Hardys Bastard Hill Yarra Valley Chardonnay 2013 Bastard Hill vineyard, Yarra Valley, Victoria $60 Formerly released under parent company Accolade Wines’ Yarra Burn label, this gorgeous chardonnay comes from a single block of the very cool Bastard Hill vineyard. “At something like 32 degrees it’s a hard hill to work on”, says winemaker Paul Lapsley … Continue reading Wine review – Hardys, Domain Day, Eden Road, Stella Bella, Moppity Vineyards, West Cape Howe →

Tellurian Viognier 2014 Eastern Mount Camel Ranges, Heathcote, Victoria $27 Tellurian Viognier 2014 topped the “other whites varietals and blends” section in February’s Winewise Championship. The Canberra-based championship rates gold-medallists from other Australian wine shows – a sort of best-of-best taste-off, judged in small groups of no more than seven wines. Tullurian topped the viognier … Continue reading Wine review – Tellurian, Josef Chromy, Stockman’s Ridge, Redbank, Saltram, Tim Adams →

Jim Barry The Lodge Hill Clare Valley Riesling 2015 $20.89–$22 Clare Valley rieslings are in general notably rounder and softer than those from the Canberra region. But Clare’s style spectrum includes leaner, more acidic styles from cooler parts of the valley. This can be seen especially in wines where the winemaker chooses to ferment the … Continue reading Wine review – Jim Barry, Tyrrell’s, Yalumba →

Twelve Signs Hilltops Chardonnay 2014 $10–$14 Enjoy it while you can. Moppity vineyards recently grafted its old chardonnay vines over to the Spanish red variety, tempranillo, with instant success. Owner Jason Brown now relies on his Coppabella vineyard, Tumbarumba, for chardonnay. The higher, cooler region simply suits the variety much better. While the days of … Continue reading Wine review – Twelve Signs, De Bortoli, Tscharke →

Tyrrell’s Lost Block Heathcote Shiraz 2013 $18 Tyrrell’s Lost Block range presents Australian regional specialties in a drink-now style. This could be a hard ask for Heathcote shiraz as the wines tend to mouth puckering in the tannin department. The winemakers soften this one with a small addition of the white variety, viognier – which … Continue reading Wine review – Tyrrell’s, De Bortoli, Domaine Chandon →

Coldstream Hills Reserve Chardonnay 2014 Yarra Valley, Victoria $52.25–$60 Gold medal winner, National Wine Show of Australia. Coldstream Reserve impressed at the National Wine Show. A few days later, in a line up of Coldstream Hills chardonnays dating back to the 1988 vintage, the 2014 Reserve stood out for the volume of aroma and powerful … Continue reading Wine review – gold medal and trophy winners from Australia’s National Wine Show →

Riesling and shiraz remain Canberra’s trump cards by a country mile, so they feature prominently in my 2015 selections. While each comes in a regional style, the wines selected represent various hues along that style spectrum. When we extend our search to neighbouring regions along the Great Divide, the palate of mainstream varieties opens considerably. … Continue reading Top 20 Canberra and region wines of 2015 →

Sancerre (Domaine des Grosses Pierres) 2013 $19–$28 This delightful unoaked French sauvignon blanc showed up in a masked tasting alongside oak-fermented 10X Mornington Peninsula Sauvignon Blanc 2014 ($28). They’re both comparatively delicate sauvignons, though poles apart in style. The 10X wine showed varietal tang and herbaceousness, overlaid with the rich texture and charry aroma derived … Continue reading Wine review – Domaine des Grosses Pierres, Mr Mick, Richmond Grove →