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In a past life that we’d all rather forget, the ISO glass was the benchmark tasting glass for every wine show. Thank goodness we’ve moved on! They’re far too small to really flatter any wine style but they are worth having on hand for two reasons: Fortified wines and picnics. These are my all-purpose family […]

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I own all manner of decanters but my favourite is a simple laboratory conical flask. These are made tough (typically from Pyrex, Bomex or borosilicate glass), dishwasher safe and virtually unbreakable. The wide neck version makes for easy decanting and easy cleaning. These come in every size from shot glass to gargantuan, so next time you […]

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The Magnum is now the standard for every self-respecting wine show in the country. I use these for all my wine courses and whenever I’m entertaining more than forty people at home. I’ll trust the finest reds and whites in my cellar to this glass. It’s big, fine, cut and flatters every wine style but […]

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If you’re kitted out with Magnums, this is the only other glass you really need. Fine, delicate and cut, this is my all-purpose sparkling glass that I’ll keep on the table until the end of the meal, when it swings back into action and doubles brilliantly for dessert wines and fortifieds. If you’re serious about […]

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This is my standard red wine tasting and drinking glass. It’s a step up from the magnum, with its longer stem (better balanced) – and it’s lead crystal. I can’t afford sets of these for the masses, but if I’m opening a special bottle for a few mates, this is the glass to do the […]

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This is my house white wine glass and my favourite glass for aromatic whites. It’s everything I love about the Vinum Bordeaux glass, scaled down by just the right amount for white wines. It’s also surprisingly flattering for sparkling wines – so much so that I prefer it for champagne over the Ouverture Champagne Glass. […]

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The Vinum Bordeaux Glass is my usual choice for tasting chardonnay and pinot noir, but when I open a special bottle to drink it slowly, this is the glass for it. The more delicate and intricate the wine, the more the wider profile of this glass coaxes it out. If you’re shelling out for a […]

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Vinum XL is the supersized version of Vinum, making this the largest champagne glass I’ve ever seen. It’s the most expensive wine glass I’ve purchased, and the finest. It provides space for a champagne to open up like a wine glass, while drawing down to a fine point to focus the bead. If you’re serious […]

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Botrytis riesling is one style that the multitalented Yarra Valley has never really mastered. Until the cool, wet 2011 vintage. Suddenly, there is sufficient acidity to support an impressive 180g/L of sweet honeyed, unctuous, exotic intensity (that’s more sugar than Coke!). The balance here is spot on, with a crunchy grapefruit backbone providing definition to […]

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Check the recipe and marvel: Shiraz from every vintage since the eighties (and some from the early sixties and seventies), a hogshead of Moda Cabernet Merlot every year, liqueured with old Australian fortifieds. The result is serious complexity and intensity: game, warm black olives and dark chocolate, swirling around primary black cherry and plum fruit, […]

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