An almost even blend of sauvignon from Karridale in Margaret River’s cool south and semillon from Xanadu’s estate vineyard, fermented partly in French oak barrels and stirred on its lees for several months to build complexity and texture. The result is powerful and punchy, shot with aromas of green peppers, mixed herbs, lifted frangipane pungency […]
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2010 was an exciting season for West Cape Howe, producing a lively and attractively poised cabernet, capturing lifted violet perfume fragrance and crunchy black- and redcurrant fruit, with notes of tobacco and cigar box. The finish is defined by impressively vibrant acidity and lingering crunchy black- and redcurrant fruit. Tannins are finely structured and enveloped […]
readAnnouncing one of West Cape Howe’s finest shirazes yet, a beautifully refined wine of silky tannins and well-defined blackberry fruit. There’s an understated intensity here of lifted violet perfume and luscious black cherry and black plum fruit, with notes of black liquorice that linger long of the finish. It pulls in taut and refined on […]
readA delightfully poised Margaret River chardonnay that captures the taut definition of malic acidity, the rich intensity and generous mid-palate of the Gin Gin chardonnay clone in a warm, dry season and the lifted gunpowder complexity of natural fermentation and lees stirring. Its malic acidity pulls its generous proportions tightly into line on an impressively […]
readIt takes quite some skill to preserve such purity of aromatics in a warm vintage, and Cliff Royle has captured a lovely perfume of violets and blackcurrants with notes of sweet red capsicums, reflective of a dose of outstanding merlot in the blend. The palate leads out with a firm, finely gravelly tannin structure, true […]
readChapel Hill has elevated itself one plane closer to the gods with one of the most profound $30 shirazes I’ve tasted in a long time. A monumental testament to the incredible 2010 season, this wine will age magnificently and shows every sign of going down as the finest Chapel Hill McLaren Vale Shiraz yet. It’s […]
readFraser Gallop is now harvesting chardonnay at a slightly lower baumé than previously, which suits the generosity of the Gin Gin clone extremely well, producing a classy chardonnay of tense acidity and well-defined structure. This serves the double benefit of pulling its fruit profile back to delightfully fragrant lemon blossom and precise white peach fruit, […]
readChapel Hill has crafted one of the great McLaren Vale cabernets of the modern era, from a single vineyard of seventeen-year-old vines; a wine of poise and intricate definition, with an immense future before it. The bouquet is remarkably evocative, leaping out of the glass with glorious violet fragrance, crunchy red capsicum, precise tobacco leaf […]
readThis is my fizz of choice when I’m entertaining hundreds on a shoestring. It’s elegant (there’s a word you don’t often hear at this price) with white peach, lemon and honey flavours, a refreshing palate and creamy bead. Full dosage lends a honeyed sweetness to the finish, which benefits from a solid chill to tone […]
readBy far the most colourful gris out of Marlborough in 2012 – a salmon-peach approaching rosé hue – this is also one of the most textural wines of the vintage yet. Crucially, its textural palate does not produce hardness on the finish, but culminates in lively acidity, fresh pear, peach and lemon zest, with a […]
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