Wc25Oct10 David Ellis WHEN lack of funds forced the sale of Coonawarra’s historic old Penola Cricket Ground in 1996 just four years short of its 50th anniversary, Jim Barry Wines’ Peter Barry bought the 12ha property to plant to Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. But he kept both the original pavilion and the pitch as important pieces […]
Wc19July10 david ellis NO matter what Mother Nature throws at them in the high country and cool climate of Tumbarumba in the foothills of the Snowy Mountains, Penfolds’ viticulture and winemaking teams never cease to surprise with the outstanding wines they create from this oft-challenging district. And in essence it is these challenges that results […]
Wc28June10 david ellis BACK in 2003 Hunter Valley maker Margan decided that with an outstanding vintage they’d launch a new White Label range of wines that stood out from the rest, and that being from generally smaller single vineyards such wines would be made only in small batches. And wisely they decided that in years […]
Wc12Apr10 david ellis WHEN you’ve been making wine for close-on 900 years, there’s every expectation you’re doing something right. And just how right, is exemplified by Italy’s Gabbiano that made its first wine in 1124 and today has an enviable reputation for a range of reds and whites, and in particular it’s Gabbiano Asti – […]
Wc05Apr10 david ellis THEIR Wine by Brad name may be funky, the label even funkier, but the wine in the bottle is anything but a funky oddity, with the just-released Wine by Brad Cabernet Merlot 2008 up there with the best. Owner and winemaker Brad Wehr opted out of the big corporate wine scene and […]
Wc22Mar10 david ellis WHEN Wayne Stehbens says his 2009 Katnook Estate Sauvignon Blanc is “his best yet,” he does so with somewhat of authority: he’s been making the variety since 1981, decades before many other Australian winemakers wrapped up in their Chardonnays had given it even the remotest thought. “2009 was an extraordinary year for […]
Wc22Feb10 HERE’s just the partner for a late-summer prawnsalad with a home-made mayonnaise dip. david ellis A ONE-TIME sheep station in the now-Canberra wine region is proving that it’s equally at home producing fine wines as it was when it once produced some of Australia’s finest wool. Shaw Estate Vineyard is a 280ha property at […]
Wc08Feb10 david ellis McWILLIAM’S have released their 2005 flagship 1877 Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz, a classic wine for that classic very special occasion or celebration. Labelled 1877 after the year that Samuel McWilliam planted his first vines at Corowa in the NSW Murray Basin, this latest release has been created from premium fruit from some of […]
Wc25Jan10david ellis FROST and drought don’t really seem to be in the equation when you are growing grapes for hopefully premium wines on what is pretty ordinary soil. But Ian McKenzie and Ken Pollock pulled off a coup from just such conditions with their 2007 BlackJack Cabernet Merlot that they’ve just released – a corker […]
Wc18Jan10 david ellis A mate who ended 2009 somewhat forlornly after being told by his doctor to reduce by a third his propensity for a bottle of red or white with dinner every night, has now begun the new year with surprising enthusiasm. Its because he’s found that rather than having to have a couple […]