feeds from wine.com.au http://wine.com.au/rss/ en-au http://wine.com.au/rss/ http://wine.com.au/static/campfire/layouts/images/omg-logo-small.png http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/31/plonk/ Thu, 31 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news Peter Bourne nominates his four favourite wines of the month.2009 Cigale Mourvèdre Shiraz Grenache (Barossa Valley, SA), $22 Cigale is Peter Schell's second-tier range and follows in the footsteps of his Spinifex Papillon ($28) with similarly fresh, bright flavours and concentrated yet light-footed structure. The flavours are of redcurrants and blackcurrants, with a touch of blackberry and fresh aniseed. The tannins are mild-mannered, making it a perfect partner to spicy ch ...

Peter Bourne nominates his four favourite wines of the month.

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/31/liquid-assets/ Thu, 31 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news The etiquette of wine ... In a restaurant, is it pretentious - and unnecessary - to sniff and taste a wine if it has a screw cap?No and yes, says our resident wine expert, Peter Bourne. "It isn't pretentious (unless you consider the tradition of formally confirming that the wine and its vintage are correct a pretence). But yes, it's unnecessary to check for cork taint. A quick sniff, however, may pick up other issues such as premature oxidisation and bacterial spoilage. I still do it.&quot ...

The etiquette of wine ...

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/31/bars/ Thu, 31 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news Fratelli Paradiso branches out with this popular wine bar.10 William Street, Paddington.Phone: 9360 3310.Open Mon-Thurs, 5pm until midnight; Fri-Sat, noon until late.The lads from Potts Point favourite Fratelli Paradiso are behind this sophisticated enoteca, simply called 10 William Street. The svelte, low-lit downstairs room brims with leftie lawyers on bentwood chairs nibbling arancini ($6), sockless dandies hovering over tables of swordfish, cress and radish ($25) and clothes horses cradling ...

Fratelli Paradiso branches out with this popular wine bar. 10 William Street, Paddington. Phone: 9360 3310. Open Mon-Thurs, 5pm until midnight; Fri-Sat, noon until late.

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/31/secrets-among-the-splendour/ Thu, 31 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news The undisclosed sale of a financially troubled winery to the ASIC boss raises questions, write Scott Rochfort and Michael West. JUST over an hour's drive from Melbourne's CBD lies the Yarra Valley, home to some of Australia's premier vineyards and wineries.The area's unique combination of soil and climate — what the French refer to as terroir — produces wines of distinction, attracting producers of the likes of James Halliday and even the French house of Moet & Chando ...

The undisclosed sale of a financially troubled winery to the ASIC boss raises questions, write Scott Rochfort and Michael West.

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/31/reader-events/ Thu, 31 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news dinner @ Bennelong It's hard to believe but Guillaume Brahimi (above) is one of the few hatted chefs in Sydney not to have released a cookbook. Until now. In Guillaume: Food For Friends, the chef showcases some of his signature dishes (Paris mash, anyone?) as well as different styles of entertaining, from a formal dinner for Leo Schofield to a laidback lunch for sass & bide's Heidi Middleton. To celebrate the launch of the book, please join Guillaume Brahimi and Kirsten Galliott, editor of t ...

dinner @ Bennelong

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/31/the-watchdog-his-wife-and-their-winery/ Thu, 31 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news Just a short skip from the bustle of Melbourne's CBD lies the Yarra Valley, home to some of Australia's premier vineyards and wineries. Hemmed in by the Great Dividing Range, its unique combination of soil and climate - what the French refer to as terroir - produces wines of distinction, attracting producers of the likes of James Halliday and even the French house of Moet & Chandon.Nestled in the midst of this bucolic splendour is the Oakridge Estate, a small top-end winemaker that incorpora ...

How ASIC chairman Tony D'Aloisio became a vigneron, write Scott Rochfort, Michael West and Ian Verrender.

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/30/much-munching-as-maitland-makes-music/ Wed, 30 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news FOODIES will be tapping their toes and picking through the tasty offerings lining Maitland's city centre this weekend as the third annual Maitland Taste Food, Wine and Jazz Festival gets under way.Like the city's Aroma Festival, the two-day Taste event was introduced as a way of promoting the delights of the Hunter Region to locals and visitors alike, festival organiser and Maitland City Centre manager Peter Clough told GT."Prior to this, the CBD of Maitland didn't have any signature events ...

