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I have sometimes thought of wine as some sort of composition, fruit fermented and crafted by a winemaker whose own tastes and preferences should be an integral part of any wine. For those who value culture, traditions and human identity, a winemaker's style will tell...

Some years ago I attended a trade tasting of one of Australia's oldest and most prestigious fine wine distributors. Many of the producers on offer were household names and I had been out of the trade a long time, so it was a perfect opportunity to reacquaint myself...

It's hard to be original. Form a winemaking perspective, everything you do has been done before. Originality, evolution, call it what you will, is particularly difficult in Europe. Unfortunately, governments now legislate traditions, particularly in France, perhaps...

Rob Hall is a Yarra Valley local, growing up in Healesville and working his entire vinous life in the region. From large operations such as Punt Road to the most revered of all, 10 years at Mount Mary, before going it alone in 2014. Working for different producers not...

Spatburgunder (Pinot Noir) has over a 1000 years of history in Germany, but it's only this last two decades that we have witnessed the emergence of superstars. Furst, Enderle & Moll, Huber, Rings, even Weingut Keller produce Pinot Noir in tiny quantities of...

It's always insightful to retaste wines, particularly those which have had greater than usual impact or elicited stronger and more forceful opinions. I like to leave readers in no doubt of my views, so retasting is a time of trepidation; particularly when they are...

The finest collection of single vineyard pinot noirs in Australia is being produced by Eastern Peake. Old vine material, a long line of vintages and some of the best tendered organic vineyards are yielding astonishing results. With a longer history of pinot noir,...

Paralian's releases have, so far, put them right up there with South Australia's best producers and a level of value that is simply astonishing. 2022 is a great year for McLaren Vale, being cool, long and with slightly reduced yields. The reds are intense, with deep...

Syrahmi's first vintage was in 2004, just a few hundred cases. Despite such humble beginnings it's hard to overestimate the impact that Adam Foster has had on our perception of shiraz, or syrah if you will. Not only did he rewrite the book in an Australian context, he...

Much of the literature surrounding Thibaud Boudignon begins with phrases like "bright new star", "most exciting", or "young star" and so on. I'm not sure what a man needs to do to be the star, or how many vintages one needs to work, or wines need to be made to become...

Over two days in late June I tasted a lot of wine, about 150 samples of different styles from around the world. There are always a few standouts, the lovely and not so lovely, but almost all of them made well and to a high standard. And then there are those that stop...

The 2024 autumn releases from Bubb and Pooley include the first release off their own vineyard, the WKR Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 and WKR Pinot Noir 2022. The négoce wines (bought fruit, not from their vineyards), a Chardonnay, Pinot and Riesling are sourced from fruit...

We've been following the fortunes of Dappled wine for a few years now and Shaun's impeccable wines remain some of the best value for money in Australian wine today. As our 2020 Q&A with him attests, Dappled is all about good booze at a bloody good price! 2023 New...

Adelina's vineyards are neighboured by Wendouree, one of Australia's most significant vinous properties and there are some striking similarities of style, most notably in relation to tannins and shape. The finished wines provide us signposts to the styles that Col...

I must admit to holding an ill-founded long prejudice against the estate of Domaine A, harbouring the view that the wines were inauthentic; a copy of Bordeaux. It seems illogical to me now as all wine from Australia, at its root, is a copy, and the early settlers...

Does the Australian wine industry have a chip on its shoulder? Remember a time where Coonawarra Cabernet wasn't compared to Bordeaux, and Australian Shiraz was still called Shiraz without the new French title of Syrah? I asked Brendan Kaczorowski of Pokolbin Vintners...

Chatting with a Serbian friend, originally from Bosnia, we were discussing the different ways our cultures referred to grandparents. Grandpa/ma, nanna, pop, nan, nonna/nonno for Italians (she is married to a Calabrese), yia yia/papu and in Serbian, deda/deka. We had...

