Not all wines can be great. Plenty are just ok drinks. And some are just bad. Here’s a selection of wines that almost made it in October 2019. I like plenty …
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 …
Here's a wine that I know will brighten up a dour pub list. The Wirra Wirra Church Block 2017 is another reminder that making good $25 wine isn't hard. You …
Auld Family Wines Wilberforce Barossa Cabernet Shiraz 2015 The Auld family name is synonymous with South Australian wine, with William Patrick (Pat) Auld known as one of the early Adelaide vignerons. …
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 …
Terre à Terre Crayères Vineyard Reserve 2015 For the past few vintages, the Terre à Terre label of Xavier Bizot and wife Lucy Croser has been inching towards a truly game-changing …
From great value quaffers to absolute train wrecks, this month's compilation of 'almost' wines is a biggun'. I'm always conscious of my prejudice against overripeness and heavy-handed oak, but I call …
Following on from last month's focus on other reds and Shiraz, this May I'm all about red blends. It's always frustrating that we seem so singularly focused on mono-varietal wines in Australia, as …
Here are a few of the wines that have passed the desk this month and almost made the grade. Some weren't far off the mark, others are absolute disasters. A few …
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 …
Q: Have you noticed any trends among the wines this year? A: 'The quality of the 2015 vintage in South Australia and Victoria'. That's James Halliday, talking trends in an article …
Australia, your 2013 birth year wine is ready (but can we make it Sunday every day)! What makes this duo so birth-year-wine-worthy is the structure. Wines explicitly built for ageing, with the eyes …
Yalumba The Scribbler Barossa Cabernet Shiraz 2013 Yalumba are the kings of full-bodied Cab Shiraz, and this entry-level red blend of 59% Cabernet Sauvignon and 41% Shiraz offers up much of …
St Hugo Cabernet Shiraz 2013 Curiously, this is a very different beast to the straight Cabernet Sauvignon. This is seriously eucalypt-y for a start. Just jumps out and tackles you. Didn't …
Always consistent this. A blend of 51% Cabernet, 37% Shiraz, 12% Merlot that spends 18 months in oak, with 70% French and the rest American. Did I ever tell you …
If you want an example of substance over style, look no further than these three Tahbilk reds. That may sound harsh, but I think the hearty depth of this trio is …
Carrying on in my series of posts covering my recent visit to Orange (these ones here, here and here), today I'm looking at the wines of Brangayne, the wine business of the Hoskins family. Brangayne, …
What else do you on a rainy Boxing Day afternoon than get stuck into some fine Barossa wine? Christmas was a boozy affair here at Graham HQ, with my drinking highlight …
For this week's sample pile raid I've focused on premium red wines from McLaren Vale, including a whole swathe of new '13 reds. Always interesting to look at a horizontal like …
McGuigan Philosophy Cabernet Shiraz 2012 I touched recently on the scepticism that comes with a 'volume' winery launching an icon level red, and my sceptometer was in high gear when tasting …
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.