wineweek.com.au » cabernet & blends

Wine Week 183: Mates Eights.

wineweek — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 00:45:13 +0000

This week we look at three wines from the 2008 vintage that are sure to keep you, and your mates, happy. The first is the classy Chalambar Shiraz from Seppelt. This is a wine you’ll see in shops, and on a lot of restaurant wine lists where it’s often one of the best value propositions.

The 2007 vintage was brilliant for Margaret River, but what about 2008? We check out the Capel Vale Cabernet Sauvignon from the more recent vintage and can happily say that the follow-up year is looking like a truly worthy sequel!

To round out the week we grab the Ten Minutes by Tractor Chardonnay from 2008. While the Mornington Peninsula is probably best known these days for their Pinot Noir, there’s no doubting that many of the producers from the region have been turning out beautiful whites from this classic grape.

This week’s recommendations are:

Seppelt Chalambar Shiraz 2008 ($15-$22)
Capel Vale Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 ($25-$27)
Ten Minutes by Tractor 10X Chardonnay 2008 ($26-$29)

Download the video: (4 min 29 sec)
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Cheers… and happy wine buying!

Brad and Danny

Wine Week 182: A river runs through it.

wineweek — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 03:51:35 +0000

The Barossa Valley is probably Australia’s best known wine region, and the river that runs through it has fame of its own. But Para is better know as the name of one of the country’s finest fortified wines more than it is as a river.

We also recommend an inexpensive Cabernet blend from Cookathama. We also change things up a bit with the Jaluka Chardonnay from Seppelt instead of bashing you over the head with yet another Riesling.

This week’s recommendations are:

Cookathama Cabernet Merlot 2007 ($15-$18)
Seppeltsfield Para Grand Tawny NV ($25-$32)
Seppelt Jaluka Chardonnay 2008 ($22-$26)

Download the video: (4 min 35 sec)
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Cheers… and happy wine buying!

Brad and Danny

Wine Week 178: I see red, I see red, I see red!

wineweek — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 02:14:07 +0000

Yesterday Australia found themselves with a new Prime Minister, Julia Gillard. While some have been focused on the fact this is Australia’s first female PM, we’re looking at it a different way.

Yes, our new leader has flaming red hair!

So what better way to toast the new PM than with a few bottles of red?! We first raise a class to the “Power Fox” (as Crikey have dubbed her) with glass of sparkling red. The Fox Creek Vixen is a lovely way to celebrate an early morning coup as it goes beautifully with bacon and eggs. While some make fun of red-heads by calling them “rangas”, we prefer to check out the Ata Rangi Crimson. It has been known as the second stringer for a long time, but it seems good enough for the job at hand. Lastly we pay homage to the outgoing Kevin Rudd with the Brave Faces from Two Hands. A soft, supple wine that pays its respects to history and the people who tended the country’s vines before those in charge today.

This week’s recommendations are:

Fox Creek Vixen NV ($20-$23)
Ata Rangi Crimson Pinot Noir 2008 ($30-$33)
Two Hands Brave Faces GSM 2008 ($24-$26)

Download the video: (5 min 48 sec)
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Cheers… and happy wine buying!

Brad and Danny

Wine Week 175: 3 Big Reds.

wineweek — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 00:54:27 +0000

If you’re a fan of red wine, and you should be, then we’ve got a book that we consider to be indispensable. The Big Red Wine Book is filled with reviews of even more wines than we can suggest to you in a year, so go grab one now! Brad looks at the St. Hallett Faith Shiraz, while Danny checks out the Yalumba Cigar Cabernet. These two wines both rate pretty highly in the Big Red Wine Book, with the Cigar getting a spot right at the very front in the “best” section.

This week’s recommendations are:

The Big Red Wine Book 2010/2011 ($24.95 RRP)
St. Hallett Faith Shiraz 2008 ($17-$20)
Yalumba Cigar Cabernet 2008 ($25-$27)

Download the video: (5 min 11 sec)
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Cheers… and happy wine buying!

Brad and Danny

Wine Week 174: Alex, Bobbie and Mr X.

wineweek — Thu, 27 May 2010 23:39:54 +0000

We’ve got three great wines and a great giveaway this week, so let’s get straight into it!

The first wine of the week is the Campbells Bobbie Burns Shiraz. It’s a great table wine from Rutherglen, a region probably better known for its brilliant fortified wines. Danny, a massive Rutherglen fan himself, follows up with another of his personal favourites – Coonawarra Cabernet. This week he talks about a single vineyard wine from Wynns. The Alex 88 might be getting a new name from the next vintage, but grab this one while you can. To end the week Brad checks out a Riesling from Western Australia’s Great Southern. The Xabregas Show Reserve Riesling is perfect if you’re looking for something that will handle a bit of cellar time.

We’ve also got 5 double passes to the Melbourne Good Food & Wine Show next weekend to give away. To be in the running to win just subscribe to our free email newsletter, or if you’re already a subscriber reply to this week’s email (full details in the email itself.)

This week’s recommendations are:

Campbells Bobbie Burns Shiraz 2008 ($20-$25)
Wynns Coonawarra Estate Alex 88 2006 ($35-$39)
Xabregas Show Reserve Riesling 2009 ($23-$28)

For more chances to win, tweet “I want @WineWeek to pick me to win tix to @GoodFoodWineMel (for Fri/Sat/Sun)”. Only include the “for Fri” if you can’t attend one or more of the days, including the day(s) you can.

For yet another chance to win, follow us on Facebook and comment under the competition details post. Make sure you include what session(s) you want to get along to!

