A round-up of tastings and an unusual crisp and wine pairing
It’s been a ridiculously long time since I last published a newsletter, so to reassure you that I haven’t packed in the whole Substack thing, I thought I’d give you a round-up of the wine-related activities I’ve been up to in the last few weeks.
Matthew Jukes 100 Best Australian Wines
Some of the wines from Matthew Jukes’s 100 Best Australian Wines Report 2025 were available to taste at the Tate Modern at the end of April. I’m a huge fan of Australian wine, so it was great to get a chance to taste some stuff from some of the country’s best producers. Below are my standouts:
Favourite producer (and wine) of the tasting
McLaren Vale-based Yangarra Estate had three fantastic wines on show, my favourite being the Ironheart Shiraz 2019 (£90, Vinvm). A definite savoury, bacony edge with sweetness from 35 per cent new oak. Ironheart is the estate’s flagship shiraz and is from a single vineyard in Blewitt Springs in the north of McLaren Vale. The soil is ironstone gravel.
I had tasted the estate’s Old Vine Grenache 2022 (£33 Little Fine Wine Company) before and it has great tannic structure, red fruits and violet. The Roussanne 2021 (£32 Hedonism) was savoury with hay and melon.
Favourite chardonnay
The Giant Steps Single Vineyard Bastard Hill Vineyard Chardonnay 2023 (£57, Lay And Wheeler) is flinty with that reductive ‘struck match’ characteristic common In good-quality Aussie chardonnay. The fruit profile is peach and melon. Matthew Jukes gave this 19/20 in his notes, and it rated great value when compared against quality white burgundies. Yarra Valley-based Giant Steps was awarded Winery of the Year by Jukes in his report.
Favourite cabernet sauvignon
Wynns Coonawarra Estate John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 (£100, Berry Brothers) is reminiscent of a decent Bordeaux (which was probably why I liked it!), savoury and oak-influenced (25 per cent new French oak), with rich fruit. The wine is named after John Riddoch, a Scotsman who saw the potential in Coonawarra as a wine region in the 19th Century (the unique terra rossa soil, a permeable red clay which sits on a limestone base, is particularly suited to growing cabernet sauvignon). Wynns does a cheaper cab, the Black Label, which tasted like blackcurrant tart and costs around £25 at Majestic.
Value options
Xanadu is one of the top producers in Margaret River in Western Australia and its Black Label Chardonnay (£25 Corking Wines) has a saltiness and a lime streak with great texture.
The Jansz NV Tasmanian Premium Cuvee is just £19 from Waitrose. Made in the traditional method, it’s a blend of chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier, and I would go for this over most French crémant at a similar price point.
I should also mention the Tyrell’s Winemaker’s Selection Vat 1 Hunter Valley Semillon 2018, which isn’t cheap at £55 but is complex with toast, beeswax and lime. Very linear, just 11.5% abv.
Rhone Roots
This tasting showcased wines from the north and southern Rhone, plus a few Australian and South African producers for comparison.
Chateau de Beaucastel
This was the first time I sampled the wines from this iconic producer based in Chateauneuf-du-Pape (although owners the Perrin family have their fingers in a lot of pies - for example they produce Miraval rose) . The Les Chapouins 2014 (£93 Hedonism) is from fruit grown in the Perrin family’s single vineyard in Chateauneuf-du-Pape and is a blend of grenache, mourvedre and syrah. It is ready to drink, with spicy red fruit, floral with some traces of tertiary and coffee. Tannins are still well defined.
The Roussanne Vieilles Vignes 2022 (£180 Hedonism) is from vines planted in 1909. Difficult to assess from just one mouthful, but the finish is very long. It was reviewed by the Wine Advocate in October 2023 – ‘It's ripe and honeyed, with waves of lush peach and melon fruit, yet it somehow never seems overdone.’ I’m hoping I get to try a glass of this in the future.
The Beaucastel Blanc 2022 (£95 Hedonism) is a blend of 80% roussanne with other permitted varieties from the Chateauneuf-du-Pape region. I thought it a bit shy on the nose but it is full-bodied and has tremendous depth.
Maison Delas Freres
Northern Rhone-based estate owned by champagne house Louis Roederer.
The Hermitage Les Bessards 2013 had mixed reviews from the party I was tasting with, and it costs north of £100. It reminded me of a top-notch mature Bordeaux, truffly and earthy, seemed developed. Interesting for now but perhaps already past its best (2013 wasn’t a great year in most of France).
The Crozes-Hermitage Le Clos 2022 (£37 Vinatis) is far more accessible from a price point of view and was extremely distinctive for a crozes-hermitage, with the spiciness of the syrah prominent to the extent it perhaps overpowers the fruit. I’d buy it again at the retail price.
Wine and crisp pairing
These events tend to be in vogue, perhaps on the back of The Crisp Sommelier, a book by Neil Ridley. I haven’t really bought into the fad, and this tasting at Balfour and Bow Wine Vaults in London was a bit hit and miss. For example, Pringles and Monster Munch – which we both had – pretty much overpower the majority of wines you pair them with (in particular non-aromatic whites). The surprising winner was barbecued beef-flavoured Hula Hoops with a moreish Garnacha (Alma de Unx, from Navarra in Spain, good value at £14 from Corney and Barrow). Bacon frazzles with a budget Pinotage was also acceptable.
Flight 49
Caves Sao Domingos Espumante 2015, DOC Bairrada (£13.35 Portugalvineyards.com)
My favourite from a Wines of Portugal Masterclass hosted by Jamie Goode at the London Wine Fair. Made from 100 per cent Baga, the signature red variety of the Bairrada region. Zero-dosage but not too tart, 60 months on lees, so nice toasty notes and strawberry fruit. Fresh, excellent value at the price but shipping fees need to be added (not yet retailing in the UK).
La Rioja Alta Vina Ardanza Reserva 2017, Rioja (£36 Majestic)
Aged for 36 months in American oak and you get everything here (spices, charred wood, chocolate, glacier cherry, fig) that represents old-school rioja. Hard to crab and sometimes oak-influenced reds hit the spot, if you’re in that type of mood.
Domaine Kirrenbourg ‘Terroir B’ Sylvaner 2020, Alsace (27 euros, purchased from the winery)
Terroir B equates to the Brand grand cru vineyard in Alsace. The best sylvaner in the region tends to be grown on the more northerly Zotzenberg grand cru site, but this is great, with orchard fruit, peach, slightly vegetative and savoury and quite spicy. Complex on the palate. Sylvaner is more reserved than riesling on the nose but it makes up for this with its textural mouthfeel. This will age well.
I'm pleased you enjoyed The Giant Steps Single Vineyard Bastard Hill Vineyard Chardonnay 2023. They are based in Healesville, part of the Yarra Valley not far from home. We are going there on the 27th June. I don't think this premium wine will be available to taste.
Tyrell’s Winemaker’s Selection Vat 1 Hunter Valley Semillon 2018 is a classic but beyond my budget.
You mentioned many other good Aussie wines too.
That wine and crisp pairing is giving me flashbacks of my sommelier qualification - also a bit hit and miss. Good to have you back on Substack!