It seems this celebrity wine thing isn't going away. Following closely on the release of Ricky Ponting's new wines, comes another celeb drinks project backed by the same group. This time, however, it's …
'I want to make the vineyards the story, and not the winemaker'. That's not your usual Barossan winemaker line. Not in a region where the mantra is about blending, and often …
Not all wines can be great. Plenty are just ok drinks. And some are just bad. Here then is a selection of wines that almost made it to a pass mark …
Merry Christmas. Happy Holidays. Joyous Festivus (take your pick of chosen intro). This has been a very weird Christmas for us. Here, situated in the only part of Australia in lockdown, Christmas …
Let's call it the grand vin culture. For decades, the push has been for ever-more premiumisation (hate that word) in wine. More super cuvée releases, more barrel selections, more single block, …
Fun fact: Shiraz makes up over 25% of all winegrapes crushed in Australia, and South Australia has the largest vineyard area with 76,292ha (Wine Australia figures 19/20). But what I want …
The first-ever 'serious' red wine I bought was a 1998 St Hallett Faith Shiraz back in 2000. I had just turned 19 and was working in a bottle shop where …
I missed most of the Zoom Virtual Tasting for this St Hallett Blackwell Shiraz 2018 so I'm missing a little context. But suffice to say it's ala very different wine …
It's halfway through spring. Already. That escalated quickly... As the name suggests, these are the best pink/blush/salmon orange/reddish coloured Australian rosé to pass the Australian Wine Review tasting bench this springtime. …
Thick, purple fruited Pyrenees Shiraz with deep, chunky and powerful purple berry fruit and layered with sweet oak. Oh yes, this Blue Pyrenees Section One Shiraz 2018 makes a big …
Matt East from Rouleur normally comes and visits at this time of year with all of his new releases in tow. We talk about wine, a bit of cycling, the …
As the name suggests, these are the Top 20 Shiraz of August 2020. There was more Shiraz this month, there always is. But these are the wines I want to …
I didn't expect to like the Thorn-Clarke single vineyard wines so much. But they work. Old school weight, delivered with polish and a deft hand. From the Canyon Block at Thorn-Clarke’s …
Not all wines can be great. Plenty are just ok drinks. And some are just bad. Here then is a selection of wines that almost made it over the past few …
Dalwood Estate is the longest running commercial vineyard in Australia, with a history that dates back to 1828 when it was first established by George Wyndham. But for years now Dalwood …
It's time to get serious. Serious, about Barossa Shiraz. Typically we don't drink much Barossa Shiraz in this house, purely because fighting through some of the oak and alcohol excesses isn't …
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 …
Tricky to get Shiraz ripe consistently in Pemberton. Or at least that's the perception based on wines like this. Hard to pick what is the hero variety for the region …
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