First published on Tuesday, 30 December 2008 on www.ieatidrinkiwork.com.au What a handsome fellow he is. After the initial buzz of being given a magnum of Lanson 1982 died away, I realised the person who had given me the present had also created quite a serious problem. What do I do with 1500ml of vintage … Read more
A nice relaxing lunch yesterday at Mr Bianco in Kew was a great excuse to pull out a bottle that had been burning a hole in my cellar. We started with a bottle of the Frankland Estate Isolation Ridge Riesling 2010 – You’ve no doubt heard me go on (and on) about it before, but it is stunning. Here are … Read more
Imagine coming back from holiday and a supplier asking if you’d like to attend a large Riesling tasting featuring some of the best German producers (with a few ring ins). Well that is what happened, and feeling myself Riesling to the occasion of course I said “Oh God yes!”. It is after all the best … Read more
We are just about to announce the winners from Jan & Feb in our March issue of TWD Magazine. It’s not too late to sign up to find out they are. The Prizes:Everyone who signs up gets a chance to win a $50 gift voucher. One random winner will be announced each month. The top … Read more
One of the highlights of the year is Patrick’s Bring A Bottle Night. Not to take away from his hard and inspired work of assembling wines of a theme and quality suitable for our demanding palates, but on this night everyone pulls out all stops to bring a bottle of incredible quality. We did have … Read more
I was recently invited to attend a tasting that contained the best and brightest of Martinborough on New Zealands North Island. Sadly, I have not been there myself, although it sounds like one of those places I will have to make the pilgrimage to at some point in my life. Martinborough, a sub-region of the Wairarapa … Read more
So these wines were happily spruiked in my current Cellar Dozen. But I do like to be thorough… and I really enjoyed them last time I tasted them. Franz Haas Pinot Grigio DOC 2010 – I’ve tasted quite a few really good Gris/Grigio wines in the recent past and this is one of the most … Read more
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A little while ago I purchased a couple of crates of old wines from Australia. They were cheap and came with no guarantees where they had been kept or what shape they were in. I’ve had a few wines that were good enough to warrant the price of the whole purchase and I have slowly … Read more
Recently I was lucky enough to have lunch at the RACV club and no lunch there would be complete without some amazing wines. Bass Phillip Rose – Dry, spicy and savoury. Nice elegance and texture. Really freshing and really moreish. The best I have seen this wine in ages taste wise. Not so sure about the new packaging … Read more
A selection of wines I have tasted in the recent past that I have enjoyed. DR BURKLIN WOLF TROCKEN PFALZ RIESLING 2009 – The Bűrklin-Wolf estate is based in the Mittelhaardt, the quality core of Germany’s world-renowned Pfalz. Since the 2001 vintage Bűrklin-Wolf have classified their wines according to the vineyard site (similar to Burgundy) … Read more
A selection of wine notes from wines I have tasted in the recent past that I have enjoyed. There is no theme except for great wine. JL WOLF JESUITENGARTEN GRAND CRU RIESLING 2009 Ernst Loosen, owner of the world-class Dr Loosen estate on the Mosel, also has the reigns of this estate in the village … Read more
It seems somehow unbelieveable but I forgot to mention we have a sale going for the month of January. For all wines we currently have in stock we are offering: 10% off 6 bottles or more. Or 20% off 12 bottles or more. Below are the up-to-date lists: Cellar List Highlights include an amazing array of Aussie … Read more
The exciting conclusion to one of the great stories of 2011… (or something). Read part one here Lunch at Giant Steps/Innocent Bystander Including my first introduction to pork rillette – this could be a life long love affair. Great venue, great food and well worth a visit. The staff were great even the guy who foolishly … Read more
Hi Friends and Followers, We at TWD would love to get a few more people on to our monthly email list and we could use your help. To sweeten the deal, we have some incentives: Everyone who signs up gets a chance to win a $50 gift voucher. One random winner will be announced each … Read more
Wine lists can sometimes be like a Dan Brown novel, loosely based on fact and surprisingly popular. Sometimes they are great and sometimes they are not. Like a Dan Brown novel you have to read it before you can tell if you like it or not. This article will hopefully give you a few tips … Read more
Originally feature in our TWD Magazine (Sign Up here) October and November 2011 issues. The questing a lot of budding wine collectors will ask while tasting a wine is: “is it cellarable?” I do bang on a lot about cellaring wine. You’ve all probably heard me talk about it or read how good and important it is. … Read more
I’ve tasted some interesting wines of late and thought I would share. First off there is the wines from my Yarra tour. Part two to follow. Then there was: Pierre Gaillard St Joseph Clos de Cuminaille 2009 – Brilliant wine! I tasted their standard (horrible term but it is said with love) St Joseph and thought … Read more
A few weeks ago, in a vain attempt to educate a Burgundian friend on the merits of Australian wine, we set out to see the delights of the Yarra Valley. Unfortunately, our designated driver was extremely hung over and went back to bed, which meant that I had to shoulder the driving responsibility. Despite our early set … Read more
This years Burgundy On Boxing Day is a wine that I’ve been looking forward to drinking for a long time. Robert Chevillon Nuits-St-Georges Les St Georges 1er Cru 2004 A momentous occasion like this requires time-lapse. 2004 was greatly criticised and overlooked by a lot of people. I had the privilege of drinking quite a … Read more
Phil enters like Jacob Marley and introduces the wines of Xmas Past. What do you do for Xmas drinks? I for one am big on sharing wine with the people I am with. But also pitching the wine to the people I am with. My lovely mother-in-law likes wine but generally hates anything I bring … Read more
One of my most favourite traditions (second only to Burgundy on Boxing Day) is Patrick’s Monday dinners held every second month at Matteo’s in Brunswick. This month we get to look at Bordeaux 2001. An underrated vintage that offers high-quality Bordeaux. We also drink four German Riesling from the excellent vintage of 2007. Plus the usual Champagne on … Read more
In readiness for Decembers TWD Magazine, I have a few goodies open so I may write on their merits. The Highlights of my wine tastings are as follows: Marc Bredif Vouvray 2009 Chenin Blanc may well be the John Paul Jones of wine. Not the most popular or the most famous, but seriously good! Lovely, fleshy/flowery … Read more
Welcome To My Happy Place. Where all the thoughts and (mis)adventures of The Wine Depository staff will be catalogued and probably used against us at a later date. Feel free to comment, interact and generally have a good time. Sign up to my newsletter here. Oh, and feel free to buy some wine too. It … Read more