Deen De Bortoli Vat 2 Sauvignon Blanc 2013 – $10 at Winesellersdirect. Apart from the medals, there’s not much to like here. Lean and mean and unconvincing. 84 points. Don’t Bother.
Deen de Bortoli vat 7 chardonnay 2013 – $11 at the winery. Liked this better than last year’s version. Ripe, rich but not big, peaches and nuts, compact on the palate. Great drinking at this price. 89 points. BUY.
MadFish Premium White 2013 – $13 at Dan M’s. The website says 2012, but the 2013 is in the shops. You can see why this wine is so popular. Very slick commercial white that slips down the hatch without effort – round and smooth and easy on the gums. Flawless. 89 points. BUY.
Thorn Clarke Sandpiper Pinot Gris 2013 – $14 at Dan M’s. Thorn Clarke is a substantial family-owned winery in the Barossa, with large vineyards in the Eden Valley. Sandpiper is their value brand. This is a subtle Pinot Gris that sneaks up on you. Restrained ripe pears and a faint hint of ginger spice. Feels silky in the mouth but there’s good acid too. Fine balance. Good value. 90 points. BUY.
Thorn Clarke Sandpiper Chardonnay 2013 – $19 at the winery. An interesting chardy with all the right elements in the glass, all arms and legs at the moment. A bit austere at the moment but probably just needs time to come together. Not in the shops yet, should be closer to $14 when it gets there. 88++ points. Qualified BUY.
Leconfield SYN Cuvee Blanc NV – $15 at Winedirect . A blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from McLaren Vale. Fresh and lively mouthful of grapes and tropical fruit with bubbles. Not as Synful as the label suggests but very drinkable. 90 points. BUY.
Damana 5 Roble Ribera Del Duero 2011 – $9 at Vintage Cellars. Recommended by one of our subscribers. Made by Spanish producer Tabula from Tempranillo and Cabernet. Pretty simple red but easy to drink at this price, and a change from cheap Aussie reds. 88 points. BUY
Bella Riva King Valley Pinot Grigio Vermentino 2012 – $15 at Winelistaustralia. This is a pretty smart blend under yet another label of the sprawling de Bortoli enterprise. These two varieties go together like old friends given similar fruit characters, but the wine could have a touch more flavour. 89 points. BUY.
Stefano Lubiano Riesling 2012 – $20 at MyCellars. Would not have picked this as a Tassie Riesling. Quite forward, full and round, lacking somewhat in the fine-boned acid we expect from good Rieslings. I much prefer the Frogmore Creek 2013. 90 points. Not Convinced. Mind you, Tyson Stelzer gives it 95.
Mont Redon Cote du Rhone Blanc 2010 – $20 at Bellevue Hill Bottle Shop. Also from Northbridge-Cremorne-Annandale Cellars. A wine worth tracking down, made from Grenache Blanc and Clairette, fruit is quite floral and perfumed but there are minerals and slate undertones too, really interesting and different. 94 points. BUY.
Crawford River Sauvignon Blanc Semillon 2009 – $21 at Northbridge-Cremorne-Annandale Cellars. This family winery makes wonderful steely Rieslings from its vineyard in south western Victoria, and John Thomson likes to release his wines with a bit of age. Interesting exercise in this case, resulting in a full, smooth wine with a lot of flavour and seamless integration. 93 points. BUY.
Checking our judgement: The Teusner Riebke Shiraz 2010 is a wine we raved about a couple of years ago (as did everyone else), and this is a delight. It shows much better balance than the 2012s, with the fruit more restrained. It will age well. For once we took our own advice and bought a case.
Bress La Gallina 2012 – $25 at the winery. We’ve raved about this wine before as well but still buy it if no longer in the shops. This is a really smart red made from Grenache, Shiraz and Tempranillo – big soft rich and choc full of flavour in a medium body. Adam Marks is a genius. 94 points. BUY.
Picadilly Hills Chardonnay 2007 – $17 at Winedirect (30% off currently). That’s for the 2006 – the 2007 seems all gone. This is another winery that holds wines back and these are still very much alive and smooth and enjoyable.
Yealands Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2012 – $18 at Winestreet. The S1 pictured was given to us by a friend who must’ve brought it back from NZ. The link goes to the standard Savvy from the same maker – their savvies are all good, even the $14 Land Made.
Running with Bulls Tempranillo 2013 – $18 at Winestar. Made by Yalumba, one our favourite makers. If only the wine were as slick as the marketing. It makes a promising start with a spicy nose and a good first impression on the palate but then turns clumsy and muddy toward the finish. Better with the right food than on its own. 89. Not Convinced.
Lovers not Torreadors 2011 – $16 at Dan M’s. A cleaner Tempranillo, and a couple of years older. Not the most complex wine but good, flavoursome drinking in a medium-bodied balanced format. It walks off the shelves, they tell me. Could be the label. 90 points. BUY.
Pont de Gassac Sélection Guibert 2012 – $15 at Dan M’s. Cabernet Merlot Shiraz from the South of France. Pretty straightforward, elegant wine, not complex, good everyday drinking. 88 points. Not Convinced – with a price closer to $12, we would be.
Moulin de Gassac Guilhem 2012 – $9.50 at Dan M’s. Shiraz Grenache from the south again, and another clean easy-drinking wine, not with a huge amount of character. 87 points. BUY.
Cote Mas Rouge Intense 2012 – $9.50 at Dan M’s. Just as breezy and cheerful as its white sister, clean, well, made, perfect lunch/bistro wine. 88 points. BUY.
Marqués de Riscal Próximo Rioja – $9.50 at Dan M’s. Another light drinking red, this time from Spain. Age has added more savoury notes – tobacco and leather and dried herbs … 88 points. BUY.
Yes, we’re sorting through some of Dan M’s very affordable imports, as you will have gathered.
Longhop Shiraz 2012 – $16 at Winelistaustralia. Big fruit here, ripe, round and smooth. Good concentration on the palate, pretty compact structure, polished tannins on the finish. 91 points. BUY
Richard Hamilton Shiraz 2012 – $15 at Winedirect. I’m a big fan of this winery because it makes McLaren Vale reds that are elegant, not those big chunky things most wineries produce. It’s medium-bodied, full of ripe soft, spicy fruit, and already drinks well. 90 points. BUY.
Metala Shiraz Cabernet 2012 – $14 at Winesellersdirect. A much easier wine to like than the monster 2010. Made by the same people at Saltram as the Pepperjack reds. This one is all sweetness and light, bright red fruits with some herbs and spices and pepper thrown in, pretty easy on the gums already and pretty good value as well. 90 points. BUY.
