Thinking about light reds for barbeques and summer nights by the pool, and Grenache comes to mind as a more rewarding wine than Pinot Noir. You get more flavour for your hard-earned, for one, and more character at our end of the market for another.

Grenache goes with all kinds of foods, from lamb to duck to sausages and pizza, vegetarian fare and more. Grenache is a modern style, a fun red rather than a profound one, that makes it the perfect bistro red.

And it is the perfect red for those of us who worry about buying green bananas, and want to buy reds that don’t need years in the cellar. Perfect for this easy-going  sun-drenched country.

On another subject, the stream of samples stopped flowing before Christmas, and Auspost is struggling to clear the holiday backlog, but we hope to get the ball rolling on fresh reviews next Friday.

Weekend Reading: Grenache Revival by Young Gun of Wine
Weekend Tucker: Dead Easy Lamb chops with chimichurri dressing

BEST GRENACHE REDS DOWN UNDER

Borsao Clasico Garnacha 2020 – $8 at DM’s. Not sure how they do it, but it’s more than drinkable. 89 points.

Selección Grenache Blend 2020 – $12 at DM’s.  Bigger, firmer, more robust. There’s a lot more to this wine than the price would suggest. 92+ points

Campos de Luz Garnacha 2019 – $12 at Kemenys. Deep dark red colour, and full-bodied. Cherries and berries do the talking here, with a twist pepper,  sprinkle of warm earth and some dried herbs. A food-friendly red that needs a bit more time in the bottle. 92+ points.

Krondorf The Ethereal One Fleurieu Grenache 2021 – $14 at DM’s. One of the reviers wrote: ‘Rewards long heavy breathing.’ Must be quite a wine. Actually it’s pretty, sweet-natured, and easy on the gums. Crowd pleaser. 91 points.

Robert Oatley Signature Series McLaren Vale Grenache Shiraz Mourvedre – $18 at Our Cellar. 50/40/10 blend. Macca red in a tux that hides the muscles. Combines lovely depth of flavour with the usual Larry Cherubino polish. Will improve for 2-3 years. 93 points.

Krondorf Founders View Barossa Grenache 2021 – $18 at DM’s. This wine came tops in last year’s Halliday Grenache shootout. Similar to the Ethereal One, with a bit more meat on the bones. 93 points.

Dan Murphy’s acquired the Krondorf label a couple of years ago – just the label not the winery which Grant Burge bought and sold 3 times in the last 4 decades.

On the DM website, wine meister Andrew Caillard tells us all about the origins of the Krondorf village and winery, including a Jimmy Watson trophy wone over 40 years ago, and stops there. This is pretty sleazy stuff since the label is a hollow log, which is industry jargon for an empty label loosely connected to a contract winery somewhere in the Barossa or at Mascot …

Longhop Old Vine Grenache 2021 – $18 at Cloudwine. I haven’t tried this vintage, which gets a great review and 93 points from Gary at the Wine Front (at the link).

Secret Label Barossa Valley Grenache 2021 – $19 at Kemenys. Made from 50-year old bush vines. The strong colour and seductive nose of raspberries and cherries are a great start. The velvet texture is continues the seduction, adding herbs and spices, a savoury, slightly stalky edge, and fine, ripe tannins on the finish. Perfect pitch, gorgeous drinking, will get more gorgeous in a year or two. Made by two mates who like to leave their purple finger prints on the label.  96 points. Back up the Ute!

Yalumba Samuel’s Collection Barossa Bush Vine Grenache 2020 – $20 at Our Cellar. Made d from 80 year-old Barossa bush vines, and offering a smooth ride around Samuel’s Garden. It delivers ripe cherries and berries, pepper and spice and all things nice. It’s a middleweight that offers plush fruit and easy drinking. Perfect balance between sweet and savoury, classic Grenache. 95 points.

Kalleske Clarrys Grenache Shiraz Mataro 2021 – $20 at Kemenys. Young and boisterous, great depth and intensity of flavour. Needs a little time to settle down, one of the best I’ve seen of this line. 94+ points.

