Wirra's Scrubby Rise are now all regional releases, which is impressive for a sub $20 Shiraz. I'm less of a fan of the Scrubby Rise white, but this goes well. …
Grenache is the hero at Yangarra, but the Shiraz gets all the airtime. The previous iteration of this Yangarra Shiraz 2018 was wildly popular for a reason, and I can …
Tricky to get Shiraz ripe consistently in Pemberton. Or at least that's the perception based on wines like this. Hard to pick what is the hero variety for the region …
Pinot Noir from Riesling country. It's hard to leave my prejudices at the door, but that's what it always feels like with Porongurup Pinot. It's typically ripeness that is the challenge, …
While Jason Schwarz's most recent releases are very much nouveau Barossan in style - vital, mid weight wines - there are still a few arch-traditional winners in the Schwarz range, …
Classy Yarra Valley claret mode in an arch-traditional, mid-weight style. Pencil shavings, understated fruit, balanced acidity. It’s perhaps lacking the killer blow - and the fruit is light and leaning …
Silkwood's wines have taken big leaps in recent vintages but there remains stumbles. This Pemberton Chardonnay has ripe fruit but a lumpy middle, the flavours end up tinny and a …
You know what I like best about Yangarra's wines? The neck tags that the samples land with. There's no bullshit tasting notes (who cares), no marketing guff. Just facts. And …
It's always a surprise to see generosity in taut, early picked Hunter Valley Semillon. It shouldn't be that way. The best wines are often ferociously acidic drinks for later. The …
Shout it from the rooftops - Eldorado Road, as a label, should be much more famous. The wines are too interesting, too keen, too complex to be 'just another Victorian …
I don't get it. This Hill Smith Estate Eden Valley Chardonnay 2018 is wild fermented Eden Valley Chardonnay that spends 6 months in barrel. Clearly the aim is delicacy but …
Pretty much what you want in a northern Italian Grigio. Ripe pear juice balanced out by acidity. Has a slightly fatty mid palate, but good tang here. Chalky, grippy phenolics …
Pyrazine drenched Tassie Sauv from Dalrymple. Very much aimed at the Marlborough style, with big, gooseberry and passionfruit aromatics in an overt, 'look at me' style. I get the intention, …
Martin Shaw & Michael Hill-Smith’s Pinot has had a constant evolution, the style evolving from a robust, dry reddish Pinot to now more medium bodied and with a fruit source …
A confession - I've never been to Kangaroo Island. It's the only Australian wine GI I've not visited. The outlier. And with wines like this Juxtaposed Boomstick Tempranillo 2018, it's …
Nailing the ripeness in early picked reds is hard. Go too early and you get thin, lean, sometimes green wines. Go too late and it's not early picked anymore, and …
As I mentioned in the Silkwood review, I can skip most WA Pinot. There are exceptions (like the odd Picardy Pinot), but the generalisation stands. Anyway, this single vineyard Apricus …
I'm still not convinced the Silkwood Vineyard is right for Pinot (but then again, where in WA is really Pinot country?), but this Silkwood Estate Pinot Noir 2018 is drinkable. Sappy …
We love Grenache Shiraz blends at Graham HQ. It's a formula that satisfies often and typically at affordable prices, this quintet of Shiraz/Grenache-based blends can be evidence. They're not superstars, …
Geelong makes better Pinot Noir than Shiraz for mine, though it's a case by case basis. For Austin's it's Pinot all the way. Fun fact - This Austin’s Pinot Noir 2018 …
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.