Tasmania’s Best Pinot Noir

Australia’s Best Alternative Sauvignon Blanc

Wines We Love

Wines We love

2022 Sven Joschke ‘La Eleanor’ Sangiovese

Langhorne Creek

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.

Wines We love

2021 Greenhill Wines Pinot Meunier Blanc de Noir Brut

Piccadilly Valley (Adelaide Hills)

Sparkling wines made only from pinot meunier are a relative rarity here in Australia – but this elegant, detailed, and delicious wine makes a compelling argument that they should be more common. Roll over, pinot noir – and tell chardonnay the news.

Wines We love

2025 Dune ‘Maspalomas’ Clarete

McLaren Vale

The Spanish tradition of making ‘clarete’ wines – red and white co-ferments that land somewhere between chilled reds, rosés, and skin-contact whites – has only recently come back from the brink of extinction. And Australia has already joined the party with this, our country’s first clarete – a quaffable, rose-scented delight of a wine that colours outside of the lines.

Wines We love

2024 Thistledown ‘Walking With Kings’ Roussanne / Grenache Blanc

McLaren Vale

What happens when you treat two ‘alternative’ varieties with the same amount of reverence other makers would reserve for the noble chardonnay? If you’re Thistledown’s Giles Cooke, you get a serious – and seriously delicious – textural white.

Wines We love

2024 Bloomfield Petit Verdot

Limestone Coast

How do you make a daggy grape variety like petit verdot interesting again? You hand some over to Bloomfield’s Lauren Hansen – who will turn it into a juicy, bouncy, vibrant delight of a chillable red wine via the magic of carbonic maceration – that’s how.

Wines We love

2024 Freeman ‘Altura Vineyard’ Furmint

Hilltops

The first and only Australian example of a dry wine made from the Hungarian variety furmint also happens to be an absolutely delicious drop. With its deft balance of nuance and detail against big flavours and palate presence, we can chalk this wine up as another win for Brian Freeman – one of Australia’s foremost experts in alternative varieties.

Wines We love

2024 Yangarra Field Blend

McLaren Vale

Fresh, vibrant and light, yet layered with intricate detail, this wine is a joyous and approachable example of the genius of the late Peter Fraser – a champion of not only grenache, but also of lesser-known climate-apt varieties.

Wines We love

2012 Seppelt ‘Show Sparkling’ Limited Release Shiraz

Grampians

An Australian classic, and an Australian Christmas Day classic wine, too. Dark fruits and spice are buoyed by the fizz, making for a luxurious, heady wine but one that boasts ample freshness.

Wines We love

2010 Charles Melton Wines ‘Grains of Paradise’ Shiraz

Barossa Valley

An aged example of top-end Barossa shiraz, this svelte beast of a wine proves that the region’s power can be harnessed in service to finesse – and that not every ‘cult’ producer makes stereotypically boozy, brash wines.

Wines We love

2025 Yangarra Piquepoul

McLaren Vale

The fourth release of this variety from the biodynamic Yangarra, the surprisingly savoury, salty depth of this wine shows how quickly they have mastered this recent arrival.

Wines We love

2024 Foreign Friends ‘Anna’ Gamay

Yarra Valley

Forget the overtly fruity, bubblegum-scented clichés of Beaujolais nouveau – when treated with respect, gamay is just as capable of greatness as any ‘noble’ variety. This wine is a serious – and seriously delicious – take on the grape: a dark-fruited, savoury, and smoky delight.

Wines We love

2024 Majama Inzolia

Murray Darling

This is a delicate and beguiling wine – light and crisp, yet subtly textural – made from the relatively obscure Sicilian variety inzolia. It showcases the magic that can happen when an emerging producer works with an exciting new variety – and after tasting this, you’ll want to get on board with both Majama and inzolia.

Wines We love

2020 ECK Wines ‘The Matilda’ Reserve Shiraz

Heathcote

What happens when you take a talented young winemaker and get them to tackle the very traditional place/variety combination of Heathcote shiraz? You get something like this – a joyously rich, dark-fruited and gently spicy shiraz that cleverly talks to Australian winemaking tradition while blazing its own trail.

Wines We love

2024 Brash Higgins ‘Ripple’

McLaren Vale

This is a decidedly smashable and crunchy light red, all vibrant fruit with a little spicy herbal edge – but there’s some seriously clever winemaking technique at work under the hood here.

Wines We love

2024 Ricca Terra ‘Una Vita’ Grenache Blanc

Riverland

How’s this for a bold statement? ‘Una Vita’ takes Ricca Terra’s dedication to the much-derided Riverland to the next level, with a fine-wine level of viticultural and winemaking detail – and a matching price point. And it delivers… Beeswaxy aromatics mingle with flavours of lemon barley, bread and butter.

Wines We love

2025 Scarborough ‘Offshoot’ Tempranillo Joven

Hunter Valley

Is this wine particularly ‘varietal’? Nope. Is this wine unfeasibly delicious? Hell yes. This juicy, easygoing tempranillo isn’t here to teach you about what tempranillo should taste like – but it has more than enough interest and character to keep you drinking after the first glass.

Wines We love

2022 Bellbrae Estate ‘Bird Rock’ Pinot Noir

Geelong

If you want to understand what wine-lovers mean when they talk of ‘terroir’, look no further than this wine, which has a mineral structure and searing elegance that demonstrates its origin on hard limestone soils close to the Southern Ocean.

Wines We love

NV The Other Wine Co. ‘Savagnin № 2’

Fleurieu

A heady riot of unusual flavours that demonstrates why a handful of wine-lovers adore savagnin that has been matured under a ‘veil’ of flor yeast.

Wines We love

2024 Entropy Cabernet Sauvignon

Gippsland

A supple, elegant example of cabernet sauvignon that showcases what this sometimes-maligned variety has to offer when grown in a cool climate and made in a lighter frame.

Wines We love

2021 Latta Vino ‘Quartz Bianco’ Sauvignon Blanc

Pyrenees

A textural, mineral-driven version of sauvignon blanc that shows how good this variety can get with a little bottle age.

