“A bloody terrible vintage, with lots of rain, but you can’t make bad chardonnay off this vineyard!” says maker Rod Kempe. The Hunter’s best chardonnay shines even in this season, with a lovely profile of understated white peach, white nectarine, lemon and grapefruit. Lovely complexity of spicy apricot, baked peach, hints of nutmeg and clove […]

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Lance Redgwell is a fast ascending star of Martinborough and his 2011s are his finest reds yet. From 25-30 year old vines, fermented with 15 percent whole bunches, this is a wine that collides gorgeous exotic spice with black cherry intensity. Its black fruit and violet definition are nothing short of astounding, and its tannins […]

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McLaren Vale got out of jail in the tough, wet 2011 season compared with much of south-eastern Australia, making an elegant, spicy shiraz style. These are not blockbusters, nor will they be long-lived, but there is appeal in the wines of those who sorted their fruit stringently. Chapel Hill’s single Road Block vineyard has yielded […]

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First Paddock is at the top tier of Sam Neill’s Two Paddocks estate, and with just 200 cases produced, it’s very rare in Australia. This vineyard in upper Gibbston Valley celebrates its twentieth birthday this year, providing impressive focus and great persistence to this finely mineral style. Whole bunch fermentation lifts its violet and exotic […]

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Martinborough Vineyard is high on the A-list of New Zealand’s classic pinot noirs and the natural acidity of the 2011 vintage lends a balanced elegance and poise to this release. An impressively focused wine of lovely violet fragrance and black fruit depth, accented with notes of anise. This will be a long-lived vintage, tightly wound, […]

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With origins in its blend back to the 1890s, Chambers Grand has such depth of black hue and such engine oil-like viscosity that you’d swear it was Rare before you’d even lifted the glass. “Well, this is the problem!” exclaims maker Stephen Chambers, whose wines have never fit the Rutherglen classification neatly. This is a […]

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The Waipara Valley will be hailed in years to come as one of the greatest sources of pinot noir in the southern hemisphere, and Pegasus Bay Prima Donna is already one of its unsung heroes. A barrel selection from twenty-seven-year-old vines, this is a voluptuous yet intricately structured pinot noir. Impressive depth of black cherry […]

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Dry River sometimes explodes with such ripe fruit intensity and immense whole bunch spice that it all seems a bit too much. Not this vintage. This is benchmark Dry River with an enticing bouquet of ripe black fruits and exotic spice lift. The palate is crafted around impeccably fine, gravelly tannins, contrasting with glossy, persistent, […]

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It would be right to think of every Chambers fortified as a level above its official classification, which puts its Rares completely off the scale. Bill Chambers didn’t keep accurate records, so the average age of this wine is unknown, but the origins of the blend date back to the 1890s. Such is its intensity […]

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As Bell Hill’s vines penetrate further into their limestone soils, the inimitable character of this site is articulated ever more dramatically in its fruits. This release is more honed and scaffolded than ever, with a frame of firm, finely textured tannins of great focus and persistence. Fantastic exotic depth of sarsaparilla, coal and black fruits […]

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