Visiting Lancaster Wines in the Swan Valley, Perth
I have to admit Lancaster Wines are modern and funky yet down to earth. Their wine tasting shed serves the purpose particularly well. It’s rustic and approachable. It really does create a nice atmosphere in amongst the vines. Not to mention, their customer service is top notch.
I visited Lancaster during a public holiday, so it was rather busy at the time. However at no time during the hour or so that I was there, did I feel unattended. At all times someone was checking that we were taken care of and giving us handy information on all the wines and the winery itself.
Carl and Jackie Lancaster are the owners of the estate which has some of the oldest vines in the Swan Valley. These vines are around 70 years old! Now that is impressive.
So…. What did I try? Here is the low down..
Chenin Blanc 2008
A granny smith apple meets a lemon. It is vibrant with a silky mouth feel.
Verdelho 2011
I’m still not a huge fan of this variety. The Lancaster Verdelho is herbaceous and flowery with a steady acidic kick of lime. It also has quite an oily mouth feel to it, which can be quite common for Aussie Verdelho’s.
Tin Shed White 2011
This is a Chardonnay (60%), Chenin (20%) and Verdelho (20%) blend. It is light with a fruity passion fruit touch. After tasting it, I understood why their description said this “goes beautifully with nude sunbathing’. It’s rather bland and needs some dressing up for my taste buds.
NV Sparkling
This had to be one of my favourites of the day. It is a Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscat Gordo Blanco (this Spanish grape is also known as Muscat of Alexandria and translates to ‘fat white grape’ ) blend. The bubble stream is fine and delicate. The palate is creamy, smooth and refreshing. The passion fruit and citrus notes keep you going back for more. It seems like you can taste the characteristics coming through from each grape in the blend. Love it!
Rose 2011
Nice salmon colour and pleasant on the palate. I can imagine a lot of my girlfriends would love it as it tastes exactly like strawberries dusted with icing sugar. For me it tastes too much like artificial sweetener – lollies. This is a GSM (Grenache-Shiraz-Mourvedre) blend.
Tin Shed Red 2009
This is a nice light GSM with notes of pepper, vanilla and fruits of the forest. An easy drinking red, great for a Friday night barbie.
Cabernet Merlot 2009
This tipple starts off great with dark berry notes and mocha however it is a rather quick finisher.
9 rows 2011
This Cabernet is a beauty and I can understand why they are known for this red. It spends 12 months in new oak and has a wonderful balance of flavours. The fresh cherries and chewy tannins give a smooth yet lasting experience. I have to confess that it also goes well with chocolate – first hand experience!
Old Vine Shiraz 2010
This one builds you up, only to let you down on the finish. The flavours are gorgeous though – full of freshly ground black pepper and blackberries. There is also a hefty booze kick in there.
Late Picked Chenin Blanc Sticky 2011
This was my other favourite of the day. If you know me, then you know I don’t like sweet wines. However this little sweetie I would delve into headfirst. It is not overly sweet with plenty of pineapple notes and a refreshing character. A bottle of this and a platter of cheese and I’ll be one happy girl!
Sticky Shiraz
Now if you love sticky’s then this is the air you breathe. Flavours of nuts, brown sugar and dates dominate the palate. It is also a nice vibrant orange-brown colour in the glass. A touch of Christmas at anytime of the year.
As you can tell, it was a hard afternoon in the office on this particular Monday. Conveniently tMargaret River Chocolate Company is directly opposite Lancaster, so you may as well stop in there to grab some goodness to go with your bottle of 9 rows! Lancaster is a great winery to visit where all intimidation, snobbery and spit buckets should be left outside the gates.
For further information on Lancaster Wines, please click here
