Casey @ Travelling Corkscrew

Rosé weather is coming! We recently had a pretty warm day here in Gippsland so we picked up this Tim Adams Mr Mick 2018 Rosé from South Australia’s Clare Valley. It’s made from a blend of Sangiovese, Tempraillo and Mataro grapes.

From memory we bought it for about $15. Plus after a bit of research I also found out that it nabbed a gold medal 🥇 at the Australian Alternative Varieties Wine Show 2018 and was awarded Chair of Judges Trophy at the 24th Langton’s Clare Valley Regional Wine Show 2018.

So what did we think of this award winning rosé? Here are our notes:

Peachy pink colour in the glass. The nose has an abundance of fresh raspberries, cherries and strawberries with some fresh herbs thrown in there. While in the mouth those berry flavours flow through with a hint of mandarin and lemon citrus and a nice dry finish.

All opinions are based on my own taste buds. Wine is subjective & always evolving, so make sure you drink what you enjoy!

#tcweekdaywine #tctastingnotes — 5 years ago

Casey @ Travelling Corkscrew

I am working on blog posts from our Tassie trip - I’ve just got so much to share that it’s taking a little while, so bear with me 🐻

In the meantime though, I have been sipping on some of our purchases for inspiration. This Beautiful Isle 2016 ‘White Delicious’ from northern Tasmania’s Tamar Valley is one of them.

The blend for this white changes every year, depending on what grapes need to be used up. However typically it’s a mix of Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Müller Thürgau, Muscat, Pinot Gris and Chardonnay. We bought it for $24.

Visiting Beautiful Isle is a rather quirky experience. The cellar door is in this little old church and the winemaker is full of stories to tell. We learnt that the label started on the family estate at Marion’s Vineyard and that the labels are inspired by the “vibrant apple crate art of Tasmania’s Apple Isle hey day.” I loved the labels so much that I bought a T-shirt!

So is the wine as delicious as the label says? Well here are my notes..

It’s a pale yellow shade in the glass. The nose is super interesting, first impressions are fruitiness, then on further investigation I get gooseberries, apricots, nuts, florals, smoked fruits and a hint of chalkiness. In the mouth I find it off-dry and it definitely delivers with a juicy deliciousness. Destined for curry night!

I now wish I’d bought more bottles 😜

All opinions are based on my own taste buds. Wine is subjective & always evolving, so make sure you drink what you enjoy!

#tcweekdaywine #tctastingnotes

— 5 years ago

Casey @ Travelling Corkscrew

Curry + Shiraz = one of my favourite combos 🤤

This sample bottle of Tatalia 2016 Shiraz from VIC’s Heathcote region I received from the lovely folk at St Anne’s Estate. The RRP for this Aussie Shiraz is $36 and it weights in at 14.5% alcohol.

The Shiraz vines from which the fruit comes from are 20 years old. They are also drip irrigated for more richer flavoured grapes. Drink now - 2026.

I found it a deep scarlet red-black colour in the glass. The nose makes me think of green pepper, plums and black cherries alongside a hint of menthol freshness and vanilla-ry oak. In the mouth it’s full of deliciously vibrant fruits with a peppery backbone and lick of black olives. Silky texture and not too in your face, it’s very pleasant drinking.

All opinions are based on my own taste buds. Wine is subjective & always evolving, so make sure you drink what you enjoy!

#gifted #opinionsaremyown #tcweekdaywine #tctastingnotes — 5 years ago

Casey @ Travelling Corkscrew

For #thetcwineclub May delivery, I asked my Mum to choose the 3-bottles seeing as it was Mother’s Day earlier in the month.

My Mum loves her crisp dry Riesling which is why this Xabregas 2017 Riesling from
WA’s Great Southern region made the cut.

This West Australian Riesling comes from 20 year old vines. It’s drinking well now however I reckon it’ll also do well in the cellar for a few more years.