For those that don't know, Kloof Street is at the heart of Cape Town, and South Africa's most fashionable destination for food and nightlife. Mullineux's success has been meteoric, establishing their incomparable reputation as soon as their first wines were released....

The Stonegarden vineyard was planted between 1857 and 1860, for reasons unknown, in the south eastern corner of the Eden Valley region of the Barossa. It's cooler and drier than much of the region, resulting in tiny berries and low yields. The wines are intensely...

Tasting the wines of Sierra Reed is one of the most satisfying vinous experiences every year. The range is diverse, the grapes sourced from all over, and moreover, it's impossible to pin down a 'style'. Every wine presents differently, not only within the range, but...

Vinya Vella is the very personal project of Dylan Griggs, one of Australia's foremost viticulturists. A tiny vineyard, just 6 hectares of mostly grenache planted on the eastern slopes of the Barossa Valley, just below the upper reaches of the Eden Valley. No doubt the...

In a recent review of the 2022 Vanguardist MVG Grenache, Gary Walsh asked and answered the rhetorical question "Is it the best Australian Grenache? I think maybe so." A better question, I think, would have been "Is this the most beautiful Australian Grenache?" and my...

First, a little history After the defeat of Germany in May 1945, one of the curious sights amongst the ruin and rubble were people chipping away at Stucco. En-stucking, was the practice of removing a buildings outer layer of decorative stucco. Usually full of flourish...

If there is one varietal South Africa is known for, it is Chenin Blanc. With almost 20% of plantings, it is South  Africa's most widely planted variety.   Revered and respected Known colloquially as Steen, Chenin is to be found all over the Western Cape, adapting...

Tempranillo often plays second fiddle, third or fourth for wine lovers and growers alike, so it is a delightful surprise to discover an Australian producer focusing on the Holy Grail that is Tempranillo and, as it turns out, crafting the country's finest example -...

Always one of our favourite releases of Australian wine, Traviarti has established itself as one of the country's foremost Nebbiolo producers. Tiny vineyards alas sell through their wine quickly but here there are two wines from 2023, Chardonnay and the Rosso (93%...

Alheit: "We practice simple and careful winemaking: no yeasts, no enzymes, no acidification, no sulphur before ferment, no blocking malo, no new barrels, no fining etc. No manipulation." I have come to love the idea that pure, fine wine can be harvested in the most...

How often have I heard it said that wine tastes better in Italy or France, and drinking it here in Australia, just isn't quite the same. It's true of course, how could it possibly taste the same, or as good, sipping it as you are, in a snatched moment of relaxation,...

The Adelaide Hills it seems is a great incubator for young couples creating their own wine journeys. A region that was once defined by classicism, until a new wave of avante garde and contemporary wine producers, innovated and transformed the Australian vinous...

Many of Tasmania's sparkling wines are crafted from bought grapes and made by a contract winemaker. Whilst there is nothing wrong with this, what with the cost of purchasing land and establishing a vineyard, it doesn't ooze the magic of a farmer growing, fizzing and...

One of the most significant trends of Champagne in the last 20 years is the increasing prevalence of little or no dosage. Dosage is sugar added to the final blend, to balance out Champagne's naturally high acidity. Many growers began lowering their levels of dosage,...

Hmmm, syrah grown on granite. Bernhard Bredell became sick of seeing ancient bush vines simply grubbed up, as farmers didn't have the markets or the ability to harvest and vinify the grapes. Scions of Sinai is based on Sinai Hill in lower Heldeberg, Stellenbosch....

There are plenty of producers crafting good wines from excellent, well known fruit sources in McLaren Vale. It is, in a sense, crowded. But a crowd brings competition and competition, for the patient wine lover, gifts beautiful, authentic wines that most of us can...

If it's a lucky vintage, the weather gods will shine brightly to yield up the full compliment of Adrian Rodda's wines. Something almost always goes wrong, preventing the creation of some of Australia's finest chardonnays and Bordeaux blends. But for the time being, we...

