Warramate Shiraz 2015 Gently spicy, understated Yarra Shiraz with delicacy and lovely juicy fruit. It's richer than the 13% alcohol suggests, fractionally lifted up by oak sweetness, but with a palate that beautifully balances out freshness …
Margan Shiraz 2016 Classically proportioned Hunter Valley Shiraz. Easy to overlook wines like this, but they'll always satisfy. Sweet plum earth, some background oak sweetness, plenty of acidity and a plummy savouriness. The appeal here is …
Montalto Pennon Hill Shiraz 2016 I was sceptical. Broadly generalising, I can't think of a single Mornington Shiraz that I've really wanted to buy. Sure, some of the Paringa 'The Paringa' releases can be impressively concentrated wines. …
Redman The Last Row Coonawarra Shiraz 2015 There's an unquestionable timelessness to these Redman reds. Come back in a decade and they'll still be kicking on nicely. Here's a new release under the Last Row label, …
Schwarz Meta Shiraz 2016 This is what great modern Barossa Shiraz tastes like, from a producer doing very good things. It's a template for how modern Barossa Shiraz can taste. The oak influence is minimal, the fruit …
Soul Growers Provident Shiraz 2016 A slightly blunter Provident this year. It's bright purple and juicy, the oak a coffeed edge too what is otherwise a generous and fruity forward wine. Pulpier and more juicy, the …
It's 3 days late I know, but here are a few wines that almost hit the mark this month. Some are just good, simple drinks. Others are genuinely average to poor... Hand Crafted Montepulciano 2016 From Geoff …
Here are a few wines that almost made it in February (and a day late I know). A few serious disappointments here, and a few solid, simple wines. That Ferngrove was notably unbalanced - what's happening …
'We’ve taken the old roller and painted it red.' 'To make it go faster, to be fun and breezy. So that everyone can enjoy the ride. And appreciate the timelessness of a new beginning.' They're the words …
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 big disappointments of note: The …
I love Christmas. Here in Sydney town the sun shines, the water sparkles and life seems a little brighter - which is so welcome after another rough week (an infected wisdom tooth. I'm cursed). These Atze's …
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 …
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.