Wines We love

2023 North by Etienne Mangier ‘Crémant Rosé’

Mount Macedon

A seriously sophisticated sparkling rosé that joins the ranks of top-notch Australian pink bubbles looking to challenge preconceptions about the category.

Wines We love

2023 The Vinden Headcase Chenin Blanc

Hunter Valley

This chenin blanc from the Hunter valley not only challenges preconceptions about what the Hunter can achieve – it also shows a new facet of chenin blanc as an endlessly fascinating variety.

Wines We love

2022 Stefano Lubiana ‘Chicane’ Merlot Malbec

Tasmania

Tasmania’s most lauded red wines may be its pinot noirs, but the first red wine grapes to be planted there in the modern era were Bordeaux varieties. This wine shows that there’s also plenty of joy to be found in Tasmania’s richer reds.

Wines We love

2024 Jean-Paul Trijsburg ‘Skinzy’ Viognier

Heathcote

Viognier can cop a bad rap amongst wine lovers for its heady aromatics, unctuous texture and lack of acidity. But this rendition made from Heathcote fruit shows what the variety is capable of doing when goosed up with a little bit of skin contact and lees.

Wines We love

2023 Yelland & Papps ‘Vin de Soif’

Barossa Valley

A Barossa red with a French name that drinks like a pinot noir? Mais oui. This bright, crunchy blend of three Mediterranean varieties is a dangerously drinkable departure from the Barossa norm.

Wines We love

2018 Marri Wood Park Sparkling Chenin Blanc

Margaret River

From this outstanding biodynamic vineyard in Margaret River comes a sparkling wine from an unusual variety, offering a striking contrast of intensely bright, fresh fruit and toasty brioche notes.

Wines We love

2023 Apogee ‘Alto’ Pinot Noir

Tasmania

Tasmanian wine industry legend Andrew Pirie flexes his muscles with this impressive pinot noir. Bright and supple, with a surprising amount of ripe fruit on the palate, this wine shows the potential of Burgundian savoir-faire applied to Tasmanian terroir.

Wines We love

2023 Lino Ramble ‘Dot to Dot’ Arinto

McLaren Vale

Portuguese native white grape variety arinto shines in this McLaren Vale rendition, which utilises clever winemaking to layer texture and interest.

Wines We love

2021 Sigurd Reserve Syrah

Barossa Valley

Modern Barossa is perhaps an abused term, but it couldn’t be more apt here. A wine of impeccable elegance and balance, but with weight and earthy, spicy intent.

Wines We love

2022 MDI Picolit

Murray Darling

Skin-contact picolit is no common thing in this country, but the results are stunning, with citrus, stone fruit and quince overlaid with spices.

Wines We love

2019 Vinea Marson ‘Grazia’

Alpine Valleys

Vinea Marson’s ‘Grazia’ is an ode to his family’s origins in Italy’s north-east. It’s a wine built on citrus, quince and spice notes, with as much consideration to texture as flavour.

Wines We love

2022 Leko Blanc

Adelaide Hills

The entry level white for Jono and Damon Koerner’s Leko range, this is a bellwether for the thoughtfully subtle detail felt throughout the wines, with gentle spice across orchard fruits, and a pithy grip providing moreish tension.

Wines We love

2022 Koerner ‘Le Korse’ Red Wine

Clare Valley

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

Wines We love

2022 Adelina Shiraz Mataro

Clare Valley

From the 2009 Young Gun of Wine Award winner, and the 2022 Vineyard of the Year Award winner, this is Col McBryde’s take on a classic blend, featuring vivid red fruits, dusty earthiness and dried laurel.

Wines We love

2022 Chalmers Falanghina

Heathcote

Falanghina has found a special place in the Chalmer’s family’s Heathcote vineyard, showing a new face to the southern Italian grape, revealing an exotically aromatic wine of intensity, drive and freshness.

Wines We love

2020 Yangarra ‘High Sands’ Grenache

McLaren Vale

The Yangarra flagship from deepest sandy soils and oldest vines, this is regal but rugged expression, red and dark fruits, earthy, mineral, utterly individual.

Wines We love

2023 Bondar Rosé

McLaren Vale

In any year, this is a sure candidate for Australia’s top rosé – for both quality and value – and the 2023 is stellar. Red fruits and watermelon are features, as is the typically textural play on the palate that is swiftly refreshed with perfectly balanced acidity.

Wines We love

2022 MMAD Vineyard Chenin Blanc

McLaren Vale

The second release from this new project on an old vineyard, and what a great release it is. Golden apples, citrus, fennel and a waxy savouriness lead to a palate that is textural and appealingly grippy.

Wines We love

2022 Yangarra Piquepoul

McLaren Vale

The first release of this variety from the biodynamic Yangarra, this has the appealing freshness of the variety paired with apple and citrus, but also an engaging mineral savouriness to up the interest.

Wines We love

2022 Bondar ‘Violet Hour’ Shiraz

McLaren Vale

This was the first cuvée under the Bondar banner, and it remains one of Australian wine’s great bargains. Floral, spicy, buoyantly fruitful, this is supple with both depth and appealing freshness.

Wines We love

2021 Seppelt ‘St Peters’ Shiraz

Grampians

This is winemaker Clare Dry’s first ‘St Peters’ Shiraz, and what a debut it is – perfumed, intense, spicy, silky and just so effortless with it.

Wines We love

2023 Werkstatt Riesling

Mount Gambier

This is thrilling stuff. Scented with lime, tart grapefruit and wet stone. A small amount of unfermented grape sugar is electrified by the acidity, gifting weight and texture while drying out through the considerably long finish.

Wines We love

2021 Sigurd Reserve Semillon

Barossa Valley

The suite of reserve wines is a welcome addition to the Sigurd portfolio, with this elevating a variety so infrequently celebrated in the Barossa. Mineral, spicy and laced with umami on a bed of citrus, this is textural, chewy and so engagingly savoury and complex.

Wines We love

2023 Werkstatt Petillant Naturel Riesling

Mount Gambier

The second release from Werkstatt sees a pét-nat join the roster, and what a vibrantly racy wine it is, rippling with citrus, apple and floral notes and driven by bracing acidity that is cushioned by pulpy texture.

