Hatch Clare Valley Watervale Riesling 2023
A classic Clare Valley Riesling, from the famous Watervale sub-region, made by a man with more experience than entire districts of winemakers combined. It is
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A classic Clare Valley Riesling, from the famous Watervale sub-region, made by a man with more experience than entire districts of winemakers combined. It is
This wine was named for Chris Hatcher’s great-grandfather, Alf Vesey. Alf started working at Penfolds way back in 1883 and continued on for an incredible
One thing I learnt about Hatch with this latest batch of wines is that he is a big jazz fan – not something we share,
Flaxman’s Valley is a high altitude sub-region of the Eden Valley and one of our most highly regarded districts for growing great Riesling. Combine that
Estate grown fruit from the Adelaide Hills, but the thing that will make the biggest initial impression is the fabulous label. Not for the traditionalist
From the Adelaide Hills, this is the team’s flagship Pinot Noir, from a very fine vintage. Still very youthful and deep crimson in colour, this
Under cork, this is from Western Victoria and already has a few years under its belt, more than both the currently available Grange and Hill
Despite the naming, this is from a single vineyard on the family’s farm. And from a stunning vintage for Eden Valley. Fermentation was cool, in
Needless to say, Margaret River enjoyed another superb vintage with the 2022 season. Slightly cooler, Cullen report that it was a vintage of “immense perfume
The great Aussie red blend is done magnificently by one of our oldest and most accomplished wineries. As well as blending Cabernet and Shiraz, this
From the Orange region, this is a fine example of a local Barbera, a variety which I must confess enthralls me more and more. A
From Mt Canobolas in the Orange region, this is a pleasing local style of Sangiovese, a grape that has not always proved a raging success
Fermentation was of whole bunch pressed fruit, followed by a few months on lees. This vintage includes some Heathcote fruit. The colour is an appealing,
The Reserve is crafted by the team selecting grapes from the most preferred sites and then opting for the best barrels, once the wine has
A delicious and rather elegant Rosé made from Grenache sourced at Langhorne Creek. A lovely, shining, gentle pink hue here. The nose is full of
Very dark purple hue here, with bright aromas, running through plums, chocolate, leather, cloves, black fruits and licorice. Big, bold and richly flavoured, it is
With fruit sourced from three discrete blocks, each fermented separately with different yeasts, we are seeing more evidence of what a fine vintage 2023 is
From the Adelaide Hills, this fresh style of Pinot Gris has seen no oak. The colour is a very patriotic green/gold. The nose offers spices,
Grenache has so many guises, from delicious Rosés like this, to fresh and light quaffers, more serious reds and even rich old fortifieds. Hard not
From a Clare Valley vineyard which was originally planted in 1920, the wine receives maturation in older French hogsheads and puncheons for a year. A
The fruit for this Clare Shiraz is sourced from six discrete blocks, including one originally planted back in 1910. The fruit goes into open fermenters,
A friend of mine recently declared, ‘how can you not love Barbera? It would be like not loving puppies’. I’ll confess I was a bit
A fine example of Adelaide Hills Pinot, still very youthful, but with much promise. A blend of a number of clones, the specific vineyards are
A single vineyard Clare Valley Riesling. The free run juice was fermented in stainless steel and bottled early to ensure that all the fabulous fruit
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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