Oh, we’ve shared some history, this band and I.
I’d seen them here, at the same venue, 13 years earlier; the last time they “re-formed”. Don Walker essentially wrote the soundtrack to my adolescence.
The scream of Jimmy’s voice tearing at the air...the magic of Mossy’s fingers dancing along the frets...every note they’ve ever played is permanently ingrained on my brain.
And so there we were again, in deepest, darkest Boondall. Sitting at a table with old friends. Seeing which one of us could tell the biggest lies. Watching the tide of human detritus that is a Cold Chisel crowd wash by us.
We drank cans of Wild Turkey and bought bandanas so that we could hide in plain sight.
All I can say is that it must have been a quiet night in Ipswich that night because I swear every single scrawny, singlet-sporting, slack-jawed Swicher had travelled East for the evening.
More Holden Racing paraphernalia than you could possibly poke a short stick at. Millions of doled out dollars sensibly spent on shrivelled up tuffy-stickers. I’ve seen Halloween pumpkins with more teeth. And that was just the women.
It was one of the best nights out I’ve had in ages.
But let’s now move on from one Wild Turkey to another. The Turkey Flat 2009 Barossa Shiraz is an absolute steam-roller of a drop.
Born from vines that are over 160 years old, it’s dark and dense and brooding and smells sweetly of double Dutch liquorice.
The colour is black syrupy espresso, with flame tree red striking along its edges.
In the mouth, it’s a massive attack of concentrated Barossan intensity – a degustation of delicious dark fruit and smoky BBQ sauce, rounded out with a cheeky cinnamon doughnut for dessert.
It’s smooth but powerful and keeps on delivering a persistent hum of flavour long after you’ve licked your lips.
Great drinking now, and I have a feeling it will be doubly exceptional down the track. Less than $40 for this wine is seriously outstanding.
My good friend Fraser bought me a bottle of the ’03 many years ago. It’s been doing hard time in my cellar and probably still has another 5 or 10 years left to serve.
But I don’t know. Tonight’s wine was so delicious, I think I might just give the '03 some time off for good behaviour and crack it with him soon.
Rating: 9.25
Drink with: a Danneman cigar
Price: $38
www.turkeyflat.com.au
"I’ve seen Halloween pumpkins with more teeth. And that was just the women." has to be the comment of the week !
ReplyDeleteI reckon if you send Barnsey an invite, he'll share a glass or two with you. Your wife is chasing him for a meeting with the Cascade band (let her explain) but without much persuasion, I'm pretty sure he'd roll into Princess Street to honour your cellar!
ReplyDelete