With a name that any cartoon superhero would be proud of, Zamberlan is an impacting McLaren Vale cabernet that this year could confidently masquerade for something at a significantly higher price. The recipe here is unusual, because newly fermented cabernet is passed over the skins of Moda (its big brother) to “juice it up”. 2010 […]
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I’m told the great value Armchair Critic wines went gangbusters after I announced them to the world, way back in Wine Taste Weekly Edition 18. There’s now an all-new big brother in the family, and it’s set to cause an equal stir. This is a tightly coiled Heathcote wine of considerable class and long-ageing potential. […]
readVoyager Chardonnay is a legend of the west, a perpetual benchmark at the more affordable end of Margaret River’s flagships. This is a brilliant vintage that unites laser-focused white peach, lemon and fig fruit with a lifted air of white floral blossoms. It’s delightfully restrained and elegant, yet at the same time concealing a core […]
readTe Koko is on a steep trajectory of ascent, finer, more harmonious and more expressive than ever, yet it’s the tiny details that have made the difference. The core of its personality remains untouched, but, in the words of maker Nick Lane, it’s been pared back in palate gregariousness. He says taking it from ten […]
readPinot noir has found a new lease on life at Cloudy Bay. Maker Nick Lane reckons not one of the 2002 pinot batches he tasted on his second day here would make it into the blend today. It’s a new world now, with new vineyards, new clones, older vines, a little whole bunch (less than […]
readCapturing restraint and deep wells of mineral texture in the midst of Margaret River intensity takes consummate skill, and Voyager has nailed it in this wine like never before. The more elegant Clone 95 is the ingredient, producing delightfully honed and focused white peach, grapefruit pulp and lemon zest flavours, with a restraint and delicate […]
readThere is an impeccably defined focus to this wine that not only looks more restrained than many from this vintage, but it also appears exceptionally youthful as one of Margaret River’s later released flagships. A brilliant bouquet of crunchy blackcurrants, graphite, tobacco and cedar introduces an impeccably and confidently structured palate, scaffolded around a rigid […]
readA newcomer of greatness has arrived in Central Otago, capturing the generosity of 2010 within the controlled, honed and age-worthy style that defines Cloudy Bay. The estate’s first foray outside Marlborough is a resounding success, and this small production wine from well established vineyards will confidently hold its own among Central Otago’s top ten estates. […]
readThere’s a new buzzword in the Barossa. Once upon a time, the regional identity of a wine was simply “Barossa.” Now winemakers are honing in on “subregionality”. It’s a sign of coming of age for a region to celebrate the subtle uniqueness of each of its zones.
readI’ve never seen a vintage quite like 2008 in the Barossa. There have been plenty of dismal vintages and the occasional triumph, but never one that has shown both extremes in the same season quite like this.
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