decanted

Even in the current climate of wine gluts and discounted prices, there are not many wine producers in Australia who offer the breadth of value that De Bortoli does. Sacred Hill at $5 a bottle, Windy Peak at $10, and Gulf Station at $15 - De Bortoli has a portfolio containing wines that […]

Until fairly recently, Australian Chardonnay was about as popular as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at a bar mitzvah. Mass produced, over-oaked Chardonnay gave the grape a reputation as flabby and one-dimensional, and white wine drinkers looked to fresher wines, such as Sauvignon Blanc, to get their kicks.
Times they are a changing, or rather, have changed. Although […]

Excitement aplenty on receiving an invitation to Becasse to dine with the Meerea Park wines from the Hunter Valley. More because of the venue (Sydney Morning Herald restaurant of the year in 2006 and top of my list of places to go for a while) than the prospect of the wines, although I had been […]

I bought this after a bad day at the office a couple of days before Christmas - too much general public had me gasping for air. And with H not home, I was keen to get stuck into a riesling, a varietal that she is not fond of. I love my Aussie Rieslings, particularly […]

I like Mr James Halliday. Not only is he a legend of the Australian wine scene, he was a one-time partner at my former employers, so we have a lot in common. Although i was a sh*t-kicker not a partner. But we’re close. And I respect his opinon immensely. So when […]

A couple of weeks ago I went to the “Gourmet Traveller in association with Wolf Blass” dinner at Lucio’s. I was on a work table and H scored an invite too. Lucio is a dear old sock - his restaurant is a Sydney institution, having been on the go for 23 years and is […]

Wine snobbery is the most curious thing. Here is a case in point. I have a fantastic husband and wife pair of customers, who’ll ask me to recommend them some “quaffing” Chardonnays. For them that can mean anything in the $20 to $40 bracket. Lets call them Peter and Penelope. They love a (relative) bargain. […]

I’m an unabashed fan of all of Paringa Estate’s wines, and the 2004 Estate Chardy is no exception. I’m also told by a reliable source that it is the only wine Mr McCall makes which has made him giggle. The wine is an incredible, lively green-yellow colour in the glass, with aromas of peach, […]

A self-confessed Riesling libertine, I reckon I buy this variety at least twice as much as other white varieties, at least to cellar. I’m not entirely sure how I came to love Rieslings, but it is quite possible that the abundance of premium Australian gear at under $20 got me started, and now I’m hooked. […]