The bushfires that tore through the Yarra Valley in 2009 are strongly linked to the Wilco’s “Poor Places” in my head. I had become obsessed with the song’s lyrics and composition with its inexplicable yet compelling cascading piano coda which precedes a descent into noise. It formed part of an eerie soundtrack as I followed the tragic events unfolding via the internet.
The 2009 Oakridge Over the Shoulder Cabernet Merlot also serves as a reminder. It smells of ashen vegetation and tastes of astringent fruit trying to break free from the cinders. A very rare miss from Oakridge but there’s something about the bitter experience in the glass which is compelling to me nonetheless. The vintage is seared into the red skins of the grapes. Is this the heart of our collective obsession with wine laid brutally bare? 84 Average
“And it makes no difference to me
How they cried all over overseas
It’s hot in the poor places tonight
I’m not going outside” – Wilco
Region: Yarra Valley
Alcohol: 13.0%
Closure: Screwcap
Price: $23
Tasted: June 2013