Help me make Australian Wine Review even better?

February 22, 2017

I’m interested in your opinion.

This site is turning nine in the near future, which has prompted some reflection. Reflection on what I’m doing, where the site is going, that sort of thing. It’s also a reflection that I’m massively time-poor (too many wine projects, not enough sleeping), and need to make sure what I’m doing is relevant.

Flowing from that I’ve also realised is that I don’t ask what you’d like to read – and how you’d like to read it – anywhere near as much as I should. I just write words and hope they resonate with someone.

So let’s change that.

I’ve thus written a few thoughts below. If you’ve got a moment, I’d love if you could leave a comment in response (or email me – andrew at ozwinereview.com). Everything is welcome, even a single line tidbit, as I just want to make Australian Wine Review even better.

All responses are helpful, even negative ones!

Thoughts:

Would you prefer individual wine reviews on a single post (like this) or are larger tasting roundups (like this) just as useful?
Reviews with more depth (ie longer), or more reviews?
What about print articles? I write lots of print pieces but I don’t post them much here, purely because they often have completely different audiences in mind (can be too ‘lifestyle’ rather than usual critical pieces).
Any other thoughts?

Thanks in advance!

Blogging, rambling

Andrew Graham was once voted the 23rd most trusted wine critic on the planet. A WCA Journalism Young Gun now old hack with 25yrs as a buyer, judge, journalist, marketer and too much more.

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30 responses to “Help me make Australian Wine Review even better?”

Sam

February 22, 2017 at 7:37 pm

AG,
Love your longer more in depth reviews. I find it refreshing in a world where we are lucky if the writer has been given more than a couple of sentences. I like a writer getting the chance to stretch their legs. Also like the reviews that delve into the background of the wine/vineyard/producer. Sure it’s probably on their website but I’m never going to read that.

Love ya work. Keep fighting the good fight. Long live Riesling.

SB

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Warwick A.

February 22, 2017 at 7:47 pm

More stuff like your recent Sauternes flight. That was fascinating to read.

I don’t have much interest in the round up of wines that didn’t pass muster. Unless they are truly awful – that would be a welcome read.

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Nick

February 22, 2017 at 8:47 pm

Hey Andrew
Love your enthusiastic and uncompromising reviews; you probably influence my excessive wine purchasing more than anyone else. Really appreciate the time and effort you put into the site, hope you can continue to justify the time.
If anything, I’d probably accept slightly less verbose reviews if it meant you had the time and inclination to review a greater number of wines, but I’m easy either way.
Thanks+
Nick

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Matt

February 22, 2017 at 9:35 pm

Hi Andrew,
Keep up the great work. I have to agree with Warick in that I usually skip the round up of wines that didn’t make the grade, the more wines reviewed the better and would love to see more Pinot noir and Chardonnay reviews.

Cheers

Matt

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David

February 22, 2017 at 10:02 pm

Hi Andrew,

I like it when you review a whole producers range. For example the Penfolds, Head wines or Wynns days you used to do. Great to see their wine compared against each other within he range.

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Jesse

February 22, 2017 at 11:11 pm

I agree with David. I like it when you can cover a whole range by a producer. I also agree with Sam in that I’d prefer to see more in-depth writing about a wine. You must have more knowledge than most of us, so I think it would be good if you could share more of it. Ramble. ‘Have fun with it.’ Tasting notes and scores can be done by absolutely anyone (don’t make me prove it).

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Big w

February 22, 2017 at 11:35 pm

You are possibly one of our greatest independent wine writer’s at the moment, and that’s something that should be applauded. I like that when you give anything above 95 points, its actually something to stand up and seriously take note of.. ( looking at you Primo Joseph Sparkling red). Amongst a plethora of bought opinions and cash for comments you are a refreshing perspective for the wine purchasing consumer. Keep handing out 92s.. makes us realise whats worth chasing and whats not…

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Big w

February 22, 2017 at 11:35 pm

You are possibly one of our greatest independent wine writer’s at the moment, and that’s something that should be applauded. I like that when you give anything above 95 points, its actually something to stand up and seriously take note of.. ( looking at you Primo Joseph Sparkling red). Amongst a plethora of bought opinions and cash for comments you are a refreshing perspective for the wine purchasing consumer. Keep handing out 92s.. makes us realise whats worth chasing and whats not…

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Aaron

February 22, 2017 at 11:41 pm

Larger tasting roundups. Usually I read you reviews to the end so you must be doing ok.

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Travis

February 23, 2017 at 9:01 am

Hi Andrew,
Love your reviews because you are straight down the line. I would love to see:
– More reviews of producer’s whole range
– Regional varieties side-by-side comparisons (eg Canberra Shiraz, Hunter Semillons)
– More tech details about why a wines tastes like it does, esp faults
Well done mate.

