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Smidge Shiraz Barossa Valley Adamo 2006 Wine Spectator - Harvey Steiman 91 points | $48 | 300 cases imported | Red Smooth and polished, with dark, spicy notes swirling through the cherry and licorice flavors, persisting impressively on the long, vivid finish against fine tannins and a bit of alcohol heat. Best from 2010 through 2016.—H.S. Smidge Wines 'S' Smitch Barossa Shiraz 2005 ($65) Cork: This is a beautifully packaged super Barossan cuvee, weighing in at 15.5% alcohol and produced in very limited quantities. It's made by Matt Wenk, who is also the winemaker at Two Hands. The wine is lush and sweet, packed with flavours of tar, liquorice, raisons, blackberry jam and smoke, the flavours so rich and full that it takes a glass or two to notice the tannin structure at all - there is so much fruit flavour cascading over them. In the end though it is well-enough structured and overwhelming flavoursome. I just wish there wasn't so much alcohol warmth. Drink: 2008-2013. 91 points. Adamo Barossa Valley Shiraz 2005 Adamo Barossa Valley Shiraz 2005. Aromatic notes of mint, spice and herbs, but the palate has more richness and density than expected, with ripe plum and blackberry essence; controlled extract. Screwcap 15.1o alc Rating 93 to 2020. $26. The Cellar-pod - Adelaide Hills Viognier 2006 Attractive; while the varietal statement isn't particularly strong, has good line and length, thew oak mere background scenery; 8 barrels made. Screwcap. 13.5% alc. Rating 92 to 2009 $26. Smidge Wines Barossa Valley The Donald Zinfandel 2005 ($38) Screwcap: 2005 Smidge Wines Houdini First up from Smidge Wines is The Houdini. This wine is a blend of 50% Shiraz, 25% Zinfandel and 25% Merlot. Each varietal was aged separately in neutral oak and blended right before bottling....The Houdini’s nose reveals big, rich, dark berry fruit along with some subtler spice notes. As soon as I took the first sip I was hit with cassis and big jammy fruit. The mid-palate has a ton more dark berry fruit accompanied by mocha notes that become more prominent as The Houdini opens up. The finish on this wine is solid and filled with lots of spice and lingering mocha characteristics. This is a well balanced wine with good acidity. The Houdini drinks pretty well right out of the bottle, but a solid hour in the decanter allows it sufficient time to reveal many of it’s more complex qualities. The 25% Merlot that was blended in provides a solid backbone and some silky textures for this wine, allowing the brighter fruit of the Shiraz and Zinfandel to really shine up front. It pairs well with grilled meats and strong cheeses. The Houdini is an easy drinking wine with relatively soft tannins. I wouldn’t expect it to improve much in the bottle, but 2-5 years of enjoyable drinking certainly seem plausible. The Houdini’s most impressive trick is how quickly it disappears from your glass. The suggested retail price for The Houdini is $24. At that price, this wine is delivers a lot of pleasure. 2005 Smidge Wines Shiraz 'S' Smitch Broad, ripe and aristocratic, this hangs its dense cherry, licorice and sweet spice flavors on a ramrod-straight backbone, balancing acidity and fine-grained tannins beautifully. Best from 2010 through 2020. 60 cases imported. 2005 Smidge Wines Tardy åååå Matt Wenk's day job is at Two Hands in the Barossa: he and wife Trish make a tiny number of facinating wines under the Smidge label. This Langhorne Creek zin was picked nearly a month later than its sibling from the Barossa, "The Donald", and is slightly lower in alcohol. It has very ripe, raspberry jam flavours, is succulent, fleshy and primal with restrained power. 2005 Smidge Wines Tardy «««« ..."with raspberries and garden herbs on the nose and plenty of ripe, plummy fruit, I really loved the rich, soft palete and fine tannins. So did Forrestal, who added: "Raspberry jam; juicy, succulent and fleshy. Primal." The wine weighs in at a hefty 15.7 per cent alcohol yet carries its size well..." 2004 Smidge Wines The Donald «««« ..."The Donald is building a complex, fragrant bouquet. Forrestal though it "a real contrast in texture" with the other zins. "It's softer and fuller, with Liqueur cherry and raspberry flavours. Seductive!" he raved. With its molasses-like flavours, touch of sweetness and 16 per cent alcohol, this would make a good dessert-style zin to drink with cheese and dried fruits- preferably next to an open fire" 2005 Smidge Wines Shiraz 'S' Smitch 2005 Smidge Wines Zinfandel The Donald 2005 Smidge Wines The Houdini 2005 Smidge Wines Shiraz Adamo 2005 Smidge Shiraz The Smitch Barossa Valley 2004 Smidge Zinfandel The Tardy Langhorne Creek 2005 Smidge Zinfandel The Donald Barossa Valley 2005 Smidge Shiraz Adamo Barossa Valley 2005 Smidge Houdini South Australia 2004 Shiraz Adamo Barossa Valley Ralph Kyte-Powell, The Age Tuesday November 15, 2005 Aging? Yes, two to six years. Food Ideas: Lamb Kebabs, venison. 4 Stars. Smidge Wines' Adamo blends Barossa Shiraz with 3% Viognier to make a dense red with an intense nose of blueberries, licorice, ink and spice. Spicy oak is well handled and the wine has a raw and direct appeal. The middleweight palate has ripe fruit and oak in balance, with attractive dry tannins behind. It needs time to evolve a bit. 2004 Viognier The Cellar-pod Adelaide Hills 2004 Shiraz Adamo Barossa Valley 2004 Viognier The Cellar-pod Adelaide Hills