Wines We love

2022 Moonlit Forest ‘Spring’

Mornington Peninsula

Flush with spice, orange peel and wild forest berries, there’s a suppleness here and texture that welcomes a chill.

Wines We love

2021 Sutton Grange Viognier

Bendigo

The distinctive play of apricot blossom is present, but it never spills into opulence, with citrus and sone fruits accenting. Built like a quality chardonnay, this is textural, vibrant and loaded with fine detail.

Wines We love

2021 Dune ‘Empty Quarter’

McLaren Vale

A blend of Vale hero varieties with a dash of climate-apt touriga, this melds wild berries, spice and earthy scents in a bright, midweight wine with fine but grippy tannins.

Wines We love

2022 Billy Button ‘The Honest’ Fiano

Alpine Valleys

Jo Marsh is helping to shed light on the Alpine Valleys and less-common varieties. Case in point is her 2022 fiano, which embraces the coolly fragrant side of the grape, with floral, apple and pear notes, and a pleasing grip closing out.

Wines We love

2021 Alkina Kin ‘Birdsong’ Shiraz

Barossa Valley

From the Barossa’s groundbreaking biodynamic Alkina vineyard, this is a stunningly mineral expression of shiraz (with a splash of mataro) from an ideally cool year.

Wines We love

2022 Ben Haines ‘Red’

Victoria

A melange of fruit from the Pyrenees, Grampians and Yarra Valley – spicy, crunchy and vibrant, this is a pitch perfect lighter red with savouriness and freshness in equal measure.

Wines We love

2022 Smallfry ‘Tangerine Dream’

Barossa Valley

‘Orange’ wine with a perfect balance between savoury tension, in both flavour and feel, with citrus peel and subdued blossom flecked with warm spices and earthy notes, a prudent amount of grip adding structure.

Wines We love

2022 Lenton Brae Pinot Blanc

Margaret River

Although fledgling in this country, this makes a strong case for planting more pinot blanc, with apple, pear and citrus notes on the nose and a palate that shows generosity, freshness and a charmingly chewy complexity.

Wines We love

2021 Coriole Sangiovese

McLaren Vale

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.

Wines We love

2022 Thistledown ‘The Vagabond’ Grenache

McLaren Vale

The devotion of Giles Cooke MW and Fergal Tynan MW to grenache is on display here with the full gamut of grenache flavours from wild red fruits and florals to an earthy growl of old vine fruit, with a natural tannic spine supporting.

Wines We love

2022 Lethbridge Gamay

Geelong

A classic expression of the grape, with forest berries, cherries and a flash of violets pitched in an elegant and poised frame, an undercurrent of ruggedly regional minerality making its presence felt.

Wines We love

2022 Smallfry ‘Starry Starry Night’ Cinsault

Barossa Valley

This is a cinsault to get people talking about cinsault. Pitched in a very of the moment midweight style, this sports a riot of red berries paired with spice and dusty minerality, a fine but engagingly sandy tannin cleaning up the finish.

Wines We love

2022 Italian Plastic ‘Blush Pinot Gris

Adelaide Hills

From the Alpha Box & Dice crew, this is a skinsy take on pinot gris that takes the coppery ‘ramato’ inspiration into deeply coloured and flavourful territory, with notes of pear, guava, peach and watermelon and a palate rolling into a gently grippy and textural zone.

Wines We love

2021 Cullen Wines ‘Amber’

Margaret River

From the certified biodynamic Cullen vineyard, this is Vanya Cullen’s foray into orange wine territory. A predictably amber hue, this has herbal and citrus notes, lemongrass and a savoury accent, with pithy grape-skin tannins giving characteristic grip.

Wines We love

2021 Giant Steps ‘Fatal Shore’ Pinot Noir

Tasmania

Giant Steps may be a Yarra Valley icon, but here it spreads its wings into the hallowed pinot noir territory of Tasmania, with an expression full of ripe wild berries and violets dusted with baking spices that front a palate of silky plushness and sneakily assertive tannins.

Wines We love

2021 Dilworth & Allain ‘Franklinford’ Pinot Gris

Macedon Ranges

This take on pinot gris employs judicious skin contact to pull out a blush of rosy colour while knitting in spice and blood orange over classic pear notes, texture and grip completing the picture.

Wines We love

2021 Allevare ‘Single Vineyard’ Chardonnay

Gippsland

A waxy, savoury expression of chardonnay with classic stone fruit, but the feel is Old World, with an appealing grip complementing the fine acidity.

Wines We love

2021 Seppelt ‘Drumborg’ Pinot Meunier

Henty

From one of Victoria’s great vineyard sites – a brace of red fruits are spiced with white pepper and cypress notes, with a supple, bright and fresh palate, equal parts silky and vibrant.

Wines We love

2021 Aphelion ‘Rapture’ Grenache

McLaren Vale

This is Aphelion’s pinnacle grenache – a wine made up of the best parcels in the best years, and the 2021 is at once vibrant and brooding, with notes of cherry, cranberry and rhubarb, layered in with wild herbs and earthy notes that channel through a finely pitched palate.

Wines We love

2015 Dappled ‘Ullaged’ Chardonnay

Yarra Valley

This homage to the flor-raised wines of the Jura ripples with savoury notes, from toasted grain and celery salt to characteristic nuttiness, while chardonnay has its say on the palate, with dried peach and apple.

Wines We love

2022 Nocturne Rosé

Margaret River

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

Wines We love

2021 Cullen Wines ‘Mangan East Block’

Margaret River

A dark tangle of ripe wild berries, dusky florals and spices are ferried on a palate that has the classic tannic growl of malbec, but with amply generous fruit in support.

Wines We love

2021 Entropy Wines ‘Willow Grove’ Pinot Noir

Gippsland

Vigneron Ryan Ponsford has made a big impact in short time. This pinot is a savoury splay of wild fruits dusted with spice and herbal notes, grapey tannins providing natural support.

Wines We love

2016 Mérite Malbec

Wrattonbully

A typical varietal tussle of dark fruit is given a good deal of complexity with spice and herbal notes, a ruggedly tannic grip asserting both variety and a pleasingly classic Australian feel.

