Australian Wine and Drinks Review

The ultra serious Castle Rock Estate Diletti Riesling 2023

Here’s an Australian Riesling that isn’t just about hard lines and purity. This Castle Rock Estate Diletti Riesling 2023 is Rob Diletti’s Germanic take, with free-run juice, barrel fermentation and ten…
An easy German Riesling from Ulrich Langguth

Dry German Riesling is such an unappreciated beast. This Ulrich Langguth ‘12 Degrees’ Gourmet Trocken Riesling 2023 sits at the more approachable end, and it’s just a nice drink. Lovely fleshy…
New Grenache Tricks from Ben Luker’s Meredith Wines

I’m on an affability bent at the moment, and Ben Luker’s Meredith Wines really fit the ‘let’s make drinkable wines’ mode. Bright colours, thoughtful handling, affordable pricing – the Meredith Wines…
$25 well spent on the 2022 Paisley Turntable GSM

It’s a pleasure to be talking up a tasty $25 Australian wine. Something right and good. Derek from Paisley Wines has a whole host of underpriced reds in his portfolio, and…
Want a more mature NZ Pinot instead? This Kuru Kuru 2019 offers it

You don’t see much current release, six-year-old Central Otago Pinot Noir, which makes this Kuru Kuru Pinot Noir 2019 an outlier. It doesn’t look five years old. The smell isn’t old…
Is this the best balanced Tapanappa Foggy Hill Vineyard Pinot Noir yet?

The march towards ever more delicate versions of the Tapanappa Foggy Hill Pinot Noir continues. Each vintage, this Fleurieu Peninsula wine gets a little more contained, with a bit more Pinosity.…
The easy Juniper Canvas Tempranillo 2022

Canvas is the drinkable, easygoing range from Margaret River OG’s Juniper (need Juniper Estate). I quite like Margaret Tempranillo FWIW, which has a hatful of Graciano for some Spanish feels. This…
The Tassie charisma of Bangor Vineyard’s Captain Spotswood Pinot Noir 2023

What an excellent name and a bit of a Tassie Pinot Noir find. Captain Spotswood was the 1830s owner of the patch of land now planted to the Bangor Vineyard at…
Crittenden’s joyful 2023 Peninsula Pinot Noir

Hello and welcome to Another Mornington Peninsula Pinot Noir That You’ll Like. This Crittenden Peninsula Pinot Noir 2023 is from the more accessible part of the Crittenden range, sourced from vineyards…
Yalumba drops a wonderfully lucid Grenache and it’s just $40

Hat tip, Yalumba, you’ve done it again. One of the country’s oldest family-owned wineries, still lobbing up with classical wines for fair dollars. The only thing I don’t like about the…
Solid Mudgee Barbera from First Ridge but is it enough?

It’s easy to forget thet Mudgee has some of the oldest plantings of Italian winegrapes in Australia. Sangiovese, Barbera & Nebbiolo were all planted at the old Montrose vineyards by pioneering…
The Crittendens deliver with a delicious Zumma 2022 Chardonnay

And we’re back. Holiday is over; it’s time to attack the pile of wines with renewed vigour (or something like that). And why not launch back in with another excellent Chardonnay…