Winefront Monthly, Campbell Mattinson, May
2004 It just goes to show what a combination of careful growing and careful winemaking can produce. This new range of wines was crafted from vineyards only five or six years old - though specifically targeted for their meticulous practices, it has to be said - and then given no new oak at all. The oak that was used though was good quality French oak, most of it two years old with a small proportion of one year old. The label, called Smidge Wines, is the work of Matt Wenk, the current winemaker at Two Hands and formerly of Nepenthe - and a huge talent to watch. His approach here is simple: "You can add new oak but it's pretty difficult to take it out once you've overdone it". Which fits in well with the overall Smidge Wines concept: which is to produce top quality small-run wines that, simply, Matt enjoys making. "I made the 2002 Zin just for fun, just as a hobby, just because I knew of this (Langhorne Creek) vineyard and had worked with it when I was at Nepenthe. Most of the fruit now goes to Kangarilla Road. But once the wine was made, people said, You should sell that, it's bloody good." He will now make about 200 cases of Zinfandel each vintage and a touch more of merlot, with a barrel fermented viognier from the 2004 vintage on the way. A new label with three wines, with none of them shiraz or chardonnay - you have to admire the passion of that. 2003 Merlot Le Grenouille Adelaide Hills 2003 Zinfandel The Tardy Langhorne Creek
2002 Zinfandel The Tardy Langhorne Creek
2003 Zinfandel The Tardy Langhorne Creek
2003 Merlot Le Grenouille Adelaide Hills
I was off to a mate's place for pizza, so I asked what he wanted to drink. "Something funky." he said. Funky? "Yes funky." How about half a dozen examples of of the funkiest tasting red grape Zinfandel, from Australia, California and Italy? "Cool". Six bottles later, you know what we'd learned? Well, first, zin is a fantastic pizza wine - its funky, wild berry flavours and exotic spiciness get jiggy with the sweet earthiness of prosciutto, cheese and mushrooms. The second thing we discovered was that Matt Wenk really knows how to handle Zinfandel. The 2003 Langhorne Creek Zin he has just released under his own cutely titled label Smidge, was the standout wine with our pizzas. Gutsy and complex, it has white pepper and forest fruit flavours with a long, dry, tannic after taste. It's a bold but-worth-it $45. The 2003 Smidge Le Grenouille Adelaide Hills Merlot is pretty good too - juicy, tight and very blackcurranty (orders www.smidgewines.com). Wenk's day job is winemaker at Two Hands in the Barossa, and the 2003 Two Hands Brave Faces Shiraz Grenache (www.twohandswines.com , $32.50) is also a lovely, gutsy red, with ripe plum flavours and a spicy finish. And the third (and final) lesson? Be very, very careful when you open
six bottles of 15 per cent alcohol Zinfandel - especially when you have
to get up early to take your five-year-old to a bowling party. Ouch! 2003 The Tardy Langhorn Creek
The name Matt Wenk is fast becoming synonymous with fine Australian wine and the launch of new producer Smidge Wines with partner Trish Wenk, is no exception. The inspiration for 'Smidge' is as much their vision for quality - that is, every wine has to be of such exceptional quality that you won't resist another smidge, as it does about the volumes available, yes you guessed it-there is only a smidge! At only 32, Matt has established an enviable reputation for consistently delivering premium wines that have and continue to be acclaimed at home and around the world. Over the past three years, in any spare time Matt has had away from the cellars of Nepenthe or Two Hands, he has been quietly and meticulously making and developing wine of his own, and has again stamped his signature of high quality, fruit driven, exciting wines all over them.With the first vintage (2002) sold out before it was released, only two labels have been released for sale this year - a 2003 Adelaide Hills Merlot, and 2003 Langhorne Creek Zinfandel. The Zinfandel, named the Tardy in honour of Matt's reputation for time keeping is the first in what is planned to be a regional Zinfandel Series. The quality and feedback on this wine reflects Matt's passion for it which began in his day's at Nepenthe with Peter Leske and transformed into an obsession for making it during his time in California. The Merlot, called Le Grenouille, meaning Frog in French, says as much about the wine as it does the 'leap' Smidge has taken releasing a new label. That said it doesn't take a leap of faith to buy it, as again it has all the trademarks of a Matt Wenk Wine. Next year we look forward to tasting two new wines in the Smidge stable, an Adelaide Hills Viognier and a Barossa Valley Zinfandel.
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