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It’s
hard to beat Adelaide Hills producer Mike Press when it comes to value for
money. You always get plenty of
flavour and immediate drinkability from Mr Press, as in this new-release from the recently completed vintage. It’s an awesomely fresh and lively wine,
indisputably sauvignon blanc, but the exuberant fruit has a real “feelgood”
factor. It’s a crisp, crunchy, dry young wine with green citrus, gooseberry and
guava flavours; making it a perfect quaffer with its lively acid. It would be
superb with pan-fried flathead or some spicy flash-fried prawns. $12-13. www.mikepresswines.com.au
Looking for a red wine that is enjoyable, offers a point of difference and is affordable? Well, you won't go wrong with this fresh and lively young thing from Bunkers at Margaret River. Made from the Spanish grape variety tempranillo, it's a rich and generous red with plenty of flavour and some nutty oak - but its appeal lies in its balance. Yes there are some red berry characters. There's some spice, too, but this is a wine for drinking, not one for pontificating about. My guess is your bottle will pretty soon be empty without you having paid too much attention. Juicy, fruity and delicious, this is great value for $20. www.bunkerswines.com.au.
A delightful drink this one, from a small producer in Lussac St Emilion on Bordeaux's right bank. There is plenty of concentration on the nose while the palate reveals dark berry and currant flavours with oak (30% new) playing a mere support role. A blend of merlot, cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon, it is a supple wine, soft and round with excellent balance and complexity, but more importantly drinkability. It's a very clean wine, smooth and characterful and with medium-term cellaring potential. A very good introduction to affordable Bordeaux from a well-regarded vintage. $25. Imported by DiscoverVin. www.discovervin.com.au.
It is all too easy to overlook the tried and trusted - reliably wonderful wines like this Hunter Valley treasure - while frantically searching for the next big thing in the world of wine. This is a classic aged Hunter wine from a family producer that has long been at the forefront when it comes to quality semillon. Released at five years of age, this is still remarkably fresh with citrus aromas alongside hay and honeyed notes - and a similar pattern continues through to the palate. It will cellar beautifully for several more years as evidenced by tastes of the beautifully soft 2005 and the less acidic (from a very hot year) 2003. Concentrated, with attractive mineral/wet pebble characters, this is just starting to show some nutty nuances. Absolutely lovely. $65.
The economic reality is that many other countries can produce good wines more cheaply than we can in Australia. This is a case in point: a terrific savoury quaffing Spanish red blend that won't break the bank. Bright and lively, but also well put together, this is a soft, ripe red with plenty of flavour and excellent balance. It doesn't merit detailed tasting notes - it is a "midweek" wine best enjoyed with family and friends but none the less enjoyable for that. Imported by Fourth Wave Wines. $13.
My wine writing colleague Lester Jesberg has commented that this wine is throwback to the days of the great Leasingham Bin wines of four decades ago. I've never had the pleasure of tasting those wines, but this is certainly a red of remarkable quality and intensity. It's a rich, full-blooded wine, for sure, with co-fermented Clare Valley cabernet sauvignon and malbec dancing a tantalising tongue tango with some new French oak. Expect dark cassis and violet aromas and powerful dark fruit on the palate with impeccable tannin structure. A beautifully constructed wine, like a bodybuilder, tight-knit but flexible, and an absolute bargain for $35. www.timadamswines.com.au.
Andrew Thomas, the "maverick" Hunter Valley winemaker (as he was recently described in Decanter magazine), has just released four absolutely outstanding individual site shirazes from the 2010 vintage, and as his his wines traditionally sell out quickly it would pay to move smartly to secure supply. The DJV ($35) is a lighter, more elegant drink-now style, with the superb Motel Block and long-term Kiss Shiraz both excellent at $50. This, however, was the wine I though offered the best value - a bright and intense very modern Hunter shiraz, silky smooth, long and savoury, approachable but cellar worthy with plenty of weight and structure. Formidably good gear, this: a light-heavyweight that packs a considerable punch. $35. www.thomaswines.com.au
