It’s that time of the year when I receive a stream of requests for recommendations for the best wines to buy for Christmas and New Year. Here it is, my list of the top 25 buys precisely a month before Christmas. There’s something here for everyone, from $13 rosé to $70 shiraz – and, of course, […]
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Australian champagne consumption is buoyant, but take a closer look at what we’re drinking and you might get a surprise. We love champagne, but we’re not nearly as adventurous in our tastes as most other champagne markets around the world. Recent patterns of Australian champagne drinking reveal some disturbing trends, and considerable potential for tastes […]
readPenfolds’ longstanding tradition of March “Bin Series” and May “Icon and Luxury Collection” releases has been rolled into a single October 16 launch of “The Penfolds Collection”. It certainly seems prudent to move the date well away from South Australian vintage, not least for Peter Gago’s preservation, and we won’t miss the “Icon and Luxury” […]
readWe are proud to announce The Seventh Great New Zealand Pinot Noir Classification to highlight the importance of New Zealand’s finest pinots.
readIn the glow of the superlative 2010 season, my high praise for last year’s Penfold’s release (
readWe’ve all been there, staring blankly at a wine list in a far-flung place that we can neither pronounce nor understand. What to order? Fear not, there are some simple principles to ensure you won’t be left sipping a dud. Nothing beats the thrill of exploring local cuisine in an obscure hamlet, and some of […]
readTyson Stelzer presents the sparkling wines for winter celebrations. A midsummer afternoon on the hillside of the grand cru vineyard amphitheatre of Oger in the heart of Champagne’s Côte des Blancs in northern France. The sky growled as dark storm clouds assembled above the treetops. I dashed to my car, clutching my camera, the howling […]
readIs there such a thing as a bloke’s wine and a ladies’ wine, asks Tyson Stelzer. I recently did something I never expected to do. I bought myself a women’s deodorant. Before you jump to conclusions, let me explain. My favourite men’s deodorant was discontinued and I was quickly becoming disenchanted auditioning replacements in the […]
readAustralia’s great white is back, says Tyson Stelzer. What would you name Australia’s best varietal wine at the moment? The buzz among wine judges this year might come as a surprise. Chardonnay. Australia’s great white grape has had a tumultous journey since its humble beginnings in this country just forty years ago. Between the mid-80s […]
readAustralia’s fortified wine capital is reinventing itself. When the door of the old barrel shed at Chambers Rosewood winery is thrown open, visitors are greeted by a breath of warm air of intoxicating aroma, rich, sweet and generously inviting. Inside the humble, dusty space within, scores of giant, ancient barrels aligned in haphazard rows emanate […]
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