Round yet fine and detailed, this medium bodied wine is brimming with lovely fruit density. Notes of red current, cassis, black cherry, and plum lead the charge, supported by secondary notes of bay leaf, graphite, wet clay and chocolate. Starting early, tannins are savoury in nature and run long through the palate complimented by lovely accents of ash and coal dust. Dense and chewy through to the finish, this wine has excellent length.

Now sourcing fruit from premium regions across Australia, this Cabernet blend shows varietal mint on the nose with floral notes in the background. The palate has good weight and texture, the flavours of blackcurrant and herb framed by firm tannins.

There's a lot to adore about this Cabernet Sauvignon from a beloved family-owned winery. Halliday deemed it worthy of 92 points, and it's picked up four gold medals from Australian wine shows. But if that pedigree doesn't impress you, one sip of this beautiful red will.

51% Touriga and 49% Tempranillo. Although both quite tannic varieties, winemaker Peter Leask has crafted a youthful yet surprisingly supple drop. Delicious!Deep red to crimson. Fragrant nose of violets, blackberry, mulberry, tobacco and vanilla. Ripe black and purple fruit, with a seductively plush texture, some attractive cigar box and leather complexity, and a powerful finish. Yet to show its best.

Chapel Hill's Cabernet Sauvignon is a superb McLaren Vale wine which rivals others well beyond its price range. Generous blackcurrant, dark cherries, cedar and spice mixed in with fine, firm tannins. This wine can be enjoyed now but will continue to improve with a few years in the cellar.

Produced from low yielding, hand harvested vines and made using traditional techniques, D'Arry's Original is a smooth, textured, full bodied red which typifies the generous McLaren style. Always one of those little cellar stars that you can buy up a case or two, hide under the house for a decade and be quietly content that d'Arry's Original will be shining in a decade.

Michael Fragos grew up in McLaren Vale, and spent 14 years at Tatachilla before taking over at Chapel Hill in 2004. A three-time ‘Bushing King’, Michael has also been named best winemaker on the planet! James Halliday notes that his “wine quality is unfailingly excellent” . This one has an expressive nose of blackcurrant, bay leaf cigar box and chocolate. The palate is medium to full-bodied, beautifully structured, with a powerful complexity, fine-grained tannins, velvety texture and long, long finish.

Chapel Hill makes great value wines in the maritime climate of McLaren Vale. This Shiraz is a beauty. Dark berries and vanillin oak are evident in the bouquet with spice coming through on the palate.

Some would say McLaren Vale is the spiritual home of Australian Grenache. We are not about to start arguing when Grenache like this one from Chapel Hill are produced. Generous rich red fruits with smattering of dried herbs and a fleshy mid-palate. There is real concentration and complexity to this wine.