Wines We love

2021 Giant Steps ‘Yarra Valley’ Chardonnay

Yarra Valley

White stone fruit is joined by subtle nutty and spicy notes, with a gently textured palate cushioning a line of vibrant acidity.

Wines We love

2021 Riot Wine Co. ‘Out of the Wood’ Chardonnay

Fleurieu

While a can of wine may seem like it’s a wine for the park, with all the bells and whistles of classic chardonnay making, this effort deserves taking a decent glass along for the ride.

Wines We love

2021 Ocean Eight Pinot Gris

Mornington Peninsula

A prettily fragrant nose of fresh pear, mandarin zest and floral notes, a gently pleasing texture and vibrant freshness sealing the deal.

Wines We love

2020 Riot Wine Co. ‘The OG’ Grenache

McLaren Vale

Riot Wines turn out a fresh set of quaffable canned wines in their regular series, but things get a little more serious with the Limited Release wines.

Wines We love

2019 Ocean Eight ‘Verve’ Chardonnay

Mornington Peninsula

The ‘Verve’ Chardonnay has garnered a bit of a cult following for its zippy charms. In the cool stone fruit and citrus zone, the 2019 turns the texture up a little notch.

Wines We love

2021 Giant Steps Pinot Noir

Yarra Valley

Giant Steps have become a true pinot noir star of the Yarra Valley, and their multi-site range is a bellwether for the quality of the vintage. In 2021, that snapshot is a truly exciting one.

Wines We love

2021 Entropy Wines Riesling

Gippsland

Stepping away from classic Australian riesling, time in oak gives texture to match the ripe fruit weight, but the citric core of the variety slices through in ideal balance, a saline, waxy quality adding depth.

Wines We love

2021 Somos Mencía

Adelaide Hills

This is a super-fragrant take on mencía, matching the classic floral profile with ample but well-knit spice across a splay of cherries, berries and sour plums.

Wines We love

2020 La Línea Mencía

Adelaide Hills

From the equal oldest producer of red wine from the grape in this country – this has classic varietal lift of red and blue florals, over succulent red and black fruits, with a palate of silky suppleness matched with crunchy freshness.

Wines We love

2021 Mandi Friulano

Mildura

Friulano is a variety that is well suited to skin contact – with this version offering a vibrant lift of ginger, herbs and orange peel notes, a gentle grip providing savoury refreshment.

Wines We love

2021 Site Wine Syrah

Benalla

A joyously bright and spicy wine stuffed full of forest berries, cherries and spices, with a bright midweight palate carrying plenty of stemmy grip.

Wines We love

2021 Varney Wines Mencía

McLaren Vale

Sprinkled with spice and florals, this is silky and textured, with cherry and plum flavours carrying through a long finish. Ample proof that the Spanish grape has a bright future in this country.

Wines We love

2021 Oliver’s Taranga Mencía

McLaren Vale

A vibrantly intense wine typical of the region, but with a varietal vibrancy of pristinely ripe cherries, overlaid with dusky florals and spice, the palate silky and compellingly slurpable.

Wines We love

2021 LS Merchants Chenin Blanc

Margaret River

Ample orchard fruits and citrus notes are accented with chalky minerality on the nose, with a textural, chewy and saline palate stretching long and detailed.

Wines We love

2020 Eden Hall Reserve Riesling

Eden Valley

A riot of citrus, apple and jasmine, the wine is marked by its powerful intensity allied with poise, and generous texture paired with laser-like acidity, the extremes working in perfect concord.

Wines We love

2020 Terra do Rio ‘Red Field Blend’

Riverland

From a vineyard that Ricca Terra’s Ashley Ratcliff planted to focus on heat-loving Iberian grapes in the Riverland. Awash with dark fruits, spices and tarry mineral notes, this still comes in at medium weight with ample freshness.

Wines We love

2020 Cullen ‘Mangan East Block’

Margaret River

Malbec and petit verdot conspire to give this wine a darkly fruited, spicy yet floral and lithe profile, packed with complex fruit flavours stretched over a savoury canvas.

Wines We love

2017 Bird on a Wire Syrah

Yarra Valley

This is a fragrant, spicy and complex wine, full of sour cherries and wild berries shot through with dry spices, a twiggy complexity and underpinned by a rugged minerality. Supple and lingering, this is benchmark cool climate syrah.

Wines We love

2020 Swinney Grenache

Frankland River

A complex array of sour red and black fruits are accented with rugged dry herbs and a rocky minerality, with Swinney’s signature assertive tannins tightening through the finish.

Wines We love

2021 Latta ‘Rouge Deluxe’ Syrah

Pyrenees

This is the first syrah that Owen Latta has made since 2015, and it’s stunning stuff. An incredibly complex and darkly seductive wine, with wild fruits accented by exotic spices and craggy minerals – midweight, chewy and speaking loudly of place.

Wines We love

2021 Giant Steps ‘LDR’ Pinot Noir Syrah

Yarra Valley

One of the finest pinot noir and shiraz blends we’ve seen. A lifted nose of wild forest berries and spices gives way to a palate of bright fruits, darker mineral notes and a feel that is equal parts savoury and vibrantly fresh.

Wines We love

2018 Cullen Wines ‘Grace Madeline’

Margaret River

A blend of sauvignon blanc and semillon from older vines. Cullen has given the fruit a bit of a luxury Bordeaux treatment with plenty of classy oak, but the vibrant lift of cut herbs and cassis leave the strongest impression, with a textual but brightly fresh palate following up.

Wines We love

2021 Latta ‘Bad Reputation’ Blanc

Pyrenees

Owen Latta’s take on viognier is a world away from the norm of exotically lifted wines, dripping in apricot floral. Instead, his is a wine of orchard fruits creeping to ripeness with pops of honeycomb and nuts, a slip of texture and a gently pithy palate to gnaw on.

Wines We love

2021 Swinney Riesling

Frankland River

A lemon-scented nose accented with white flowers and talc ushering in a linear and mineral palate of great precision but also gentle texture.

Wines We love

2020 Giant Steps ‘Ocarina’

Yarra Valley

A mélange of all the Giant Steps sites fermented in clay eggs, then sealed for maturation, this has all the Giant Steps chardonnay character and precision with a chalky mineral overlay that adds complexity to nose and palate.

