Never have the gravelly, granitic soils of this elevated Adelaide Hills site been preserved with such precision of firm, long-haul definition, within a style as monumentally intense as this. Riveting layers of black plum skin, blueberries, black olives, fresh liquorice straps, black pepper, dark chocolate, exotic spice, even fresh bitumen, engine room, coal steam and […]

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Haunting reflections of Ashton Hills’ 2010 Reserve Pinot echo in this wine, but it was only in a later conversation with Jeffrey Grosset that I discovered why: the core of this fruit is sourced from Ashton Hills’ back fence. There is no finer place for this distinguished variety anywhere yet planted in SA. This cool, […]

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Immaculately composed, this is a Heytesbury of profound red fruit purity and persistence, structured with sensationally fine, textural, gravelly tannins that demand decades to unravel. Pristine redcurrants, red cherries, cherry kernel and pink pepper, with subtle notes of capsicum and tomato. On paper, the ripeness here is higher than many of its 2009 peers (14.5% […]

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The 143 year old vines of the Concongella vineyard rank among Victoria’s most famous, and produced just 4200 bottles in 2010, but this is not the reason for their inclusion in this list. The layers of exotic complexity on display here are mesmerising, and the longer it swirls around the glass the more it reveals. […]

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2004 La Grande Dame follows 1998. This is a mind-boggling statement, considering the years in between. No other house, bar none, skipped these five vintages. The endorsement that this in itself places on 2004 in the Clicquot cellars cannot be overstated. And the wine delivers. My goodness, does it deliver! Close acquaintances of La Grande […]

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Clos du Mesnil is the most famous Champagne vineyard of all and nowhere outside the hallowed grand crus of Burgundy itself does chardonnay enjoy a more privileged position than in this village. The 2000 vintage has neither the vivacity nor the energy of 1998, but a more generous white peach purity across Champagne, and Clos […]

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Seductively alluring chardonnay, with the vivacity of grapefruit blossom perfume that might be more expected in a one-year-old chardonnay than a three-year-old. Its fragrance does not fade for a single moment during its long, linear finish, defined by a wonderfully textural, mineral, chalky mouth feel. All the complexity of grapefruit pith, lemon zest and white […]

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Such precision of Margaret River cabernet is extremely rare at this price. Brilliant blackcurrants, blackberries and black olives, yet for all its concentration, impeccably refined and medium-bodied. This is a consummately textured wine of signature Margaret River gravelly tannins that pull a full-flavoured palate into a finely honed finish. $27 at Kemeny’s.

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It’s fifty years since this vineyard produced the first botrytis riesling in the country, and it remains among the finest. The secret is the acidity of the cool King Valley, pulling the finish in tight and refreshing, balancing its unctuous sweetness of baked peach, apricot and honey. A beautifully balanced wine of outstanding persistence, topped […]

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For sauvignon to retain such vitality and energy in the presence of complexity as profound as this defines a lifetime achievement for James Healy and Ivan Sutherland. Magnificent ripples of green pea, capsicum, mint, grapefruit, lime and lemon, then wood smoke and flint. Scintillating mineral presence, pristine freshness and outstanding length. If you thought sauvignon […]

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