The Adelaide Hills is arguably Australia’s most vibrant cool climate wine region, and Sauvignon Blanc is the region’s flagship wine. This wine is pure Sauvignon Blanc – the passionfruit, ripe citrus fruit and peach flavours are fresh and intense; the acidity crisp and balanced.

We hosted seafood BBQ recently. Steak or sausages were outlawed. Only delicious Aussie seafood fresh from the sea was allowed. And it was bursting with flavour. Mouth-watering dishes like garlic prawns, marinated octopus and barbequed barramundi with sweet chilli and lime. Yum! This wine, with its zesty acidity, was the perfect partner for all that seafood and spice.

In fact, if you’re looking for a novel way to celebrate Christmas Day, a seafood BBQ is a great idea.
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At a recent Cellarmasters Barrel Tasting, winemaker Bob McLean asked me why I hadn’t got around to mentioning his wines here, in the ‘what I drank last night’ pages. Of course, I love Bob’s wines and it was only a matter of time. So this one’s for you Bob (by the way, thanks for the case!).

Now, on to the wine. Like many, I always enjoy a good Kiwi Sav Blanc and this one picked up 4 well-deserved stars in the Winestate New Release Tasting for this year’s July/August issue. It was top in its Category, too. And if you relax on the patio on a warm summer evening and enjoy a glass you’ll soon discover why.

Typical of a Marlborough Sav Blanc, you’ll find lifted sweet gooseberry with a touch of lemon. The familiar cut grass and ripe tropical fruit is there, too. The palate is fresh and lively, making it the perfect drop for summer lunches. Or summer anything, really – once you’ve tried this wine it’s terribly easy to find an excuse.

I’ll certainly be keeping a few bottles aside for the Christmas season for when friends pop around, or when we have the neighbours in for pre-Christmas drinks.
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4 stars – Winestate New Release Tasting, July/August 2008 issue. Top in Category!

If you love the lifted gooseberry, cut grass and hints of passionfruit for which Kiwi Sauvignon is famous, you’ll absolutely love this wine (and if you attended our recent Barrel Tastings you may have already tried it – lucky you!).

It’s an elegant Sauvignon Blanc that showcases the terroir of the Hawkesbridge vineyard, (recognised as one of the finest boutique vineyards in Marlborough). The nose is delightfully clean and introduces an elegant palate of ripe, deliciously clean fruit. It's refreshing, but with a refined finish.

We were very lucky to have the winemaker, Jo Gear, visit us at Cellarmasters when she was over from NZ the other week. She tells us her interest in wine began because her Dad had a penchant for trying to turn anything into wine (including guavas and rhubarb. Intriguing). Anyway, a wine like this is best enjoyed when it's youthful and vibrant, so if you’re after quality Sav Blanc drinking this summer, I’d grab some.
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The Festive Season time is bubbly time. One of my favourites – and a new discovery – is the Riversdale Estate Crux NV. It’s a beautiful super-premium sparkling made by husband and wife winemaking team Ian and Wendy Roberts at their boutique winery in Tasmania’s Coal River Valley.

Incidentally, the Coal River Valley wine region is just a 20-minute drive from Hobart. It’s a beautiful area with a rich history – and so peaceful. It’s perfect for an escape-from-the-city long weekend (I tried to wangle a ‘research’ trip there, to no avail).

Anyway, I’m wandering off the track. Back to the bubbles. This is an excellent example of a cool climate Chardonnay and Pinot Noir blend – elegant and complex, and the pleasant soft fruit and yeast flavours linger, providing excellent length to the palate. If you want a beautiful fizz for Christmas morning brekkie or New Year’s you won’t do better.
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Coldstream Hills was founded in 1985 by noted Australian wine writer, James Haliday. Although he no-longer owns the property, he does still provide advice, which is just as well if you love your Chardonnay like this one: long, viscous with ripe varietal fruit and rich, toasty oak.

Because it’s crafted as a drink-now wine that’s what some friends and I thought we ought to to... so we did – out on the patio with some delicious antipasto. This is a premier example of a cool climate Chardonnay and gets my recommendation for excellent summer drinking.
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Kiwi Sauvignon – especially those from Marlborough – is the world’s favourite varietal right now, and here’s a lovely example made by a couple of Ozzie girls from the Barossa: Kirsty Glaetzer and Jane Osborne. Yes, you read that correctly. They’ve also just released a Claire Valley Riesling and a Grenache Shiraz Mourvèdre. That’s because they like to indulge their passion, which is making wine they enjoy to drink themselves. Juggling their families (there are six kids between them) they amazingly find the time.