Gilbert Family Wines is a true rarity - an affordable, high quality wine producer who absolutely knocks the value stakes out of the park and gets excellent reviews from various wine journalists. For once, we are in agreement! Six generations of Gilberts have been in...

I was lucky enough to receive an invitation to taste the 2022 release of Bannockburn single vineyard Chardonnay and Pinot Noirs, including back vintages all the way to 1995. Very few Australian producers of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay could boast that far back and...

I have tasted the wines of Mac Forbes a number of times over the years, and was never entirely convinced. Bursting onto the wine scene in 2004 after stints at Mount Mary and Southcorp, he was and is a pivotal producer showcasing an alternative expression of the Yarra...

Every winemaker has an ambition to express the complex notion of vineyard and vintage. But how best to do this? Patrick Sullivan works with chardonnay and pinot noir across various sites in Victoria. Both varieties have the advantage of producing stunning wines from...

From three barrels in 2012, marine scientists Gareth and Rainbo Belton have grown to 8 hectares, five staff and between 6 and 7 thousand cases of wines. All vineyards are farmed organically and biodynamically with absolutely no additions in the cellar, save for small...

It's been too long, about four years, since I had the opportunity to taste the wines of Bindi, so when invited to a trade tasting that included this wonderful producer I jumped at the chance. From the very first sniff, Bindi once again confirmed its status as a first...

It is every Hunter Valley wine lover's labour and curse to preach of its glories and delights. Whenever I happen to write of the Hunter Valley, I find it impossible not to mention the indifference of most Australian wine drinkers. Ah well, let's keep on keeping on....

Bicknell FC is the label of Nicky Harris and David Bicknell, chief winemaker at Oakridge. David Bicknell is one of Australia's greatest winemakers and we have had many a superb cellared bottle contest between Oakridge and Bicknell FC. All the fruit is from a close...

Henty must be a pretty tough place to live, let alone grow grapes. Its isolated location and freezing temperatures mean there are just two wine producers that define it - Crawford River and Hochkirch. Both producers are definitive of the grapes they grow and the...

Agricola Vintners' shiraz's begin in their vineyards, which are some of the grandest fruit sources in the country. Three Rivers, Asbroek and Dimchurch, to name a few from vines up to 170 years old. In a sense the wine that encapsulates the Barossa, according to Callum...

I first came across the wines of Haddow and Dineen at the Israeli restaurant Ezra in Sydney. The food was superb and suited the wines perfectly. But what was immediately apparent, and these moments don't happen that often, was that I had tasted Australia's best Pinot...

Weiser Kunstler’s vineyards of Ellegrub, Steffensberg and Gaispfad are Grand Cru vineyards, by any measure (except the VDP’s, who coincidently have no members working these sites). They accorded the status of Grand Cru to their vineyards based on the 1897 Prussian...

Frederic Savart produces some of Champagne's most thrilling wines in the quiet corner of Ecueil. From just 4 hectares he makes around a dozen Champagnes. Founded by his father in 1947, like virtually all growers they sent most of their grapes to the local Co-Op but...

South Africa's Cape Town may have dodged 'Day Zero', when the possibility of the city running out of water was nail bitingly close, but the country's water crisis isn't over yet. Drought still afflicts much of the Cape and the threat of Day Zero remains very real. It...

Polperro 2021 Single Vineyard Pinot Noir’s – Mornington’s Finest Great Pinot, like great Shiraz, Chardonnay or any other varietal is elusive. You would be forgiven in thinking otherwise, evidenced by the rather eye watering uppity scores awarded by wine critics to...

“Be sure that the land is visible in the glass. That is the essence of what we do”. Francois Millet If I could add my own caveat to Francois’s imperishable phrase, it would be to do justice to the fruit. Is the wine as delicious as the fruit and vineyard promised and,...

A recent invite to an American wine tasting had me wondering what did I really know, or think of American wines? Well, very little as it happens, but enough to know that there are treasures to be had and the first wine tasted confirmed this - not just not bad, but...

