Home > Wines We Love > 2022 Sven Joschke ‘La Eleanor’ Sangiovese

Think Langhorne Creek is all about big juicy malbecs and mint chocolate–tinged cabernets? This supple, elegant sangiovese from Sven Joschke asks you to think again.

Producer
Sven Joschke
Region

Langhorne Creek
RRP

$30
Vintage

2022
Variety/Varieties

Sangiovese
Alc./Vol.

12.8%

Langhorne Creek is perhaps best known as the historical home of malbec in Australia, and it grows serious quantities of shiraz and cabernet sauvignon. But despite being lumped in with nearby McLaren Vale and the Barossa as a source for big, burly red wines, it’s actually far less warm than many imagine, thanks to the cooling influence of nearby Lake Alexandrina and the Southern Ocean. Given its moderate maritime climate and fertile alluvial soils, it makes an exciting testing ground for alternative grape varieties – including the Italian sangiovese, which winemaker Sven Joschke here turns into a delicious and elegant medium-bodied red.

Tasting Note

An appealingly dusty savouriness is the first impression on the nose – think bitter cocoa powder and the smell of a freshly unwrapped cigar. Underneath this you can find notes of sour morello cherries, red currants, and sweetly ripe baby Roma tomatoes. The palate is fresh and bright, the flavours driven down the tongue by a racy sweep of acidity that fans out towards the back. It’s medium-bodied, but delicately so, with an appealingly tart cast to its fruit profile and fine but firm tannins that provide a surprising amount of grip. A lovely touch of black tea leaf bitterness frames the lengthy finish. Pair this with bresaola, if you have a bottle from this vintage – or buy a case of the current release and lay some bottles down for drinking in a few years’ time.

Themes of this wine

Langhorne Creek

Langhorne Creek’s history is as long and storied as most other South Australian wine regions, with the first vines going into the ground in 1858 – but despite this, its reputation is often overshadowed by McLaren Vale and the Barossa. This is a land shaped by water – a floodplain nestled next to the eastern edge of the Adelaide Hills, formed between the Bremer and Angas rivers as they empty into the imposingly large freshwater estuary of Lake Alexandrina, and from there into the nearby Southern Ocean. Those rivers bring with them silty, highly fertile alluvial soils, as well as (in the case of the Bremer) providing plenty of water for flood irrigation of vineyards. While it’s often thought of as a warm region best suited to the production of bold, hefty reds, all of that water moderates the climate quite well. The recent ‘Project 5255’ initiative, which matches young winemakers with donated parcels of fruit from the region, is quietly changing Langhorne Creek’s narrative – stay tuned.

Sangiovese

Sangiovese is Italy’s most important grape, by both volume and reputation, and it has travelled the world, establishing serious outposts across the New World. In Australia, sangiovese didn’t really start making inroads until the late 1980s, but with improved genetic material, it is now making quite an impression. The key flavour component mentioned when people talk about sangiovese is cherry, generally red, but sometimes black, with that primary profile generally accented with savoury notes of dried berries, hardy herbs, dried earth, leather and cedary notes.

Home > Wines We Love > 2022 Koerner ‘Le Korse’ Red Wine

A midweight, digestibly bright and savoury Mediterranean-style red, this shows the Koerner artistry of making subtly nuanced blending components then merging them seamlessly.

Producer
Koerner
Region

Clare Valley
RRP

$38
Vintage

2022
Variety/Varieties

Carignan Grenache Malbec Sangiovese Sciacarello
Alc./Vol.

12.7%

Korse means Corsica, and this is a tribute to the wines of the island, or rather the Koerner’s take on them, employing two of the island’s key varieties: sangiovese (there called nieuluccio, though not all believe they are identical) and sciacarello.

Tasting note

This is beautifully midweight, savoury expression, with a taut play of tart red and dark cherries, subtle florals and subtle dark spice, with a subtle touch of star anise and brown cardamom, lavender and violets. Aged in steel, and with no whole bunch, but some whole berries, the purity of expression and the smart picking dates stand out here, with a briskness and vigour paired with engaging flavour, totally skipping the common sweet spot of many reds of the region, and surrounds.

Themes of this wine

Sangiovese

Sangiovese is Italy’s most important grape, by both volume and reputation, and it has travelled the world, establishing serious outposts across the New World. In Australia, sangiovese didn’t really start making inroads until the late 1980s, but with improved genetic material, it is now making quite an impression. The key flavour component mentioned when people talk about sangiovese is cherry, generally red, but sometimes black, with that primary profile generally accented with savoury notes of dried berries, hardy herbs, dried earth, leather and cedary notes.