I found it a pale lemon shade in the glass. On the nose it’s super fresh with pear and lemon & lime notes coming through for me. While in the mouth juicy pear and apple flavours tempt the palate alongside minerality snd a nice big lick of lime. Very refreshing.

I partner with Good Pair Days (previously know as The Wine Gallery) to bring you the TC Wine Club 🙌

All opinions are based on my own taste buds. Wine is subjective & always evolving, so make sure you drink what you enjoy!

#gifted #opinionsaremyown #tcweekdaywine #tctastingnotes — 5 years ago

Casey @ Travelling Corkscrew

We were recently craving Chardonnay, as we do in my household. So we picked up this Punt Road Wines 2018 Chardonnay made in the Yarra Valley from our local Dan Murphy's. From memory it was around the $20 mark.

It was the ‘serious Chardonnay flavours’ descriptor on the back which sold it to me. And the price wasn’t going to break the bank, so it really was a win win. This Chardonnay underwent barrel fermentation and malolactic for the wine geeks and Chardy lovers out there.

Here’s how we found it:

Pale yellow shade in the glass. The nose made me think of buttered crackers, fresh lemon 🍋 zest and spiced peaches 🍑. While in the mouth it is smooth and balanced with flavours of peach and tropical fruits 🥭 🍍 and a refreshing lime spiked finish. Yum!

All opinions are based on my own taste buds. Wine is subjective & always evolving, so make sure you drink what you enjoy!

#tcweekdaywine #tctastingnotes — 5 years ago

Casey @ Travelling Corkscrew

Of course I has to add a couple of bottles of Prosecco to my recent sample box from the brand new Wine Selectors Customised Plan subscription cases.

If you haven’t yet heard, these new subscription boxes are perfect for people who like certain grape varieties and/or styles of wine but want to try ones from different producers. Basically you choose how many of each grape variety/style you want and then they arrive on your doorstep at a frequency you choose. So easy!

This Zilzie Wines Prosecco from Victoria’s King Valley came in our trial box and it went down very easily! Here are my notes on it:

Pale golden shade in the glass with a small stream of zippy bubbles zooming up to the top of the glass. On the nose it makes me think of golden delicious apples, shortbread and lemon curd. While in the mouth it’s smooth, rounded and full of ripe orchard fruits. Easy drinking and super friendly.

All opinions are based on my own taste buds. Wine is subjective & always evolving, so make sure you drink what you enjoy!

#gifted #opinionsaremyown #tcweekdaywine #tctastingnotes

— 5 years ago

Casey @ Travelling Corkscrew

My brother, Logan, and his family visited last week. And it was also the same week that we received some new release sample wines from Logan Wines in Orange, NSW. Which meant that they didn’t last long unopened 😂

There’s also a Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir in the Weemala range. All bottles retail for RRP $20 and can be purchased online via loganwines.com.au

This 2018 Riesling is produced in the German trocken style. So it has a nip of residual sugar to balance out the natural acidity. Here’s what the TC tasting panel, headed up by Logan said:

Pale nearly water white yellow shade in the glass. The nose is full of lime and honeysuckle. After reading the back label we could also definitely pick up the ‘ice tea’ notes in it too. In the mouth it’s a nicely balanced Riesling that’s a little bit of floral with refreshing acidity. Very much enjoyed and given “4 Logan’s out of 5” by the head of the tasting panel 😂

All opinions are based on my own taste buds. Wine is subjective & always evolving, so make sure you drink what you enjoy!

#gifted #opinionsaremyown #tcweekdaywine #tctastingnotes — 5 years ago

Casey @ Travelling Corkscrew

Have you tried wine made from the Gamay grape yet? It produces a light-bodied red wine that is along the lines of Pinot Noir, although not as common.

