An update, at last! Ardbeg Supernova & 2005 Monsanto Chianti

Ardbeg Supernova

Well it sure has been a while. I’ve done lots, drank lots, ate lots and all sorts of other lots since I last posted. My drink inspired writings have been snapped up by my employer, so my musings and rantings more often than not appear there since early this year, my brief notes from bars and whatnot, that I used to email myself whilst tasting things have been taken onboard and expanded and used as tasting notes.. with some hesitation, sometimes I am not sure I can trust my nose, palate and enthusiasm after a few, so more often than not, I’ve bought a bottle of the given subject just to calibrate…… Drunken nose Ryan hasn’t yet let Sober nose Ryan down!.. Tonight’s tipple is easily the most anticipated Whisky I’ve ever come across in my 2ish years of Whisky adoration.

Ardbeg Supernova… Depending on which side of the fence’s opinion you believe, this stuff has been released to demonstrate “another side to Ardbeg” that is, the elemental opposite of Ardbeg Blasda, or as a counterpunch to Bruichladdich’s monumentally succesful Octomore. This shit hit the market after more hype, spin, bullshit and you-name-it descriptors for publicity than an Australian Labour Party policy release.. As I said on the work website, it delivers on the hype that was promised. Tonight is the first time since my initial sniff, swirl, spit and scribble of that note to actually have a good ol’ slurp on the stuff. I can’t stress enough just how wondeful this stuff is. I’ve got a Samichlaus tulip glass filled 3/4 of the way to the 200ml line, upto the said line, topped up from a bottle of Fiji water, Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band going in the background – life really is grand.

This gear is perplexing – the initial sniff is so overwhelmingly smoky that you can’t help but think it’s a one-dimensonal intergalactic monster, sent to earth to assault your nostrils and tastebuds with such brutal force that they’ll never recover. After 1/2 an hour in the glass, this first thought couldn’t be further from the truth.

It’s smoky sure, but underneath there’s some serious mint, sticking plaster and toffee apple sniffs going on – there’s hints of all manner of spice going on underneath there, I said “simply a joy to sniff” – that’s only because I couldn’t get away with saying this stuff is the equivalent of a scotch lover’s nasal viagra. There are few other ways to describe it, lovers of peaty whisky will be made happy in the pants by the enticing sniffs that Supernova offers. The palate epitomises Islay whisky in a party hat – everything you’d expect to be there, in enormous quantities almost exploding over the palate, mouthfilling flavours in indescribable proportions followed by a remarkably long minty sticking plaster like aftertaste. I know sticking plaster sounds terrible, but really, it’s nice.. Trust me! Cracking gear @ $195.00, not something you’ll drink lots of, but given the limited quantities, well worth investigation, and a good slurp!

A good few weeks ago prior to a friday night in with panda, I indulged – before writing the following;

Peter Bouchier makes sausages for god. Occasionally, for whatever reason god decides to leave some sausages for us mere mortals to procure from Peter’s Toorak village store. IF you are lucky enough to come across these badboys, us mortals are forced to call them ‘Toullouse’ sausages, around $2 a pop, they’re nothing short of amazing. Intensely flavoured, superbly textured.. They’re a treat. Anyhow, fine sausages requires fine booze. I decided Italian wine for spicy sausages might work. I don’t know anything about Italian wine, so I decided to go and buy some from someone who should. With a surname like D’Anna, the proprietors of Boccaccio cellars aught to know a thing or two about wog reds. Turns out, they do.

05 Monsanto Chianti Classico Riserva

Deep crimson colour with crimson hue. Perfumed nose of red cherry & spice, above a rocky sort of earthy mineral thing.. It’s a delicious smell, very enticing and not a slap in the nose like many aussie reds, very nice. The medium bodied palate is bright, lively and fresh and delivers initially sweet ripe fruit, before the micro-fine powdery tannin and acidity grip and drive the long, spicy, savoury finish. Micro-fine powdery tannin persists long after you’ve swallowed. It’s a smidge thin for drinking on it’s own, but it was absolutely divine with the sausages.

On the whole an incredibly enjoyable drink, particularly with food, but at the price it’s easy to see why Australian wines are so successful overseas. $60AUD buys you something that’s certainly tip-top from Europe, but when the same coin buys you reds among Australia’s best, you have to scratch your head slightly. Can’t help but think this stuff is only just beginning to think about dipping it’s toe in it’s peak drinking window, whilst delightful with food now, I’d be inclined to grab just a couple and forget about ‘em for a few years, despite me working for the competition, I’ve done so. Top work D’Anna family. 14.0% Alc./Vol. 2.5, 6, 8. 16.5

There’s more to come folks,  stay tuned.