Post #2

Saturday night was supposed to be sushi, a belated viewing of the film ‘Go’ and a bottle of Plunkets Strathbogie Ranges Gewurztraminer 2007, but my son’s amateur dramatics meant that things didn't go as planned, so we resorted to late night pizza and a bottle of red; comfort does not come in raw fish.

So in an unplanned continuation of my Bendigo infatuation, Saturday’s lucky winner was the Fairbank Syrah 2004. Fairbank is Sutton Granges (http://www.suttongrangewines.com) 2^nd label, but that’s not really important right now as the Fairbank was delicious; lots of black cherries and blackcurrant with some savoury black olive and pepper on the finish. Its medium bodied with a bright acidity, the tannins are soft but drying and the oak is there but well integrated. It’s nicely balanced with a good length and definitely playing on the side of Syrah not Shiraz. For $25 I think that it’s simply a really good wine and another reason why Victoria is becoming my first destination for Shiraz/Syrah. I didn’t get the floral lift from the supposed splash of viogner, but then I might have been hampered by the slice of anchovy pizza that was stuffed in my mouth. There was also a touch of sweetness which I’m not sure was residual but I’ll let it go. Bring on the Sutton Grange Estate Syrah next.

BTW I promise not to make every weekend update about my grumpy son and continued foiled plans for a romantic evening in with my wife. I’ll also try and ensure I get my tenses correct when I talk about a wine. My grammar is just appalling sometimes.

I was also going to describe the minefield that is buying cheap (i.e. sub-$10) wine, but everyone’s trying to ban minefields at the moment, so I’ll wait till later in the week.

Be seeing you