Grenache

The great grape of the Southern Rhône, grenache, has also found many homes around the world, from Spain, to Italy, to California, while Australia is home to the world’s oldest productive grenache vines, planted in 1948. Today, a renaissance is seeing the grape championed, with makers in McLaren Vale arguably turning out the most compelling examples.

Sciacarello

Sciacarello is a Corsican red variety that is closely related to the Tuscan variety mammolo, if not identical to, with both characterised by freshness and floral aromatics (mammolo means violet).

Carignan

Hailing from Spain, carignan may yet find a more significant home in Australia, with retaining acidity very well and thriving in hot and dry conditions – a combination that we don’t lack for. Carignan can be a decidedly rugged grape, with dark fruit and spices often allied with gruff and very assertive tannins. The wines can also have wild herbal almost animal notes, but carignan is mostly used in blends, so this adds complexity to the best wines.

Malbec

Malbec is a French grape that has become much more synonymous with Argentina, where it dominates the country’s vineyards. In Australia, malbec is typically blended as a minor component, but with better vine material and new thinking, malbec’s personality is emerging from the shadows. With a generally dark fruit profile of plums, dark cherries and blackberries, malbec can range from the deeply fruited and ruggedly tannic to more supple and silky expressions.

Clare Valley

A couple of hours north of Adelaide, the Clare Valley is home to some of Australia’s most famous riesling vineyards, with the grape accounting for almost 40 per cent of the plantings, with shiraz a close second, though cabernet sauvignon is also made to good acclaim. The soils vary across the five subregions, from terra rossa over limestone, to grey loams over slate, to fertile alluvial soils in the north. With a continental climate, the warm conditions benefit from the cool nights, retaining acidity in the grapes while the ample sunlight pushes the fruit to ripeness during the day.

Home > Wines We Love > 2021 Coriole Sangiovese

An exceptional release from the sangiovese touchstone in this country, this is an effortless affair, displaying the classic combination of cherries, woodsy herbs and earthiness, with a bright but typically savoury finish.

Producer
Coriole
Region

McLaren Vale
RRP

$30
Vintage

2021
Variety/Varieties

Sangiovese
Alc./Vol.

14.3%

An exceptional release from Coriole – the sangiovese touchstone in this country. This is an effortless affair, displaying the classic combination of cherries, woodsy herbs and earthiness, with a bright but typically savoury finish.

Tasting note

Arguably the benchmark sangiovese from this country, this is such a quietly confident release, combining both power and a sense of reserve. Classic notes of red and dark cherries, woodsy herbs and dried flowers are key, with accents of brown cardamom, star anise and a dusting of white pepper. Both supple and chewy, with trademark tannins, this walks the same line on the palate, both referencing back to its Tuscan homeland and forging on with its own identity in its adopted home.

Themes of this wine

Sangiovese

Sangiovese is Italy’s most important grape, by both volume and reputation, and it has travelled the world, establishing serious outposts across the New World. In Australia, sangiovese didn’t really start making inroads until the late 1980s, but with improved genetic material, it is now making quite an impression. The key flavour component mentioned when people talk about sangiovese is cherry, generally red, but sometimes black, with that primary profile generally accented with savoury notes of dried berries, hardy herbs, dried earth, leather and cedary notes.

McLaren Vale

While it couldn’t feel any more removed from city life, the McLaren Vale wine region is actually inside Adelaide’s metropolitan area. And although the township itself is only 40 minutes by car from central Adelaide and vineyards brush up against ever-encroaching housing, McLaren Vale remains unaffected by the urban sprawl. With a deeply etched history, the Vale has a slow-paced sense of calm and an extraordinary wealth of untrammelled beauty. It is home to some of this country’s most beautifully pristine beaches, as well as some of the world’s most forward-thinking grape-growers and winemakers. And with over 80 cellar doors, it is an essential destination for wine lovers – and anyone else, for that matter.

Home > Wines We Love > 2022 Nocturne Rosé

A riot of red fruits, tangerine and floral notes, with a properly dry but agreeably textural palate. This is benchmark rosé.

Producer
Nocturne
Region

Margaret River
RRP

$35
Vintage

2022
Variety/Varieties

Sangiovese Tempranilo
Alc./Vol.

12.5%

Julian Langworthy has a big ‘day job’ running the show for Margaret River’s Deep Woods, but he finds enough time to fashion one of the West’s most exciting small labels. His Nocturne rosé has become a benchmark in short time, and the 2022 is stellar, a riot of red fruits, tangerine and floral notes, with a properly dry but agreeably textural palate.

Tasting note

This is mainly sangiovese (88%), with a sliver of tempranillo (8%) and the balance in grenache, though the latter isn’t on the label. A classically pale colour here, though a step up from the ultra-frail Provence-styled wines of today, more a light dusky rose gold. The nose is lifted and fragrant, with aromas of wild red berries, pomegranate, tangerine peel, white peach and rose petals. This is dry but far from austere, with a light plump of texture giving a suppleness in the mid-palate, some cherry and redcurrant notes joining the fray. A subtly persistent line of acidity gives this shape through the finish, dry, savoury and long on flavour.