Hentley Farm Villain & Vixen Grenache 2021 – $20 at Cloudwine. Things look up once you get past that silly label. It’s a bit in your face, but has more grunt than those pretty and jubey creatures. 93+ points.
The advice from Cloudwine is: Folks, there won’t be too many times in your life that you can buy an under priced yet well made and delicious wine.  Today is one of those times.  Do yourself a favour, for $20, you can’t go wrong.’

Robert Oatley Signature series Grenache 2019 – $20 at Cloudwine. Rich and ripe, silky and seductive, fruity and juicy. A fine line of acid keeps it all neat and tidy.  Serious crowd pleaser, and that includes the judges. 94 points.

Trophy – Best Grenache of Show, Trophy – Best South Australian Wine of Show
96 Points, Gold Medal, Royal Adelaide Wine Show 2020, Trophy – Best Red Varietal of Show, plus Gold Medal, Royal Perth Wine Awards 2020.

Cirillo ‘The Vincent’ Grenache 2021 – $22 at MyCellars, where the freight is free for subscribers on any quantity (promo code BWU20). The fruit comes from a single 80yr old vineyard in Rowland Flat in the Barossa. The colour is light on, but te palate is rich with sweet fruit. Medium-bodied, almost delicate. 94 points.

Geddes Seldom Inn Grenache 2020 – $25 at the winery ‘Be careful,’ is how Steve at QWine starts his review.’ This will sneak up on you and seize your heart. Such a lush and delicious Grenache from Geddes Wines.’ The 2018 was one of our top reds last year, and the 2020 follows in its tracks: serious Grenache with all the seductive, juicy trimmings, with savoury elements adding complexity and structure. 95 points.

SPECIAL WINES

Kilikanoon Prodigal Grenache 2019 – $27 at Nicks. No, we didn’t leave out the ‘son’, this is a unisex red. The review at the link nails the luscious style. Clare valley red at its best. 96 points

Secret Label Reserve McLaren Vale Grenache 2020 – $30 at Kemenys. Secret Label Reserve McLaren Vale Grenache 2020 – $30 at Kemenys. Made from 100 year – old vines, the label sports a Centurion’s helmet. See my review at the link.

Yangarra Estate Vineyard Old Vine Grenache 2021 – $39 at Kemenys. From the Master of McLaren Vale, Peter Fraser. I haven’t tried this vintage, but Gary at the Wine Front has, and says:
‘Juicy raspberry and cherry, aniseed, with a stony ferrous edge, dried flowers and chamomile. Medium-bodied, red fruits with a sappy and savoury edge, tannin is firm and stony, plenty of red berry flavour, though keeps itself pretty neat, with supple grip on a very long and bright finish. Tannin is a highlight. Kind of jubey as at now, though its future feels assured. Excellent. 95 points’

Turkey Flat Grenache 2020 – $40 at MyCellars where the freight is free for subscribers (promo code BWU20). This has long been the leader of the serious Grenache pack down under. Improves for 5 years or more, a stylish wine that relies on class finesse rather than broad appeal. 96+ points.

S.C. Pannell Smart Grenache 2020 – $55 at Summer Hill Wine, made by McLaren Vale Bushing King Stephen Pannell. Gets a rave review and 96 points from Ned Goodwin at The Wine Companion (at the link).

INTERESTING STUFF

A global celebration of Australian Pinot Noir. ‘Excitement is building for the Pinot Noir Celebration Australia 2023 taking place on the Mornington Peninsula on 10 and 11 February, and for the first time, extending into the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Singapore and Denmark in March 2023.’

The South Australian Grenache Story, by David Farmer. It was a close thing – we nearly lost all our old Grenache vines to the South Australia vine pull scheme.

Essential Guide to Grenache Wine, from The Wine Folly.

Charlie Melton on Grenache, with video

Wine stories from Anders Ousback: part 3, via Huon Hooke. This is surely one of the weirder ones

Find exciting boutique wines under $20

You can enjoy some really exceptional wines – some made by hand by master winemakers – which you’ll never find at your local bottle shop. We know where to find them – and at the best prices too.

