The Pike brothers established Pikes winery in the Polish Hill sub-region of the Clare Valley in 1984, renovating an old stone shearing shed to house their winery and cellar door. Neil is the veteran winemaker (he’s done 38 vintages in Clare); Andrew the seasoned viticulturist (he spent 22 years working for big names like Wynn’s Coonawarra and Southcorp before establishing Pikes). Together they turn out formidable wines that earn plenty of show medals and critical acclaim. Their richly textured 2017 'Wilfred's Block' really is magnificent. A definitive Australian blend of inky, slatey Cabernet and sumptuous, spicy Shiraz, it’s a contemplative wine – the layers of flavour will reveal themselves slowly – and perfect for winter sipping. It will cellar well until 2032, but is still drinking beautifully now. Decant, pour into big glasses, and savour with good food and good friends.

John Quarisa is a Jimmy Watson Trophy-winning winemaker, with a "long and distinguished" career (Halliday). Here he's provided a beautifully rich, lush and full-flavoured Shiraz, a triple Gold-winner laden with ripe fruits, delicious exotic spice and a smooth, long finish.

McLaren Vale's Dog Ridge is well known for their highly-prized old vines, and these few hand-selected French barrels of DogRidge Shiraz are made exclusively from the pre-clonal Original Plantings at DogRidge from the 1940s. DogRidge is co owned by Dave and Jen Wright, and Fred and Sarah Howard. Dave is the Viticulturist, Fred the winemaker, and they certainly make a winning team!

An amazing parcel of rich, dark, concentrated McLaren Vale Shiraz has gone into 'The Prize' ... look forward to a mouthful of powerful dark fruit, a tempting dark chocolate richness, and a silky, spicy, long, long palate. This is a beauty. Enjoy.

With over 150 years of heritage and a National Trust classification, the vineyards of Tahbilk produce some of the most interesting wines in Australia. This wine is named after the first generation of Purbrick's custodians; Eric Stevens who purchased the property in 1925. Fruit for this wine comes from vines planted in 1933 and 1937.

Not only has this family estate won 60 Golds in a decade, but also 'Best Wine in the World'. That was for their 2005 Shiraz in 2008! The secret to this weighty, spice packed red is the sandy soils, which hold little rain for the vines, plus the unrelenting hot sun. The result is a modest yield of small berries crammed with juicy flavour. With this style of wine, award winning winemaker Jaime Quendera is now forging a reputation for Setúbal's rich, bold reds. Mostly Shiraz along with a splash of local variety Alicante, Jaime finished the wine in expensive oak barrels to add a gorgeous spicy vanilla lift to the blueberry, blackberry and peppery fruit. A fine treat to serve with spicy chorizo sausages, a hearty stew or the Sunday roast.

This luscious red comes from Zuccardi - an outstanding, third generation family cellar founded in the 1960s by Don Alberto Zuccardi. A decade before, he'd started an irrigation company, then planted a vineyard to demonstrate to other producers how his system could benefit grape quality. The rest, as they say, is history, and Zuccardi have become one of the leading cellars in Mendoza. Today his grandson Sebastián is winemaker, assisted by Rubén Ruffo. This is a silky, elegant red, with Syrah adding spicy red fruits and structure to Malbec's darker velvety berry notes. Recommended with chilli, a beef stir-fry or on its own.