Bob McDonald

9.1

One doesn’t normally associate top flight Cabernet with the Hunter Valley but Lakes Folly , founded by ex surgeon Dr Max Lake (now past) turned that notion on its head and has been making top flight Cabernets for decades. This wine has strong mint aromas with some spice. Red fruited. Would stump a lot of tasters in a blind tasting as to its origins. If anyone can do Cabernets in the Hunter Valley it would be Lakes Folly. — 3 days ago

Ray Vanderhoff

9.1

Light golden color. Aromas of straw/hay, wet stones and Asian pear. Flavors of green melon, key lime, sour quince, beeswax, dried herbs and lemon zest. Touch of minerality on the lingering and quite refined finish. Mouth coating oily texture. Medium acidity and plush texture. Only 11% Alcohol. Quite unique and interesting. Solid QPR. — 3 months ago

Doug Scott

9.1

Hay. Nice citrus and stoney combination. — 3 months ago

Andrew Shaheen

9.0

Overachiever — 6 days ago

Bob McDonald

9.5

Lemon yellow in colour. Stone fruit (peach) and melon notes; medium to full bodied palate - low acid. A delicious Hunter Valley Chardonnay showing its warmer climate origins from the excellent 2014 vintage. A creamy leesy peachy luscious Chardonnay still producing the requisite acid cut. A pity there is not more of this made with a wider distribution. — 2 months ago

David White

9.2

Opaque black dark red colour with a bright red to dark hue. Smoky dark plum and liquorice scents and peppered clove scents Rich plum and liquorice fruits carry good weight and it has a plush feel across the palate. Scorched earth, dried meats, Very polished tannins yet structurally sturdy and firm. The long finish has black pepper characters. — 3 months ago

Donald Williams

9.4

Got careless and held this longer than intended. Didn’t matter. It was near perfect. — 6 months ago

with Bonnie

Caleb Kneip

9.0

Opened up nice; a full bodied Cabernet with tons of length, big aromas of cassis and boysenberry, bits of red raspberry or strawberry, cocoa powder and rosemary butter. It is rich and powerful on palate with more acid than typical Napa which is really fresh, but it is still rich and bold. — a month ago

Bob McDonald

9.4

Even though this wine is 27 years old I might have opened this a little early. This will cruise to its 40th birthday without a problem. This was the period when Hunter Valley decided to emulate the big ripe oaky styles of South Australia instead of sticking to the HV medium bodied savoury style which Maurice O’Shea himself pioneered back in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s. A palate staining and concentrated palate of profound intensity with a black fruited perfume. An impressive wine but thankfully the Maurice O’Shea Shiraz of the last 10 to 15 years have returned to their medium bodied roots. — 3 months ago

Abbas Zand

9.1

Pear and peach aroma and flavors. Some vanilla spice and oak, but not too oaky.
Nice balance.
$20 — 6 months ago