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Le Tuffeau
(Link)
CHAMPAGNE DINNER
Andre Robert
with
Loic Avril
R E — S C H E D U L E D
now
THURSDAY 29/10
~ selling fast ~
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Ling Nan Cantonese Restaurant
$250.00 all inclusive
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NV Champagne Blanc de Noir Extra Brut 'Le Vignes de Montigny'
100% Pinot Noir
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NV Champagne Blanc de Blancs 1er Cru Extra Brut 'Les Horizons'
100% Chardonnay
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NV Champagne Blanc de BlancsGrand Cru Brut Nature 'Les Jardins du Mesnil'
100% Chardonnay
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NV Champagne Rose Extra Brut 'Les Roses des Vignes'
50% Chardonnay, 25% Pinot Meunier, 25% Pinot Noir
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letuffeau.com
(Link)
Lake Barrington Estate
West Kentish, Tasmania
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“Running out of Gembrook Hill Blanc de Blancs earlier this year, and with Andrew Mark's still sometime from releasing a new disgorgement or vintage, has left me bereft of a truly fine Australian sparkling wine. To be sure, there are a number of decent ones but naturally I need something exceptional.
I have finally (re-)discovered such: Lake Barrington Estate's ‘Alexandra’ Sparkling.
The labels are awful:
tick.
No one has heard of it:
tick.
The wines are unavailable anywhere but Hobart and Launceston:
tick.
Long lees aging:
tick.
Though these are hardly the markers of quality they speak to me as the markers of exception.
By way of background: a decade ago I lived in Hobart for two years, largely broke and studying musicology. When I did receive small emoluments, I was able to sample the local wine. A mainstay of my drinking was the exceptional Sparklings of Lake Barrington Estate. Naturally, these dropped from memory and I only recently reached out to the new owners and arranged a shipment. As far as I know I am the only retailer on the mainland.
Lake Barrington Estate was founded by Maree Taylor in 1986 with Sparkling wine as its main object. The estate is in a highly unusual area: West Kentish, immediately north of the Cradle Mountain national park and just south of Nowhere Else
(Link) . It is exceptionally cool and situated on rich red clay soils.
Such a cool pocket of microclimate ensures the ideal conditions for Sparkling wine, allowing for the retention of acid without gaining excessive sugar ripeness. Further, the rich clay soils ensure that even in this difficult environment the wines do not loose their fruit weight. Personally, I have found that on poorer soils elsewhere in Tasmania some Sparklings can come across as skeletal. That is certainly mot the case here; indeed, if anything, this terroir has some small similarity with the unique and marginal subclimate of Gembrook Hill. The Sparklings were made by Steve Lubiana.
The Alexandra Sparkling is roughly 50% Chardonnay and equal portions Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. The estate’s original plantings, from which the Sparklings are vinified, is just over 1ha. Production was, and remains, very limited.
The Lake Barrington Estate ‘Alexandra’ Sparkling remains one of the last undiscovered gems in Australia. Certainly it is one of the finest Sparkling wines in the country.”
— David
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I
Lake Barrington Estate 2019 Sparkling ‘Alexandra’
5 years on lees
Offer: $85.00
6-pack: $450.00 ($75/bottle)
“Nuanced and precise, the Lake Barrington 2019 ‘Alexandra’ Sparkling opens with striking notes of bruleed citrus rind, flaked almonds, firm orchard fruit, and hints of strawberry whites and saline mineral. Touches of pastry, I think of strawberry tartlets, emerge with air along with crumbled biscuit. The palate is caressing with great texture derived from phenolic and fresh, surging acidity that never feels chalky. Opens up marvellously at the conclusion with peach blossom, ripe pear, white strawberry, pate, redcurrant jelly, and crushed stone all vying for attention. The finish is divine - this is one of those wines of shape and texture as much as organoleptic qualities; it needs, consequently, to be experienced more than written about. Most warmly recommended. Very fine.”
— David
Order here
(Link)
II
Lake Barrington Estate 1999 Sparkling ‘Alexandra’
22 years on lees
Offer: $149.00
“Has much in common with the great Oenotheque releases of the early 2000s by Pol Roger. A Sparkling that needs decanting. Notes of leatherwood and strong bush honey, white mushroom, crumbled earth, cooked peach; freshness: crushed rock and salty nuances. The palate is fresher and more driven than the developed aromatic profile would suggest; powerful but now balanced and far from its dotage. Shares an obvious genetic connection to the 2019, with obvious development and richness as well, but nearly identical in shape with a wonderful orchard blossom note on the conclusion. Fans out nicely too. Very fine. Unique.”
— David
Order here
(Link)
~ please note : these wines will be in stock from late next week after our initial shipment sold out immediately on arrival ~
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Please join us for a drink soon. Reservations preferred.
Bookings and after-6.00pm access: (03) 9419 3867
Tue. 11.00 am–6.00 pm
Wed.–Sat. 11.00 am–11.00 pm
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If you would like any of the above, would like to come by for a private appointment, or just have some questions — please let us know.