The premise with this collection is very very simple - I've been hitting the sample pile hard over the past week or two, and these 30 wines were not only the most quintessentially smashable Australian …
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 …
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 both as symptoms of poor …
For the final post in my 'wines that moved me in April' series comes this final collection - that I'm calling the 'better reds that aren't Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz or Pinot Noir'. As a primer, check …
Salicutti Piaggione Brunello 2006 A big Brunello, though perhaps the balance suffers because of it. A massive mouthful of slightly horsey, meaty Sangiovese fruit, in a warm and heady style. A biggun' So firm and long, you …
As you can see the volume of posts has dropped off a bit lately as I'm still not feeling great. My ankle issues turned out to be an arthritis flare up, and the last few …
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 …
Following on from my post about 2015 vintage generalisations, here is a roundup of a swag of 2015 reds from Victoria and South Australia that have passed the desk recently. Mornington and Yarra the winners here, …
This is the third part of a look at rosé - one of the fastest growing categories in the Australian wine industry. Best to start here. While this is a roundup of 'the rest' what's most …
Following on from yesterday's rosé report, today I've pulled out four of the best pink wines to pass the desk recently. Four standouts in an ocean of simple, sometimes sweet, sometimes dry, often middling wines. Actually, …
It's that time again - time to roundup a selection of wines that didn't quite make it onto the site. Some because of time and space, others because they failed the grade, this January 2017 …
Pizzini Pietra Rosa Sangiovese 2014 Pizzini now have a whole suite of different Sangiovese-based wines in the portfolio, making them one of the few Australian wineries to really push out the Sangio train (along with Coriole). …
It's that time again! These wines haven't quite made it into full review status this month. I'm a bit behind (living out of a suitcase does that), hence why this list is longer than normal. Ten Minutes …
I'm in catchup mode here, as this tasting was part of Seminar 1 of the Working With Wine series, and Seminar 2 is happening this week. Excuse my tardiness. Essentially this 'Sangiovese in situ' bracket was …
It's roundup time! These are some of the odds and ends that haven't quite made it up on to the site so far this month. Wines are listed from higher to lower scores... 10X Mornington Peninsula Sauvignon …
Here's a promising label that has lobbed into Graham HQ. Three Lads is a a new operation involving three friends - Aaron Harper, Luke McGahey and Bill Crowe. Bill is the winemaker at Three Winds, while Aaron …
I'm just going to quote straight from the press release here. It says everything needed: After winemaker Simon Burnell's tragic passing last year, his friends and family have come together to bottle his last wine, the …
Tintilla Estate Hunter Valley Rosato di Jupiter 2015 Sangiovese based pink from the Hunter. A combination not explored enough in Oz really, and the acidity of Sangio makes for prime rosé fodder. Pink coloured with just a …
A few alternate reds from the week. Lino Ramble Tom Bowler McLaren Vale Nero d'Avola 2014 Another smart wine under this label. Handpicked, biodynamically farmed grapes that were wild fermented, basket pressed and then bottled unfined with …
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.