landmark blog
Saturday, June 6 2009
and here's one from Julia Harding M.W. who writes for Jancis Robinson
some quotes from the
Blog byJulia Harding MW "The fortified session did not disappoint, despite the big build up these wines had been given all week. These were treasures, many rare, and wines to sip and reflect on rather than speeding along but the intensity of flavours in all these wines was show-stopping nonetheless. The tutor for this last session of the week, James Godfrey, is one of the most experienced and committed fortified wine makers in Australia and has just completed his 32nd vintage at Seppeltsfield. Some of the greatest wines in the Seppeltsfield cellar, such as the 100-year old 1909 Para, now thickly viscous and tasting of an astonishing array of coffee, dark chocolate, fruit cake and cloves, were made well before his time, but he takes ultra seriously his role as custodian of these rare dark gems.
Most of the group were particularly besotted by these thick, dark, tooth-rotting elixirs. Although I thought they were stunning, I was very taken by the first two wines in the tasting, the Amontillado and the Oloroso. The former had become fantastically concentrated after more than 40 years in the solera casks but was still delicate on the nose with aromas of nuts and deeply caramelised oranges, even a whiff of iodine. The latter looked and tasted like dark walnuts but still showed finesse and a long tangy finish."
