In what has become a semi-annual event, I ventured out into the Armageddon-esque sideways rain on Saturday to taste the trophy winners (and more) from the Sydney International Wine Competition. You're …
Line 'em up, these two full bodied reds pack in an awful lot of flavour for $30 or less. Strictly speaking these aren't quite what I'd go for on a …
Meerea Park seemed lost in the wilderness for a bit there, with inconsistent wines a signal of internal challenges. The Eather boys have righted the ship with these '18 vintage …
Last week I mentioned that one notable Hunter winery wouldn't be making much premium wine from vintage 2020. I was sworn to secrecy on the news, but that winery has …
Would you take a look at all those shiny medal stickers on the label of this Robert Stein Dry Riesling 2019? Reminds of some of the Tyrrell's Vat 1 releases (like …
Sunshine Creek is Yarra based, and this Sunshine Creek Heathcote Shiraz 2017 is an outlier in the range. It's always ripe, in the mid 2000s Jasper Hill mode, but typically …
On the back of Friday's article, news filtered through today from another well-known Hunter Valley winery will be declassifying some juice this year, with the results of some micro-ferments producing …
While the drought that has gripped much of eastern Australia is far from over, the past 24hrs has finally seen some decent rainfall in drought-stricken areas. Witness the cautious excitement: View this …
Terre à Terre Red 2016No fucking about with naming conventions, just 'red'. I like. Rouge would have also been acceptable if you're reading this Xavier. I always like the structure …
Eldorado Road Quasimodo Nero d’Avola Shiraz Durif 2016 There have been some nervous moments for NE Victorian vignerons in recent weeks, with massive bushfires bearing down on multiple fronts. The predicted …
Mount Monument Riesling 2018 Wild fermented Macedon Riesling from a promising new name. Ambitious pricing for an unknown Riesling in a region not famous for Riesling (Knight Granite Hills aside). Lemon …
S.C. Pannell Grenache Shiraz Touriga 2017Known as ‘the purple one’ at cellar door, this is composed of old vine Grenache from Seaview cofermented with Shiraz from Steve’s Koomilya Vineyard. Includes …
Oakridge Vineyard Series Barkala Chardonnay 2018 This feels like a repetitive post. Andrew opens Oakridge Chardonnay. Andrew loves Oakridge Chardonnay. Rinse. Repeat. The 2018 releases from Oakridge feel like proper balancing work …
The 2017 Giant Steps wines are magnificent. Pinot, Chardonnay, Gamay et al. All in ‘best ever’ territory. I haven’t liked the riper ‘18s as much, but hot dog this Giant …
Chapel Hill The Parson Grenache Shiraz Mourvedre 2018 Another McLaren Vale red under $20, and another value champion. GSM is so good at this sort of thing - reliable, bright, fruit-driven …
d'Arenberg d’Arry’s Original Shiraz Grenache 2016 A bargain. The original d'Arenberg red and in classic form. Career-best form. Labuschagne form. Red fruits aplenty, as usual, and carries plenty of that tilled …
Margaret River Tempranillo from Cath Oates, the ex-Plantagenet winemaker who now makes handy Margaret River wines tapping into fruit from her brother’s vineyard at Wilyabrup. I like Cath and I …
In a bid to catch up on 3 weeks MIA, I'm bulk posting a whole swathe of reviews over the next few weeks. Expect less of my shitty iPhone wine …
It's been a while between posts, I know. Over recent weeks I just haven't felt it - writing about wine seemed offensive as Australia burned. Who cares about fermented grape juice …
Petaluma, the forgotten icon. Once, a long time ago, Petaluma sat right at the pointy end of quality Australian wine. Driven by the relentlessness of Brian Croser, Petaluma had a reputation …
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, and a liquor shop seemed like fun. Needless to say I discovered wine, my uni degree morphed into something completely different and wine/beer took over my life.
Twenty years later and I currently spend my days wearing many (wine) hats, mostly as a writer, presenter and marketer.
While wearing my writer cap I write features for the likes of National Liquor News, Gourmet Traveller WINE and the RAS plus I'm a Lifestyle FOOD channel wine expert. Read more about me here or get in touch to book your next wine event with me here.