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Ray Jordan

Ray Jordan has been writing about wine for more than 40 years. His first articles were published in the early issues of national wine magazine Winestate in the late 1970s when he worked in Sydney as a newspaper correspondent. From 1989 Ray wrote more than 3000 columns as a regular newspaper wine columnist. He currently writes a regular column for the special business publication Business News and is one of the main contributors to national wine platform Wine Pilot. In 2017 Ray co-authored The Way it Was – A History of The Early Days of the Margaret River Wine Industry and previously wrote Wine in the Blood: Australia’s Family Wine Estates, published in Mandarin and English. In 2011 Ray was awarded WA Wine Press Club Jack Mann Memorial Medal for his contribution to the WA wine industry. His love of wine is as strong as his love of the blues and tasting the thousands of wines that cross his bench each year allows him to indulge in both.
MagareyLane Glenroy ShirazNV copy

Magarey Lane Glenroy Shiraz 2019

When you let it breathe for a little while, the real beauty of this wine emerges with those ripe plummy...
MagareyLane Glenroy ShirazNV copy

Magarey Lane Glenroy Shiraz 2015

Not often you get a chance to have a look at a new release that is eleven years old, but...
Olea Wines PinotGrigio copy

Olea Pinot Grigio 2025

Captures the typical apple and pear crumbly characters that you get with this variety. It comes from down at Padthaway,...
Olea Wines Rose copy

Olea Rosé 2025

Colour is pale with a slightly salmon pink hue. Beautiful, lightly aromatic aromas of rose petal and strawberry, with a...
Olea Wines PinotNoir copy

Olea Pinot Noir 2025

This is the most approachable and friendly well-made Pinot Noir from Padthaway. Opens with a fairly typical cherry and raspberry...
Olea Wines Shiraz copy

Olea Shiraz 2024

A vibrant and expressive Shiraz sourced from Padthaway. Captures the healthy mix of dark plum, blackberry on the nose and...
Richard Hamilton Burton's Vineyard Old Vine Grenache NV

Richard Hamilton Burton’s Vineyard Old Vine Grenache 2023

A wine that captures very much of what modern Australian Grenache is all about. Aromatics lean more into the red...
Leconfield Blanc de Blancs

Leconfield Sparkling Blanc de Blancs NV

Here’s a wine that shows the versatility of South Australia’s Coonawarra, well to the south of the state. It’s a...
Leconfield Old Vines Riesling

Leconfield Coonawarra Old Vines Riesling 2025

Riesling is a variety that does pretty damn well in Coonawarra, and this one comes off a single vineyard planted...
Leconfield Chardonnay

Leconfield Coonawarra Chardonnay 2024

This was an outstanding vintage in Coonawarra, and it’s produced an excellent wine from these vines that were planted in...
Leconfield McLaren Vale Shiraz

Leconfield McLaren Vale Shiraz 2023

The colour is red and black and almost opaque. Aromas of spicy plum and black fruits appear with a lightly...
Pertaringa Rifle & Hunt Cab Sauvignon

Pertaringa Rifle and Hunt Cabernet Sauvignon 2023

This is an impressive example of McLaren Vale Cabernet Sauvignon from the 2023 vintage. There’s a strong varietal blackcurrant on...
Pertaringa TipsyHill SV Caberner Sauvignon

Pertaringa Tipsy Hill Single Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

This was a very good season in McLaren Vale, producing some quite wonderful wines, and in this case it’s sourced...
Pertaringa BelongingToTheHills ReserveShiraz

Pertaringa Belonging to The Hills Reserve Shiraz 2023

A power-packed expression of McLaren Vale Shiraz. The colour is a deep reddy black. The aroma shows spicy cherry and,...
BelongingToTheHillsShiraz NV

Pertaringa Belonging to The Hills Shiraz 2023

This is a rich and quite opulent expression of McLaren Vale Shiraz. The colour is deep and dark. Aromas burst...
Pertaringa BelongingToTheHills GSM

Pertaringa Belonging to The Hills GSM 2024

A wine that captures the smooth, textural richness of McLaren Vale in this very good year. It’s bright, lively, and...
Cape Mentelle Explorers Blend Petit Verdot Cabernet Merlot ()

Cape Mentelle Explorer’s Blend Petit Verdot Cabernet Merlot 2024

This was a warm vintage in Margaret River, and yet the quality of the red wines certainly hasn’t suffered. In...
V ()

Greenock Creek Vineyard and Cellars Third Estate Shiraz 2021

There’s one thing you get with Greenock Creek, and that’s power and deep flavour intensity, and this one has it...
Marchand & Burch Mount Barrow Pinot Noir x

Marchand & Burch Mount Barrow Pinot Noir 2024

A wine that has both depth and generosity, albeit delivered with a fine, elegant, medium-weight structure. The colour is bright...
Marchand & Burch Mount Barker Chardonnay x

Marchand & Burch Mount Barrow Chardonnay 2024

An early and very quick vintage in Mount Barker in 2024 has produced a beautiful example of this regional Chardonnay....
SHIRAZ

Nikola Estate Shiraz 2024

This was a generally warmer year in WA, but in certain parts it worked out pretty damn well. This wine...
Nikola TheSymbolist

Nikola Estate The Symbolist 2024

This is sourced largely from the Swan Valley with a whole bunch of varieties – Mencía, Nero D’Avola, Arinto, Malbec,...
The Surrealist

Nikola Estate The Surrealist 2023

This is a combination of Tempranillo, Montepulciano, Shiraz, Nero d’Avola, Grenache, Mencía, and Arinto. Okay, what do you get? You...
fiano no vintage

Nikola Estate Fiano 2025

I’m starting to develop a real affection for Fiano from Western Australia and from a number of regions. In this...

Stories

Hayes Family Wines

Hayes Family Wines is a relatively new name for the Barossa Valley, but its roots date back to the middle...

Elderton in Form

It’s one of those weird twists. The Barossa Valley is renowned for its shiraz and one of the best has...

A New Grenache Benchmark from the West

History may show that the Swinney Farvie Frankland River Grenache 2020 was the wine that redefined this variety in WA....
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