Muse Brut Rose, 2004, Moorilla

I love pink bubbles.  Being also a fan of sparkly dresses, sometimes I think there is much fun in being a cliche when it involves good frocks and tasty sparkling!  There is still something of a stigma attached to sparkling rose and if people have only ever tried the horror that is Jacob's Creek Moscato Rose I can completely understand why they think it is hen-night lady-fuel.

Krug Rose or Taittinger Comtes de Champagnes rose couldn't be further from L-plated veils and perma-tanned strippers gyrating to Sex Bomb but if your budget doesn't quite stretch to that then there are plenty of great options in between.

The Muse Brut Rose 2004 is older and I'm tempted to say slightly more interesting than the Brut 06. A complex nose of redcurrant jelly, honey, figs, raspberries and baked strawberries intrigued me and the palate delivered. A very creamy mousse with plenty of refreshing acidity, hibiscus and soft red fruits and a long length.

A delicious and refreshing rose with complex maturity and I think teamed with a glamorous dress the awesome Bruny Island 'Otto', the one wrapped in ham, a few hours could be quite cheerfully wasted away.

Muse Brut 2006, Moorilla

There are so many jokes about Craig Mclachlan that I shall leave them unsaid and let the meme transfer the song into your head all on its own! 

Ex-Neighbours stars aside, if you haven't made the journey to Mona I would highly recommend it, some really confronting art and awesome food can be found on the same site as a very swanky Cellar Door for Moorilla wines.

With fruit sourced from the Tamar Valley the 2006 is as stylish as its surroundings. Pale lemon-green with a fine persistence in the glass the nose is clean and crisp with fresh lemons, biscuits, green apple and a hint of crab apple coming through. This is one crisp and refreshing glass of bubbles with plenty of clean acidity, a really creamy mousse and a long finish. The zingy green apple and lemon combine beautifully with honey, yeast and a complex biscuitty finish in a classy glass of bubbles. 

The Muse vintage Brut is definitely one to enjoy with some tapas from the bar before you head off to view the naked folk, light bulbs and coolest shower around.

Salute Sparkling, Spring Vale, 2008

Produced by Rod and Lyn Lyne out on the east coast of Tassie in Freycinet, the Spring Vale "Salute" sparkling is a blend of 87% Chardonnay, 9% Pinot Noir and 4% Pinot Meunier. Freycinet isn't always at the top of people's minds when one thinks of Tasmanian sparkling wine but it is worth remembering that Spring Vale are in the same neighbourhood as Claudio Radenti who makes some very smart bubbles indeed.

A delicate, pale, lemon-green wine with small fast moving bubbles the Salute is very fresh on the nose with green apple, lemons, white blossoms and biscuits finding their way through. The palate is yeasty and relatively intense with flavours of nectarines, apples, lemons, peach and biscuit. Salute spends 27  months on its lees before release and I would be interested to see how this wine develops as the bottle that I had showed something of a short finish to what was quite the pleasant glass of bubbles, one to re-visit in the future I think.

Pommery, 1981

So Christmas eh? T'was most definitely the season to be merry this year as there has been a cheerful amount of good bubbles knocking around, not least the Pommery 1981 we enjoyed on Christmas morning. A tricky vintage with a reduction in harvest size due to frosts in  the Spring, the 1981's are definitely ready to show us how they have turned out.

I am very much of the opinion that 30 is a lovely age and the Pommery did not disprove my theory. When Pommery is young I find it a little hard going, not quite at the 'a face only a mother could love' stage, more gangly youth, all knees, elbows and funny hair.

Age, however, does wonderful things and the Pommery has emerged from slightly awkward teenage years to be a stylish and slick adult. The maturity is obvious from the start with a rich golden hue which had far more sprightly bubbles than anticipated. The nose had an intensely rich, mushroomy scent with candied peel and some oxidised flavours coming through.

Rich and truffley on the palate, the Pommery was toasty, concentrated and vary satisfying. Intense baked apple, candied peel, brioche and a refreshing tang this was a classy little Champagne which really shows how well Pommery delivers the goods when tucked away to grow up a little.

Tamar Ridge, Vintage Cuvee, 2006

Unless you have been asleep, or merely fixated on the gold dress, it is impossible to skim over my weakness for Tassie bubbles. It has brought me to the other side of the world and although the 100 Aussie sparkling wines  has a pretty strong Tassie bias, this is one that isn't on the initial list.   

This omission isn't for any other reason than there was already way over 100 on the initial list and it needed slimming down a little. 2006 has provided some very smart wines from Tasmania and the Tamar Ridge vintage Cuvee is no exception, it is a cracker of a wine.

Medium lemon with a fine persistence, the nose is yeasty and autolytic with an almost oxidised approach combined with honey, brioche, apple and apricot. On the palate the mousse is rich and creamy which sets off a sparkling that is elegant but firm and flavoursome. Baked apples and stone fruits give way to leave the wine with a combination of citrus, honey and biscuits at the end. 


It will be interesting to watch this one develop as it is still very much developing rather than being fully mature but it is already an absolute belter. One to get a case of and pull out a bottle every now and then just to see how it is doing.

No:49 Bay of Fires Pinot Noir Chardonnay 2003

Tasmania produces some great sparkling wine all over the state but there is definitely a corner of sparkling wine dreams that is inhabited by Jansz, Delamere, Kreglinger and the glorious Bay of Fires.

Everything from the Bay of Fires sparkling range is great drinking and the 2003 is no exception. Inviting from the get-go, the 2003 is sprightly in the glass the small, fast moving, bubbles settling to some fine beading on the rim.

On the nose the maturity is obvious and complex, rich and toasty flavours, stone fruits, baked apple, biscuits and a very pleasant autolytic aroma. These all follow through on the palate to show what a cracking sparkling wine this is. A perfect balance of development married with fresh acidity, a creamy mousse and rich and complex flavours, this is a really stylish glass of bubbles. 

My 100 Australian sparkling wines to try is a little heavy on the Tasmanian sparklers but when they are like this, who am I to argue?

No:96 Knappstein Sparkling Shiraz

There are certain things that are very Australian; Vegemite, freakish animals and sparkling red wine. A little while ago I asked the Twitterverse if Australian sparkling red was pointless filth or Australian speciality and the answer was a healthy enthusiasm for red bubbles.

I have a few sparkling reds to try on my 100 Australian Sparkling wines and this is the first one I have reviewed so far. Apparently it's big over the festive season so I'm bang on the money reviewing it now!

Deep ruby with small fast moving bubbles and lots of fine beading on the rim the nose had as intense and spicy a nose as a still Shiraz. Dark chocolate, coffee, blackberry, pepper, star anise and black cherry all combining in a complex aroma. On the palate it is off-dry but with a refreshing acidity and the dark cherry, chocolate and spice flavours found on the nose all follow through with a hint of eucalyptus and star anise. 

Produced with fruit grown in the Chainsaw Vineyard of the Clare Valley the grapes are hand picked and after two weeks fermentation on skins the wine is transferred into oak barrels for ageing.  Not a traditional method but this has been made with some love and it shows. For my first foray into sparkling Shiraz, I'm kinda liking this, it's like hot Christmas. Weird but not necessarily wrong.