I missed December's Almost Club edition (holidays), so this is a huge crop of almostness... As the name suggests, here are the wines that almost hit the mark for me in January. Some are just nice …
Happy New Year! I'm celebrating the start of 2019 with a little tasting note house cleaning, how about you? Actually I'm mainly at the beach. Before we crack out the towels for today, here are 15 …
From near misses to faulty junk. Here is a collection of the wines that almost won me over in October 2018. A special, frustrating mention to the two Leasingham wines. I grew up worshipping the mid …
From solid drinks to faulty train wrecks (and everything in between), the Almost Club is for wines that didn't hit the Australian Wine Review 'recommended' mark (17/20, 90/100) in August 2018. Note that there is friendly …
Gundog Estate Indomitus Rosa 2017 Super premium rosé from Team Gundog. I like the intention here too, though I much prefer the red and the Semillon. It's a blend of Murrumbateman Cabernet and Riesling. Both spend time …
Two years ago Xavier Bizot of Terre à Terre held a tasting comparing a selection of the 'old world' of the new world. A group of wines that you'd call Cabernet classics, vs some newer …
Here's a selection of wines that were almost great. Some are just good, solid wines that are occasionally unready, through to slightly underwhelming/unexciting, and rounded out with a few wines that miss the mark completely. Why post …
I'm in notebook digging mode this week and landed upon my scribbles from this year's Masters of Wine Sydney 2012 Bordeaux tasting. I make it a habit to go to this every year, as it offers …
It feels like I've had a lot of premium Cabernet over the past few weeks, especially after the Voyager extravaganza and the Margaret River 50th Anniversary tastings. But no point in stopping now is there? This collection …
In 1966 a research paper by University of WA agronomist Dr John Gladstones was released that declared Margaret River's climate of wet winter, moderate dry summers and gravelly soils ideal for viticulture. Inspired, Perth cardiologist Tom …
Each year Voyager Estate do a masterclass that is not to be missed. Pitting their own Cabernet and Chardonnay against the very best in a blind tasting, it's one of those events you don't miss …
Know what the only problem with the revised Vasse Felix Cabernet range? I can't keep up with the repositioning and relabelling. Heytesbury, from what I can gather, is now just released as a Chardonnay, leaving …
Alkoomi Blackbutt 2010 Blackbutt is Alkoomi's top red, and always released with plenty of age under it's belt. How's this for precision - the exact blend on the back label is given to one decimal place! …
Boree Lane Orange Cabernet Sauvignon + Franc 2012 A blend of 50/50 Cab and Cab Franc. This is a more traditional Orange Cab blend from the Boree Lane Vineyard, which sits in the lower, slightly warmer …
Howard Vineyard Amos Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Franc 2014 Making Cabernet based wines in the Adelaide Hills must be a tricky proposition. Not only do you need A1 viticulture to get grapes ripe, but I can't imagine …
The tasting of the year is back again. By my count this is at least the fourth, possibly fifth time I've been to one of Voyager Estate's annual masterclasses and, again, it remains one of the …
This is the final instalment of notes from the recent Negociants Working With Wine Tuscany seminars. What is Working With Wine? Start here, then here, here and here). So far in this series I've covered off Flight 1: Sangiovese in …
It always surprises me how much interesting Italian wine come to Australia. Loads of it. The only problem is that much of the best doesn't leave the 'on-premise' (restaurants and bars) market, which means that unless …
Just like that, we arrived at Wendouree. For years, I've been waiting to get to this almost mythical Clare Valley winery, never making it further than the gnarled old vines at the end of the driveway. But …
On the back of a week of Victorian Shiraz (including top wines from Lethbridge and Willow Creek), I thought it only natural that we carry on the theme this week, with a collection of Victorian …
At 18 I started working in a small suburban bottleshop, largely to buy cheap beer. It was my first year of university, doing a degree that I didn't really like, 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.
Almost 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.