Ray Beckwith, considered to be one of the founding fathers of Australian winemaking, died peacefully in the Barossa Valley on November 7 2012, aged 100. Beckwith will be remembered for his 1930s discovery of how to stabilise wine and protect it from spoilage, laying the foundations for modern winemaking. His work at Penfolds from 1935 […]
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From the coolest depths of Tasmania and upper reaches of the Adelaide Hills, to the alpine foothills of Victoria and New South Wales, Australia is privileged to a wealth of sources of refined sparkling wines. The secret to all great sparkling wine is the elegance and acidity infused by a cool climate. In a country […]
readTo buy or not to buy parallel imported champagne? It’s hard to go past the tantalising discounts offered on familiar champagne brands in recent years. A strong dollar and record Australian consumption coinciding with global decline have smoothed the waters for more champagne than ever to arrive on our shores – and not all via […]
readIs the wine cask dead? The days of the goon bag may be numbered. Domestic sales of Australian casks are plummeting by six percent every year. Of the seven leading cask manufacturers I invited to be part of this feature, more than half responded that their priority is “premiumisation” so they’ve scratched casks completely. It […]
readAny attempt to establish a rigorous, internally regulated system of endorsement of best practice is invariably a convoluted process for any wine region. Satisfying a diverse collection of stakeholders and agendas is always a delicate political process. Marlborough made a concerted attempt at setting up its own Wine Assurance Mark a few years ago, but […]
readAn unlikely bunch of young winemakers is redefining the cutting edge of Australian wine. It’s not as you’d expect. No new wine release was more controversial than the inaugural release of Thousand Candles Yarra Valley last year. Not only because a $100 wine appeared out of nowhere, but because young gun pinot noir specialist William […]
readThis week Woolworths announced profit rises of 24% off the back of its growing supermarket, liquor store and fuel empire. Estimates suggest that Dan Murphys and BWS stores now sell something approaching 50% of packaged wine in Australia. Yesterday I was privileged to an insight into Woolworths liquor during a day tasting a selection of […]
readWe are proud to announce The Sixth Great New Zealand Pinot Noir Classification to highlight the importance of New Zealand’s finest pinots. The Great New Zealand Pinot Noir Classification 2013 New in 2013 In 2013, The Great New Zealand Pinot Noir Classification highlights 120 estates, representing the top quarter of New Zealand’s 484 pinot noir […]
readIt is difficult to overstate the significance of the 2010 vintage in the flow of the grand history of Penfolds. Late last year I was privileged to a very rare sneak preview of this vintage at Penfolds’ Rewards of Patience tastings. In assessing almost every vintage of its top red wines spanning seven decades, one […]
readAfter more than 1200 wines and two years, the 100th edition of Wine Taste Weekly represents an opportune time to honour those estates that have performed at the very highest level. Announcing the inaugural Wine Taste Weekly Hall of Honour.
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