Pio Cesare’s classic, restrained and long-lived Barbaresco outclassed its Barolo in 2006. Imported by Dan Murphy’s, they’re both now $40 cheaper than they were last year. Barbaresco is nebbiolo, and this wine captures its lifted allure of dried rose petals and its depth of black cherry, pitch, anise and high cocoa dark chocolate flavours. Nebbiolo’s […]

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Salon is a fabled name in champagne circles, and ranks in the top four houses in all of champagne. It makes but one cuvée and Australia’s entire allocation of the 1999 was sold wholesale in just 31 days. This warm vintage makes for a Salon of immediacy and accessibility, within Salon’s classic style of honed […]

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Great cabernet merlot should have both a fragrant violet perfume and a deep core of crunchy blackcurrant fruit, but it’s rare to find such impressive fruit definition at the magical sub-$15 price. There are notes of blueberries and overtones of capsicum and the classic leaf and mint of Clare. Fine, supple tannins make it alluring […]

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Matthew Jukes, wine writer and author, was last night named ‘Honorary Australian of the Year in the UK’ at the Australia Day Foundation Dinner at Australia House.

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Ambonnay meets Tasmania! It’s a tightrope act to showcase the body and intensity of Australian pinot noir in sparkling rosé, while maintaining unerring finesse. Holm oak has pulled it off with particular refinement, showcasing the linear backbone of Tasmanian acidity, with all of the complexity that comes with barrel-fermented pinot: Christmas spice, fruit mince pie, […]

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If there is a benchmark for just what late-disgorged Australian sparkling can be, this is it. Disgorged in June 2011 after a monumental fifteen years on lees (no standard release champagne can claim this), complexity and richness go without saying, but (and this is a big but, for this is rarely ever achieved outside champagne) […]

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O’Leary’s portfolio is the bargain benchmark of the Clare but its flagship sets the standard for rock-solid consistency at the top end like no other. This is no showstopper, making its statement not by impact and power, ripeness, structure or oak, but by remarkable poise, vibrancy and complexity. Its century-old vines speak in deep tones […]

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Ignore the name, this is the ultimate Aussie wine, packed with all the rich, authentic tastes of Langhorne Creek, eucalypt included! A core of sweet, ripe blackcurrant fruit and mint is beautifully offset by dark chocolate oak and carried long into the finish by firm, fine tannins. It’s the perfect BBQ quaffer and will live […]

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This is not only the finest Y Series Viognier ever made, it is the greatest viognier with a street price under $10 that I have tasted from anywhere in the world. Ever. Is this thanks to a freak cool season or to Yalumba’s viognier genius permeating ever lower in its portfolio with each passing vintage? […]

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Short of it’s time-stopping flagship Claire (read on!), this is O’Leary’s top Clare shiraz. It’s a perennial bargain, perpetually discounted below $20 ($18 at WineStar and Dan’s this week). This is a particularly flattering vintage, showcasing the glossy blueberries and blackberries of Clare with a little under one-third McLaren Vale shiraz to rev it up. […]

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