Driftwood Artifacts Cabernet Sauvignon 2021
Margaret River Cabernet is always a winner, this is a heavily dominant Cab, but also includes 4.5% Petit Verdot. The wine spent a year and
Margaret River Cabernet is always a winner, this is a heavily dominant Cab, but also includes 4.5% Petit Verdot. The wine spent a year and
This is a cracking Barossa Shiraz from a superb vintage and seriously good value. The colour here is a deep bruised plum and the nose
The Auld name is a famous one in Aussie wine. The name Wilberforce, perhaps less so, but Wilberforce was the 17-hand stallion which was William
Old vine Barossa Shiraz and for many winelovers, it does not get better than this. Of course, some are better than others, but fortunately, this
Another superb Barossa Shiraz – generous, bold, balanced and decadent. Only 25 barrels of this wine were made so do not hesitate as it certainly
For me, I would have assumed a long queue of winemakers lining up to grab dibs on Central Otago Pinot Noir. The lucky winemaker was
Vermentino from the Riverland would seem to be unlikely to be many winemakers’ first choice for such a project, but it was for Allira. Fermentation
Finally, Mick got Barossa Grenache. His fascination with the variety started in Spain, but here, he has some wonderful old vine vineyards, four of them,
This is part of what overlords, Pernod Ricard, see as a ‘Passion Project’, and one, I imagine, that the winemakers would love. The idea is
Always good to be able to access older wines, especially at such a very reasonable price. There are not many reds exceeding a decade in
A fine Barossa blend, this has a maroon/purple hue and a nose that offers spices, coffee beans, chocolate, bay leaves, mocha and cigar box notes.
A single vineyard wine, from their vineyard which is located some 530 metres above sea level in the cool region of Tumbarumba. The colour here
The vineyard here is situated at 530 metres above sea level, and is one of the cooler vineyards located in mainland Australia. The wine experiences
From the cooler and high altitude region of Tumbarumba in NSW, which has proved so suitable for quality Chardonnay. The wine spent several months on
From vineyards in the northeast of the Coonawarra region, this is a serious and seriously good Cabernet. Dark garnet in colour, there is a mix
A deep red hue here with a slightly more ochre tone on the rim. Most appealing aromatics swirl around with notes of truffles, animal skins,
From volcanic soils near Mount Gambier, the colour here is pale lemon. The immediate impression is of good intensity with notes of citrus, florals, hints
The ‘Viper Vineyard’ (it does feel a bit like someone has been watching too much Kung Fu Panda with these names) provides grapes from the
For ‘The Tiger’, we move to a single vineyard in the Lowburn sub-region. A deep garnet in colour, the nose is wonderfully complex with notes
Always fascinating to see the Chard Farm Pinots, all Central Otago, all the same vintage and with similar winemaking methods but from four different vineyards
One of the most famous sub-regions in the Central Otago region is surely Bannockburn. This is a single vineyard Pinot, exclusively planted to clones 777
Derek, one half of the current custodians, had a love for dance party and techno music (I am assuming the latter is not an oxymoron)
Now we get to the unfortunately named Denim Mataro. A maroon garnet colour, there are quite powerful aromatics on display here, bold and a little
I suspect that dubbing the Shiraz as ‘Silk’, would make the Mataro extremely envious with ‘Denim’? At least Grenache got ‘Velvet’. Anyway, the wine is
There is no release more anticipated by winelovers in Australia than the annual Penfold’s Collection and of course, most especially the new Grange. Where will
One of the more interesting projects currently afloat in Aussie wine at the moment, especially appropriate given the skyrocketing interest in top flight Grenache from
Alkina is a curious box of paradoxes. Seemingly unlimited resources but still tiny; a small local operation yet part of an international empire; located in
They say that Disneyland is the happiest place on earth. Perhaps, but I would suggest that the Australian wine industry is the friendliest place. Where
It was back in 1984 that the first grapes were picked for the inaugural vintage from Greenock Creek wines. Taken from 1960s shiraz plantings off
The name, Duval, is and always will be inextricably linked with Grange. John Duval was chief winemaker at Penfold’s from 1986 to 2002, making some
One could hear the chortles from right across the ditch, almost as though we’d lost yet another Bledisloe Cup Rugby series. Wine judging and reviewing
Winegrowers working together is not something new. But it has been a long time since Australia has seen such an exciting wine collective involving iconic
Orin Swift sounds more like a character in an Agatha Christie mystery than a winery, but a Californian winery it is and a most impressive
South Australian fizz lovers will know the name, James Smith. A former winner of the Vin de Champagne Award, Jim, a local wine educator, has
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