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 …
No. No, I can't see the joy in this Dead Arm. Conceptually, it's easy to appreciate the appeal of a handpicked, basket-pressed, foot trodden, super-premium McLaren Vale Shiraz in this mode. …
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 …
Why would you blend Viognier with Shiraz in McLaren Vale? It's not like the Mistral-chilled hillsides of the northern Rhone, where you need the Viognier to add flesh to bony, …
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, …
Following closely on the Top 20 Chardonnay comes the Top 20 Shiraz of February 2020. For this lineup I dug deeper into the sample pile, searching - perhaps blindly - for …
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 …
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 …
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 …
Why stop at just 10 great Shiraz for the month? Here is the follow on list of the best 11-34 Shiraz to pass the desk in October 2019. Terre à Terre …
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 …
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 …
Matt East from Rouleur popped by the other day with this new Rouleur Shiraz 2018 in his bag. Strangely, he was reticent to show it thinking it might be a …
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 …
Not all wines can be great. In fact plenty are just ok drinks. And some are just bad... Here's a selection of wines that didn't quite excite me in May. Several …
I'm on a bit of a McLaren Vale run at the moment, even if it was unintentional. Actually, maybe it's not - if I was forced to pick a specialisation, …
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.