It would also be rude not to mention Beaujolais when we talk about Gamay because it’s this region, which sits beside Burgundy in France, that produces around 75% of the Gamay in the world 🌎

It’s also worth noting that this low tannin and naturally high acidity wine is a great food matching wine 🍷

I have come across Gamay a few times this year. Sinapius over in Tassie are producing it and I also found this bottle of Paul Nelson Wines PN 2018 Gamay made from fruit from WA’s Ferguson Valley (Geographe wine region) in Naomi’s cellar recently 🙌 Needles to say, we had to crack it!

From doing some research online, I’ve found out it’s:

🍇 Hand picked from a single vineyard

🍇 30% whole bunch pressed

🍇Wild fermented

🍇 Unfined and unfiltered

Here are my notes:

It’s a light ruby colour in the glass. The nose is rather savoury in character, think mushrooms, soil/earth and violets. I liked BJW’s comment about picking up ‘smokey hickory’ too. While in the mouth that savoury character flows through in the form of cured meat with fruity plum and red fruit characters joining it. It’s a light, easy-drinking and extremely moreish vino.

Naomi bought this for $30 from the Paul Nelson Wines cellar door in WA’s Great Southern wine region.

All opinions are based on my own taste buds. Wine is subjective & always evolving, so make sure you drink what you enjoy!

#tcweekdaywine #tctastingnotes — 5 years ago

Casey @ Travelling Corkscrew

Rosé and platters… ahhh I love the combo! This pretty little Rosé comes from Victoria’s Yarra Valley and it’s made from 100% handpicked, whole bunch pressed Pinot Noir.

They’ve even given it the ‘traditional’ treatment and stomped the grapes by foot!

While we probably all know that grape stomping is how they used to crush grapes for wine way back in the day (before there were machines around to it), I bet a few of you are wondering whether it is very sanitary, especially in this day in age?

Well let me tell you, that yes it’s actually pretty sanitary and it’s still thought of as a more natural approach as foot-trodden grapes are crushed by the right amount of pressure. The acid, sugar and alcohol that is within the grape ferment works to prohibits human pathogens from transferring into the wine. And by the way, foot stomped wine does not taste like feet 😉

This foot stomped Rosé is also pretty special because only 100 dozen cases were, made so get in quick! RRP is $35 and it can be bought online via birdonawirewines.com.au

Here are our notes on it:

In the glass it’s a redy-quince type colour with a striking orange shimmer to it. The now is rather delicate with a nice zesting of grapefruit. While in the mouth it’s a super dry rosé with cherry and a savouriness coming through. Definitely for the dry rosé wine lovers and a fabulous addition to a tasty cheese and antipasto platter!

All opinions are based on my own taste buds. Wine is subjective & always evolving, so make sure you drink what you enjoy!

#gifted #opinionsaremyown #tcweekdaywine #tctastingnotes — 5 years ago

Casey @ Travelling Corkscrew

While picking next month’s #thetcwineclub bottles, I thought I’d get stuck into this Italian 🇮🇹 Prosecco from Luigino Zago that my Mum picked for May’s TC Wine Club box.

If you haven’t heard, I partner with The Wine Gallery (currently transitioning to their new ‘Good Pair Days’ brand) to bring you the TC Wine Club every month where I pick 3 bottles for the club members to enjoy. Last month I asked my Mum to pick the wines since it was Mother’s Day earlier in the month.

This Italian Prosecco is definitely on the dry end of the spectrum. And if you’re not already aware, Prosecco is made from the Glera grape variety. I think it was this description that caught my mums taste buds when choosing this wine:

“The main flavours are of green apple, sweet lime, pebbles, mint, tonic water and sour lemon.”

We decided to introduce this Italian to a Mexican in the form of spicy chicken nachos and it went down a treat. It’s super refreshing, crisp and has the ability to be consumed very fast 😂 Those green apple 🍏 and citrus notes are very prominent & delicious.

All opinions are based on my own taste buds. Wine is subjective & always evolving, so make sure you drink what you enjoy!

#gifted #opinionsaremyown #tcweekdaywine #tctastingnotes — 5 years ago