Match #1 TFV World Cup of Wine: Germany v. Australia

This match may come down to focus versus heart. Germany certainly has the expectation to come out victorious, but no one is writing off Australia. The Europeans are bringing a young team this year, but this program is known to be the most consistent and focused program year after after year. However the Australians are playing in their 2nd consecutive finals and have an outstanding and experienced keeper. They will need to use their stars Tim Cahill and Josh Kennedy to score, because Germany will certainly be doing so.

What wine better represents the focus and consistency of Germany than riesling. I selected a Winegut Max Ferd. Richter 2007 Piesporter Michelsberg Riesling, which retails for around $12. This wine had a nice lime and apple nose with petrol and slate elements that screamed riesling, very appealing actually. It drank of apple, some citrus, and a wash of crushed minerals. As it warmed up it gave off more lemon and a touch of bitter lemon rind, that again was quite pleasant. It was a very delicious and appealing wine, but had one flaw. It absolutely lacked the acid that generally accompanies the finish of a quality German riesling and gives it that intense focus.

For a wine that represents the heart of Australia you must go with a Barossa Shiraz. Representing Australia in this category I selected Thorn Clarke Shotfire Barossa Shiraz 2008 which retails for around $18. With a dark black core this wine gives off aromas of blueberries, leather, vanilla and spice, and a bit of smoke. The nose is quite complex and really smells great. It is quite full-bodied and drinks of dark fruit up front, some oaky vanilla across the mid-palette, and a spiced tobacco finish. But then at the end a huge dollop of oak overtakes the wine and for me sends this wine into a bit of a disjointed spiral.

The outcome: These wines were selected to display the focus of Germany and the heart of Australia. They both were delicious and enjoyable, with slight flaws that kept them from being amazing. In the end their scores come down to this:

German riesling - 3 out 5

Australian shiraz - 3.5 out of 5

The Australians pulled off this match up with a wine that may have been a little overoaked for my palette but overall showed a complexity and profile that was quite good. The German wine, while a recommended buy for the price and definitely something I would drink again, lacked the final push to put it into 'great' territory.

In this first match up for TVF's World Cup of Wine the contest goes to Australia. Next up is Portugal with a win by forfeit on Tuesday (but still a nice little vino verde to discuss).