2008 is their first Sav Blanc vintage, and I really have to take my hat off to them. It has beautiful intensity of flavour with lively acidity, which complemented the scallops we had the other night just perfectly. Pour yourself a taste of Looking Glass Sauvignon and do some reflecting.
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The Caudo’s vineyard – located in the Riverlands region – was once a very successful rose farm. Roses are certainly pretty. But let’s face it, they not much use when you’re enjoying a grilled chicken and salad lunch with friends – which of course this wine is perfect for, as we discovered recently.

However, the wine does get its name from the popular ‘Peace Rose’ (something of a Caudo tradition in tribute to the property’s history). Anyway, that’s enough about flowers. If you love your Chardonnay full flavoured, with tropical fruit and subtle oak I recommend you try this charming wine this summer.
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I really enjoy a good Rosé in summer. Refreshing and crisp, they’re perfect for long, lazy summer lunches. With that in mind, some friends and I tried this lovely Dorrien Rosé the other day. It was all part of our research in identifying some must-have Rosés for summer (at least that’s what we told ourselves). This one certainly passed the test!

It’s full of light, fresh berry flavours and zesty, tangy acids, which makes it perfect for Australia’s hot climate. With their flexibility to match with nearly any dish, you’d have to think rose wines were invented for the great Aussie BBQ. If you haven’t already, I’d recommend picking up a case for summer.
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Our Sydney Barrel Tasting was a fabulous night. As always, I really enjoyed meeting members. It’s also great to spend some time rubbing elbows with the winemakers. If you attended, I know you’ll have tried some fabulous wines and hopefully got to chat with a few of the winemakers.

The challenge for me is choosing my top pick; however, with summer enjoyment in mind, here it is...

The Black Wattle Limestone Coast Merlot Rosé 2008 is full of light, fresh berry flavours and zesty, tangy acids, which makes it perfect for Australia’s hot climate. With their flexibility to match with nearly any dish, you’d have to think rose wines were invented for the great Aussie BBQ. If you haven’t already, I’d recommend picking up a case for summer.
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Click here to view the full selection of Barrel Tasting wines

We enjoyed this wine with a gourmet pizza and a DVD on a lazy Saturday night in (sometimes that’s the perfect way to relax, don’t you think?). But this Grenache Shiraz Mourvedre blend would be equally at home at a dinner party.

This delightful wine was crafted by the equally delightful (and colourful) Anita Bowen. I had dinner in the Barossa with Anita just last Wednesday. Her approach is to make “wine that I like to drink. I prefer wines with elegance and balance and length.” We like her thinking.

Anita has a fascination with Babylonian History – Balthazar was the last of the Babylonian Kings, hence the brand name. Ishtar, on the other hand, is the Babylonian Goddess of fertility, love and war. Well, we ‘love’ this wine but I’m not sure how the other two Goddess’s job descriptors fit in. Keep an eye on Anita – she’s one to watch.
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If you’ve ever been to Central Otago, you’ll know it’s a beautiful part of New Zealand. It’s also the hottest AND coldest part of the country. With its short, hot growing season it’s now recognised as producing some of the world’s best Pinot Noir.

We popped a couple of bottles of this Mt Rosa Pinot with friends the other night, and all agreed it was right up there – warm, richly textured with a beautifully soft finish. Mt Rosa was famous for it’s gold rush in the 1800’s. One taste of this, and it’s easy to think they may have another one on their hands very soon.

P.S. Mt Rosa is just 25 K’s from Queenstown. If you’re heading over for the snow, I’d definitely work in a trip out there.
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When we tried this Riesling the other day, a friend of ours (name not mentioned to avoid embarrassment) just couldn’t quite get the pronunciation of ‘Tocaciu’ right, much to our amusement. So let’s start with clearing that up... ‘Tocaciu’ is pronounced ‘Tock-a-choo’.

With that out of the way, I have to mention Pat. He’s been in the wine industry for over 30 years, a large part of which was spent as consultant winemaker for boutique Coonawarra and Limestone Coast wineries.

After years making wine for other people, he has now created his own label, and we’re glad he did, as his wines are something very special. This Riesling is bracingly crisp and fresh – I’d recommend having some on hand as we head toward summer.
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