Somewhere near the Seaview end of McLaren Vale's Chapel Hill Road, a perfunctory passerine perched her pincers astride a pair of power poles and saw herself alit. Down she went amongst the dry grown branches of an old Grenache vineyard, setting the valuable veterans ablaze. The scorched site eventually came to the attention of a winemaking trio, the Messrs Leske, Tynan & Cooke, Masters of Wine and a venerable vintner, all driven by a consuming passion to make greater Grenache. Thistledown vintage very small amounts of the most extraordinary Grenache. Beautifully detailed and conspicuously elegant, their floral bouquets and graceful finish emulate the aromatic lift and peacock's tail of a prettily perfumed Pinot Noir. Magnificent to savour as a captivating aperitif, a bliss alongside..
Polly & the pyre to paradise»
Airline pilots make surprisingly good wine. Their appreciation of the sciences, a respect for the weather and a bird's eye view of the land, all invaluable to the winemaker's art. John Ellis would take every opportune weekend away from his regular New York Paris route, to pursue a passion for viticulture. He planted the first commercial Cabernet Merlot vines in the Hamptons and found time between trans atlantic flights to work vintages amongst the Grand Cru vineyards of La Bourgogne. Ellis ultimately made the great lifelong sea change in favour of our land downunder. He settled on a farmstead outside Leongatha, amongst the slow ripening pastures of Gippsland and established a vineyard called Bellvale. It is now a place of fully mature vines and old world Burgundian techniques, sur lie..
Placing pinot amongst the pastures»
Blackberry and raspberry, cherry and licorice, peppery aromas soar from the glass of this opulent, voluptuously textured Shiraz. Before David Powell took on the task of raiding Barossa vineyards, he spent several years on the Scottish Highlands as... More»
Velvet palate of perfumed cherry, plum and dark currant flavours, persistent and refined. A pure, single vineyard wine, from fruit picked off a single plot of Shiraz, planted 1960 and still managed by... More»
The nose expresses soil, earth and vinuous tones of vibrant black jelly fruit. In the early 1980s, due to lack of demand, the government paid incentives to growers to rip out their vines... More»
Plenty of nutty flavours and mealy notes from the lees stirring and quality French oak, ripe stone fruits, tropicals and dried pear. Voyager Estate are in pursuit of elegance, structure and refinement, within the low alcohol spectrum of Chardonnay... More»
A satin palate of sherbet and spiced fruit flavours, ever more intense in bubbles and refined in citrus acidity to balance the exquisite natural grape sweetness. The top shelf in toothsome and dulcetly fragrant, fruit forward frizzante wines, fashioned for those who know what they like... More»
An intensely flavoured wine with melon and white nectarine on the palate, citrus, lemon zest and spicy, integrated French oak. Harry Friend was raised on a dairy farm in Gippsland which is now home to the Narkoojee vineyard wineworks... More»
Born and bred, 6th generation winemaker Damien Tscharke grew up amongst the vines at Seppeltsfield, while attending Marananga Primary and Nuriootpa High. Gnadenfrei is the oldest vineyard within the Tscharke family estate portfolio, established over seventy years ago by Damien Tscharke's grandfather, the terroir and clime yield an exceptional quality of Shiraz. A seamlessly structured style, driven by fruit and kept vital by rich, cherry filled acidity. Show stopper this week...
Superior value in old village barossa shiraz»
There's a vineyard at Moorooduc in upper Mornington, planted to a splendid north facing slope which captures the maximum warmth of sunshine each day. Refreshed after nightfall by the invigorating maritime winds off Bass Strait and Port Phillip Bay, it's a place of exceptional winegrowing. Populated by ten unique Burgundy clones, this very special block of vine grew the only Pinot Noir ever to claim our nation's highest accolade for great red wines, the Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy. The property continues to yield limited releases of outstanding vintages, it's a place of exacting viticulture and uncompromising pursuit of excellence, cherished by cognoscenti and exalted by industry press, the vineyard known as Yabby Lake...
The burgundy clones of mornington»