Category Archives: Wine Musings

Both Sides, Now

“The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposing ideas in the mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.” - F. Scott Fitzgerald It’s 4.30pm on a Friday and I’m tasting the … Continue reading

Posted in Articles, McLaren Vale, Shiraz, Syrah, Wine Musings | Tagged , | 13 Comments

Is Orange the New Black?

“Other people aren’t the scariest part of prison…it’s coming face to face with who you really are. Because once you’re behind these walls, there’s nowhere to run, even if you could run. The truth catches up with you in here…and … Continue reading

Posted in Articles, Cabernet et al, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer, Merlot, Merlot et al, Orange, Pinot Noir, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Shiraz, Sparkling, Wine Musings | Tagged , | 5 Comments

2013 Handcrafted by Geoff Hardy Fiano

Fiano from the Adelaide Hills by Geoff Hardy. Fruity little number. I’m not convinced that it plays to the grape’s strengths. Of course Andrew Jefford believes “we’d be wiser wine lovers” if “we were to regard place and the cultural traditions … Continue reading

Posted in Adelaide Hills, Fiano, Wine Musings | Tagged | 7 Comments

The South’s Gonna Do it Again and Again: 2011 Abbotts & Delaunay Releases

“So gather ’round, gather ’round chillun’ Get down, well just get down chillun’ Get loud, well you can be loud and be proud Well you can be proud, hear now Be proud you’re a rebel ‘Cause the South’s gonna do … Continue reading

Posted in Articles, Carignan, Carignan et al, France, Grenache et al, languedoc-roussillon, Mourvèdre/Mataró et al, Shiraz et al, Syrah et al, Wine Musings | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Eight days of 2011 Thousand Candles at Lunch

The controversy has passed, the word ‘ethereal’ has been liberally used and opinions have already been formed – often without even tasting the wine. It’s time to get on with things. What better way to do it than by sitting … Continue reading

Posted in Articles, Shiraz et al, Syrah et al, Wine Events, Wine Musings, Yarra Valley | Tagged , , , | 18 Comments

Get Yer Rocks Off: McLaren Vale Scarce Earth 2011 Releases

The Scarce Earth project is the brainchild of Dudley Brown and Adrian Kenny, who worked together at Inkwell Wines for a number of years. It’s an exploration of the diversity of McLaren Vale’s terroir through single vineyard Shiraz wines from … Continue reading

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Is There an ‘Aussie’ Style of Wine? Waiting for Goode-ot…

“Let us do something, while we have the chance! It is not every day that we are needed…Let us represent worthily for one the foul brood to which a cruel fate consigned us! What do you say? It is true … Continue reading

Posted in Articles, Wine Events, Wine Musings | Tagged , , | 14 Comments

Vale WWEI: Prepare to Meet Your Maker

Vale interloper Gods listen. Or at least that’s the conclusion I came to at the end of a three-day junket in McLaren Vale earlier in July. To begin with, I kind of muscled my way into the Queensland “Meet Your … Continue reading

Posted in Articles, Cabernet et al, Cabernet Sauvignon, Fiano, Grenache, Grenache et al, McLaren Vale, Mourvèdre/Mataró, Mourvèdre/Mataró et al, Other Whites, Roussanne, Sagrantino et al, Sangiovese, Shiraz, Shiraz et al, Vermentino, Viognier, White Blends, Wine Events, Wine Musings | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

The Red Stripe Comes of Age: d’Arenberg’s 100th Birthday Lunch

And it’s Time, Time, Time… Chester Osborn, who began his tenure as chief winemaker at d’Arenberg in 1984, was limping ever so slightly as he came to greet me. We were at Urbane for what turned out to be an … Continue reading

Posted in Adelaide Hills, Articles, Cabernet et al, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Grenache, Grenache et al, McLaren Vale, Pinot Noir, Riesling, Shiraz, Shiraz et al, Wine Events, Wine Musings | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Chandon Sparkling Summit 2012

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes… Dan Buckle’s departure from the peppery, shiraz drenched isolation of Mount Langi Ghiran came as a surprise to many, myself included. He had imposed a singular vision on that winery – one that had lifted it to the heights … Continue reading

Posted in Argentina, Articles, Cava, Champagne, England, France, King Valley, Marlborough, Mendoza, New Zealand, Prosecco, Sayvel Blanc, Spain, Sparkling, Tasmania, UK, Wine Events, Wine Musings | Tagged , , | 2 Comments