The Forgotten Bottle

So, Miss Jaq, Boo and I headed back to our place after the 2009 Wine Picnic and I started looking for the third bottle that I'd pulled out for the picnic. Since I couldn't find it in the park with the picnic goods, I figured it had to be left on the table at home.

Not to be found. And that just left me in a quandary because I knew I'd pulled out the bottle. Plus, Miss Jaq remembered seeing it on the table with the other two bottles.

Complete puzzlement.

So, I started looking through the picnic "basket" (it's really one of those fully-decked out knapsacks) and the second bag that we took with us. Still nothing. Then, I tried one last zipper on the knapsack and, sure enough, there's the bottle all safely stowed away. Well, duh. We'd had it with us all along. Not quite sure how that zipper had been missed on the actual picnic.

So we opened the missing bottle at home and carried on.

143. 2002 Yalumba Bush Vine Grenache (Barossa - Australia)

I'm rather surprised that this is only the second varietal Grenache that we've opened for The List and almost as surprised that this is the first Yalumba wine that been added to The List. Guess we were jsut waiting for a special occasion - like a visit from Miss Jaq.

Love Grenache. And love Yalumba.

Yalumba is the oldest family owned winery in Australia as it was founded in 1849. James Halliday, one of Australia's pre-eminent wine writers, has awarded Yalumba his five-star winery designation - his highest - and he's stated that it is an "outstanding" winery that "has always been a serious contender at the top end of full-bodied (and full-blooded) Australian reds."

Although this bottle is more a mid-range wine for Yalumba, it gives a good indication of just how good their flagship wines must be. I could happily drink this on an on-going basis.

We often run across Yalumba wines at Australian Wine Appreciation Society tastings and at different festival tastings. The winery has continually had a good presence in Vancouver. Here's hoping it continues.

We may have "forgotten" the bottle at this year's picnic, but a laid-back sip in our garden is, hopefully, almost as good for Miss Jaq. It worked for me.