Morris Wines

Old Premium Rare Liqueur Topaque NV

Award
Winner Top 100 Fortified Wines
Grape Varieties
Muscadelle (100%) Rutherglen
Country of Origin
Australia
Alcohol Content
17.0% Alcohol by Volume
Wine Type and Oak Treatment
Port, Tawny, Vintage, Ruby, To Fortified with Oak Treatment
Recommended Retail Price
RRP AU $90.00
Buy This Wine
  • Morris Wines
    PO 239
    RUTHERGLEN, VICTORIA
    Australia 3685
  • David Morris, Winemaker
  • Phone (61) 418 807131
    Website

“Sticky, maple honey nose with concentrated medicinal aromas. Very viscous, moscatel flavours and very sweet. Lacks a little drive and balance. With the dish, it became even sweeter and more unbalanced.”

“Inky molasses black hue with noticeable green tinge at the rim. Fragrant stewed sultana aromas unfold to reveal a very sweet very concentrated unctuous palate. Excellent concentration but the sweetness is not quite balanced, leading to a slightly cloying finish. The chocolate brownie brought out the very concentrated stewed sultana notes in the wine and made the wine appear less sweet ?a successful match.”

“Dense, rich nose. Rich, complex. Very attractive. Excellent palate, super concentrated. I am not totally convinced about the match with the dish but awesome nonetheless!”

“Lifted complex and brooding fish, oil, and rancio, nutty complex aromas. Tar and sweetness, chewy, well textured. Concentrated rich plum, olive oil, soupy flavours. Tar and earth with floral / muscat aromas. Hedonistic. The wine highlights the smoky hazelnut characters extremely well. A delicious and well-matched wine to the dessert. The sweetness of the wine is well contained by the bitterness of the chocolate brownie.”

“Rich and powerful, unctuous, liquid raisins, fruit cake and treacle ,caramalised fig jam. Christmas cake in a glass.”

“Deep brown, with a slightly olive green rim. Walnuts and plum pudding. Highly rich and unctuous mouthfeel, lingering retro-nasal aromas.”

“Deep dark brooding, alluring colour that looks like crushed liquorice. Deep legs on swirling. Looks old and inviting ? molases like. Nose is liquorice, plum, marzipan, oil sump and raisins. Old wine, very well blended and huge length. Impressive piece of Australian winemaking history. With food ? the wine completely overshadows the dish, Roast hazelnuts the only residual flavour that works well with the muscadelle”

The Fortified Wines were judged with

Chocolate Brownie with apricot and toasted hazelnut

Presented by chef Marcell Kustos

Ingredients

Brownie

  • 185g unsalted butter
  • 185g dark chocolate
  • 85g plain flour
  • 40g cocoa powder
  • 50g milk chocolate
  • 3 large eggs
  • 200g caster sugar
Hazelnuts
  • 100g toasted, halved
Apricot sauce
  • 100g dried apricot
  • 150g sugar
  • 500ml water
Crème fraiche to serve

Method

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees.
  2. Cut unsalted butter into small cubes and tip into a medium bowl.
  3. Break dark chocolate into small pieces and drop into the bowl.
  4. Fill a small saucepan about a quarter full with hot water, then sit the bowl on top so it rests on the rim of the pan, not touching the water. Put over a low heat until the butter and chocolate have melted, stirring occasionally to mix them.
  5. Remove the bowl from the pan.
  6. Using a shallow 20cm square tin, cut out a square of non-stick baking parchment to line the base.
  7. Tip plain flour and cocoa powder into a sieve held over a medium bowl.
  8. Tap and shake the sieve so they run through together and you get rid of any lumps.
  9. Chop milk chocolate into chunks on a board.
  10. Break eggs into a large bowl and tip in golden caster sugar and whisk until double in volume.
  11. Pour the cooled chocolate mixture over the eggy mousse, then gently fold together with a rubber spatula.
  12. Hold the sieve over the bowl of eggy chocolate mixture and resift the cocoa and flour mixture, shaking the sieve from side to side, to cover the top evenly.
  13. Gently fold in this powder. The mixture will look dry and dusty at first, and a bit unpromising, but if you keep going very gently and patiently, it will end up looking gungy and fudgy. You don’t want to overdo this mixing.
  14. Finally, stir in the white and milk chocolate chunks until they’re dotted throughout.
  15. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin, scraping every bit out of the bowl with the spatula. Gently ease the mixture into the corners of the tin and paddle the spatula from side to side across the top to level it.
  16. Put in the oven and set your timer for 25 minutes.
  17. In a medium pot, cook apricots, in water and sugar for 10 minutes. Then place it in a blender and blend until smooth.
  18. Serve brownies with apricot puree and toasted hazelnuts.