Wines We love

2021 Latta ‘Presence’

Pyrenees

This early release wine from Owen Latta captures a fragrant but complexly spicy side to the grape, with amaro/vermouth seasoning the wild red fruits, while a meshing of cool tannins and zippy acidity gives this real pep.

Wines We love

2020 Hither & Yon Aglianico Rosé

McLaren Vale

Made from the great southern Italian grape Aglianico, this copper-coloured rosé is laced with wild red berries, tart apple and orange peel, finishing dry, savoury and moreish.

Wines We love

2021 Spinifex Rosé

Barossa

A riot of wild red berries accented with earthy complexity, this is at once bright, juicy and forward while having gently earthy mineral notes, textural across the palate but decidedly dry.

Wines We love

2020 Hither & Yon Petit Blanc

McLaren Vale

This has some classic floral and talc notes of the variety, but it’s uber-fresh and savoury, light-bodied, tangy and built for thirst-slaking refreshment.

Wines We love

Gralyn ‘Artizan’ Rare Muscat

Margaret River

A decadent glass of fortified, rippling with raisin, fig, date and coffee notes, this is rich and unctuous, but with the fortifying alcohol lifting the sweetness, leaving endless layers of flavour to linger on the palate.

Wines We love

2020 Lethbridge ‘Vero’ Tempranillo

Geelong

A departure from the rich styles of tempranillo so often made, this emphasises red fruits and white pepper spice on a midweight frame with grippy tannins and rugged regional mineral notes to close.

Wines We love

2020 Spinifex ‘Garçon’ Grenache

Barossa Valley

Sourced from three sites, with vines from 55 to 90 years old, Pete Schell crafts the fruit into a democratically priced everyday wine that over delivers in a major way. Crushed red berries and cherries, spices and florals leading to a palate shot through with rocky and earthy minerality, the balance impeccable.

Wines We love

2021 Rieslingfreak No.4 Riesling

Eden Valley

John Hughes’ mastery of the riesling grape has already been amply proven, but in the superb 2021 vintage that dial’s been turned up to new limits. This is an intense play of jasmine and lime, effusive but not overly exotic, with tension and effortless balance through a long finish underlining its pedigree.

Wines We love

2011 Ben Haines ‘Flowers’ Flor Marsanne

Yarra Valley

A decade in barrel, first under flor yeast, then on ullage (an oxidative environment), it’s fair to say this is a unique wine for this country. This bristles with briny Sherry notes, roasted nuts and linseed, an explosion of orange-skinned citrus and spice riding the uber-dry and saline palate.

Wines We love

2020 Spinifex ‘Esprit’

Barossa Valley

Built from mataro, grenache and cinsault, this illustrates what makes blends so compelling – each component pooling into the gaps left by the others, leaving a seamless whole, laced with ripe red fruits, spice and floral notes, the palate supple, with fine grip and natural freshness.

Wines We love

2015 Kangarilla Road ‘The Veil’

McLaren Vale

Savagnin under flor yeast, in the style of the wines from France’s Jura region. This vintage is a stunningly bright affair, layered with waxy, briny umami notes and shot through with citric freshness, whipcrack dry and moreish.

Wines We love

2020 Taschini Pinot Gris Graciano Sangiovese

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.

Wines We love

2018 Fighting Gully Road Petit Manseng

Beechworth

An expressive nose of dried mango and orchard fruits leads to a palate rich with sugar and intensity buoyed and lightened by vigorous acidity and a gentle grip.

Wines We love

2019 Cullen ‘Dancing in the Moonlight’ Rosé

Margaret River

This rosé is an expression of all the red varieties in the Cullen vineyard viewed through a deep pink lens. Fragrant, spicy and herbal, with a plump of richness cleaned up with a gentle grip working in concert with the acidity.

Wines We love

2019 JC’s Own ‘Angaston Foothills’ Grenache

Barossa Valley

From 150-year-old vines, this is fermented all as whole bunches, resulting in a wine laced with evocative spice, orange peel and floral notes to accent the darkly mineral fruit expression.

Wines We love

2021 Alkina Kin Semillon

Barossa Valley

Under Alkina’s exploratory Kin label, this is all old vine semillon, planted in the 1950s, with a whisper of skin contact bringing out some dried ginger and a pleasing drying pucker to the floral, lemon-scented fruit.

Wines We love

2021 Edenflo ‘Lemon Krush’

Eden Valley

With semillon taking the lead, the 2021 ‘Lemon Krush’ is an essay in citrus, from a lemon-scented fragrance to the refreshingly drying pucker of lemon barley water gifted by Wardlaw’s masterly hand with skin contact.

Wines We love

2020 Edenflo ‘Fresh Prince’

Eden Valley

The ‘Fresh Prince’ marshals a quartet of red varieties with decent crossover on a Venn diagram but are rarely all seen together, offering a fragrantly floral and spicy nose, with earthy notes, red and dark fruits and a palate of chewy, grapey tannins and fresh zip.

Wines We love

2019 Place of Changing Winds Marsanne

Heathcote

A textural, flavour-intense but light-footed wine, this is loaded with orchard fruits, smoky minerals and waxy notes.

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2019 La Violetta ‘Penury’ Pinot Noir

Manjimup

Earthy and mineral, bristling with spice, dried flowers and sour cherries, this is supple and savoury in equal measure – an utterly distinctive expression.

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2019 Swinney Syrah

Frankland River

A tangle of wild berries, spice and minerals are supported by assertive tannins that are a distinctive signature of the Swinney vineyard site.

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2020 Chalmers ‘Dott’ Ribolla Gialla

Heathcote

Picked ultra-fresh, this rendition of the great Friulian grape is alive with citrus, apple and herb flavours borne along an electric rail of acidity.

Wines We love

2019 The Other Wine Co Grenache

McLaren Vale

Red fruits matched with spicy, earthy complexity – easy to love, but with detail for those that care to look.

Wines We love

2019 Place of Changing Winds Syrah

Heathcote

This is bursting with spice and wild fruits, with an underlying signature of regional minerality.

