Not meeting this week. Many of us are going to the Napa Valley Vintners Assoc. tasting, Childrens hospital bennefit, at the Milwaukee Road Depot. Thursday night, 7:00, $75, but $40 is tax deductable. Probably not meeting next week. Next week, the NE Mpls Neighborhood Tasting is on Thursday. Grand Tastings and Bennefit is on Friday at the Convention Center. Loots of wine sales on-going. Haskell's Nickel Sale ends on Saturday. 20/20 sale at Surdyks. 20 % off any wine over $20. S. Lyndale (at 50th?) sale. France 44 sale starts Friday. Mix/match case prices are quite good. Cheers, Jim Many thanks to Russ for sharing his excellent notes. Australians at Erte . 4/29/2004 Thursday night wine group. Tasted blind, in paper bags, as usual. W1 . nice clean floral nose with late petrol overtones, riesling or not very spicy gewurz? Good flavor, as it smells, excellent freshness, nice aperitif. 2001 Pipers Brook Estate Gewurztraminer . Tasmania. The winemaker is Andrew Pirie, who made several legendary (possibly even mythical?) tiny-production Aussie sparkling wines about a decade ago. W2 . very vegetal nose, presumably sauvignon blanc, this is pretty much what they mean when they call SB wines grassy or weedy? Rich wine, tastes as it smells which is to say firmly planted on the vegetal side of the aromatic spectrum, possible touch of residual sugar, finishes with power but not extreme length. Needs compatible food given the very strong vegetal aromas. 2000 Omaka Springs Sauvignon Blanc . Marlborough. (New Zealand rather than Australia. Getting old; not at all oxidized, but the grassy smells are dominating as the wine begins to lose its primary fruit.) 1.1 . medium purple, good-sized fruity-funky shiraz nose, gamy grilled meat, sweet and tannic, lots of acid structure, decent power and length. 2000 Deakin Estate Shiraz . Victoria. 1.2 . deep color, attractive sweet oak and fruit nose, some alcohol on nose, tastes as it smells including the alcohol, big wine in balance, true tasting through a focused finish, very good. 1996 Yalumba "Growers" Shiraz . Barossa. 1.3 . medium, maturing color; more finesse and less power on nose than preceding wines; light body, lacks acid structure, again gaminess in the fruit, decent finish, just OK quality. 2000 RBJ "Vox Populi" . Barossa Valley. 2.1 . deep, dark color; reticent but clean nose, middleweight, lacks fruit, good balance though; finish sneaky long but not very authoritative, lacks power; overall, the wine lacks concentration, excessive vineyard yield?? 1993 Penfolds Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon . South Australia. 2.2 . very dark color; DEEP shiraz nose, black fruits, meaty; round, fruity, weighty, alcohol, tannin, all in good balance, tasty! Big finish, still quite tannic, this is very good drinking. 1998 Penfolds Bin 128 Shiraz . Coonawarra. 2.3 . very dark; big mentholyptus black fruit and sweet peppers cabernet nose; distinguished mouth entry, characteristic cabernet astringence, very aromatic midpalate with lots of black curranty fruit, tannic midpalate, finishes with good power, length and smoother tannins, outstanding wine. 1994 Penfolds Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon . South Australia. -- ------------------------------ * * Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *