De Bortoli have always been ahead of the industry trends, notably at the forefront of the rosé revitalisation a decade ago. Now, with wines like this De Bortoli 17 Trees Pinot …
Robust is putting it mildly - this Taylors St Andrews Cabernet Sauvignon 2017 is a beast. Minty, firm and uncompromising, with oak lifting up the palate, but tannins squaring it off again. …
It's a bit rough-edged, but this Hastwell & Lightfoot Cabernet Sauvignon 2017 has heart and power. Smoked chocolate oak, some varietal/regional mint and a burly, true McLaren Vale Cabernet palate. The …
Allan Varney's Grenache-based reds are uniformly good. All of them. Let's call it a talent. This Varney GSM 2018 is my pick of the lot. Handling-wise it ticks all the boxes. …
Fully worked McLaren Vale Grillo, with this Lino Ramble Solitaire 2019 fermented wild on full solids, with no additions bar some SO2. Gently textured style, all yellow apple fruit with a …
The first-ever 'serious' red wine I bought was a 1998 St Hallett Faith Shiraz back in 2000. I had just turned 19 and was working in a bottle shop where …
This Yangarra Roux Beaute Roussanne 2018 is challenging white wine. Clever, ambitious, and built for the long term. But it almost needs to come with a disclaimer - 'read winemaking …
Solid Sicilian Nero is this Fuedo Arancio Riserva 2015. Tarry, yet comfortably mid-weight, Sicilian Nero with this concentrated black core. It's like dried blackcurrants and it helps the mid palate …
Australian Chardonnay is in the midst of a purple patch, with quality - and value - as good as it has ever been, as this collection of the 16 best …
Packaged up in a huge bottle, with its own presentation case, this Taltarni The Patron 2016 is unashamedly ambitious wine. But is it delicious? Let's get some background bits out of …
I am very here for the new wave of McLaren Vale Nero. So black. So juicy, so much flavour. This Lino Ramble Tom Bowler Nero d’Avola 2018 comes from two …
If the Grenache is fun, then this The Other Wine Co Cabernet Franc 2019 is sophisticated fun. Sourced from Kangaroo Island, this has some of the Loire twiggy crunch to it …
Fun wine is this The Other Wine Co. Shiraz Pinot Noir 2019, no doubt, much like other wines in the range. Adelaide Hills Shiraz and Tassie Pinot, the most unlikely …
Deadly serious Roussanne from McLaren Vale. Arguably this Yangarra Roussanne 2019 is too serious, the edges phenolic and firm, the palate backwards and still breaking out after 7 months in …
Skin contact white wines work. Getting the balance between acidity, fruit and phenolics isn't easy, but when the stars align, a little skin transforms neutral white wine into textural playground. This …
I missed most of the Zoom Virtual Tasting for this St Hallett Blackwell Shiraz 2018 so I'm missing a little context. But suffice to say it's ala very different wine …
Rusty Mutt is the label of Geoff Merrill Wines winemaker Scott Heidrich, who crafts generous, warm-hearted McLaren Vale reds (and a chunky Viognier). This Rusty Mutt Rocky Ox Grenache Shiraz …
Notch up this Oates Ends Cabernet Sauvignon 2017 as another top shelf Margaret River Cabernet from Cath Oates, just like previous high quality releases (like this one). Maybe a little more …
Following on from the Chardonnay comes a well built Marlborough Sauv. This Jules Taylor Sauvignon Blanc 2019 harks back to the wines of the early noughties with old school varietal …
The Calabria family’s more recent premium red releases are now Barossa, with a step up in quality expectations (and price). This Calabria Three Bridges Grenache 2018 leans a little too …
At 18, I started working in a small suburban bottleshop, largely to buy cheap beer. It was my first year of university, slogging through physics and chemistry, so a liquor shop seemed like fun. Needless to say, I discovered wine, and my life evolved with a unique dual focus - wine and environment.
Twenty years later and I spend my days wearing many (wine) hats, mostly as a writer, presenter and marketer.
I now judge at wine shows around the world, sit on the Australian Wine List of the Year awards panel and was once a Wine Journalism Young Gun (but baby that was years ago).
Currently, I write features for a variety of publications including National Liquor News, Gourmet Traveller WINE and the RAS, plus I'm a former Lifestyle FOOD channel wine expert.
In 2019 and 2020 I was voted in the Top 30 Best Wine Critics in The World, and in my spare time, I'm a sucker for punishment and run trail ultra marathons, much to the delight of my long-suffering family. Read more about me here or get in touch to book your next wine event with me here