Peter's Picks

2007 Banrock Station Mediterranean Collection Tempranillo

Riverland A$15 
Global warming?  Climate change?  Who knows?  What is clearly apparent is that planting grape varieties that respond well to warm growing conditions makes sense in our viticultural environment.  So full marks to Banrock Station.  This is a very approachable red with a deep colour and bucketloads of juicy dark plum and ripe cherry fruit aromas.  The palate is full-flavoured yet quite soft, with lots of mocha chocolate and savoury beefstock and a gentle yet persistent tannin finish.

2005 Rymill MC2 Merlot Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon

Coonawarra A$17/NZ$20
Most value-for-money reds are young and brash yet the latest MC2 release from Rymill is already approaching five years of age.  It's a medium-bodied blend at just 13% alcohol and shows little apparent oak.  Red fruit dominates the nose with raspberry, red currant and mulberry framed by soft spicy tannins.  The palate is soft and gentle but in no way lacking depth or length.  In fact, it's a great lesson on the maxim 'less is more'.  Highly recommended.

2008 Best's Great Western Cabernet Sauvignon

Grampians A$30
When Viv Thomson released his first Best's cabernet sauvignon from the 1982 vintage, it created quite a stir.  At the time, cab sav was a scarce commodity, an absurb notion with today's glut.  This is no fruit-bomb, it's more in the thoughtful, savoury mould.  It's already showing a complex bouquet with warm, dark berry fruit, all-spice and dried herbs and a touch of cedar.  It's a wine of power and finesse with an energy that lifts it byond its peers.  Although perfectly drinkable now, further cellaring will see it at its best.

2007 Maison Champy Bourgogne Pinot Noir

Burgundy (France) $25
Maison Champy was founded by Edme Champy in 1720, but entered a new era in 1990 when three wine professionals acquired the brand.  With a Greek oenologist Dimitri Bazas at the press, the Champy wines have a purity of purpose and a gentle winemaking touch that sees them sit nicely between the old and the new.  It has delicious, fresh strawberry fruit flavours tempered by a fine layer of silky tannins and delicate thread of acidity.  It's not complex but a nice savoury drink at an extraordinarily modest price.

2007 Panizzi Vernaccia Di San Gimignano

Tuscany (Italy) A$45
Few would consider vernaccia a noble grape, yet it expresses a real sense of terroir when grown on the beautiful slopes that surround the romantic hilltop village of San Gimignano.  Aromas of wildflowers and honeysuckle greet the nose with hints of an underlying minerality.  The palate is sweet-fruited - nectarine, honeydew melon and cumquat with a hint of spice.  There is a surprising textural richness to the wine yet the finish is clean and precise.

 

2007 Hurley Vineyard Garamond Pinot Noir 

Mornington Peninsula A$55
The Hurley Vineyard was established by Kevin Bell and Tricia Byrnes in 1998.  They produce three individual-vineyard wines: Lodestone, Hommage and Garamond.  The pinnacle is the 2007 Garamond, which has a sublime perfume of mulberry, sweet plums intertwined with warm spices, coffee and savoury walnut notes.  Full-flavoured yet beguilingly subtle, it already shows the complexity that will lead to a long cellaring future.