More birthday wines (2021 edition)
February 17, 2021
This is where I was for the past week: Well, not right there, but just a few clicks off to the right on the beautiful NSW South Coast. Would you look …
The 20 Best Shiraz of January 2021
February 2, 2021
January is a little slower for wine deliveries to the Australian Wine Review PO Box, as most local vignerons are either on holidays, preparing for vintage, or picking grapes. That means …
Top 20 best Shiraz of November 2020
December 3, 2020
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 Top 20 Shiraz of August 2020
August 28, 2020
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 …
The Almost Club Lockdown edition: 68 wines that almost made it over the past 3 months
July 8, 2020
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 …
Next, Shiraz: Top 20 Shiraz of February 2020
March 4, 2020
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 …
10 of the best cellaring reds to pass the desk this November – feat. Oakridge, Craggy Range, Eldorado Road etc
November 19, 2019
This is just a taste of the finest big reds that passed the desk this November. Background notes in italics. Oakridge Original Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2017 Spends 3 weeks on skins post …
Almost Club October 2019 edition – more than 45 wines that almost made it this month.
October 16, 2019
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 …
Sholto Syrah 2017 and the taste of my (rubbish) first wine
September 6, 2019
Sholto Syrah 2017 Wine's most amazing trick is to take you back to a time and place. One sniff of this Shiraz and I'm back in my garage in 2010, crouching …
Warramunda Estate Syrah 2016
July 10, 2019
Warramunda Estate Syrah 2016 The Warramunda wines are firmly on the up, even in a year as dry and challenging as 2016. Sourced from the Warramunda vineyard at Coldstream, the vines planted …
Brothers at War The Old Man Eden Valley Syrah 2017
June 27, 2019
Brothers at War The Old Man Eden Valley Syrah 2017 Another well balanced release from Angus & Sam Wardlaw and well priced. This is sourced from their Pendee Farm vineyard just …
Voyager Estate mini-verticals of Chardonnay and Cabernet Merlot from the mid noughties
March 26, 2019
I've been digging in the notebook this week and discovered a choice tasting from last year that didn't get a run here on site - the 2018 Voyager Estate Masterclass. For …
Almost Club January 2019 edition: A bumper new year of almostness inc. a $500 red
January 27, 2019
I missed December's Almost Club edition (holidays), so this is a huge crop of almostness... As the name suggests, here are the wines that almost hit the mark for me in …
Craggy Range Le Sol Syrah 2002-2016 vertical – a massive style evolution
September 14, 2018
This is Part 2 of the Coleraine vertical described here. Actually, while Coleraine had top billing at the tasting, the vertical of Craggy Range Le Sol Syrah was probably even …
2018 Sydney Royal Wine Show – how do the winners taste (and why did they win)?
September 4, 2018
Wine shows cop a lot of flack. You need only read the feedback to my post on the 2018 Sydney Royal Wine Show exhibitors tasting to see that. But is …
The Top 10 Shiraz tasted this August 2018 – feat. Balgownie, Gundog, Yalumba etc
August 22, 2018
The title says it all, these are 10 of the best Shiraz to pass the desk this month. This isn't a comprehensive last, as I probably taste somewhere between 6000-7000 wines …
Dom Torzi’s portfolio of sub $25 red wine bargains
July 30, 2018
Authenticity. It's something we need more of in the wine industry. More authenticity, less made up brands. Less mid-tier reserve wines, more genuine wine labels. More single vineyards, less South Eastern …
Michael Hall’s expressive 2016 releases hit the spot
July 23, 2018
It seems like a big jump to go from jewellery valuer to Barossa winemaker. But that's the route Michael Hall's life has followed. From a childhood in the UK to the …
Brackenwood: Brand new Adelaide Hills name w/ crunchy wines
May 30, 2018
I love it when interesting new wines from unknown wineries (to me at least) turn up at the door. It's like wine Christmas. Brackenwood is a vineyard at Kuitpo in the …
The Almost Club May 2018 edition
May 23, 2018
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 …
About me – Andrew Graham
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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
