I think the style has changed. I remember the wines from the 70s and 80s. There’s more alcohol in the modern ones for a start, which I don’t think is a change for the better. I met a woman a while ago who works in the wine industry and she described the Wynns Black Label Cabernet as “soupy”, and I think that’s pretty accurate.
Happy Christmas to all Blitz wineophiles.
This was enjoyed at our Christmas dinner today:
The wine label design is a classic that would of course be appreciated by Essendon supporters
For afficianodos, this is one of the last bottles from the last vintage by master winemaker HJT, from which you may infer it is now 41 years old. Still as good as Grange, but now rarer!
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If I knew the first thing about wine I may be impressed, but you are clearly very happy with it so I am happy for you. I assume HJT couldn’t afford a vowel? Wine is made from grapes right?
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One of the first wines I learned to drink. What’s the honest appraisal of it now? I find that one of the great things about wine is drinking something from which you’re not expecting much and finding it’s fantastic, and one of the things you have to accept is that something you’re expecting to be great turns out not to be quite so good.
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Had one from ‘77 in July. Was amazing. My old man has another vintage or two for another occasion. Tells me almost undrinkably big in their early days. Can’t be many around.
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Who was HJT ?
The only winemaker I knew with that moniker was Hector James Tulloch, who was known in the Hunter as HJT, but he died in 1965. We used to visit Rutherglen regularly during our University days and I recall the big red wines of the region. We actually went to the party at Baileys when the Bailey family sold out in 1972.
Hope you enjoyed the wine.
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I’m presuming Harry Tinson, his name is legendary amongst wine aficionados.
I’m not a huge one myself but living on the edge of the Barossa it’s kind of force fed to you 
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Thanks Ace, just read about him.
Yes, HJT = Harry J Tinson. Self-taught but became a winemaking legend in his few years at Baileys.
As you can see this wine is labelled as a Hermitage so is made from Shiraz grapes. This was from 1981 so before France made Australia stop using Hermitage and other terms. (So that is why so many Australian wines have such stupid names these days).
It is no longer a wine but has been elevated to a higher plane. Perfect integration of flavours, tannins and oak, balance and depth makes it seem more like a liqueur than a table wine.
Cliff Booth, another local legend, advised to wait on a Glenrowan white for 10 years, and wait longer for the reds. They definitely benefit from 20+ years ageing.
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I sincerely thank you for the feedback, but should let you know, I really do not like wines. I have never been able to finish a glass of the stuff, yet alone a bottle. I have often wished I would/could develop a taste for it but it has never happened. Made it very funny when the boss asked me to go shopping for a good bottle of wine for a co-worker who was retiring. My response would be a series of black squares here. Suffice to say that he was informed that my knowledge of wine was less than my knowledge of Tibetan throat singing, which to be fair, probably wouldn’t fill the back of a postage stamp.
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Haha, must be a slow day in the LB household if you have to peruse the wine thread then 
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All packed up and sitting here with some beer and some chips, trying not to pass out from 3 hours sleep after the grandson decided to wake up just before midnight and asking if Santa had come, while delicately making sure he didn’t look under the tree at the 150 or so presents sitting there.
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I am always glad to hear of people who do not like wine. More for me !
It is an acquired taste that I have been developing since my best friend as a small child, sixth birthday party. We drank a glass of wine while his Mother was not looking. Now over sixty years later still trying to acquire the taste.
What beer do you drink ?
I prefer my whites over reds and has a cracking Pinot Gris from Kilikanoon for lunch today. Was a fantastic drop
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Sacrilege! A crisp Riesling from Clare Valley are nice, but Coonawarra Shiraz is nectar.
Don’t get me wrong, I love a Red but I drink far more White wine. I might only have a couple of glasses of Red per week but normally have a couple of glasses of white with dinner each night and I prefer it to Reds
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I must admit to having developed a taste for IPA’s and Pale Ale’s, but nowadays most of my drinking is Bourbon or Single Malts.
Mt motto is Life is too short for white wine.
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White wine is better with most foods, apart from the obvious red meat. So drink reisling a lot with food. Save the red wine for when I’m just drinking.
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