Wines We love

2019 Yangarra ‘Roux Beauté’ Roussanne

McLaren Vale

Layers of citrus, spice and orchard fruit, overlaid with chalky, savoury accents.

Wines We love

2018 Chalmers ‘Dott.’ Schioppettino

Heathcote

A riot of spice, wild berries and floral notes on a slippery but taut midweight frame.

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2021 La Violetta ‘Patio’ Pét-Nat

Geographe

A joyous mix of muscat and riesling, full of pink grapefruit and rosewater with softly textured generosity matched with exuberant freshness.

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2019 Shaw + Smith ‘Lenswood’ Chardonnay

Adelaide Hills

An Adelaide Hills pioneer at the top of their game. Intense stone fruit, complex smoky barrel notes and minerals take the lead.

Wines We love

2019 Yangarra ‘Ovitelli’ Grenache

McLaren Vale

A great example of why grenache is so hot right now. Savoury, aromatic, refined and with a commanding web of tannin, this is compelling stuff.

Wines We love

2019 Bertrand Bespoke ‘Field Blend’

Bendigo

A field blend leaning on Rhône white varieties, this is all barrel fermented, then raised on lees to build texture and harmonise the varieties into a seamless whole of orchard fruits, granitic minerals and nutty winemaking notes.

Wines We love

2019 Yarra Yering ‘New Territories’

Yarra Valley

An exercise in spice and leathery savouriness, buoyed by plump red fruits, which are clutched firmly by assertive grapey tannins through the finish.

Wines We love

2019 Lino Ramble ‘Solitaire’ Grillo

McLaren Vale

One of very few wines made from grillo in the country, this is loaded with orchard fruits and a sea spray tang, with texture and bright freshness defining the palate.

Wines We love

2020 Koerner ‘Rolle’ Gullyview Vineyard Vermentino

Clare Valley

Subtle orchard fruits and dryly savoury. Light on its feet, with a fine, lightly textural and grippy feel.

Wines We love

Crittenden Estate ‘Macvin’ Savagnin NV

Mornington Peninsula

Sweet, but cut through with salted nut and smoky notes, and alcohol spirit lending it shape and line. Crittenden Estate’s take on the Macvin of France’s Jura region, with flor-aged savagnin combined with unfermented new-vintage juice, then fortified.

Wines We love

2016 Crittenden Estate ‘Cri de Coeur’ Savagnin

Mornington Peninsula

Matured under flor yeast, this is a Mornington Peninsula version of Vin Jaune, loaded with preserved lemon and nutty sherry-like notes, with explosive power and a dryly saline umami carry.

Wines We love

Nadeson Collis ‘Coda’ Sparkling NV

Henty

A unique sparkling wine drawn solely from a solera started in 2003 – think artisan Champagne, shot through with nutty sherry-like notes, but built on fruit intensity.

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2020 Maison Lapalus ‘Upwelling’ Mourvèdre

Heathcote

Light and bright, this is a pure riot of berries and grapey scents, with a fine freshness and gentle spritz – take it as it comes, or chill it down.

Wines We love

2020 Bertrand Bespoke ‘L’Ecume du Jour’

Heathcote

A red-fruited rosé pét-nat, bright and crunchy with a chalky, dry and ultra-refreshing palate.

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2018 Cobaw Ridge Chardonnay

Macedon Ranges

Flinty, white peach and lemon curd, gently textural – this has all the trappings of complex chardonnay, with generosity of flavour and winemaking detail perfectly poised and pitched.

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2018 Ocean Eight ‘Verve’ Chardonnay

Mornington Peninsula

This is laden with stone fruit and grapefruit notes, with textural flex on the palate that is straightened by trademark freshness.

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2020 Smallfry ‘Electrik Violet’

Barossa Valley

Juicy and dark, but floral and bright at the same time, this is red wine built for drinking not sipping.

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2019 Cullen ‘Amber’

Margaret River

Vanya Cullen’s ‘Supernatural’ journey into skin-contact whites continues, with the 2019 ‘Amber’ a spicy, fragrant and gently grippy expression of sauvignon blanc.

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2020 Brash Higgins ‘FRNC’

McLaren Vale

Supple and silky, this is a seductively delicious take on cabernet franc by Brad Hickey.

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2019 Arfion ‘Willowlake Vineyard’ Pinot Noir

Yarra Valley

From the Yarra Valley’s legendary Willowlake Vineyard, and the equally legendary Dave Mackintosh, this is a pinot noir of real detail and depth, but you can also ignore all that and just focus on its charming drinkability.

Wines We love

2020 Hither & Yon Carignan

McLaren Vale

Carignan usually gets lost in blends, but a wine like this makes you wonder why – packed with spice and dark-fruited flavour, this finishes ultra-fresh and racy.

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2019 Coriole Montepulciano

McLaren Vale

Lesser known Italian varieties are muscling into the limelight right now, and this wine captures why. Packed full of flavour, this has grip and race to keep things fresh – killer with spicy salami pizza.

Wines We love

2017 The Wine Farm Gewürztraminer

Gippsland

A flavour bomb of classic gewürz, with Turkish delight, talc and lychees, but with a dry zip to the palate that keeps it super fresh and vibrant.

Wines We love

2019 Arfion ‘Full Moon Vineyard’ Chardonnay

Yarra Valley

Perfectly pitched chardonnay from Dave Mackintosh, with flavour and elegance in equal measure.

Wines We love

2019 Giaconda ‘Amphora’ Roussanne

Beechworth

A ‘naturally’ styled skin-contact white from a Beechworth master better known for classic styles.

Wines We love

2018 Giaconda ‘Estate Vineyard’ Chardonnay

Beechworth

One of the greats in top form – complex, smoky and nutty, this is chardonnay on a grand and impressive scale.

Wines We love

2019 Dilworth & Allain ‘Cope-Williams Vineyard’ Chardonnay

Macedon Ranges

A savoury, textured and mineral chardonnay from 2020’s Young Gun of Wine.

Wines We love

2020 Brave New Wine ‘Gewurlitzer’

Great Southern

Cloudy, wildly aromatic and delightfully left-of-centre orange wine – just what you expect from Yoko and Andries Mostert.