The 2021 estate release are wines grown on Ravensworth’s own immaculate vineyard. Ravensworth also produces a number of excellent wines, with fruit purchased predominantly from Hilltops. After 20 vintages, owner/winemaker Bryan Martin has refined his style into a...

'Forget Sauvignon as you taste these wines' comes from an Andrew Jefford article titled Sancerre and Friends, published in Decanter in late 2017. Needless to say that all the wines of Pabiot are Sauvignon Blanc, yet as you taste through them, the less Sauvignon Blanc...

Kabinett is the lightest of all wines in the German Pradikat system. Measured in degrees Oechsle (a hydrometer scale measuring density of grape must), many wine growers have struggled to produce the differences that made sense of the Pradikat in recent years. Warmer,...

Pibarnon is Bandol’s highest vineyard at 300 metres, an amphitheatre of vines facing the Mediterranean. Vineyards planted in this way generally trap heat, creating a cauldon effect, but at Pibarnon, the amphitheatre provides shelter from the regions strong winds,...

Nebbiolo it seems is the new Holy Grail of Australian wine. Simon Grant's vision for Traviarti has always been about crafting beautiful Nebbiolo, and so he does; Australia's best alongside Pipan Steel. But never mind all this. The Holy Grail for Australian wine's...

The concentration, balance, complex flavour and textural profiles, extract and sleek velocity of the 2021 wines will make these some of the greatest and longest lived German Rieslings this century. A cool and late vintage of cut and finesse, but also fleshy mid...

Based in Cruzille, Guillot-Broux was founded in 1978 when the land was cheap and the wines of the Maconnais not exactly known for their grandness. Cruzille is gifted with limestone, marl and iron rich soils; sunshine, rainfall and elevation - an area gifted with fine...

Daniel Bouland's 2021 releases are pure, juicy, and cool - all tangy fruit, coupled with incredible energy and weightless power. The tannins and shape vary from wine to wine, from velvet to silk, angular and round. Incredibly refreshing and gourmand, they are...

Quinta do Noval's style, and Portuguese Tawnys in general, are very different to Australian equivalents. Firstly, the alcohol levels are higher and you can taste the spirit and feel the heat. Secondly, the increase in spirit also changes the shape. Portuguese Tawnys...

Ossa was founded in 2017 by Rod and Cecile Roberts, eponymously named after Tasmania's highest peak - Mount Ossa. Situated on the East Coast, joining the rush for land which many observers believe harbours Australia's greatest cool climate potential. Planting 20...

Twenty years ago, it would have been inconceivable to drink wines of the Vanguardist style. Large producers, aided by compliant wine critics and journalists churned out full bodied, sweet fruited and extracted wines. Small producers were no different, and it seemed...

Every year, Verget confuses us all by releasing wines from various vintages and appellations. For the neat, logical and rational people out there, this must seem perverse. Why not concentrate our minds and tastebuds on one vintage and better still, release wines from...

Josh Cooper's three Cabernets from different sites across Victoria are some of the most important wines released in Australia this year. Cabernet Sauvignon is so often overlooked, and many Australian iterations are unexciting corporate wines. I feel we have forgotten...

Rarely is a wine region so defined by one producer as Pemberton is by Picardy Wines. Only identified as a potential region for vine growing in the 1970's, Pemberton can now boast over 50 wine producers, with Picardy at the forefront. Founded by Bill and Sandra...

Swinney has never been less than awesome, creating new benchmarks and pushing boundaries. The 2021 vintage reds are the best since 2019 and the most charming and delicious. The vintage was cool, hence the harvest was late, creating ideal conditions for wines of...

Vintage 2016 was a watershed moment in Piedmont. Universally acclaimed as a great vintage, many producers crafted their best ever wines. Standards across the region's varietals and styles were all successful and it seemed that no one had failed to make at the very...

This is not Burgundy. There, I said it. Is our love of Burgundy a love of Pinot Noir, or are we that obsessed with Burgundy we can't see past it? Pinot Noir is known as Spatburgunder in Germany and, like everywhere else, style and taste is as much to do with the...

