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.

With Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot is included in the wine for which adds a beautiful fragrance and minty undertones resulting in a very generous style.

Big bold and tightly knit, Woodhenge will evolve over the following years as the style and full body of McLaren Vale fruit starts to integrate. Currently showing dark chocolate, mocha and mint over tones. As this wine ages and unfurls patience will be rewarded.

While normally associated with Grenache and Shiraz blends, Mourvèdre recently has begun to stand on its own two feet as a stand-alone wine. Quite evocative in nature, Chapel Hill's Mourvèdre is a dark and brooding red with wonderful hints of spice and violet tones. Walking the line between medium and full-bodied, this wouldn't be out of place next to either a thick cut steak or a plate of picked Mediterranean vegetables.

Your quest for the best sub-$20 Merlot is over. One of McLaren Vale's most explosive producers of the past 10-15 years is offered here on an silver platter. Everything you love about Merlot in one bottle; luscious black fruits with soft cuddly tannins and hints of spiced coffee.

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.

Made by Corrina Wright, a sixth generation member of the Oliver family, this is McLaren Vale Shiraz to the extreme. There's bold chocolate and blackberry flavours, a hint of pepper and smokey overtones. The alcohol sits at the higher end of the spectrum and there's plenty of vanilla oak, but the fruit intensity pulls it all together to produce a superbly balanced wine.

Shiraz and Grenache blend beautifully in many of the warmer parts of South Australia. This AAA is Paxton's 9th release, crafted similar to a Rhone-style wine yet it is packed with Au's Terroir. Bright with juicy red berry fruits and spices on the palate with well integrated oak and tannins, giving this wine a remarkable lengthy finish.

Battle of Bosworth Cabernet Sauvignon is a standout wine of flavoursome red fruits and currants; firmly structured, very rich and grippy. Deserves to be taken very seriously. Proof of such comes with the Trophy for Best Cabernet Sauvignon at the 2011 McLaren Vale Wine Show.

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.