Wines We love

2020 Dune ‘Bonaire’ Rosé

McLaren Vale

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.

Wines We love

2019 Cullen ‘Mangan East Block’

Margaret River

A Malbec-dominant red from the Mangan Vineyard, across the road from Cullen’s home site, this is brim full of spice and dark fruits with a refined finish – it makes a pretty compelling case for the grape.

Wines We love

2018 Grenache Wizardry Grenache

Heathcote

A new wine from a new endeavour led by De Bortoli’s ever-restless Steve Webber, this is an earthy, mineral grenache coloured by the ancient soils of Heathcote.

Wines We love

2019 Gatch Wine & Little Bang Brewing Co. ‘Nero Nouveau’

Riverland

Such a new Australian perspective on Sicily’s most important red grape. Light, vibrant, cherry scented and detailed, pitched to take a chill, or not – this is required drinking.

Deep Dive

Wines Of Now

Mornington Peninsula’s Best Pinot Noir

The Mornington Peninsula is one of Australia’s most glamorous locales – and the pinot noir it grows and makes is suitably seductive, boasting a combination of ripe fruit weight and fresh, elegant texture that few other wine regions globally can dream of. Inside: the full backstory, plus the top wines to emerge from our blind tasting panel.
Wines Of Now

Margaret River’s Best Cabernets

While shiraz rules the roost in most of Australia’s wine regions, cabernet sauvignon and its offsiders remain the kings of Margaret River’s reds – making distinctively delicious wines of surprising freshness. Inside: the full backstory, plus the top wines to emerge from our blind tasting panel.
Wines Of Now

Australia’s Best Nebbiolo

Confounding, contradictory, and utterly compelling – meet the variety that has found an unlikely second home in Australia’s cooler hills. Inside: the full backstory, plus the top wines to emerge from our blind tasting panel.
Wines Of Now

Australia’s Best Montepulciano

Montepulciano is a real workhorse of a variety, capable of producing large quantities of deeply-coloured grapes with strong tannins and vibrant acidity even in warm and sunny conditions. That workhorse character has seen it widely planted across Italy, where it has become the country’s second most widely planted red grape variety, often used to add colour and structure to blended wines. That role as a blending agent has seen the variety dismissed within Italy itself, although single-varietal examples from Abruzzo have started to change that narrative. Australia’s own history with the variety is a relatively brief one, but it is already making an impression here, with consumers falling for the charms of ‘monte’ and winegrowers looking to it as a climate-apt variety capable of withstanding the demands of a warming world. With so much to love about this generous, hearty variety, we thought it was time to take a Deep Dive …
Wines Of Now

Australia’s Best Cabernet Franc

Cabernet franc is the other cabernet. Until recently, it was largely marginalised in blends, its presence banished to the back label – if it was mentioned at all. But 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. Winemakers and consumers alike have started cottoning on to the merits of 100% cabernet franc wines, and an engaging variety of expressions – typically accessible, both in style and cost – is now appearing on restaurant wine lists. And while France and Italy currently have the lion’s share of the world’s plantings, Australia’s own examples can be as compelling as any other – just the kind of situation that calls for a Deep Dive …
Wines Of Now

Geelong’s Best Pinot Noir

Pinot noir’s roots in the Geelong region run deep, with the first vines going into the ground here in the 1840s. While a lot has changed since then – the region’s early boom was followed by Australian wine’s most dramatic and decisive bust –Geelong’s pinot noirs have nonetheless carved out a global reputation for excellence, with the most famous examples sought after by sommeliers the world over. With a small but dedicated band of winemakers and labels turning out fascinating wines – ranging from the earthy and muscular through to the perfumed and ethereal – and a wave of emerging talent on the scene, Geelong’s pinot noir scene feels poised on the verge of greatness. So why are these wines so rarely spotted on restaurant wine lists and retail shelves outside of Geelong itself? We took a Deep Dive to find out …
Wines Of Now

Geelong’s Best Chardonnay

Geelong is best known within Australia for its industrial heritage, its deep love of the AFL, and proximity to the Surf Coast, while international visitors flock to it as the gateway to the Great Ocean Road. But the area around the city also has a rich history as one of Australia’s most promising cool-climate wine regions, with a coterie of small-scale wineries and labels turning out compelling chardonnays that range from the elegant and saline to the concentrated and powerful. With a new generation of makers stepping in to give the region’s internationally revered icons a run for their money, there’s never been a better time to discover Geelong’s chardonnays – in fact, it’s just the kind of situation that warrants a Deep Dive …
Wines Of Now

Australia’s Best Pinot Meunier

Pinot meunier is closely related to pinot noir – in fact, it’s a botanically complicated mutation of pinot noir – but it hasn’t yet received the same plaudits. It was once the most widely planted grape variety in Champagne, yet until relatively recently all of the garlands there went to the glamour couple of chardonnay and pinot noir. And that traditional use in Champagne explains why a surprising amount of the variety was planted in Australia for sparkling wine production. But meunier has more to offer than simply being a blending component. A small but dedicated band of producers craft delicious still red wines from this unheralded grape variety – and as climate change wreaks havoc with finicky pinot noir, pinot meunier’s advantages in the vineyard are becoming ever clearer. Is it pinot meunier’s time to shine? We took another Deep Dive into this fascinating variety to find out.
Wines Of Now

Australia’s Best Nero d’Avola

The Sicilian red wine variety nero d’avola first landed in Australia relatively recently, with the first vines being planted in 2001. In the two and a half decades since, it has grown from a curio planted by adventurous growers to a fixture in the minds of growers, makers, and drinkers alike, with the number of plantings and bottled expressions expanding exponentially. And not without reason – it thrives in the kind of hot conditions that can turn shiraz into raisins, uses about half the water of other grape varieties, and hangs on to its acidity well as it ripens. It also happens to make exceptionally approachable juicy, fresh, and fruit-forward wines – perfect for Australian drinking culture. The nero d’avola train shows no sign of slowing down any time soon – so we thought it was time to once again take a Deep Dive.
Wines Of Now

