I’ve been enjoying this wine over the last few evenings. It’s a superb expression of a very fine year in the Douro, the 2015 from Quinta da Romaneira. I have…
Moët et Chandon Grand Vintage 2009 and Grand Vintage Rosé 2009
Tasted the latest vintage releases from Moët, the 2009s. This was a season that starred badly, with lots of rain. But this all cleared by mid-July, and the rest of…
On wine prices: the’ve risen a lot, but this isn’t all bad
The wine world is a lot more interesting now than when I first started drinking wine in earnest back in the mid-1990s. At the same time, the prices for fine…
English Sparkling Wine 2017: my new report
Today I launch my English Sparkling Wine Report 2017. There’s been a lot of interest in the progress of English sparkling wine over recent years, and I have been busy…
Celebrating the Gourmet Traveller Wine Winemaker of the Year awards in Adelaide
Twenty years ago, Clare Valley Riesling genius Jeffrey Grosset was the first recipient of the Gourmet Traveller Wine Winemaker of the Year award. That was back in 1998. And on…
Visiting Wirra Wirra, McLaren Vale
Wirra Wirra is one of those wineries that we sometimes take for granted. They’ve been there for (seemingly) ever, making good wines in reasonable quantities, but don’t often get the…
D’Arenberg, with Chester and his Cube
On Wednesday I visited D’Arenberg, an important producer in Australia’s McLaren Vale region. I remember when I was first getting into wine in the mid-1990s and being seduced by the…
Koomilya, the ‘new Wendouree’
Komilya is the exciting new vineyard-based project from one of the McLaren Vale’s stars, SC Pannell. I don’t like to hype wines, but this is one of the most exciting discoveries…
A day in Adelaide: Big Table, Lady Burra, Shobosho, Pink Moon
It’s nice to be back in Adelaide. I spent a few days here last July, and it’s a very liveable place, a little scruffy around the edges, but a great…