Jumpin' jazz will tempt tasters to dance off their dining delights, writes Anita Beaumont.

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/30/grape-expectations/ Wed, 30 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news Coolangatta Estate 2009 Elizabeth Berry Cabernet Sauvignon $22This wine has been one of the real surprise packets from Coolangatta Estate which is better known for its outstanding semillon, chardonnay and more recently tempranillo and tanat. Medium bodied with lashings of red and black fruit, nicely balanced oak and rounded tannins. Drink with a rare rump steak.Apple Tree Flat 2009 Shiraz $11The colder months are closing in and it's time to start stocking up on some winter quaffers. This new rel ...

Coolangatta Estate 2009 Elizabeth Berry Cabernet Sauvignon $22 This wine has been one of the real surprise packets from Coolangatta Estate which is better known for its outstanding semillon, chardonnay and more recently tempranillo and tanat. Medium bodied with lashings of red and black fruit, nicely balanced oak and rounded tannins. Drink with a rare rump steak.

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/30/french-take-note-of-au-naturel-process/ Wed, 30 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news KRINKLEWOOD'S reputation as one of Australia's best exponents of fully certified biodynamic viticulture attracted a visit this month to the Broke vineyard by French biodynamic winemaker Pascal Lambert.Pascal and another leading French biodynamic winemaker, and France's first Master of Wine, Nicolas Joly, are visiting Australia as part of a world tour that includes the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.Krinklewood's proprietor Rod Windrim began implementing biodynamics in 2002 after he visited Fra ...

A little bit of dung goes a long way in making wine, writes John Lewis.

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/30/nibbles/ Wed, 30 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news New chef in the kitchenTHE bistro at the Albion Hotel in Wickham has welcomed new head chef James Christensen.He has worked in London, Edinburgh and St Tropez in France.Most recently, he occupied the kitchen at the Hunter Valley's Shakey Tables, where he was instrumental in helping the restaurant win the best modern Australian dining category in the Restaurant and Caterers Association Awards.Christensen has been busy putting the final touches to a fresh new menu for Bistro Albion.In other news, ...

New chef in the kitchen THE bistro at the Albion Hotel in Wickham has welcomed new head chef James Christensen.

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/30/cheese-lovers-get-cooking/ Wed, 30 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news CALLING all cheese lovers.The Hunter Valley Cheese Company will begin hosting cheesemaking and cheese appreciation classes in April.Master cheesemaker Peter Curtis and cheese specialist Rosalia "Rose" Lambert will break down the mystery of artisan cheesemaking.During the three-hour classes, guests will learn how to prepare and age simple, traditional cheeses at home and understand the regional and seasonal variations of farmhouse cheese.The workshop begins with a cheesemaker's selectio ...

CALLING all cheese lovers.

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/30/shanghai-faves-in-favour/ Wed, 30 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news THERE are some tremendous dishes on the menu at New Shanghai but for this diner it's all about the dumplings and pork buns.Steamed or fried and served with vinegar, soy sauce and ginger, the dumplings burst with flavour.Rookies should note that piercing the dumplings with a chopstick before biting can save you from squirting hot, delicious broth all over your dining companion.Dim Sim: Xiao Long Bao - steamed mini pork bun, eight pieces, $7; pan-fried pork bun, eight pieces, $9.20; deep-fried pas ...

THERE are some tremendous dishes on the menu at New Shanghai but for this diner it's all about the dumplings and pork buns.

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/30/spicing-up-shellfish/ Wed, 30 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news THERE is an old wives' tale that circulates regularly stating you should discard any mussels that do not open on cooking.The myth has been traced back to a popular 1973 cookery book by English author Jane Grigson, who stated "throw away any mussels that refuse to open".It is thought this was a result of concerns at the time about some European mussels being dredged from polluted beds.But a little more than 10 per cent of mussels will stay closed after being cooked and this is normal. A ...

THERE is an old wives' tale that circulates regularly stating you should discard any mussels that do not open on cooking.

