Directly Above The Centre Of The Earth

A Helpful Bottle Top

I've been occupied with WSET diploma lectures and a jaunt to North Wales, so the Miles From Nowhere Sémillon / Sauvignon Blanc (which arrived in the shop a couple of weeks ago) has had to wait.

Resisting the urge to do a full diploma-style tasting note (they are great, but I haven't yet mastered the trick of combining a diploma note with catching the soul of a wine), I enjoyed the wine outside in the glorious spring sunshine, sitting basking in the kind of warmth which this wine was made to complement.

Miles From Nowhere smells fresh, grassy and fruity. After I'd tasted it I went back and confirmed that, yes, there is a little bit of waxiness on the nose.

The wine has a really clear-cut lovely waxy texture to it, along with plenty of lemon and grapefruit juiciness. There's also a tiny touch of citrus pith, a wee bitter note which is just enough for refreshment without being obtrusive.

It's an excellent summer drinker, and I wish I'd tasted as soon as it arrived in the shop - we would have taken several bottles on holiday. (excellent summer drinker = 4++)

Trifecta, apparently

Or what you or I might call a Rhône blend, but to be fair, the quality of the wine is sufficiently high to bear such high-flown winemaker's language.

I'm talking about the McHenry Hohnen 3 Amigos Red 2007, a Western Australian blend of Shiraz, Grenache, and Mataro. It smells like fruit leather, or even fruity leather - really concentrated fruit juice, but with something deeper to back it up. The palate is dry, mid to full bodied and noticeably spicy. This spiciness grows stronger, so that after a few minutes you have a rather delicious mix of dark fruit purée and chilli, with subtle, but grippy, tannins. After being open for a few hours the chili pepper calmed down and the wine was much more balanced, reminding me of Priorat somewhat.


It really is very very moreish indeed, which is a definite good thing. Lately most of the new world reds I've tried have been hard work, what with their biting youthful acidity and overly concentrated fruit, but 3 Amigos is much more civilised, a very tasty 4+.

Three cheers for 3 Amigos, and a fourth cheer for Margaret River.