Flat and Flattering

With AB in town there were several chances to try wines at lunch and dinner. It's good how food flatters wines, and this was the case as we 'Ambled Inn' to one of our fave eateries.

First up was a 2004 Weinbach Riesling Schlossberg 'L'Inedit', which was chosen 'cos it's normally a stunner with its richness allied to linear minerality. Surprisingly, it was soft and rounded. Impressively unctuous, but forward. Still flattering though. AB has the 2001 which was in better normal form.

Our 'Amble Inn' host with the most, bless him, chose two reds, affected by the big 'B', but they were drinkable, as they were soft and flattened and flattered so, especially with the food. SWMBO is a bit sensitive to bad horsey notes and found it all a bit tough, but if you're thirsty, you can put up with it. Both the 2000 Clarendon Hills 'Blewitt Springs' Shiraz and 2003 Rocca delle Macie 'Sergioveto' had their varietal and origin identities masked by the brettanomyces, and in fact made them seem polar opposites. The Ocker was dried and furry-earthy with eucalypt appearing later, the Eytie sweet and ripe, partly because of the vintage.

As the evening progressed we got to a 2008 Alluviale 'Anobli', 100% Sauvignon in the Sauternes style. Last year, it was raw, searingly acid and oaky, now come together deliciously and flattened out to a harmonious stage.

See, 'flat' ain't all bad, as it can be flattering!