It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..

Whilst the Australian wine industry has variously been described as 'dying on the vine' and in the middle of a 'crippling grape glut' it seems that the actual quality of our wines has never been better.

The results of the 2010 Intenational Wine Challenge - one of the largest wine shows in the world - have just been announced and Australian wines have scored in a big way, scooping up 65 gold medals - which is a 33% increase on 2009 - and enough to place Australia second on the nation scoreboard read more here

Just to further emphasise the point, Australia also picked up 26 gold medals amongst a strong showing at the 2010 Decanter World Wine Awards (results here).

Now all that remains is to re-convince the rest of the world about it...

The Winemakers Choice Staff Picks

One of the simple joys of working for a wine club is that you get to try a large amount of wine. On any given day there are several bottles open (and sometimes many bottles open) and everyone is welcome to taste what's open.

Unsurprisingly then, there are some wines that just hit the spot. Often they are the wines that aren't actually part of any promotional offer, or even wines that we normally stock, yet they just win all of the staff over based on sheer drinkability.

So I've listed below some of the wines that us Winemakers Choice staff can't get enough of. Many of these can be found on our website (www.winemakerschoice.com.au) but some of them can't (this isn't a sales pitch after all, we just want to talk about our favourite wines).

1. Grant Burge Miamba Shiraz: Delicious Barossan Shiraz, built in that beautiful, rich and full flavoured style. No harsh tannins, no excess, just lots of delightfully rich fruit flavours. The recently released 2008 vintage is particularly gluggable.

2. Yellowglen Bella: Some may roll their eyes at this sweet and juicy sparkling wine, but you can't doubt the attraction - light pink in colour with some juicy grapey sweetness, cleverly balanced by the froth and bubbles. Known to empty at great speed at sunny afternoon BBQ's.

3. Goldwater Sauvignon Blanc: Marlborough Sauv Blancs are (understandly) very popular with Winemakers Choice staff members, but this one has proven to be one of the favourites. What makes this one so attractive is it's flavour intensity, with a real depth of herbaceous aromatics and tropical fruit making for a wine of conviction.

4. Clairault Cabernet Sauvignon: It's not hard to see why this was popular - a bottle aged Margaret River Cabernet built dry, medium bodied and savoury but also with enough fruit sweetness to carry it all off. We only recently ran out of the 2003 vintage of this and a fair proportion of it was picked up by the staff....

5. Gramps Botrytis Semillon: 'Stickies' are hardly an everyday drink, so it's hardly a wine that sells by the pallet load, but it is still surprisingly popular amongst the staff. Why? Have you tried one? It is delicious! A sensationally rich, toffed, marmalade drenched sticky in the classic Riverina mould. Goes very well with poached pears ('allegedly')

6. White Rabbit Beer: Yes, it's a beer, but it is such a good beer that it deserves a mention. White Rabbit is a dark ale brewed in the Yarra Valley by the crew behind Little Creatures. Produced in a classic style, using open fermenters and lots of hops, this is one charismatic and delicious ale for anyone who favours quality over quantity.

Debunking Shiraz Viognier

Debunking Shiraz Viognier

Shiraz Viognier - it's THE buzz blend in Australia right now and it seems like everyone, from all corners of the map, is currently producing (or in the the throes of producing) one.

So, this week we are going to have a closer look at this very new wine style in a (hopefully) quite open style.

Please, if you have any questions, thoughts, opinions etc. don't hesitate to hesitate to comment on this post below.

What is Shiraz Viognier?
Shiraz Viognier is simply a blend of the Shiraz with a small addition of the Viognier (pronounced vee-on-yay). The Viognier component is often co-fermented with the Shiraz (ie fermented together) for better flavour integration with only a small amount of Viognier actually required to make for a successful wine (usually no more than 5-7%).

But hold on, isn't Viognier a white grape?
Correct. In this case the Viognier is used to help 'mellow' the often forceful nature of Shiraz, whilst also helping to lift the aromatics and brighten up the colour. As it is only a very small component of the blend, the end result is a red wine that can still be full bodied, yet with a more rounded and juicy palate profile.

Unusual. Where did it come from?
Shiraz Viognier is classically produced in the Northern end of the Rhone Valley in France, particularly from the renowned slopes of Cote Rotie (translated as 'the roasted slope'). In the Rhone, Viognier was classically co-fermented with Shiraz (née Syrah) to give extra perfume and lift, whilst also acting as a handy stabilising agent.