Download the video: (5 min 39 sec)
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Cheers… and happy wine buying!

Brad and Danny

WineWeek 170: Around the ‘warra.

wineweek — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 00:04:22 +0000

Last weekend Danny dropped past the Coonawarra wine region on his way back from a wedding in Adelaide. So this week we’re looking at three wines from the region that caught his eye. The first isn’t a true Coonawarra wine, coming from the Wrattonbully vineyards of Yalumba, but this botrytis viognier is a lovely little drop. Brad then looks at a Wynn’s favourite that can be had for bargain prices. Danny rounds out the week with the 2004 vintage of the Highbank Coonawarra, a wine that made our very first Best Dozen back in 2007.

This week’s recommendations are:

Yalumba Wrattonbully Botrytis Viognier 2008 ($20-$22)
Wynn’s Coonawarra Estate Cabernet Shiraz Merlot 2008 ($14-$18)
Highbank Coonawarra 2004 ($43-$48)

Download the video: (5 min 14 sec)
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Cheers… and happy wine buying!

Brad and Danny

Wine Week 169: Something other than the norm.

wineweek — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 23:39:06 +0000

Generally when we’ve talked about wines from the Mornington Peninsula we’ve looked at Pinot Noir. But in doing so we’ve missed on the other great variety from the region: Chardonnay. So we start this week with a look at the classic white grape offering from Red Hill Estate. We also check out a McLaren Vale Shiraz from Shingleback’s second label, Red Knot. And ahead of Danny shooting off to the Coonawarra this weekend he looks at a bargain red blend from Balnaves called, aptly, The Blend.

This week’s recommendations are:

Red Hill Estate Chardonnay 2007 ($15-$19)
Red Knot Shiraz 2008 ($9-$15)
Balnaves The Blend 2007 ($17-$19)

Download the video: (3 min 59 sec)
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Cheers… and happy wine buying!

Brad and Danny

Wine Week 167: Cheap, inexpensive and great.

wineweek — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 01:26:31 +0000

Inexpensive bubbles are to be avoided at all costs… or so says Danny. But this week we look at a blanc de blancs from De Bortoli that will have the approval of your wine-snob friends but is cheap enough for even midweek celebrations.

Brad follows up with another of the classic Aussie blend of Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon. The Lake Breeze number shows just how Australian it is with an Aboriginal name for its blend.

We’ve been talking for a few weeks about some of the wines we showed off at the Seddon Wine Store at our recent tasting event, but we’ve saved the best for last. The Kate Hill Pinot Noir impressed everyone on the day, and the judges at the recent Tasmanian Wine Show. Not so easy to get, but worth hassling your local wine store about!

Want to join Danny & Brad in the Wine Week AFL footy tipping competition? Sure you do! Well, come on and be part of it!

This week’s recommendations are:

De Bortoli Rococo Blanc de Blancs ($18-$20)
Lake Breeze Bernoota Shiraz-Cabernet ($18-$22)
Kate Hill Pinot Noir 2008 ($30-$34)

Download the video: (4 min 35 sec)
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Cheers… and happy wine buying!

Brad and Danny

Wine Week 164: Funky Funky Fun.

wineweek — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 00:37:58 +0000

After last weekend’s tasting at the Seddon Wine Store we look back at what was a great fun afternoon meeting lots of our new wine friends. We check out one of the crowd favourites, the Plunkett Fowles Stone Dwellers Riesling. This “just right” wine was a big winner last weekend with you all. Brad also looks at another of Colin McBryde’s funky Some Young Punks wines. This time it’s the Passion Has Red Lips Cabernet / Shiraz blend, yet another of his ripping wines with an ultra-cool label.

Want to join Danny & Brad in the Wine Week AFL footy tipping competition? Sure you do! Well, come on and be part of it!

This week’s recommendations are:

Plukett Fowles Stone Dwellers Riesling 2008 ($20-$23)
Some Young Punks Passion Has Red Lips 2008 ($22-$24)

Download the video: (4 min 23 sec)
Windows Media (15.9 Mb) | Quicktime/iPod/iPhone (28.6 Mb) | Mpeg4 (15.5 Mb)

Cheers… and happy wine buying!

Brad and Danny

Wine Week 163: Tasting Rieslings and Pinots (and Cab blends too).

wineweek — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 23:27:07 +0000

Ahead of our first real world wine tasting event this Saturday March 13 at the Seddon Wine Store we thought we’d look at two of the wines that are the theme for the tasting. So Brad kicks off with a Riesling from Frankland Estate, one of the Western Australian producers who are doing great things with our favourite white grape. Danny looks at a Pinot from Dog Point, a New Zealand producer, proving his bias isn’t anti-Kiwi, just anti average wine. And although it’s not on tasting this weekend we round out the week with a wine from Rymill in the Coonawarra that’s blended to be drink worthy right now.

Tasting event details:
Where: Seddon Wine Store. 2/101 Victoria St. Seddon Vic 3011
When: Saturday 13th March, 2pm-5pm.
What: Rieslings and Pinot Noir – More than 2 dozen wines on tasting.
How much: Free!
RSVP: Via Facebook or just turn up on the day

This week’s recommendations are:

Frankland Estate Poison Hill Riesling 2009 ($25-28)
Dog Point Pinot Noir 2008 ($40-$45)
Rymill MC2 2005 ($15-$18)

Download the video: (4 min 56 sec)
Windows Media (15.9 Mb) | Quicktime/iPod/iPhone (28.6 Mb) | Mpeg4 (15.5 Mb)

Cheers… and happy wine buying!

Brad and Danny