Yvonne’s Blog

As I stood in line at my local supermarket recently I watched almost every second person pop a bottle of Whale Point, Obikwa or Two Oceans wine into their trolley. These South African brands have been around for years and are regularly discounted to way below the $10 mark. Yet I’ve avoided them for no other reason than that they make me uncomfortable; a bit like the sort of scratchy discomfort you get when you pull on a really tight sock after cutting your toenails too short. But perhaps I was being unfair, snobby and (dare I say it) maybe even a teensy bit racist? I had to know what the appeal was.

Food Matching Mistakes and Space Age Wines

22 July 2011By Yvonne

When it comes to food and wine matching, my less-than-lithe figure can testify to years of experience, happily most of it good. Like the incredible, tongue-melting experience that was the John Forrest Collection Marlborough Chardonnay 2006 and seared scallops straight from the Sounds; or the wordless wonder that is a disc of foie gras atop … Read More

Cheap and not so cheerful

13 July 2011By Yvonne

Even if you’re only drinking the occasional glass of wine with dinner, the acidity and tannins will play havoc with your enamel. However in my job, where I’m tasting a couple of dozen wines a week (or up to a hundred wines a day if I’m judging), it’s like I’ve declared all-out war on my … Read More

Fair suck of the sav’ mate!

9 June 2011By Yvonne

New Zealand wines banned from entering leading Australian wine shows… In a case of fair suck of the sav’, some of New Zealand’s leading wineries have been refused permission to enter their wines in the upcoming Royal Hobart Wine Show according to an article written by Giles Hine of www.tizwine.com. Royal Hobart’s reason for their … Read More

«‹13 1415