decanted

The Cullen winery is one of Australia’s most famous, its flagship Chardonnay and Cabernet Merlot wines playing a stellar role in cementing the Margaret River as arguably Australia’s premier region for those varieties. Now in the hands of the late founders Dr John and Diana Cullen’s daughter, Vanya, the winery is also Australia’s prominent bio-dynamic […]

Another superb value offering from De Bortoli who deserve every accolade that has travelled their way. I’ve previously written about two of the De Bortoli Estate grown wines, and the Gulf Station range also sources fruit from the Estate’s vineyard, as well as other low yielding Yarra Valley vines.
This is a refreshing cool-climate Chardy, with […]

Blends are in, and then they’re not. This makes it mightily hard for our producers to know just how many cases of their pet amalgams to make year in and year out. Often the perception amongst the wine public is that a mix of two or more grape varieties is the stuff of […]

Once upon a time, in a land far away, I was a hardy wee soul who survived the brutalities dished out by the Scottish winter, year in, year out, with not much more than a “Hoots ma hauns are a wee bit foonert”. Having now had a few years to acclimatise to Australia’s warmer climes, […]

Jim Irvine is the grandaddy of Merlot wines in Australia, with a portfolio of wines (including a sparkling,)made wholly from, or dominated by, the most unfashionable of red grape varieties. His flagship Grand Merlot, made only in the best years, sells for around the $100 mark and receives much critical acclaim. Myself? Having tried […]

If you polled a cross-section of Pinot Noir lovers on the question of who is Australia’s top Pinot Noir maker, it is highly likely that Bannockburn Vineyards of Geelong, and Bass Phillip of Gippsland, both in Victoria, would feature at the top, or damned near it, of the voting. If any further affirmation were […]

The philistine that I was, I used to believe that Champagne, or expensive sparkling wine, was the most overrated of drinks. A lot of money for little pleasure. That opinion has changed, and these days I love the titillation that only top quality fizz can induce. Looking back on those early days, I think […]

It lasted less than a week. My will-power that is. I had made the bold statement to HT that I would not buy anymore wine until the stocks at home had diminished considerably. But then yesterday I get chatting in the shop to a gentlemen about the stunning quality and value of De Bortoli’s […]

Alrighty then. Following popular demand (from at least two people), today sees the launch of a new feature for Decanted. Each month I’ll publish a list of “must-buy” wines, red, white and sparkling, the idea being that you can print the list, take it down to your local bottlo, and buy wines that I […]