Any price
Dandelion Vineyards Lioness Of McLaren Vale Shiraz
This sensational Shiraz is made by the “exceptionally gifted” Elena Brooks (Halliday). Her medal cabinet bulges with Trophies and Golds won all over the world, and she regularly earns seriously high scores from acclaimed wine critics. Just recently, Elena’s Dandelion Vineyards also won the Southern Hemisphere Winery of the Year Trophy in the US. How does she do it? With a lot of skill, and a lot of passion, like the kind that went into the Lioness. The 2016 has already won TWO Gold medals and a rare Platinum - plus a stellar 96 points from the San Diego Wine Competition. You can look foward to cherry liqueur and chocolate aromas, while on the palate, lush, red fruits jostle with black cherries, plums, dark chocolate, vanilla and sweet spice. Enjoy in big glasses for full effect.
The Black Pig Reserve McLaren Vale Cabernet Sauvignon
McLaren Vale is home to some of Australia's biggest reds and here's a prize example from the bestselling 'Black Pig' - a cassis-rich Cabernet with wall-to-wall black cherry and bramble tones and a delicious lick of menthol.
RedHeads Coco Rôtie
Bleasdale Frank Potts Langhorne Creek Cabernet Blend
Bleasdale is “one of the most historic wineries in Australia ... in 2015 celebrating 165 years of continuous winemaking by the direct descendants of the founding Potts family.” (James Halliday). Last year, winemaker Paul Hotker, a “master blender” , was named Halliday’s Winemaker of the Year. This “clever” 96pt blend shows his skill and style. “Clever cabernet-dominant blend incorporating malbec, franc, merlot and petit verdot to great effect. Red and black fruited, leafy cabernet, fine savoury tannins, line and length to burn. Gold at the National Wine Show ‘17 speaks volumes ... 96pts” (Halliday).
Aluado Chardonnay
Portugal offers wine drinkers terrific value in the wine drinking stakes, as well as an awe inspiring range of native grapes. The country’s winemakers are also adept at producing some cracking wines with international stars. Take Aluado from one of Portugal’s top names. José Neiva Correia is a doyen of Portuguese wine with many awards to his name. Having consulted for many of the country’s top cellars, he now has his own estate, and combines generations of tradition with an inquisitive spirit undimmed by decades of experience. Using grapes from vineyards close to the coast, Aluado has lovely ripe peach fruit balanced by a zing of stony crispness. Just what you want, as a glass on its own, or served with seafood, salmon or chicken dishes.
Tahbilk Eric Stevens Purbrick Cabernet Sauvignon
Bleasdale Bremerview Langhorne Creek Shiraz
Bleasdale is “one of the most historic wineries in Australia... in 2015 celebrating 165 years of continuous winemaking by the direct descendants of the founding Potts family.” (Halliday). Among many major awards, they’ve won the Jimmy Watson Trophy and they recently made the 2023 Shortlist for the Halliday Wine Companion's Best Value Winery. Winemaker Paul Hotker, a “master blender”, was named Halliday’s Winemaker of the Year 2018. This fine red is another example of why Langhorne Creek Shiraz is regarded by many as delivering Australia’s best-value reds, vintage after vintage. Intense aromas of blackberries, plums and Asian spice. Juicy dark fruits define the medium-to-full palate, with clove and liquorice notes dancing up back. Soft tannins.
d'Arenberg The Ironstone Pressings McLaren Vale Grenache Shi
In 1912, horse fanatic Joseph Osborn sold his stables and horses and bought the family the d'Arenberg estate in premium McLaren Vale. Joseph chose McLaren Vale as it has some of Australia's oldest vineyards, and with an array of soils and the cooling affect of the nearby ocean, it's ideal for vines. Winemaker today is sixth generation Chester Osborn. He continues the family tradition of treading the grapes by foot part way through fermentation. It certainly ensures plenty of dark colour, character and richness in the wines. You'll always spot a d'Arenberg wine with its bold red stripe on the label.
Moulin de Pontfract Rosé
Provence is synonymous with film star glitterati, sunshine and delicate hued rosés many regard as the best in the world. Although the region has become one of the pricier tourist corners of France, wines like this help us all to enjoy the Côte d’Azur lifestyle from home! It comes from a 17th century estate, just outside the town of Correns, owned by the dapper Monsieur Paul. He has an ideal spot for his vines – an amphitheatre shaped plot, where the chalky stone soils are bathed in sunshine all summer long. Using equal parts of Grenache and Cinsault, gently pressed to extract only a delicate colour, this is a charming rosé – fresh and fruity with delightful, strawberry scented aromas. Enjoy on its own, with olive tapenade or fresh seafood.
Peter Lehmann Margaret Barossa Valley Semillon
This beautifully mature 2017, has a Top Gold, 7 Golds and 96pts from Halliday. "Peter Lehmann's Margaret Semillon provides complex drinking and a length of flavour that many producers aspire to. It's a regional classic, and rightly so", as Dave Brooks writes in The Halliday Wine Companion, "All lemon butter spread on freshly toasted brioche with hints of soft spice, marzipan, wildflowers, crushed stone and drying fields. Dry, savoury, long and compelling. Some crustaceans and some of this and you are in a very good place. 96pts. Great Value.”