Orlando Steingarten Rhine Riesling 1988 Wholesale Price Recommended Retail Price I believe it is critical that every restaurant offers at least one option for the patron not accustomed to spending large amounts on wine, for I meet people all the time who by their own admission do not get full value from expensive bottles, but who enjoy eating well. Leo Buring have released a very creditable wine under their varietal range, a Cabernet Sauvignon blended from Padthaway and Coonawarra in south-east South Australia. Many good commercial blends from these quality wine regions fetch around fifteen dollars per bottle, but this wine retails at around six. It could be put on a good restaurant list with a margin for around ten dollars and at that price it fills a niche. The Leo Buring Cabernet Sauvignon 1986 is no classic wine but who would expect it to be? Instead it brings generous and distinctive cabernet characters of blackcurrant fruit, varietal herbaceousness and the sort of mulberry richness and softness expected of high-class south-eastern reds. Length of flavour it has, with the complexity and character of oak maturation, which adds definition and emphasis to the interesting fruit. The wine is beginning to drink well now, but would appreciate more time in the bottle. It has the potential to develop for at least three to four years. It is a genuine bargain which should be more expensive. It is encouraging to see that Lindemans, which own Leo Buring, have spent money uplifting the image of this famous old Australian brand. The well-known bin number wines have been revitalised and the wines therein are worthy inclusions. It would have been a terrible thing for Leo Buring’s name to be sentenced to appear only on wine casks. The Lindemans facilities at Padthaway and Coonawarra are amongst the most sophisticated in Australia. The company owns large vineyard areas in both locations, especially Padthaway, where you can stroll down a row of vines a mile long. Lindemans’ viticultural honcho, Colin Kidd, has pioneered the use of mechanical and then minimal pruning in these areas with remarkable results. Vineyard labour costs are slashed and fruit exposure and quality is improved, for the bunches tend towards the outside of the vine canopy, where they have minimal shading and excellent airflow around them. These pruning techniques are ideal for mechanical harvesting, which enables vast areas of vineyard to be picked systematically as the fruit reaches optimum ripening. Once in the winery the wine is into the capable hands of the Robert Mondavi Winemaker of the Year, local Coonawarra boy made good, Greg Clayfield. So the Leo Buring Cabernet Sauvignon 1986 has some pedigree and a story to tell. Like most claret styles of red this wine will undoubtedly accompany the basic cuts of red meat and its fruitiness will help its match fruit sauces and dressings. It works well with spicy meats, stronger cheeses and game. I think it would overpower pork and veal. Distribution is via Lindemans wines.
