Wynns, John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon, Coonawarra

Wow. Very good upon opening but 24 hours later it has become more open and delineated. Strong wintergreen, black currant, pencil shavings, sage. Darkly fruited, herbal, briny, savory, intense, new world timbre to the fruit but cut from Bordeaux cloth. Is this Monte Bello?

1998 vintage

Popped, poured and enjoyed over 3 hours. Settled down, relaxed and threw off some funk after the second of their pour. After that stayed fairly consistent, if actually marginally improved, over the 3 hours. A gorgeously pure nose of blackcurrent, blackberry and plum together with notes of eucalyptus, thyme and then a little earthiness and leather just starting to creep in at the end. Beautifully integrated and resolved on the palate with the fruit, acid and tannins intertwined seamlessly. The …

1998 vintage

Lovely. Coonawarra before the alcoholic fruitbomb era, though I suspect that wynns JR never went down that road. Aroma of a classed growth Bordeaux plus a bit of mint chocolate. Not an old wine but I doubt it will gain anything from cellaring further. The acid is a little bit much but otherwise it’s beautiful, relaxed, stylish in a classic sense. 13.5%, cork.

1998 vintage

Another beautiful bottle of this iconic Aussie. Ready to enjoy from the moment the pristine cork was pulled, fresh and aromatic, with loads of baked cherry and red currants, some herbal notes, a touch of bitter chocolate and an earthiness that added complexity. Seemingly ageless, very glad to have more of these neglected (in the US) treasures.

1998 vintage

French vs Oz : Consistent with the previous experience but I gave this a lot more time after the person who brought this the last time said that this was still going strong after a few days. Opened at 12pm for dinner, this was still reticent on the first pour that made the others prefer the '98 Latour à Pomerol alongside. But to me this was the superior wine with better purity of fruit and much more refined tannins. Incredibly …

1998 vintage

Giant Alaskan Crab Dinner (McKay's, The American Club, Exchange Square, Central, Hong Kong) : Too briefly decanted. Deep impenetrable ruby colour. Nose is a pickup truck loaded up with ripe blackberry fruit. Palate shows great depth of quite acidic but pure blackberry fruit. All the classic Coonawarra Cabernet Savignon material is there. Lingers nicely in the mouth. Medium length and resonance. Disappointing compared to previous occasions I have drank this (I scored it 96, after a very long decant, back …

1998 vintage

US/Australian >20 years (Mansion No 7) : Hint of bell pepper, rustic, minty and candied on the palate, touch of burnt rubber notes on the finish

1998 vintage

US/Oz theme : Much more youthful than my '98 Penfolds alongside. Most including myself managed to guess this as a Oz Cab with eucalyptus and pyrazine notes, but more polished than I expected with the cassis notes of a young Bordeaux. Can go on for another decade at least.

1998 vintage

I agree with current reviews, this has past its peak. Drink it now, otherwise you are going to miss it.

1998 vintage

Opened after a corked Bin 389 from 1998. This was also corked. I switched to beer.

1998 vintage

Drinking well now although probably past its peak by 5 years. Still delicious and will hold for a while longer but worth finishing the remaining bottles soon. Classic Coonawarra Cabernet done well.

1998 vintage

Excellent; still with plenty of life for a 26 yo wine; crisp and lively fruit; great color and nose; excellent finish and balance.

1998 vintage

Yum! Decanted and allowed to breathe for about an hour. Plum, cassis, cedar. All beautifully balanced with a slow cooked tomahawk steak and green salad.

1998 vintage

This is just stunning. Drink these now....

1998 vintage

Bob’s cellar. Dark and brooding, no bricking evident. Nose is sweet rich black cherries and damsons, pepper pinch. Dryand restrained, feels over a bit in the fruit has disappeared and left with a very tertiary leathery old red. Not that appealing - will try more on day 2 (89). Day 2 and all that leathery old red taste has gone away, red acidity has jumped up to the fore and more vibrant fruit has appeared. Much better. Last bottle so …

1998 vintage

Decanted but didn't let it breather too long (only an hour or so) given age. Still in great shape. Smooth and balanced but losing the fruit. Very pleasant but time to get a wriggle on and drink

1998 vintage

Bob's cellar. Deep ruby red, no obvious bricking. Full nose of black cherries, mocha, rich and warm, smoky. Powerful and lush. Flavours are less fruit rich, tertiary elements, leather and aged tobacco, a ribbon of red acidity. Good opening. Needs some air. With a little air, is remarkably good, the red fruit acidity blends into the background of rich black fruit. There's a sprinkle of black pepper. Delicious. Next day is more tertiary, the fruit has faded.

1998 vintage

Opened with the most amazing fruit nose. Left it 90 min to decant then the nose is significantly faded compared to the open. Very tertiary wine with that lightening greeny taste of an old wine where the fruit is fading. I wish I had tasted this on opening. Rule no 1 - always taste over time sequentially so you don't miss the window if there is a window there for your wine. You would think I would know that by …

1998 vintage

Cooked :(. All stewed prune

1998 vintage

Mostly 1998s (Washington, DC) : Lots of cool nots of cumin, earth, smoky herbs, tar, over some juicy currants and black cherries. Saucy on the palate with dusty tannins and a chewy, ripe feel, but it feels refined and resolved. Black cherries and currants, with notes of sweet oak, mocha, along with earthy, coffee grounds, graphite and sage tones. I guessed Napa Cab – ha! I mixed up the Napa and Australian Cabs. Fun times.

1998 vintage

Absolutely no rush with this, still very fresh after 25 years, loads of fruit on the nose, structured tannin, blueberry and blackcurrant fruit on the palate, a hint of cedar, long finish.

1998 vintage

drinking beautifully, dark ruby, dark fruits, currants, cassis, chocolate, spice, tobacco, cedar, well integrated tannins, years to go, but in a nice place now

1998 vintage

Time to drink. Bought them when cheap.

1998 vintage

Accompanied slow roasted lamb shoulder with roast vegetables. Visually: dense purple, minimal signs of ageing Initially - Nose: blackberry, vanilla, tobacco capsicum/pepper and shiitake mushroom. Palate: still feels so youthful! Strong entry with blackberry, notes of blueberry. Backbone of green capsicum. This is followed by vanilla, tobacco and mushroom. Tannins are fully integrated. Elegant. After allowing the wine to spend time in the glass over the night Nose: tobacco and smoked wood features more prominently. Pencil lead shavings appeared at …

1998 vintage

Aussie Night 2.0 (Buellton, CA) : A clean nose of sweet red fruit. Fresh and youthful, still showing oak and fruit tannins. Good persistence. A fine showing, but suffered by comparison to the stunning 1998 Wendouree Cab. served alongside it.

1998 vintage

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Wynns, John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon, Coonawarra

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