Wine Tastings
M3 Chardonnay, Shaw & Smith
Shaw + Smith began over a long lunch in 1989 when cousins Martin Shaw and Michael Hill Smith decided to realise a long-held dream to make wine together. Their vision remains to make exciting, refined wines, exclusively from the Adelaide Hills, that rank among Australia's best.The M3 Chardonnay is consistently one of the best examples of the grape coming out of Australia and recent vintages have pushed the reputation even further. It is an elegant, mineral style of Chardonnay, edging towards Burgundy in style but with a truly Australian verve.This goes really well with roast chicken and fine fish dishes.
Hilltop Shiraz, Clonakilla
Clonakilla are one of Australia’s most iconic Shiraz producers. Their flagship Shiraz/Viognier is amongst the countries best (available on request), however, this wine gives you a real insight into the genius of winemaker Tim Kirk at a fraction of the price. In fact, for drinking now, this wine is more approachable and rewarding than its big brother. Not as big and jammy as Barossa Shiraz, this has a slightly more Rhône-y edge to it, making it much more food friendly in my book. Still juicy and full of delicious dark, spicy fruit but with balance and restraint.
Pinot Noir, Heirloom Vineyards
Heirloom Vineyards make wines from various regions, carefully selecting grapes from organically farmed vineyards. This Pinot Noir from Adelaide Hills, is a great example of really well-made Australian Pinot. It has the perfect balance between rich, red fruit flavours and more serious savoury characteristics. It has a long, juicy finish and exudes quality that would put many a more expensive Pinot to shame.
If you are a Pinot Noir fan, you can drink this with just about anything (I do), but it goes particularly well with grilled lamb chops!
