Rob Dolan 2012 True Colours Chardonnay

Rob Dolan is a larger-than-life character who has enjoyed several winemaking incarnations in the Yarra Valley. True Colours is his new range of brightly labelled Yarra wines, of which I found this the standout in a line-up of several well-regarded chardonnays. It's one of those wines where everything has come together seamlessly with a nice union of stone fruit and citrus notes, subtle oak (15% new) and some minerality and nuttiness on the palate. A wine for sipping on the porch on a late autumn afternoon. One glass will probably not be enough. $24. www.robdolanwines.com.au

Henschke 2008 Hill of Grace

The new-release of Australia's most famous single-vineyard red wine is cause for great excitement - and the 2008 Hill of Grace certainly lives up to the hype. Stephen and Prue Henschke are renowned for their attention to detail both in the vineyard and the winery and their obsessive natures pay dividends with this beautifully rounded and complex wine that has mouthfilling flavours and will undoubtedly cellar for decades. Utilising dry-grown shiraz from a vineyard that dates back to the 1860s and is farmed using organic and biodynamic principles, this is a wine of remarkable intensity and concentration; exotic, perfumed and spicy with dark berry and plum notes with layer upon layer of structure, brooding flavours and immense length. A powerful wine with everything perfectly in place, including new French and American oak, which has been seamlessly integrated. And it is bottled under a screw cap! $650.  

Jansz Tasmania 2007 Single Vineyard Vintage Chardonnay

An immediate candidate for the status of Tasmania’s finest sparkling wine (and therefore Australia’s best bubbly). This may be a “special occasion” wine but it is better than many NV Champagnes at around the same price. It has great power and length but also lots of elegance after four-and-a-half year on lees and 18 months in bottle. It will be made only in the very best vintages and will almost certainly cellar well. $61. 

Monument Vineyard 2011 Verdelho

The three Jones brothers, and their wives, took over the Monument Vineyard at Cudal, 30 kilometres outside Orange, three years ago - and the fruit is vinified by the talented Chris Derrez. I particularly enjoyed this wine, and was pleasantly surprised by its freshness. It’s a vibrant wine with a fresh fruit salad nose, leading on to a crisp palate with pineapple and guava notes. There is a nice, brisk acid finish. A wine for enjoying well chilled, perhaps with a chicken salad, or sweet and sour pork. $16. www.monumentvineyard.com.au.

Langmeil 2010 The Freedom 1843 Shiraz

Langmeil in the Barossa valley is the proud owner of some of the oldest vines in the world, including some that date back 170 years. This is one of four reds that make up the Old Vine Garden range of limited-release wines and contains fruit from vines that average over 125 years of age. The Freedom vines were planted in 1843 by Christian Auricht, who has fled persecution in Prussia and there's no doubt he would be proud of this very fine wine from an excellent Barossa vintage. It's a big, intense wine, unfined and unfiltered, but it carries it 15% alcohol lightly and would be a worthy companion to a hearty winter roast or game casserole. Drink a piece of history. $100.  www.langmeilwinery.com.au.  

Picante 2010 Costa Atlantica Vino Blanco

There's a lot of value to be found in the Spanish wines being imported by Echelon and McWilliam's - and while the reds tend to grab all the attention a couple of the whites are absolute bargain buys. A blend of viura and verdejo grapes crafted by Javier Murua from vines off the Atlantic coast of western Spain, this is a drink-now proposition that probably won't improve but it has vibrant floral aromas and stone fruit and sea spray notes on the palate, along with some some interesting textural elements. Food-friendly, too, and terrific for $14.     

Penfolds 2010 Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz

There is always much excitement within the wine trade - and among collectors - surrounding the release each year of the Penfolds Bin and Icon wines, and maybe more so this year with many of the reds coming from the highly-rated 2010 vintage. The new Grange is from 2008 and absolutely outstanding (many of my wine writing colleagues are falling all over themselves bidding to give it the highest possible rating). I'd be spending my money on a few bottles of this, however, a superlative blend of cabernet and shiraz fruit from no fewer than seven different regions throughout South Australia. Magnificently constructed and effortlessly elegant, this is a classic 389 from a vintage in which Penfolds chief winemaker Peter Gago says “absolutely nothing went wrong”. It is a spectacular, dark and inky red with great intensity, lift and balance. $75.