What is an old Bordeaux? When you’re talking about the pointy end of quality, I mean Cru class from Left and Right Bank. I think they start looking old at about 15 years. Maybe 10 for a less good year like 2007 or even 20 years for a great year like 2005. It is when … Read more
Thursday was a cold Autumn day in Melbourne. Business as usual, but perfect for what was planned in the evening; showcasing the best Shiraz in Australia at a Rockford Basket Press Dinner. For my own enjoyment, I’ve been collecting Basket Press since at least 2000 vintage. But what do you do with seven or eight … Read more
The whole trip I’d been nudging forward the whites of the region because everyone knows how great the reds are. But subtly I had held back Chablis because I wanted to keep that flint dry (see what I did there?). Today that changes when we visit Chablis. The embargo lifted. We drove to the beautiful … Read more
The last Bordeaux 2010 dinner was so good we did it all again three weeks later. Different wines and a new venue to keep it interesting and away we went. Bordeaux 2010 recap. Bordeaux 2010 saw a summer drought without the heat of 2003. There were cool nights and a cooler August which meant thick skins, rich colour and tannin and … Read more
Over the years I have hosted numerous private tastings and dinners. When I got the call that the team at Telstra wanted to do a second one I knew I was in for a rowdy night. So I roped in some help in the form of Rob Hall from Kellybrook to entertain them. We decided to … Read more
On a warm summer night and only a week after my second Bordeaux 2010 dinner, I walked into my last wine dinner of 2013. And with high hopes, we sat down to six vintages of Antinori’s Tignanello. Tig, as it is affectionately known, is one of the original Super-Tuscan. The wine is exclusively from the … Read more
For the past two years I have been proud to raise funds for the Heart Foundation. To help achieve my goals I pulled a whole bunch of wine from my personal cellar and organised some customers and friends to attended a dinner at the wonderful restaurant Scopri. The end result was I raised $970 on the night. Plus … Read more
One of the perks of the job is shopping for these events. Trying to slide the best wines possible under the salary cap and working out the combinations often means I end up with more wine than I strictly need. But its all good wine, so the winner is me if no one else chooses … Read more
Regular readers of this blog will know I love Aglianico, Nebbiolo and well Italian wine in general. So with access to some lovely older Aglianico, known as the Barolo of the South, I thought why not taste them side by side. I don’t find that Aglianico tastes an awful lot like Nebbiolo. What it does … Read more
I will cheerfully admit I am a huge fan of Austrian wines. When a winemaking teacher tipped me off to the existence of Gruner Veltliner it opened up a whole world of textural, aromatic white wines that are almost more fun to smell than to drink (almost but not quite!). After years of enjoying Austria’s Riesling … Read more
One of the greatest parts of running your own business (apart from setting your own hours) is you can follow what you love and what interests you. So when wine importer Euan McKay suggested we do a dinner showcasing Burgundy 2009 I said yes before he had finished his sentence. For me the only thing … Read more
Greek wine has a very poor reputation, mostly because for a long time they have been churning out some pretty ordinary wine! We in Australia are just seeing the good quality producers being brought into Australia. So when importer Pete Johns suggested we show some open minded wine drinkers some great wines from Greece I … Read more
Bordeaux 2009 – WOW! Not since the 2005 vintage Bordeaux (of which I did three separate tasting in the space of a week) have I felt the need to write ‘wow’ in capital letters. I was a bit nervous to see if the wines lived up the the massive hype for a couple of reasons. First and foremost … Read more
Twice a year everyone in our group digs into their own cellar to share something special. Each wine has to be 10 years old and European. They are all served blind and therefore it is up to each of us to guess the wine after being given a series of options. Not surprisingly we call this game “options”. Due to … Read more
It was 5.59pm on Tuesday and I took a call from Matthew Hanson who I have chatted to regularly for well over 5 years now and who runs Fine Wine Appreciation Melbourne http://www.finewineappreciation.com.au/ . He said he had a last minute withdrawal from his William Downie dinner so would I like to come along? “It starts at 7pm” he added. I had … Read more
That is right folks, it has been an Italian-a-thon in my tasting circles. But far out it has been a great adventure. This was my third Italian wine event in a week and while I was a bit tired, my enthusiasm for their wines is as strong as ever. This dinner revolved around the 2001 vintage of Produttori del … Read more
This was only the second dinner I hosted for the The Wine Depository so there was a lot of fussing to make sure I was on top of everything. I wonder if Led Zeppelin felt this much tension for their second outing? Luckily I had a team of seasoned veterans around me who made everything … Read more
Continuing my Italian Odyssey (sadly without leaving Melbourne) Patrick’s group assembled to taste most of the Single Cru wines from one of the worlds best cooperatives Produttori del Barbaresco from the fantastic 2007 vintage. It is a sight of beauty. Barbaresco is in the region of Piedmont in North West tip of Italy, you can read a … Read more
After a few false starts Dave’s group finally managed to convene to taste some awesome wines at one of the best restaurants I’ve eaten at in Melbourne Sosta Cucina. A late withdrawal meant that we had to sacrifice a bottle of Cignale from Tuscany (one of my favourite Italian wines). But just as well, because … Read more
It is with a lot of pride I can write about the inaugural Wine Depository dinner which took place on Tuesday 15th May 2012. The private room at Scopri. An ideal setting. The goal was to have a casual and informative night on one of the worlds great regions: Piedmont. In many ways it is the Italian equivalent … Read more
Having missed one month due to work pressures, the Mezzo crowd were all pretty keen to catch up and taste some seriously good wine. And we were far from disappointed despite cork playing a starring role in two of the wines. CURSE YOU VILE THINGS! This month the theme was 2004 Burgundy, a vintage that … Read more
A memorable night for two reasons – some truly amazing wines, and the fact that two people pulled out last minute so there was a lot more wine than we needed. The plus side was there was no real disappointments, the downside was it was hard to decide what not to drink. We started of course with … 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
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
Quality Sparkling wine can be enjoyed at any time. I think we all deserve a glass of this
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Every time you taste a wine, it is an event. I would like to think it can be educational too. I hate stuffy wine events, so whether it’s a casual tasting or a Masterclass over dinner, I promise a fun, interactive and informative occasion… with great wine. Please take a peak below or view all our events here.
Sparkling Wine, Champagne, and Seafood Dinner at Dakota 25th March
It has been a long time between shared drinks for a lot of us. I have not hosted a dinner since October 2019. I am keen to get out and share great food and great company. How about you?
Let’s not muck around either! Straight to the top shelf. Champagne, Sparkling wine, and three courses (plus canapes). I’m excited to be teaming up with Dakota for the first time, the menu they have prepared is going to elevate these wines to a new level.
Book your seat here.
Your Own Private or Corporate Event @ Any venue you’re comfortable with. Wine is more than just a thing you drink. You share it with people you care about, and you tell stories about the wines and wine places you’ve been. A well-run wine tasting can be an experience of its own. The love of great wine is a concept that brings people together. Sharing it bonds people. This is an opportunity for you to share a special experience with family, friends, clients, colleagues or anyone you want to share some great wine with. Let’s talk about how to make your event special.
WARNING: | Under the Liquor Control Reform Act 1998 it is an offence to supply alcohol to a person under the age of 18 years (Penalty exceeds $7,000). For a person under the age of 18 years to purchase or receive liquor (Penalty exceeds $500).