So what's the appeal?
Imagine, if you would, taking a typically full bodied Shiraz and then filing off some of the hard edges. Shiraz Viognier, at it's best, manages to combine both power and elegance, often coming up with a wine that is much more approachable in it's youth, without losing it's ability to mature nicely in the cellar.

And where is Australia's best Shiraz Viognier produced?
Whilst Shiraz Viognier can be produced just about anywhere that Shiraz can be successfully grown, the blend is at its best in cooler climates. Arguably, the two regions leading the Shiraz Viognier charge are the Yarra Valley and the Canberra District, both of whom have considerable history with the blend.

Finally, what are the best wines?
As always it's a contentious issue to attempt to nail down what construes as the best, but at the very least we will look at some of the top wines.

Clonakilla Shiraz Viognier ($75)

Tim Kirk, winemaker at Clonakilla, is an unabashed fan of Rhone reds, having been first inspired back in 1991 by the glory of Marcel Guigal's single vineyard 'La La''s. He has thus been producing his very own single vineyard Shiraz Viognier since 1992 (making it one of the firsts, behind the wine below) in a range that now features no fewer than 3 Canberra district Shiraz Viogniers.

This Shiraz Viognier, his top wine, has a reputation for both power and grace, epitomising everything that this blend is renowned for.

Yarra Yering Dry Red No.2 ($75)
Few would realise how long Yarra Yering has been producing a Shiraz Viognier blend, but records show this to have been first made in the late 70's. A typically restrained and elegant wine, this often has a small portion of Marsanne (another Rhone variety) also co-fermented for further interest.

The Dry Red No.2, like all the Yarra Yering wines, is famously long lived, with the 1980 vintage still said to be drinking well, some 30 years later.

Torbreck Run Rig Shiraz Viognier ($225)
In direct contrast to the other two wines above, Run Rig is built much more like a typically Australian Shiraz than a French Syrah, with oodles of impact, power and richness, with the Viognier here acting like a foil for the sheer weight of old vine Barossan fruit.

Torbreck also produce another, cheaper, companion to the Run Rig known as 'The Descendant' in amongst a range of more than 6 Shiraz based wines (with a new, even more super premium on its way).

Find a good bottle of Shiraz Viognier at Winemakers Choice! Check out the range here

Australian winemaking inventor dies aged 92

Sad news this week that Thomas Angove, inventor of the winecask died aged 92.

Angove was a pioneer of Australian wine, having not only invented the wine cask, but also planting one of the earliest large scale plantings of the South Australian Riverland.

The Shout has an excellent story that follows some of his achievements:

Read it here

Wine lake spreading to NZ

We have all heard the news, read the reports, seen (perhaps even tasted) the $2 Dan Murphys cleanskins and felt the grape growers pain as the Australian wine industry threatens to collapse on itself, drowning in a lake of tax incentive scheme propped cheap Shiraz and Chardonnay that no one wants anymore.

Yet the doom and greed of the wine oversupply situation doesn't appear to be confined to just Australian shores, as recent reports have shown that the Kiwi's appear to have started their own wine lake, with theirs taking on a distinct Sauvignon Blanc flavour.

Read about it here:
http://tvnz.co.nz/business-news/wine-growers-feeling-pain-3446383

Can you taste the difference between cork and screwcap

It has taken a while for the science to catch up with the market practice, but evidence has been released this week suggesting that people cannot taste the difference between screwcap and cork sealed wines.

Is this the last nail in the coffin for cork?

Read about it here

Taxation Changes for the wine industry

In a bid that will most likely push up the prices of most Australian wines and put even further pressure on the beleagured wine industry, recent leaks from the much vaunted Henry report into taxation in Australia has led to speculation that Australia will move to a flat percentage tax on alcohol, abolishing much of the rather complex alcohol taxation system currently used.

Have a read of this article for more information (here).

What do you think? Do you support such a taxation system?

Happy New Year!

Firstly, happy new year from everyone at Winemakers Choice!

Now that the bedlam of Christmas time has passed, it's time to start thinking about the new year and with it, new beginnings.

After going missing in action over the second half of last year as we built our new website (hope you like it), we promise to get back into regular blogging in 2010.

So good tidings, and dont forget to check back regularly in 2010!

Alzheimers and Wine

Good news on the health front yet again, with red wine proven to reduce the risk of Alzheimers for those over 75.

Full article here

A second straight year of decline for wine exports

It's hard going out there for Australian wineries, particularly those reliant on exports (as so many of our medium to large wineries are).

New data in from the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation (AWBC) shows that Australian wine exports are down both in volume but also, more worryingly, down in value.

Read more here The Australian