In the 40s and 50s, one of Australia’s legendary winemakers made arguably some of our greatest and most enduring wines pairing pinot noir and shiraz. Today, there is a renewed interest in the blend, and makers from the staunchly traditional to the restlessly creative are getting on board. Four years after our inaugural Deep Dive into Pinot Noir and Shiraz Blends, it’s an apt time to again cast our eyes across the landscape.
Cabernet franc is the other cabernet, largely marginalised in blends, and often with its identity banished to the back label at that. But franc deserves better. It drives some of the great wines of the world, either in part or in total, and it can be rendered as a wine of immediate vibrancy and intoxicating fragrance, or settle into the satisfied purr of a wine of statuesque pedigree, destined for a long life and sustained glory.
For those held in its thrall, nebbiolo holds a grip like no other grape. Nebbiolo is a paradox, a combination of elements that shouldn’t make sense. But they do. Set against profound tannins, it can be fragrantly pretty and floral, as well as ruggedly mineral and dry toned – and often simultaneously so. Five years after our inaugural Deep Dive into Nebbiolo, it’s an apt time to again cast our eyes across the landscape.
Five years after our inaugural Deep Dive into Sangiovese, it’s an apt time to again cast our eyes across the landscape. With eight of the finest palates in attendance, we gathered every example we could find in Australia and set our expert panel the tasks of finding the wines that compelled the most. All wines were tasted blind, and each panellist named their top six wines.
Pinot meunier. For all the dazzling success of Champagne, its most planted grape is accorded little of the acclaim. Almost none. While they ride on the broad shoulders of meunier, the garlands go to the glamour couple of chardonnay and pinot noir. But meunier has more to offer. In Australia, though the output is extremely modest at best, the grape has a meaningful place as a quality grape for red wine production. Five years after our inaugural Deep Dive into Pinot Meunier, it’s an apt time to again cast our eyes across the landscape. We gathered every Australian pinot meunier (made as a still red wine) that we could find and set our expert panel the task of finding the wines that compelled the most.
Five years after our inaugural Deep Dive into Gamay, it’s an apt time to again cast our eyes across the landscape. We gathered every Australian gamay that we could find and set our expert panel the task of finding the wines that compelled the most.
With Australia’s warm regions not looking like cooling down anytime soon, growers around the country are turning to varieties that don’t just tolerate the heat, but genuinely relish it. Sicily’s nero d’avola has been leading the pack for sun-loving varieties, rapidly inserting itself into the thinking of growers, winemakers and drinkers alike, with the number of plantings and bottled expressions expanding exponentially. When you think that the first Australian example was only made around 15 years ago, it’s an extraordinary rise. We gathered every Australian Nero d’Avola we could find and set our expert panel the task of finding the wines that compelled the most. All wines were tasted blind, and each panellist named their top six wines.
McLaren Vale – arguably the finest Australian territory for the grape – now leading the charge for making grenache in a considered way, with many of the wines of the past – which were often dry and rustic or were dominated by confected raspberry notes – being replaced with wines that can be fragrantly pretty. These expressions broke new ground in Australia, and are fast building a global reputation for this variety, from this region. We gathered every McLaren Vale Grenache we could find and set our expert panel the task of finding the wines that compelled the most. All wines were tasted blind, and each panellist named their top six wines.
Please sign in or create account as candidate to bookmark this job
Please sign in or create account to save this search
Please sign in or create account as candidate to create a resume
