Strelley Farm Estate Tasmania Pinot Noir Chardonnay NV

If you have yet to experience, afford or rise to some of the top sparklings coming out of Tasmania, then I think a case can be made for this affordable non-vintage sparkling as a good starting point. It highlights the strengths of Tasmania and gives a hint at why so many wine reviewers and judges are falling in love with the sparkling isle. The fruit is sourced from the super cool Coal River Valley in the state’s south. Brings forth attractive baked apple, lemon, grapefruit scents with grilled nuts and light pastry notes. Shows the summery, bright fruited side of the sparkling coin, tight and fine and dressed in lacy acidity and, while not the most expansive, complex or rich in flavour, it does bring a freshness and charm.

Jeni Port

Wine critic at Winepilot

Jeni Port is one of Australia’s top wine communicators. Based in Melbourne, Jeni created the first wine column in the (then) Sun News-Pictorial before moving over to The Age and becoming that paper’s longest-serving wine writer. Over the years she has written for most Australian wine magazines and these days calls WinePilot home. She is also a Tasting Panel member on the Halliday Wine Companion. She was named Wine Communicator of the Year and Legend of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival in 2014 and in 2018 Legend of the Vine. She is a founding board member of Australian Women In Wine and is the co-deputy chair of Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards and China’s Wine List of the Year Awards.

Wine writer and critic