Henschke – 触碰. 经典. (上)

台湾红酒教父陈新民的著作《稀世珍酿》里很可惜地只收录了三款澳洲红酒, Henschke的Hill of Grace就是其中之一.

经过了Coonawarra三天12个酒庄n个酒的tasting之旅,我们的味蕾在休息了一天之后又继续出发, 前往这个独自坐落于Eden Valley一角的酒庄.

(毫不张扬地cellar door 藏匿在幽静的小巷深处, 被自然包围着, 滋润着, 宠爱着)

如图所示, 天气晴朗, 阳光明媚, 让我们尝酒吧.

一进cellar door, 横着排满整个桌面贴着不同的酒标的瓶子们暗示着今天的tasting有所不同了, 先从白的说起吧, 之前对Eden Valley的白酒只有耳闻, 比较有理解的品种也就算是Viognier了, 今天尝到了一款很有风格的Semillon, 从中还领略到了Henschke的酿酒风格, 这也是我逛酒庄最大的乐趣所在, 每个酒庄都有自己的个性, 每个酒庄背后又有一个或一群有个性的酿酒师, 他们的定位他们的理念都左右着每瓶酒的成长, 而通过品尝去发掘认识这些背后的东西确实是一件很迷人的事儿.

(左边的黑色酒标系列是Eden Valley产品, 右边的X色则是Adelaide Hills的果子)

2006 Louis [Eden Valley] Semillon

N: citrus, lemon, apricot, coconut, floral; developed cha, sulfur; M+ intense and complex elegant nose; can see oak influence?

P: good structure: steely, mineraly, good acid balance (bit tight since young but firm and powerful, not tart at all), refreshing, bit phenolics touch, bit sweetness residual (estimate 2-3g/L, but was said to be dry, fruit sweetness? Tannin sweetness? Oak sweetness? Lovely anyhow)

Everything about the structure: intense fruity flavour plus excellent stylish minerally, steely mouthfeel and fantastic acid structure contribute to a full bodied Semillon differentiating itself from Barossa or Hunter Valley style which is more likely to be oily and more developed.

How much: $20.8

Closure: screw cap

Technique figures: 10-12% new French oak

2006 Lenswood Cruft [Adelaide Hills] Chardonnay

N: oak component a bit up-front; lots of creamy, biscuity, coconuty followed by stone fruit and pear, citrus; floral hint, medium intensity but very complex nose

P: huge fruit weight on mid-palate carrying alone very long by fairly high acid; oak very where on the palate, but only a little soft phenolic touch; a bit disjointed, can improve after cellaring for at least 3 years.

How much: $37.6

Closure: screw cap

Conclusion of the two above:

• Complex nose of varietal expression both with floral hint and oak influence (coconut and vanilla) which a bit heavy in Semillon;
• High acid style but unbalanced since there are enough components to support;
• Interesting usage of oak contributing to the body, in the right amount in Sem, bit over in Chardy at this stage; both needs aging anyway

2006 Eleanor’s Cottage [Eden Valley] Semillon/ Sauvignon Blanc

N: fresh; balanced

P: good intensity and length; very good acid

How much: $21.3

Closure: screw cap

不得不说: 自从和Woodstock的sales的谈话后, Sem/Sauv Blanc这个blend让我对marketing有了新的理解. 用Henschke的老mm sales的话说: 澳洲酒是按地区卖的, 所谓Geographical Identification (GI). 一方面有助于普通消费者在选择酒时不会过于盲目, 好地区的标志性品种酒一般都可以被当作安全的消费目标, 比如Barossa 的Shiraz, Adelaide Hills 的Sauvignon Blanc, Hunter Valley的Semillon etc. 另一方面, 也有助于各个地区的自身’branding’,  which is to say instead of competing in the marketing campaign alone, wineries in a certain remarkable region consolidate and deliver the whole concept of the region where their most famous variety comes from which make themselves recognizable and different from others. 说了那么多, 来自McLaren Vale 的Woodstock当然没有Adelaide Hills的Sauvignon Blanc来得那么有震撼力和竞争力, 所以, 与其做一个单独品种的Sauv/Blanc, 他们选择了加入15%的Sem, 于是一个经典的西澳混白风格在南澳诞生了, 看似不错的marketing plan, 讽刺的是他们选用的Sem是具有独特草本, 花香, 甚至sweaty的相当相似于Sauv/Blanc的一个colony. 可以说在这个混白里有85%的Sauvignon Blanc和15%的很像Sauvignon Blanc的Semillon, 简直就是白混了!!! 残酷的市场法则在这里说话了, 让酿酒师们不情愿地或者说违背自己的初衷去做一些迎合消费者口味的东西, 就算从技术角度去看甚至有些的ridiculous. 但是酒厂需要资金流入, 需要生存和发展, 消费者也需要这些cheap and cheerful的东东来取悦, fair enough~

在澳洲的中大型酒厂中, 80%的产品都是面向中低价格定位的市场, 也就是说, 在这里酿酒师的工作是做消费者喜欢的酒. 20%的时间和精力可以运用在premium或者experimental wine上面. 如果是小型酒厂的话, 后一个数字可以接近40%, 也可以解释为什么在一些小型酒厂访问的过程中会不时地带来惊喜. 在一些最近接触的sensory study 中, 消费者和酿酒师组成的panel对酒中特定风味的喜好大相径庭. 看到这样的结果时会有偷偷的开心. 我知道我太恶俗了, 但是我的palate是诚实的, 他不会说谎.

2006 Lenswood Coralinga [Adelaide Hills] Sauvignon Blanc

N: floral, grassy, green bean, dusty, earthy; bit tight; fruit behind (pineapple pear bit estery/ banana like); M+ intensity, M complexity

P: high in acid (a bit cut on front palate); good fruit weight on mid-palate; bit simple but intense; refreshing after taste, fairly long finish;

How much: $22.6

Closure: screw cap

2007 Julius [Eden Valley] Riesling

N: citrus and floral

P: intense

How much: $22.6

Closure: screw cap

因为对Riesling成年的煤油味太着迷, 对德国风格里的酸甜平衡太追求, 年轻的Riesling已经很难打动我了. 风格的局限使得很多好品质的Riesling得不到充分展现价值的机会, 不管怎么说, 澳洲的Riesling还是有自己地域性风格的不同的, 很不喜欢用terrior这一词很敷衍地诠释一款酒, 但是在这里还是从广义上理解体会到了, 很难三言两语表达, 只知道有好多记忆犹新的酒名涌上脑门, 让我休息一下吧, 最后一个.

2007 Joseph Hill Gewürztraminer

N: rose petal, mainly citrus in the fruit spectrum

P: oily, spicy, acid a bit high? Full varietal expression, a good bench mark of Traminer

How much: $28.4

Closure: screw cap

浩浩荡荡尝完白酒已经花了半个多小时, Henschke的功力到这里已经可见一斑, 每一款酒都平衡有致, 努力体现品种特色的同时又展示了区域的特性, 酿酒师的工作很完美, 把说来简单而做起来相当困难的酿酒理念包含在了每瓶独特的酒中传递给我们, 接下来的红酒品尝会更精彩......