INTERNATIONAL REPUTATION AT JUST $9.99

WORTHY reputation at just $9.99 to enjoy with chicken in a creamy sauce or crab cakes.

Wc04Feb13

David Ellis

LINDEMAN’S $9.99 Bin range wines have long enjoyed a reputation, not only here but internationally as well, for both consistency of quality and value for money.

Their recently released 2012 whites include a Bin 65 Chardonnay that reflects an excellent vintage in its sourced south-eastern Australia region that included Sunraysia, Riverland and Robinvale near Swan Hill, all of which enjoyed good Spring rainfalls followed by mild warm weather that allowed for even fruit ripening and excellence.

And six months in French oak has resulted in a delightfully easy-drinking wine for those of us who remain Chardonnay buffs, with nice fruit salad aromas of peach, fig and rockmelon, together with toasty oak and a crisp finish.

Enjoy nicely chilled on its own at that $9.99, or team it up with chicken and a creamy sauce, veal chops topped with fried mushrooms, or if you are more into seafood, with pan-fried crab cakes.

SAY ‘Ciao’ with these lower-alcohol sparklings from Italy’s Zonin that dates back to 1821.

ONE TO NOTE: A couple of interesting lower-alcohol sparklings from Italy’s Zonin Winery, a company that dates back to 1821, have been packed together in an attractive canvas carry bag with a clear plastic front that’s priced at just $23.95 to take along to that next picnic or party.

Sourced from seven of the country’s best winemaking regions – Piedmont, Lombardi, Veneto, Friuli, Tuscany, Apulia and Sicily – the Zonin Proescco DOC Spumante Brut is just 11% alcohol and the Zonin Asti DOCG an even lower 7.5%.

Both have quite fruity bouquets and are fruit-fresh and lively in the mouth; great party-room wines for those seeking to keep the alcohol levels down (for themselves and maybe others.) Available at Woolworths Liquor and BWS stores across Australia.

(NEED A FOOD/DRINK IDEA? Check out  http://www.vintnews.com )