CRFT Wines (pronounced croft) was founded in 2012 by winemakers Candice Helbig and Frewin Ries. Sourcing fruit from 10 single vineyards across the Adelaide Hills and Barossa Valley, they make wines from established varietals and relative newcomers. Indeed CRFT are...

Vintage reports aside, 2021 is an exceptional vintage for A Rodda. Only one Chardonnay was produced in 2020, due to the bushfires, so it's a delightful relief to taste through the suite of 2021's. These wines are compact and coiled, packed with dense tangy citrus,...

It’s not every day you’re lucky enough to taste a revelation, wines that alter parameters, perceptions and challenge beliefs. All tastings are worthwhile, and in a sense revelatory, but few illicit strong responses one way or the other. I still remember my first...

Something my dad used to tell me often, and advice I did not heed until middle age, was to 'know thyself'. Happily, absorbing wisdom came much sooner for John Hughes, who was called Riesling Freak by his friends as he always brought around a bottle of Riesling or two....

Stargazer, in a very short space of time, has become one of the most exciting prospects in Tasmania. Passion and true grit Founder/owner/winemaker and grape grower, Samantha Connew, released her first Stargazer wines in 2012, after previously working with Wirra Wirra...

Domaine Douhairet-Porcheret is a small domaine of 6.5 ha. Mademoiselle Armande Douhairet owned and ran the estate until her death in 2004. She bequeathed the property to her winemaker and great friend Andre Porcheret, former manager at Hospices de Beaune and Domaine...

Can a wine taste historic, or old fashioned? Not old or dated, but from another era. Probably not, but that was my first impression when tasting the 2017 Craiglee Shiraz from Sunbury. It smells, tastes and feels savoury with seams of natural acidity, firm fruit and...

Grenache has got to be one of the most versatile of grapes. One of the first genuinely aged wines I ever had was a 60s vintage Vieux Telegraphe Chateauneuf-du-Pape in about 2002. I wasn't entirely impressed. Impeccably cellared, but alas dried out and tertiary. Even...

There was a time when the wines of Alsace were all chisel and sinew, so plain under the clothes. Described as elegant, restrained, aristocratic and mineral, they often displayed shrill structures, hard textures and empty fruit profiles. They were Alsace's answer and...

CRFT's stunning wines are the work of Candice Helbig and Frewin Ries from their serene property, tucked away in the Piccadilly Valley. Their certified organic Arranmore Vineyard is almost other-worldly, with 150 year old trees lining the driveway, old fruit trees with...

If there is one producer that embodies what most of us would come to expect from the Barossa Valley, then Greenock Creek is it. That is not to say that there aren't other styles and regional interpretations, but for wines of scale, this has to be the benchmark...

Rioja hosts many international winemakers including Bryan MacRobert of MacRobert & Canals, Tom Puyaubert of Bodegas Exopto and of course Olivier Riviere. Rioja is vast, and with multiple red and white varietals, microclimates and soils, allowing winemakers to...

Cosecha literally means harvest and, in the context of Rioja, is made without extended ageing in cask. Designed to be consumed young, usually described as fresh, vibrant, fruit driven - these are taverna wines. Like all classifications, it's important to look past...

A tip of the hat to McLaren Vale's historic blending of Grenache and Shiraz, Paralian's beautiful rendition poses the question - are blends better than the sum of their parts? I don't know for certain, but this is a thoroughly complete wine, gourmand and versatile....

Knowing we were to taste some of the new releases from La Soufrandiere, we dusted off a bottle of Bret Brothers (the original La Soufrandiere) Terroirs du Maconnais 2016. And what a lovely bottle of wine it was too. Vintage 2016 in Burgundy is a favourite of mine....

For descriptive and conceptual purposes, we tend to discuss and taste wines from a huge area and call them Burgundy. Varietals aside, the wines of Irancy for instance, at the northwestern tip of Burgundy bear little resemblance to those of the Cote d'Or. Their taste,...

