In what has become something of a tradition (posts here, here, here, here and here for starters), I went to this year's 2019 Sydney Royal Wine Show exhibitor event tasting …
It's been a rough week or so at Graham HQ, as a sniffly 5 month old meant little sleep and not enough wine... So let's keep this tight. As the name …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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, …
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 …
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) …
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