Bass Phillip
Premium Gippsland Pinot Noir
Gippsland, Victoria, Australia
Fourrier in Australia. Worth the hype!!
Fourrier in Australia. Worth the hype!!
Oct 14th, 2023
See several previous notes. My last bottle of Premium from 2013. Tawny crimson in colour. More fruit driven than savoury on this showing. Red cherry and red florals with some Sous Bois. As in previous notes - ripe fruit. Quite sweet, rich and intense. A superb Pinot Noir by any standard. One of the best Pinots I’ve had this year and that includes New Zealand and Burgundy.
See several previous notes. My last bottle of Premium from 2013. Tawny crimson in colour. More fruit driven than savoury on this showing. Red cherry and red florals with some Sous Bois. As in previous notes - ripe fruit. Quite sweet, rich and intense. A superb Pinot Noir by any standard. One of the best Pinots I’ve had this year and that includes New Zealand and Burgundy.
Jul 23rd, 2023Light to mid Ruby in appearance - partly transparent. Raspberries, Strawberries and Cherries with spicy notes. A sweeter palate than normal with M+ intensity. Good power and drive. After a few hours still quite sweet. As I said in a previous note grapes obviously picked late to achieve ultra ripeness. Returning later - a dried red. Cherry aroma.
Light to mid Ruby in appearance - partly transparent. Raspberries, Strawberries and Cherries with spicy notes. A sweeter palate than normal with M+ intensity. Good power and drive. After a few hours still quite sweet. As I said in a previous note grapes obviously picked late to achieve ultra ripeness. Returning later - a dried red. Cherry aroma.
Feb 26th, 2023See several previous Delectable Notes. This bottle was the last of 6 and absolutely outstanding. Light Ruby and tawny - semi transparent. Red and black cherry with rose petals and Sous Bois. Intoxicating perfume with dried rose petals and red florals generally - a slight gamey note. Very judicious use of oak - in perfect balance with the fruit. Phillip Jones, the winemaker and owner back then, before the sale to Jacques Fourrier said the difference between good Pinot Noir and great Pinot Noir is texture. In summary a great Pinot Noir by any measure and high Premier Cru in my experience.
See several previous Delectable Notes. This bottle was the last of 6 and absolutely outstanding. Light Ruby and tawny - semi transparent. Red and black cherry with rose petals and Sous Bois. Intoxicating perfume with dried rose petals and red florals generally - a slight gamey note. Very judicious use of oak - in perfect balance with the fruit. Phillip Jones, the winemaker and owner back then, before the sale to Jacques Fourrier said the difference between good Pinot Noir and great Pinot Noir is texture. In summary a great Pinot Noir by any measure and high Premier Cru in my experience.
May 8th, 2022Ripe red cherry and red floral aromas. On the palate quite sweet, rich and delicious. Grapes were obviously picked late and ripe to give this concentrated Pinot Noir. After a while, the trademark compost heap, Sous Bois characters. The quality of the fruit is undeniable- it just lacks a little bottle complexity. The first of 3. Have the 2nd in a year or so. Arguably the 2nd best Pinot Noir in Australia after the Bass Phillip Reserve.
Ripe red cherry and red floral aromas. On the palate quite sweet, rich and delicious. Grapes were obviously picked late and ripe to give this concentrated Pinot Noir. After a while, the trademark compost heap, Sous Bois characters. The quality of the fruit is undeniable- it just lacks a little bottle complexity. The first of 3. Have the 2nd in a year or so. Arguably the 2nd best Pinot Noir in Australia after the Bass Phillip Reserve.
Mar 31st, 2022Always a pleasure to have a Bass Phillip Premium Pinot Noir from a good year. My 2nd last bottle of 6. Prior notes still apply - In Summary: Light Ruby in colour with a tawny edge. A beautiful nose with aromas of dried roses, red florals in general, Sous Bois and mushrooms. Medium plus palate intensity. Stewed red fruits with some savoury notes. I agree with winemaker Phillip Jones when he says this wine has great texture. This would certainly hold its own in any blind tasting with leading red Burgundies.
Always a pleasure to have a Bass Phillip Premium Pinot Noir from a good year. My 2nd last bottle of 6. Prior notes still apply - In Summary: Light Ruby in colour with a tawny edge. A beautiful nose with aromas of dried roses, red florals in general, Sous Bois and mushrooms. Medium plus palate intensity. Stewed red fruits with some savoury notes. I agree with winemaker Phillip Jones when he says this wine has great texture. This would certainly hold its own in any blind tasting with leading red Burgundies.
May 30th, 2021Mid to dark crimson in colour. Muted nose after decanting. After a while, stewed fruits, savoury vegetal notes with a touch of pepper. A sweetish palate - dried plums with some sap. A good wine but I have had better “Premiums “.
Mid to dark crimson in colour. Muted nose after decanting. After a while, stewed fruits, savoury vegetal notes with a touch of pepper. A sweetish palate - dried plums with some sap. A good wine but I have had better “Premiums “.
Sep 5th, 2020Medium ruby red with a tawny edge. As per previous notes - always a delight to taste this wine. Aromatics of red fruits (strawberry) rose petals, beetroot and compost heap. The palate is very complex and so multifaceted - earthy red fruits with a degree of sweetness. A gorgeous new world Pinot - one of the best of recent times. Would love to put this in a lineup of 2010 Premier and Grand Cru Butgundies and taste them all blind. It would surprise many people.
Medium ruby red with a tawny edge. As per previous notes - always a delight to taste this wine. Aromatics of red fruits (strawberry) rose petals, beetroot and compost heap. The palate is very complex and so multifaceted - earthy red fruits with a degree of sweetness. A gorgeous new world Pinot - one of the best of recent times. Would love to put this in a lineup of 2010 Premier and Grand Cru Butgundies and taste them all blind. It would surprise many people.
Aug 22nd, 2020Light to mid Ruby in colour. Red and dark fruit florals like Plums also rose petals and sous bois like compost heap. Palate is quite stolid and deep - needs more time to add complexity. A natural acidity still present ( Phillip Jones always bangs on about natural acidity and would never add acid). After an hour or so in the decanter and vigorous swirling you could smell this wine for days. I believe HH’s drinking window of 2016 to 2021 is conservative and should leave my last one for a couple of years to at least 2022.
Light to mid Ruby in colour. Red and dark fruit florals like Plums also rose petals and sous bois like compost heap. Palate is quite stolid and deep - needs more time to add complexity. A natural acidity still present ( Phillip Jones always bangs on about natural acidity and would never add acid). After an hour or so in the decanter and vigorous swirling you could smell this wine for days. I believe HH’s drinking window of 2016 to 2021 is conservative and should leave my last one for a couple of years to at least 2022.
May 6th, 2020