With its long and often tragic history, South Africa has developed a unique vinous character, markedly different from anywhere else in the 'New World' or in Europe. Grapes arrived with the first Dutch settlers, but much needed expertise would only arrive in the colony...

It is ironic that this year Pooley were awarded Australia's best winery in the 2023 James Halliday Wine Companion, an award that may need to be followed up in 2024 as the (yet to be reviewed) 2021 wines are some of the best yet! All great vintages express an element...

I first came across Douro reds in the UK, around the early 2000's. Quinta do Crasto comes to mind, and they were excellent. Full bodied and round, they wore the sun on their shoulders. Not the scorching stab of mid afternoon Australian sun, but a warm, cosy coat of...

Pinot Noir outside Burgundy has never been more diverse, exciting and rich in expression. Rippon, from New Zealand’s Central Otago region, crafts structured, tense, ethereal and decadent pinots to rival the finest of the Cote d’Or. And the white's are pretty...

Spatlese is a term that denotes ripeness, not sweetness. Hofgut Falkenstein's Altenberg Riesling Spatlese is dry. Very dry, intense and flavourful. I often write about 'traditional' wines but Hofgut Falkenstein, more than any other producer, encapsulates the roots of...

I have a love of sleek, bright, intense reds. Lip smacking, long on the palate, full flavoured, savoury tannins, medium bodied and angular frames. The sort of red that will match most budgets, foods, seasons and company. Such is Albino Rocca's 2019 Barbera d'Alba....

The Yarra Valley is on the cusp, or possibly over it, of defining a regional style. Cool, high toned citrus and orchard fruits, coupled with sinewed flesh, linear shape, a boney structure and high, piquant acidity. Of course, there are variations on the theme, but I...

First a little history. Founded in 1948, in the village of Tre Stelle Barbaresco, the estate comprises 5 hectares, 3.5 are vines. Tiny? Certainly. I find it hard to imagine such a small scale enterprise can support a family of four: Giovanna Rizzolio and Italo Sobrino...

Two of our favourite white Burgundy producers are Goisot and Guffens-Heynen. Ironically they are of opposing styles and one is from the northern reaches of Burgundy - Goisot, while Guffens-Heyen the south in the Maconnais. Goisot's wines are sleek, chiselled and...

Coming off the universally acknowledged 'great' vintage of 2019, 2020 would always be a vintage looking over its shoulder. But considering the silky lusciousness and richness of recent vintages, 2020 is a welcome return to Mosel classicism. Shimmering purity, intense...

Of all Australian wine regions, Tasmania (if we are still able to lump the state together), is touted as the most exciting. It's certainly popular and the price of grapes is the most expensive in the country. New regions present a new hope and enthusiasm, but great...

Just for the heck of it, we recently decided to open a bottle of Yangarra's 2018 Ironheart Shiraz a year or so after its release. The 1.8Ha Ironheart vineyard is set high in McLaren Vale, and consists of sandy ironstone soil, and in these exposed almost arid...

The Barossa Valley is Australia's most important fine wine region, owing to its history, size, commercial and qualitative success. When I first started drinking wine the Barossa Valley, as with all Australian wine regions, was thought of in the singular. A big region,...

Bandol is synonymous with rose and despite the high price, demand outstrips supply of Domaine Tempier rose every year. Their red, however, is another story, yet I can't help think wine drinkers are missing a trick by not taking their southern French odyssey a little...

Chianti Classico is one of the least understood wine denominations. Most of us, if asked where and what it is, would say something like 'it's the original part of Chianti', or 'the best Chianti's are Classicos'. Although these statements may be true, it doesn't really...

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde would have loved Brunello di Montalcino. There isn't a wine region anywhere else in the world that encompasses so many personalities and styles, and at their best, perhaps conveys them all. Full bodied, or not, tannic, chewy, rugged, savoury,...