Themes of this wine

Rosé

From its spiritual home in Provence, in southern France, rosé can be both democratically affordable and dizzyingly expensive, but it rarely slips into the sordid or gets hung up on being too serious. It maintains a broad welcoming smile. It says, drink me. It says, relax, have fun. Those bottles of rosy-tinged sunshine have been exported to all corners of the globe in their legion, and they have found their mark, fashioning the expectations of drinkers and shaping the decisions of winemakers. But rosé is breaking those shackles, with wines varying in shades and from a vast array of varieties, some bold and rich, some savoury and mineral, and with different applications, from those demanding food to those that shrug off the idea of interrupting the fun times.

Sangiovese

Sangiovese is Italy’s most important grape, by both volume and reputation, and it has travelled the world, establishing serious outposts across the New World. In Australia, sangiovese didn’t really start making inroads until the late 1980s, but with improved genetic material, it is now making quite an impression. The key flavour component mentioned when people talk about sangiovese is cherry, generally red, but sometimes black, with that primary profile generally accented with savoury notes of dried berries, hardy herbs, dried earth, leather and cedary notes.

Tempranillo

Tempranillo is unarguably Spain’s most recognisable variety, forming the bedrock of that country’s most famous red wines, as well as being one of one of the five key grapes from Portugal’s emblematic fortified – Port. In Australia, it has made a meaningful mark, but with limited genetic vine material, the potential for the grape is exponentially bigger, and with new clones now online that potential is starting to be fulfilled. The flavours of tempranillo naturally vary depending on ripeness, both red and darker fruits are common, with plum, blackberry and cherry common descriptors. Those fruit flavours are typically accompanied by savoury notes, often leather, tobacco, woodsy herbs and spice notes, with cola as another notable descriptor.

Margaret River

If you’re after a wine region with a healthy dose of conspicuous glamour, then Margaret River has it all. Three hours south of Perth, ‘Margs’ is littered with iconic wineries, many with dazzling cellar doors and world-class restaurants. And then there’s the abundant sunshine, and the beaches – oh, those beaches… It’s a beautiful, beautiful place, and for a young wine region it’s very mature, with well-established paths to success built largely on the twin pillars of chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon (et al). Names like Cullen, Moss Wood, Woodlands, Leeuwin Estate and Vasse Felix feel like they’re etched in stone, but in the last little while, smaller players have been making their mark.

Home > Wines We Love > 2020 Taschini Pinot Gris Graciano Sangiovese

This juicy light red is a riot of super-bright red fruits and florals, with a pleasing grip that adds even more refreshment value to the zippy acidity. Drink chilled.

Producer
Taschini
Region

Limestone Coast
RRP

$30
Vintage

2020
Variety/Varieties

Graciano Pinot gris/grigio Sangiovese
Alc./Vol.

12.4%

This is the debut release for Matilda Innes’ Taschini label, which is committed to small-batch offerings – the name means ‘small pockets’ in Italian. With fruit from the Limestone Coast, this juicy light red is a riot of super-bright red fruits and florals, with a pleasing grip that adds even more refreshment value to the zippy acidity. Drink chilled.

Tasting note

Made from a co-ferment of pinot gris, graciano and sangiovese, this skips well out of rosé territory, being firmly garnet-red in colour, but it’s bright and zippy and certainly begs to be chilled. Summer berries, redcurrant jelly, rosehip tea, rosewater, musk, smashed cherries and cranberries are all in the mix, with that cranberry theme carried through to the palate along with red apple skin adding a drying pucker of tannin, giving this shape and direction, grapey flavours adding to the frivolity. This is fresh and bright, but with enough tannin to match it up with food. It’s a picnic/beach wine with a lot more going on than that tag suggests.

Themes of this wine

Chilling reds

There was a time that the only red you would consider chilling was a generic Beaujolais, but the reality is that room temperature is generally too warm for most red wine. If you’re not blessed with a climate-controlled cellar, a brief stint in the fridge will do most reds a favour, while some lighter reds can take more of a chill, and indeed many are now made to be drunk colder, if not exactly fridge cold. No wine, red white or sparkling is enhanced by the frosty temperature of a domestic fridge, but a stint on the bench will soon fix that. With red wines, those with bigger tannins will do less well cooler, while aromatic lighter bodied wines will generally perform well with a refreshing chill to them. Read more about chilling reds, here.