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Chris

February 23, 2017 at 9:06 am

I like the mix of posts you provide. The larger tasting roundups do provide extra intrigue for me and I personally think you should continue to provide roundups of the lower pointed wines you taste as this provides context & counterpoint for the higher pointed wines. Review depth should be entirely up to you as this to me indicates your interest/passion for a wine. Print articles could be contained in a separate section on the site and as with all else you write is up to individual choice as to what is looked at. Keep up the good work Andrew.

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Peter

February 23, 2017 at 9:54 am

Great pieces – well written and critical. I don’t mind either way but I’m not sure about the question you ask “would I buy it?” bit.
Going a few glasses versus buying it? Hmm, I don’t know what that means really but you write really well. Keep it up! 🙂

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Mark H

February 23, 2017 at 10:14 am

I like the way reviews are presented at present – usually a few together which gives a good point of comparison. If there is a bolter, love to hear about it immediately.
I also think it important to review wines that don’t impress and why. Sometimes it helps to avoid, but other times the reasons given for your opinion may lead me to try a bottle to find out for myself.
I also have bought quite a few on your recommendation – the latest being the Rouleur Chardonnay and Grenache which I had not heard of and would otherwise never have tried.
While attaching more information would be a bonus (and more work for you), the current format and content works very well.
And thanks.

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Andrew Graham

February 23, 2017 at 10:54 am

Thanks everyone for the comments. Legends. Appreciate all the very kind words as well.

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Colin r

February 23, 2017 at 12:40 pm

Hello Andrew,
Very much enjoy your stuff.
Would like more individual articles, on say, the single elements in wine…..e.g. Tannins or acid or additives or Oak treatment. Can’t find any blogs that cover these nuances often enough.
All helps a bunny like me.
Not overly interested in monthly round ups.
Your best attributes are your honesty and love for the industry which comes through in spades!
And if you could do something about improving Hawks performance this year I would not complain!

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Chris J

February 23, 2017 at 1:02 pm

Andrew, I read your posts to widen my appreciation beyond the ‘comfort zone wines’. I prefer the multi-tasting notes for related wines (whether by winery, region or type/style) as this provides context. I do like the ‘related posts’ feature for the same reason. I don’t quite get the ‘would I buy this wine’ rating followed by the number of glasses you would drink. Maybe it’s a little gentler to the winemaker than a simple Yes or No, and of course we should be gentle with our winemaker friends.

Anyway, I read the posts, they are clear, concise and well-written. Thank you, pray continue!

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Cathy

February 23, 2017 at 1:33 pm

I’m a wine geek & you are one of the few reviewers I regularly read. I like your decriptors & way of explaining wine so always learn something. I don’t mind the mix of long & round up posts. As I gather you have a mixed audience of industry & consumer then adding some of your articles would be good. I take less notice of your scores than the fact you’d buy a bottle or glass or not yet or at all. So much more telling for me as it’s about what you’d drink which a score doesn’t give you.
Keep up the good work. Cheers.

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Dave

February 23, 2017 at 6:13 pm

Hi Andrew,

I have been following your reviews since i watched the “crakawine reviews” on youtube in the past. I don’t mind both individual or roundup reviews, both are interesting to read, especially for new release roundups like heads wine, penfolds, wynns ,andrew thomas etc.(if you could do more of these). Also vintage reports roundup if possible.

For individual, i really love to see back vintages reviews/comparisons,i know its hard to come by but whenever you can. As for print articles, if they allow you to post them here,i’m sure lots of us would like to have a read.

By the way, few posts ago, a “Roger” was about to send you wines to review, how did that go?I’ve only heard of one Roger so far, if that’s really him , i can’t wait to read your piece.

Now all the reviews aside, big effort on your new layout for the website/blog, the only thing i miss from the old website/blog is the side links to other wine review website/blog, other than that, this is more clean.

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1. Andrew Graham
  
  February 23, 2017 at 6:20 pm
  
  Nothing from Roger so far!
  
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Phil

February 23, 2017 at 6:45 pm

Love the way you uncover gems from amongst plethora.

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Mark S

February 23, 2017 at 7:52 pm

As someone who has had more than 1600 articles published in traditional print media over 20 years, I think Andrew speaks with the voice of today’s wine savvy consumer and can only be applauded for the great job he does in bringing his thoughts and experiences to the page without dumbing down his audience. Wine is always the subject, not Andrew. His writing is interesting, engaging and well crafted; the pages clean, and the text easy on the eye. With more and more newspaper columns disappearing or becoming syndicated, Andrew’s online writing doesn’t fill the void that’s being created but it’s as good as its gets for independent, well-informed subscription-free opinion. Keep up the good work, Andrew.

