This is pretty special. It’s a biodynamic red from Western Australia that weighs in at just 12.5% alcohol, but has no lack of flavour at all. There’s currently a bit…
Impressive new wines from Tasmania’s Tolpuddle Vineyard
Very excited to be able to try these two new wines. They are a Pinot Noir and a Chardonnay from Tasmania’s Tolpuddle vineyard, and represent the first vintage to be…
Two super Australian Chardonnays: Oakridge and Yalumba
Australian Chardonnay is probably the wine style that has changed most in the last decade. The best examples are totally brilliant, and while I still have a nostalgic fondness for…
Video: time to taste some Riesling
So, here I taste, on camera, two different Rieslings. One from Australia’s Eden Valley; one from Alsace. I like them both.
Shobbrook Giallo, a remarkable Sauvignon from Australia
This is an unbelievably good wine. I love it. It’s Tom Shobbrook’s Giallo. A Sauvignon Blanc, but made naturally, with some skin contact. And fabulously packaged, too. ‘The Sauvignon is…
De Bortoli Shiraz Viognier 2004, the benefits of cellaring
There’s something to be said for buying a few bottles of the same wine, then cellaring them, and revisiting them at intervals. It’s tremendously rewarding if the wine ages well. This…
Oakridge Lusatia Park Chardonnay 2011
I love this wine. It typifies what is happening with high-end Aussie Chardonnay at the moment – the embrace of elegance and freshness over weight and richness – picking earlier…
Three lovely wines: Burgundy, Martinborough and Tasmania
It was a beautiful pre-spring day today in London. I was doing some staff wine training for Hakkasan, the brilliant Chinese-inspired restaurant chain with two London outposts. The first session…
Shaw & Smith Shiraz 2010
Met with Michael Hill-Smith today at the shiny new Liberty Wine offices in Clapham, to taste the latest releases of Shaw & Smith. For me, this is one of Australia’s…