Paul B, ready for a Chambourcin TN!!?

It was a toss up between the Pelham Baco Noir or the Yarraman Chambourcin. The Pelham lost out. Stay tuned.

Bob, I can't wait to try it myself. Stay tuned too!

Hopefully this posting will create some interest as this hybrid can produce some good wines on the eastern seaboard. This Chambourcin, at 14%alc, is from the Hunter Valley, was slightly chilled and open for an hour.

TN: `03 Chambourcin Black Cypress--Yarraman, Hunter Valley.

Colour. Dark intense centre with some lovely purple variations on the rim. Big legs.

Nose. Cherry and plum, slight oak maybe.

Palate. Initial soft ripe entry mouthfeel. Ver low tannins (typical?), hint of sweetness and good balance. Acidity is masked by the black fruits, as is some earthyness on the finish. Here comes some white pepper and brambleberry. Guess medium bodied and brief hints of sour cherry after an hour in the glass. Nice grip but do not like the savoury character on the finish, deters somewhat?
Would buy again when I see a new vintage.
Cost was about $22 Cdn.

Bob, it sounds like a steak wine for sure. Thanks for the note. I will definitely be getting a few of these.

Bob, I tried one of the bottles that I bought, though it was while I was camping and the conditions were less than ideal for effective analysis. Still, here are some basic impressions:

(1) The wine definitely has the ruby-purple pigmentation of a hybrid and is easily recognizable as a hybrid red. (2) The saturation was far less than what I was expecting in an Australian (hot-climate) iteration! It was dark but translucent and not inky at all. Many of our Ontario hybrid reds tend to be completely black and opaque in hot vintages. Could the cropping level here have been quite high? (3) There is no oak in this wine - and I think it would have done better to have a bit. I would have gone for either a light (6-8 months) American oak treatment, or a year of French oak. The cherry/brine aromas on their own could marry very well to some oak, and I don't know why the winemaker didn't think of this. (4) Overall palate-feel was like a light northern Italian red; I was expecting a sweeter, fatter wine - but this is quite lithe and tart for an Australian red.

That said, I plan to try my second bottle sometime soon and re-evaluate the wine.