There is no fingerprint of place more pronounced than the mineral voice of the soil that resonates in the most distinctive champagnes. In all Champagne, I have not tasted a wine of such earth-shaking minerality as Clos du Mesnil 2000. It rumbles to the very core of the earth deep below this mesmerising site, then […]

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Le Clos Saint-Hilaire’s third release is a towering masterpiece, remarkable at 15 years of age not only for retaining profound mineral clarity and impeccable freshness in the midst of unfathomable complexity, but for a sheer persistence that elevates it to a level above virtually every other champagne. Its precision is as bright as daylight, bursting […]

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The third release of Clos d’Ambonnay, so scarce that the bottle Olivier Krug opened for me was the first he’d tasted in some months. This is the most expensive current-release champagne, with a four-digit price tag in any currency, making for one of the rarest and most memorable tastings of all. On my first encounter, […]

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Lusatia Park is my favourite vineyard site in the Yarra, and PHI is the proof. Made the same way as De Bortoli’s new A5 Reserve Chardonnay, this elevated site instils more pristine fruit focus of white peach, white nectarine and lemon blossom amidst laser precision of taut acid cut. 2012 is one of the greats, […]

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A star of the wine show circuit, Terracotta is a bargain among the A-league Hunter semillons. Named after its low fertility red basalt/clay soils, said to reduce yields and increase concentration, this is an impeccably balanced semillon of surprisingly youthful verve at seven years of age. A vibrant straw-green hue pre-empts lively, crisp lemon and […]

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Introducing the revolutionised De Bortoli range, this month announcing the release of Section A8 Syrah. This is Reserve Syrah in new verdant green livery, named after its single block source. Reserve has always been a single vineyard, something we all forgot (me included), so a reminder on the front label seems sensible, albeit about as […]

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The Doctor is the legendary epicentre of viticulture on the steep slopes behind the village of Berncasteler. The 2010 Spätlese is a highlight of Thanisch for its captivating tightwalk between succulent, generous baked apple and preserved lemon fruit and its taut acidity and slatey structure. It pulls off this stunt effortlessly, set off with the […]

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A rising mood of effortless, seamless purity characterises Yabby Lake Pinot Noir and seems to intensify with the passing of the seasons. 2012 is a crescendo in this evolution, an outstanding vintage of impeccable focus and enduring persistence. It’s spotlessly appointed with pristine red fruits and rose hip, underlined by intricately crafted and finely textured […]

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When this wine landed, I sent out the word to friends who were married or gave birth in 2011. This is the wine for 21st birthdays and silver wedding anniversaries. For the warmest vintage in a decade in Margaret River, it retains impeccably vibrancy and unwavering poise amidst considerable power and solid, generous concentration. Firm, […]

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I liked Thousand Candle’s controversial inaugural 2011 on release, I like it more today, and I like its successor more again. All the exoticism of 2011 has returned for an encore in 2012, set in a much more familiar frame of Yarra Valley pinot noir (70%), with shiraz playing a support role (25%) and again […]

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