial aromas are very seductive. It reminds us of tar, cherries spices and that peculiar mint/aniseed sort of perfume the Italians call liquorizia. The palate is on the light side of medium-bodied but it has fair intensity and persistence. The finish is light and soft. Par it with prosciutto crudo and roasted vegetables.
Rated: 91 out of 100

Fantastic flagship reds | The Courier-Mail By Ken Gargett September 11, 2007

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