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Luca

February 24, 2017 at 7:00 am

Hi Andrew,

I have been reading your stuff for many years and definitely think you are doing a great job – I keep coming back. I am perhaps guilty of not commenting often how much I enjoy reading everything, but rest assured that I do.

I tried for a while to do thorough and methodical independent coffee reviews and, incredibly to me, there seemed to be little actual demand or interest for them. So I can sympathise with how much work it actually takes to keep this running. From my perspective, I would say this: if it’s a choice between getting up content regularly or quickly and making the content a nice piece of prose, go with the first. Whilst I do enjoy reading preambles to the actual reviews, like the stories about the producers, what they are trying to do, where you think the wine sits in the current market, what you think of the style, etc, I don’t think that you should think that you have to do this for every single thing that you post. I’m very happy to read just the reviews alone.

As someone who is kind of just starting (well, a few years in now), I am always asking myself “how will this change if I cellar it”? So I’m always fascinated to read reviews of older wine, not just stuff that is currently on the market. If it is reviews of older wine together with younger vintages of the same wine, or a recap of a review of that vintage that was written when it hit the market, that’s great too – gives a great insight into how the wine has aged.

Also, I think that there’s a bit of a hole in the Australian wine review market for reviews of imports, so that’s probably another thing you could look at.

Hope that helps and keep up the good work.

Luca

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Glen Downey

February 24, 2017 at 3:27 pm

Hi Andrew,
Passion and professionalism is why I follow your notes. You’re one of the last sources of wine reviews left on my ‘go to’ list – long gone are the subscriptions to AGWine, Winestate, even Decanter. Economics is mostly the issue. Economics of time. It takes a lot of time to keep up – as a reader, let alone a writer, there is so much to (potentially) cover. Yet the supply side of wine is so vast we do need/seek discerning, adventurous and complementary (to our tastes) information input into our purchasing and drinking decisions. So, we ‘need’ you. Even if we are too busy to always respond & comment – or to even really consider paying a ‘premium’ for the valuable information. Unfortunately, there aren’t too many enduring ‘wine information’ business models out there at the moment. So better love what you do. It’s clear that you do.
I’m a big fan of the back-story to a region, or a winery, or even a wine. Especially when you are ‘early’ at discovering a vintage from a region (eg Hunter 2014) and placing the best wines in peer and historical context. I also think this is a useful way to further enhance your own ‘cred’ and be embraced by a wider audience when the stars align.
I’m also enjoying the beer reviews!
Cheers,
Glenn

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Mitch

February 24, 2017 at 5:32 pm

Hey Andrew,

I enjoy your review posts. I also enjoy your posts on regions like your one last year on Orange & trip to Europe. It would be interesting to see a review on certain parts of the Australian wine scene (the state of natural wines, new varieties in Australia, young guns of wine, new wineries on the up). Craft beer reviews are always good as well.

Keep up the good.

Cheers
Mitch

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David

February 25, 2017 at 12:17 am

I usually check your page once a day or every 2nd day – so a lot. So read into that as a bit positive. The only thing I wish for sometimes are reviews of some more higher profile, higher-end wines. Harder to get your hands on these I know.

Cheers for all your fine work.

David

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Tony Winspear

February 27, 2017 at 9:37 am

We have started vintage here so rather slow in joining in the conversation, mea culpa. I always enjoy horizontal and vertical tastings as they offer another level of insight. Having said that the individual reviews are enthusiastically covered which is so important. The points are one thing but the enthusiasm is the key. Cheers.

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David

February 28, 2017 at 9:45 am

Enjoy the detail of your single reviews, especially your honesty. Everyone likes good value. Also like the beer reviews, so I’m now addicted to Pirate Life and Kaiju. Keep up the good work Andrew!

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1. Andrew Graham
  
  February 28, 2017 at 9:51 am
  
  Love the Kaiju beers!
  
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Bob Colman

February 28, 2017 at 2:41 pm

Hi Andrew, apologies for not commenting sooner. I tend to skim through your reviews of the more mainstream wines as I’m not interested in them. I’d like to see more reviews on wines from small, quirky winemakers however I realise that you can’t do this unless they send samples to you or occasionally use your own hard earned dough to procure them. For that reason, I prefer your longer reviews. I hate points, love your would I drink a glass/ bottle etc – far more personal. I have little interest in knowing if a wine is true to it’s grape or won a trip for two to Outthereisstan at the Alice Springs Show. Just want to know if something is interesting and fun to drink & like to know a bit about the winemaker. Keep at it!!

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Travis

March 8, 2017 at 8:13 pm

G’day Andrew,
Love your work that prompts a question (how to make Coonawarra sexy, eg). The reviews are excellent- well written and objective scoring but there are heaps of people doing that. Thought provoking articles, rather than notes, is why I visit regularly. Thanks for the free read! Best, Travis.

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