Australia’s Best Tempranillo

Tempranillo is unarguably Spain’s most recognisable variety, forming the bedrock of its most famous red wines. It’s also a variety that has seen recently seen explosive global growth, with more hectares of tempranillo vines planted since 2000 than any other variety, and by a big margin. In Australia, it has made a meaningful mark – and with plantings increasing and a host of new producers working with the variety, there’s a palpable sense that it’s poised to become our next mainstream red wine variety. But what does, or should, Australian tempranillo taste like? And is it as well suited to Australia’s climatic conditions as we’d like to think? Two years after our last Deep Dive on the topic, we thought it was an apt time to come to grips with how this Spanish icon is faring in Australian soil …

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Wines Of Now

A Tale of Two Pinots

Over the past three decades, the Aylward family has been perfecting their craft of growing pinot noir across two vineyard sites in the region. We catch up with Ocean Eight winemaker Mike Aylward to discuss this notoriously finicky grape and the artistry of making wines that capture a true sense of place.
Wines Of Now

Putting Mourvèdre on the Map

Swinney vineyard’s investment in bush vine mourvèdre has proven revelatory. Often relegated to a role player in blended wines, we caught up with winemaker Rob Mann to get an insight into making single varietal mourvèdre.
Wines Of Now

Pinot Noir – 2024 YGOW Awards Feature

There is no doubt that pinot noir has not only firmly entrenched itself in the Australian wine drinking psyche, but it is also starting to build distinct regional and sub-regional identities guided by the hands of confident makers, such as the the 2024 YGOW Awards Top 50, which features Marco Lubiana, Aunt Alice, Jean Bouteille, Tillie J, Musical Folk, Mac Forbes, Port Phillip Estate, J & S Fielke, Musical Folk, Port Phillip Estate, Portsea Estate, XO Wine Co., Turon, Scanlon and Utzinger Wines.
Wines Of Now

Shiraz or Syrah – 2024 YGOW Awards Feature

Shiraz or syrah? Call it what you will, the grape is our most planted and arguably our most emblematic, both locally and on the world stage. The shiraz landscape has become very nuanced, with huge variances in light and shade due to region, site, vintage and the sensibilities of makers. Winemakers in the 2024 YGOW Awards Top 50 demonstrate the gentler shades of shiraz through wines from Agricola, Cape Jaffa Wines, Little Frances, Juliard, Honky Chateau, Guthrie, Alkimi and Mise En Place.
Wines Of Now

Riesling – 2024 YGOW Awards Feature

Traditionally, Australian riesling was known for its sharp citrus profile, and tooth-aching acidity. But today the grape is being expressed in a myriad of new ways under the care of both seasoned and new winemakers. Winemakers in the 2024 YGOW Awards Top 50 include Worlds Apart Wines, Werkstatt, Kenny Wine, Mountadam Vineyards, Chalari, Mac Forbes Wines and Meredith. Wines from these producers are a signal to Australia’s modern riesling renaissance, bringing exciting takes on a classic variety, where a sense of ‘texture’ from riesling in the glass is perhaps the new common theme.
Wines Of Now

Italian Varietals – 2024 YGOW Awards Feature

Only in the past two decade or two have Italian grape varieties been especially embraced in Australia. Today, grapes such as sangiovese, nebbiolo, dolcetto, nero d’avola and vermentino – and the list goes on – are increasingly thriving on our shores, mostly in warmer climates, meeting modern drinking preferences where a sense of ‘freshness’ in wine is key. Winemakers in the 2024 YGOW Awards Top 50 underscore this emergence, through wines from Alpha Box and Dice, Wangolina, Kenny Wine, Chalari, Intrepidus, Aristotelis Ke Anthoula, M&J Becker, Fervor, Alessandro Stefani, and Patch Wines.
Wines Of Now

Chardonnay – 2024 YGOW Awards Feature

The 2024 YGOW Awards Top 50 features Alkimi Wines, Allevare, Aunt Alice, GUM, Guthrie Wines, J & S Fielke, Little Frances, M&J Becker Wines, Marco Lubiana, Mountadam Vineyards, Musical Folk, Parley Wine, Port Phillip Estate, Portsea Estate, Sabi Wabi and Utzinger Wines. These chardonnay makers are as intent on flavour as they are elegance, with no single recipe for success, but rather a site-specific approach that is seeing the chardonnay landscape becoming an increasingly exciting one.
Wines Of Now

Cracking the Nebbiolo Code – Six Wines of Luke Lambert

Luke Lambert is Australia’s most devoted disciple of the nebbiolo grape. His fervent passion led him to travel across Europe, exploring food and wine before returning home to refine his craft with a singular ambition: to create the best nebbiolo in Australia. Not that this modest winemaker would state things in such terms. Starting in Heathcote and later moving to the Yarra Valley, Lambert has in recent years planted his own vineyard Yea, just north of the Yarra Valley. We delved into his experience with the nebbiolo and explored a vertical tasting of his vintages from the Denton View Hill vineyard, gaining insights into the complexities of this variety that loves cooler climates. We discover that with bottle age, it has in fact been the warmer Yarra Valley vintages from the Denton site that are looking best – at this moment.
Wines Of Now

Grapes Worth Getting to Know

Today’s Australian wine drinker is getting used to experimenting beyond the familiar. We are increasingly acquainted with more and more grapes that would have been a mystery to most only a few years ago. Nick Dugmore (Stoke), Turon White (Turon Wines), Lauren Langfield (Orbis), Keira O’Brian (Rivulet), Kim Tyrer (Galafrey), Jack Weedon (Rollick), Greg Clack and Kate Horstmann (XO Wine Co.) are all championing the less familiar.
Wines Of Now

Out of The Shadows

Today, cutting-edge makers are embracing varieties that have been blended away, ignored or been seen as too traditional. Some of these have been given new wings a little while back and are now firmly making their mark, while others are slowly emerging from the shadows. Tony Zafirakos (Aristotelis Ke Anthoula), Steffi Snook (Yayoi), Emily Kinsman (ECK Wines), Aaron Mercer (Mercer Wines), Marcus Radny (Gonzo Vino), Justin Folloso (Cave Wines), Tom Daniel (Chouette) and Rowly Milhinch (Scion) are all finding new expressions from well-established varieties.

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