Sanctuary Cove Winter Wine 2017 – REVIEW

Sanctuary Cove is best known as being an exclusive gated community located on the northern end of the Gold Coast. But for me the Sanctuary Cove Marine Village has a friendly, small community feel that I really like. It frequently throws open its doors and welcomes everyone by hosting events like the Sanctuary Cove Boat Show. Now another event has been added in the form of the Sanctuary Cove Winter Wine festival.

WINTER WINE

Now in it’s second year, the festival featured almost 40 different local, national and international wines. Spread throughout the marine village the concept is simple. You buy a glass for $5.00 which is then reusable for the whole weekend. Then you buy tasting coupons at $1.00 each. Then at most stands a taste will cost you one coupon. Of course some of the more exclusive wines may cost you more.

VIP LAUNCH

We were lucky enough to score an invite to Friday nights VIP Launch. It was here that we got a little taste of what the weekend held in store. My favorite part was listening to Ken Gargett speak about Champagne. Ken is a renowned author and wine expert and has been involved in the industry for over twenty years. We even got to try a glass (okay I had four) of Palmer & Co Champagne which was the most delicious champagne I have ever tasted.

Ken also ran two Champagne Master Classes over the weekend. Or you could have attended a Coffee Master Class. I would have loved to have gone to this but sadly time did not allow for it. Hopefully it will be on again next year.

TASTING SOME WINE

Armed with a list of wines that I wanted to try, I headed into the Village in the early afternoon. Now I am no wine connoisseur I just know what I like the taste of and I am not good at describing the taste. But it’s something that I would love to learn more about.

So, here is my list of what I tasted.

• ANGOVE Alternatus Rosé

I have been drinking Angove wines for quite some time. Angove are based in the McLaren Vale region of South Australia and have been making wines since 1886. I generally drink either their Shiraz or Merlot so I thought I would try something different.

TASTING NOTE: Pale pink with purple hues this delightful McLaren Vale Rose has lifted strawberry, cream and raspberries aromas with hints of spice and briar leaf. A refreshing zesty palate showing lovely bright fruits, complexity and good length.

I enjoyed this wine. It wasn’t sweet like I expected it to be. I could see myself drinking this on a late summers afternoon.

• HENTLEY FARM 2015 Estate Shiraz

Hentley Farm is a small winery located in the Barossa Valley region of South Australia. The property was purchased in the 1990’s with the first wines being released in 2002.

TASTING NOTE: A lifted wine showing aromatics of dark cherry, black currant, raspberry, satsuma
plum and black olives.

This Shiraz was a little drier than what I normally drink but was still enjoyable.

• SIRROMET Granite Belt Shiraz

Sirromet Wines are located just up the road from the Gold Coast at Mt Cotton and produce an exceptional range of wines from their vineyards located in the Granite Belt area of Queensland. As event partners Sirromet were located in a pop-up section called The Vineyard.

TASTING NOTE: A soft, fruit-driven Shiraz in the medium-bodied style. Sweet briar fruit, toasty mocha, fresh berries, with textural hints of vanilla, spice, cloves, subtle oak influences and fine powdery tannin.

I thoroughly enjoyed this Shiraz and I will be coming back for more.

• ST HALLETT WINES Butcher’s Cart Shiraz

St Hallett’s is another Barossa Valley winery with a strong focus on Shiraz. Established in the 1940’s it originally focused on producing Fortified Wines before turning it’s attention towards the production of fine table wines.

TASTING NOTE: A rich, generous palate, showing classic Barossa Valley fruit of black cherry and dark plums.

This was another wine that I really liked the taste of. As their website suggests I could see myself drinking this with a nice juicy steak!

BIMBADGEN WINES

Bimbadgen Wines is located at Pokolbin in the Hunter Valley region of NSW. Their wineries have been producing wine for almost 50 years. As my final tasting I tried two different varieties.

• BIMBADGEN Sparkling Rosé NV

I decided to taste another Rosé and this one did not disappoint.

TASTING NOTE: Generous red berry fruit with a fine, mouth-filling mousse adding a creamy texture. Well balanced by bright fruit acidity.

This wine would also be perfect to drink on a summers afternoon and would suit someone who likes a lighter style of wine with out to much sweetness.

• BIMBADGEN Moscato

This Moscato is delicious. It was definitely my favourite. I love it’s fruity sweetness. I had tried it before but had forgotten how good it was.

TASTING NOTE: Generous flavours of flowers and musk sticks with luscious natural sweetness. Fine spritz gives life on the palate.

I will definitely be enjoying this wine when the warmer weather arrives.

FINISHING WITH COFFEE

I had a fabulous afternoon wandering around in the lovely winter sunshine and enjoyed tasting some great wines. However, I did need to fortify myself with coffee and cake from my favourite Sanctuary Cove coffee shop – Café Nineteen.

 

Are you a wine drinker? Where is your favourite winery?