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/30/wine-list/ Wed, 30 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news Dindima 2005 Orange Cabernet Merlot, $35OWNERS Lee and Dave Bell named their operation Dindima (Din-dee-ma), meaning "group of stars", as a tribute to the indigenous Wiradjuri people of the Orange district. Their Orange vineyard is 900 metres above sea level and this wine, which won a gold medal in the 2008 National Cool Climate Wine Show, is a blend of 75 per cent cabernet sauvignon and 25 per cent merlot. The wine is garnet-hued and has ripe plum and caper scents. Firm blackberry fla ...

Dindima 2005 Orange Cabernet Merlot, $35

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/29/spice-added-to-the-mix/ Tue, 29 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news BistrodeAddress 478 Bourke Street, SurryHills. Phone 9380 7333.bistrode.com.Open Dinner,Tue-Sat; lunch,FridayLicensedYes andBYOTue-Thu(corkage $10 a bottle).Cost About $130 for two,plus drinks.15/20Gone are the men. The framed black-and-white photographs of British chefs - all men - that were Jeremy Strode's heroes and mentors have packed their bags and followed him to Bistrode CBD, leaving only the women behind. Girlpower now reigns at Bistrode, where Jeremy's partner, Jane, shares kitchen duti ...

Bistrode Address 478 Bourke Street, Surry Hills. Phone 9380 7333. bistrode.com. Open Dinner,Tue-Sat; lunch,Friday LicensedYes andBYOTue-Thu (corkage $10 a bottle). Cost About $130 for two, plus drinks. 15/20

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/29/short-black/ Tue, 29 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news + He's spent the past two weeks in Australia, now British chef Heston Blumenthal looks set to have a formal role in this country. There's a good chance he will take on a director role, in an advisory capacity, for next year's Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.

+ He's spent the past two weeks in Australia, now British chef Heston Blumenthal looks set to have a formal role in this country. There's a good chance he will take on a director role, in an advisory capacity, for next year's Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/29/opinion/ Tue, 29 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news BIODYNAMIC BEAUTIESImporter Randall Pollard of Heart and Soil has begun bringing the biodynamic wines of Champagne Fleury into Australia. Based in Bar-sur-Aube, in the far south of the appellation, near Chablis, Jean-Sebastian Fleury's wines are not only biodynamic in a region famous for its high use of vineyard chemicals but his wines are very low in the common wine preservative, sulfur dioxide — 50 to 60 parts per million, he says, while the law allows up to 18 ...

BIODYNAMIC BEAUTIES

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/29/tastings/ Tue, 29 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news WINE OF THE WEEKWickhams Road Shiraz, Yarra Valley,2010, $16This is the second label of Hoddles Creek winery in the Yarra Valley. Its main label is only a little more expensive and also great value. The wine is a spicy, light- to medium-weight interpretation of shiraz that speaks clearly of its cool-climate origins. There are meaty and red-fruit aromas and it is quite fragrant for a shiraz. Despite moderate alcohol (13.7 per cent) and a lighter body, it has good intensity of flavour and light ta ...

WINE OF THE WEEK

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/29/you-cant-beat-the-classics/ Tue, 29 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news The legacy of vibrant and tasty heirloom vegetables will remain long after your plate is clean. HEIRLOOM vegetables are like a window to the past. From a time before the large-scale commercial production of fruits and vegetables began, their seeds were prized and kept, passed down from family to family, hence the name heirloom.Open pollination means the vegetables keep their natural traits, unlike the more homogenous commercial crops bred for consistency.The seeds of thousands of different heirl ...

The legacy of vibrant and tasty heirloom vegetables will remain long after your plate is clean.

http://www.wine.com.au/wine-articles/2011/3/29/uncorked/ Tue, 29 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST news Wine of the week Punt Road Yenda Botrytis Semillon 2009 $30-$33 500mlPUNT Road is a winery in the Yarra Valley but it sources this luscious sweet wine from Yenda in the New South Wales Riverina. It's the Australian heartland of sweet, botrytis-affected semillons and this is a great specimen. It's bright yellow-gold in colour and the intense nose has candied citrus and marmalade aromas, suggestions of glace peach and apricot, and a lovely syrupy, welcoming quality. It tastes smooth and luscious, ...

Wine of the week