Some examples

Here are some of the terrific boutique wines we’ve found lately, for $20 or less.

Bleasdale Pinot Gris 2013. A long-established family winery at Langhorne Creek that turns out great reds and more lately some of the country’s best Pinot Gris from Adelaide Hills fruit.

Wickhams Road Yarra Valley Chardonnay 2014 – The wines under this ‘second label’ of Hoddles Creek seem to get better and better. This is Yarra Valley Chardy at a giveaway price, softer and more approachable than the estate wines. Very easy to like.

De Iuliis Semillon 2014 – Mike de Iuliis makes modern Hunter wines at very fair prices. his is riper and richer than most young Hunter Semillons and already lovely drinking while still showing the characteristic lemon and grass notes.

Rosily Semillon Sauvignon Blanc 2014 – Mick Scott makes terrific wines from his picturesque small vineyard in Margaret River. This is a great example of the Margaret River Semillon Sauvignon style.

Torbreck Woodcutter’s Roussanne Viognier Marsanne 2012 – from a boutique in the Barossa that makes very expensive wines in small quantities, this is a lovely Rhone blend with a $20 price tag.

Hand Crafted by Geoff Hardy Chardonnay 2012 – One of the Hardy family who’s struck out on his own in the Adelaide Hills. This chardy that blends the old and the new: lovely round, rich, creamy chardy without any excess fat. Just right in fact, with seamless integration of fruit and oak.

Teusner Salsa Rosé 2014 – Kym Teusner makes a serious Rosé from Barossa Grenache, Mataro and Shiraz. Not big on strawberries and cream, this is a savoury wine to have with food. Great stuff.

Fraser Gallop Estate Cabernet Merlot 2012 – a classic Cabernet blend from a tiny boutique in Margaret River that makes very fine whites and reds in small quantities.

Kalleske Clarrys Grenache Shiraz Mataro 2014 – The Kalleskes are growers turned winemakers, and now produce great wines from their old vineyards like this fine trio of varieties that plays in perfect pitch here. Crowd pleaser at sharp price, the winery is certified organic/ biodynamic.

Bellevue Estate Shiraz 2012 –  Corey Vandeleur hand-makes this Shiraz in two tonne open fermenters prior to basket pressing. There is little or minimal fining or filtration. Only 1000 cases made.

Phaedrus Mornington Peninsula Pinot Noir 2012 – hand-made wine in a tiny Yarra Valley winery, where Ewan Campbell and Maitena Zantvoort specialise in Pinot Noir.

Head Red Shiraz 2013 – Alex Head has fast made a name for his rich and stylish Barossa reds, which sell out quickly every year.

Moppity Lock & Key Sparkling Chardonnay Pinot Noir 2012 – Jason Brown makes some terrific wines up in the hilltops near Young, from fruit  grown on his own vineyards and at Tumbarumba.

Bundaleer Sparkling Shiraz NV – this is a rich but elegant sparkling red from a tiny family boutique in the Flinders Ranges

Mitchell Noble Semillon 2012 – Another long-established and underrated family winery in Clare that makes fine regional wines from old vines on biodynamic vineyards

Why did the de Bortoli family choose such a cheap label to honour its patriarch? Fair question, isn’t it? Yalumba did a similar thing with grande dame Christobel, but Eilleen Hardy got a much better deal.

The Deen Vat 5 Botrytis Semillon 2009 is nearly as good as the 2008. Very similar style, still more round than long and more sweet than complext but who’s gonna argue these fine points for $10.50 at Dan M’s? If you want to grab some of the last bottles of the great 2008, Winestar still has some for $11. 91+ points. BUY.

The Deen Vat 7 Chardonnay 2012 gets a great write-up from Bert at Winestar, but didn’t get us nearly as excited despite the gold medal and 96 point rating at this year’s Melbourne Show. Simple wine without a lot of Chardy character, a round and pleasant drink for the money. 89 points. BUY We’d opt for the Yalumba Y Viognier, which is a similar style and price but with a bit more to it.

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