Pinot gris/grigio

Whether you call it pinot gris or pinot grigio, the variety has become an international star, pushing even sauvignon blanc out of the spotlight for those wanting a crisp, quaffable white without all the overt fruitiness. But the grape is much more versatile than that, making wines that can be dry and mineral or richly sweet and spicy, as well as skin-contact examples that are grippy and fragrant with red fruits and spices.

Graciano

Primarily grown in Spain’s north, and notably in Rioja, graciano is a blending grape that is used primarily to pair with tempranillo. It adds flavour depth and spice, while its suitability to hot conditions and late ripening tendency means that is retains acidity, correcting tempranillo’s notorious deficit.

Sangiovese

Sangiovese is Italy’s most important grape, by both volume and reputation, and it has travelled the world, establishing serious outposts across the New World. In Australia, sangiovese didn’t really start making inroads until the late 1980s, but with improved genetic material, it is now making quite an impression. The key flavour component mentioned when people talk about sangiovese is cherry, generally red, but sometimes black, with that primary profile generally accented with savoury notes of dried berries, hardy herbs, dried earth, leather and cedary notes.

Limestone Coast

The Limestone Coast is the South Australian viticultural zone that encompasses the wine regions of Mount Benson, Robe, Mount Gambier on the south-east coast. Extending inland along the Victorian border from Mount Gambier is the most famous of the regions, Coonawarra, followed by Wrattonbully, then Padthaway, which stretches towards the north-west in a narrow peninsula.

Home > Wines We Love > 2020 Dune ‘Bonaire’ Rosé

A classic dry rosé of bright and pure red fruits, but also with a bit more substance and grip – it doesn’t need food, but it’s built with it in mind.

Producer
Dune
Region

McLaren Vale
RRP

$26
Vintage

2020
Variety/Varieties

Carignan Sangiovese Shiraz (Syrah)
Alc./Vol.

13%

A classic dry rosé of bright and pure red fruits, but also with a bit more substance and grip – it doesn’t need food, but it’s built with it in mind.

Tasting note

A coppery onion skin colour in the glass, this is bright with red fruits, like cranberry, redcurrant, wild raspberry and cherry. There’s a classic rosé quality, in that it’s vibrant and pure fruited, but there’s plenty of flavour and depth and a subtle play down a more savoury line, with some hard herb accents and a gentle earthiness. The fruit notes carry to the palate with a watermelon rind character chiming in, while that subtle edge of savouriness is carried through with a bit of gentle grip to pair with the acidity. This is an engaging drink as is, but it’s got food written in its DNA.

Themes of this wine

Rosé

From its spiritual home in Provence, in southern France, rosé can be both democratically affordable and dizzyingly expensive, but it rarely slips into the sordid or gets hung up on being too serious. It maintains a broad welcoming smile. It says, drink me. It says, relax, have fun. Those bottles of rosy-tinged sunshine have been exported to all corners of the globe in their legion, and they have found their mark, fashioning the expectations of drinkers and shaping the decisions of winemakers. But is that all there is to rosé?

McLaren Vale

While it couldn’t feel any more removed from city life, the McLaren Vale wine region is actually inside Adelaide’s metropolitan area. And although the township itself is only 40 minutes by car from central Adelaide and vineyards brush up against ever-encroaching housing, McLaren Vale remains unaffected by the urban sprawl. With deeply etched history, the Vale has a slow-paced sense of calm and an extraordinary wealth of untrammelled beauty. It is home to some of this country’s most beautifully pristine beaches, as well as some of the world’s most forward-thinking grape-growers and winemakers. And with over 80 cellar doors, it is an essential destination for wine lovers – and anyone else, for that matter.

2022 Sven Joschke ‘La Eleanor’ Sangiovese Langhorne Creek

Tasting Note

Themes of this wine

Langhorne Creek

Sangiovese

Korse means Corsica, and this is a tribute to the wines of the island, or rather the Koerner’s take on them, employing two of the island’s key varieties: sangiovese (there called nieuluccio, though not all believe they are identical) and sciacarello.

Tasting note

Themes of this wine

Sangiovese

Grenache

Sciacarello

Carignan

Malbec

Clare Valley

An exceptional release from Coriole – the sangiovese touchstone in this country. This is an effortless affair, displaying the classic combination of cherries, woodsy herbs and earthiness, with a bright but typically savoury finish.

Tasting note

Themes of this wine

Sangiovese

McLaren Vale

Tasting note

Themes of this wine

Rosé

Sangiovese

Tempranillo

Margaret River

Tasting note

Themes of this wine

Chilling reds

Pinot gris/grigio

Graciano

Sangiovese

Limestone Coast

A classic dry rosé of bright and pure red fruits, but also with a bit more substance and grip – it doesn’t need food, but it’s built with it in mind.

Tasting note

Themes of this wine

Rosé

McLaren Vale

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