Lark Hill Chardonnay 2010 $35 Lark Hill vineyard, Lake George Escarpment, Canberra District, NSW The 2010 vintage produced a particularly fine, appealing and potentially long-lived chardonnay from Lark Hill, Canberra’s highest and coolest vineyard. High natural acidity and intense nectarine-like varietal flavour underpin the wine, which also bears the funky thumbprint of a wild yeast … Continue reading Wine review — Lark Hill, Marquis de Riscal Rioja, Chapel Hill, Down to Earth and Peppertree →

Shelmerdine Heathcote Shiraz 2009 $23.75–$33 Shelmerdine Vineyard, Heathcote, Victoria The Shelmerdine family established Mitchelton, just across the Goulburn River from historic Tahbilk. They moved on from there decades back and later established vineyards in the Yarra Valley and Heathcote, one of Australia’s new hot spots for shiraz. This wine comes from the family’s Merindoc and … Continue reading Wine review — Shelmerdine, John Duval, Helm, Thorn Clarke, Ross Hill and Smith and Hooper →

Turkey Flat Mourvedre 2010 $32 Turkey Flat vineyard, Barossa Valley, South Australia In 1847 Johann Fiedler planted shiraz on the southern slopes of Tanunda Creek. In 1865, the Schultz family bought the site and 125 years later, fourth generation Peter Schultz and wife Christie became winemakers as well as grape growers. Today they grow, make … Continue reading Wine review — Turkey Flat, Helm, Peppertree, Kooyong Estate and Chapel Hill →

Ben Haines Warramunda Vineyard Yarra Valley Marsanne 2011 $28 Ben Haines, a young Australian winemaker with international experience – and most recently at Mitchelton and Yering Station wineries, Victoria  – recently launched his own brand. And wow, what wines they are, sourced from Haines’ favoured vineyard sites. His marsanne, from the Warramunda vineyard in the … Continue reading Wine review — Ben Haines, Oxford Landing Estates and Taylors →

Turkey Flat Mourvedre 2010 $32 Turkey Flat vineyard, Barossa Valley, South Australia In 1847 Johann Fiedler planted shiraz on the southern slopes of Tanunda Creek. In 1865, the Schultz family bought the site and 125 years later, fourth generation Peter Schultz and wife Christie became winemakers as well as grape growers. Today they grow, make … Continue reading Wine review — Turkey Flat, Helm, Peppertree, Kooyong Estate and Chapel Hill →

Innocent Bystander Yarra Valley Pinot Gris 2011 $20 Innocent Bystander Yarra Valley Chardonnay 2011 $25 Winemaker Steve Flamsteed writes, “2011 was a cool, wet and challenging year. White varieties revelled in the cool conditions and those growers who avoided late season moulds by careful vineyard work, produced some of the best fruit we have seen … Continue reading Wine review — Innocent Bystander, Voyager Estate and Yalumba →

Mount Trio Great Southern Riesling 2010 $19 Gavin and Gill Graham own vineyards at Porongurup, a small, elevated sub-region of Western Australia’s large Great Southern area. The area excels with riesling and shiraz, but you’ll find all the usual Australian varieties as you drive around. Mount Trio offers a pretty good example of the local … Continue reading Wine review — Mount Trio, Smith & Hooper and Cumulus →

Gallagher Riesling 2011 $18 Four Winds Vineyard, Murrumbateman, Canberra District, New South Wales If wine show results are any guide, then Four Winds vineyards grows some of Canberra’s best riesling. At last year’s regional show, both gold medallists in the 2011 vintage class came from Four Winds – one under their own label (reviewed here … Continue reading Wine review — Gallagher, Rochford, d’Arenberg, Terra Felix and Smith and Hooper →

Coriole Sangiovese 2010 $19–$25 McLaren Vale, South Australia Mark Lloyd established sangiovese at Coriole in 1985. Over the years the style evolved as Lloyd learned how to manage this native Italian variety. It now appears very comfortable in its skin – a medium bodied red with a core of sweet fruit pulsing under the variety’s … Continue reading Wine review – Coriole, Howard Park, Tapanappa, Domaine A and Yalumba →