Taylors Masterstroke McLaren Vale Shiraz 2020 $60 Glossy, inky, and aromatically a beast all of its own. Very different to Taylors Clare Valley shiraz styles in that it’s scented on the earthy, smoky, spicy spectrum while underlying layers of plum, blackcurrant and peppered berries unroll across chewy, toasty, sandy tannins. Dry, densely structured and loaded … Read More
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Taylors St Andrews Clare Valley Shiraz 2020
Taylors St Andrews Clare Valley Shiraz 2020 $70 Bright and sweetly fruited on the nose with lifted boysenberries and dark chocolate, like liquid black forest gateaux. The classic blackcurrant character of shiraz sneaks through more strongly on the palate and it’s cloaked in dusty, earthy tannins and chamois-like textures that add chew and grip where … Read More
Taylors St Andrews Clare Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2019
Taylors St Andrews Clare Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2019 $70 Just gazing at its impenetrably inky, glossy, magenta-black colour as it pours into your glass was enough to make me wobble at the knees, but hoisting it to my nose and inhaling its rich aromas of spearmint cocoa, dark plum, wild cherry and smoked blueberries made … Read More
Taylors The Visionary Clare Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2016
Taylors The Visionary Clare Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2016 $220 Tasted bottle no. 4034 Inky-bright and garnet-dark, this deeply complex, exotically-scented cabernet sauvignon roars with bay, blueberry, fresh tobacco and earthy, dutch cocoa characters. It’s the 7th vintage of ‘Visionary’ which is named after founder Bill Taylor, who had a vision beyond his life in big … Read More
Decibel Hawke’s Bay Malbec 2021
Decibel Hawke’s Bay Malbec 2021 $32 This is one seriously fleshy, spice-stacked, cocoa and blueberry, softly peppery, plush malbec and I’m here for it. The mouthfeel is warm, woolly, round and roaring with textural tannins that boast prickle in all the right places. Juicy and velvety and energising to sip. This malbec is a rich, … Read More
Hush Hawke’s Bay Syrah 2021
Hush Hawke’s Bay Syrah 2021 $38 While any tasting notes and technical details about this wine are sketchy, (due to it being a secret Decibel Wines collaboration project), you really don’t need to know anything except that it’s incredibly floral and vibrantly spiced on the nose, dark berries, classic pepper, it’s all here. The palate … Read More
Decibel Giunta Hawke’s Bay Malbec Nouveau 2022
Decibel Giunta Hawke’s Bay Malbec Nouveau 2022 $19 Giunta is a range of wines made in a nod to the surname of owner-winemaker Daniel Brennan’s Sicilian great-grandparents. While his great-grandparents were old, this malbec, crafted from two clones (595 & 1056) grown on 3 different blocks around the Bridge Pa Triangle has been designed to … Read More
Tarras Central Otago Pinot Noir 2020
Tarras Central Otago Pinot Noir 2020 $40 – $50 With beautifully lifted aromatics of rosehip tea and a buoyantly fresh, textural mouthfeel, this is already a very satisfying wine despite its youth. Grown on their home (Canyon) vineyard high on the Bendigo terraces, it’s a finely tuned example. Warming, smooth and cherry-driven with bold-yet-supple tannins … Read More
Kuru Kuru Central Otago Pinot Noir 2019
Kuru Kuru Central Otago Pinot Noir 2019 $45 Named in honour of winemaker Hayden Johnston’s Māori grandmother* (Ngai Tahu), this pinot noir is deliciously complex, freshly spiced, vibrant and layered with dark cherry, black tea, hints of rhubarb and raspberry and has a core of softly gripping tannins. Very nicely balanced, plump, juicy and very … Read More
Tarras The Canyon Single Vineyard Central Otago Pinot Noir 2019
Tarras The Canyon Single Vineyard Central Otago Pinot Noir 2019 $80 Winemaker Hayden Johnston* is the talent behind Tarras Vineyards, a site located near the Central Otago town of Tarras. He utilises fruit grown in his organically-managed, home vineyard called The Canyon, located high on the Bendigo goldfield terraces. Deeply lush, moody, brooding aromas of … Read More