Vintage 2005 reports

The 2005 vintage is well underway in the warmer districts, and will take place over the next couple of months in the cooler regions. To give Vinodiversity readers a close handle on how the vintage unfolds we have asked winemakers throughout Australia's wine regions to share some of the excitement. We are particulalry keen to know how some of more unusual and newer varieties are shaping up. As reports are received we will publish them progressively on the main Vinodiversity website.

Vintage 2005 reports

Orange muscat

A lively new wine bar has opened in Melbourne with an interesting list of wines by the glass, and lot's more bottles to take home.

I dropped in the other day and had glass of St Leonards Orange Muscat a crisp, DRY white. There is a vast prejudice among wine drinkers about sweet wines and anything that sounds like it may be sweet so perhaps we should rename this variety. It is a splendid and different white, crisp and refreshing.


JWOW Wine Bar for Orange Muscat

Bendigo Wine - Easter Sunday 27 March 2005

Once again the Bendigo wine show will be led in the beautiful Castlemaine Botanical Gardens.

The region is justly famous for its Shiraz and there will be plenty of that on show. But there is a small number of innovators in the region and you will find some Sangiovese and Tempranillo creeping in. You may even come across some Nebbiolo, Durif and Refosco. Among the whites there is Verdelho and Marsanne and I wonder how long it will be before we start seeing some Viognier.

Bendigo Wine Show Details

Concert in the Vineyard- Shoalhaven Coast

This event will be held at Humphries Estate Winery on the afternoon and evening of Easter Sunday, 27 March 2005. Food hampers, entertainment and, of course, wine will be available. Humphries Estate have Chambourcin which is sure to please the diverse palates

Jumbo Events - Concert in the Vineyard

Mad as a March Hare

Our wine merchants are getting creative in their specials, for a limited time they are offering a special deal on a half a dozen different wines. The deal is buy nine, get nine free. This sounds a bit odd until you discover that they deliver in 18 bottle cartons. Hmm...what will they think of next?

The wines on offer include a cabernet, a couple of shirazes and a couple of SSBs. But wait for it, there is an old favourite Casella's Yendah Vale Sangiovese 2002. 18 botttles for $152 a box, plus quite modest freight to all Aussie states. What a Bargain!

The latest newsletter also includes a trivia quiz with a nice prize, a mixed case of wine and beer for Easter. A separate weekly web specials section offers a couple of half bottles of Kingston Estate free with the purchase of a 'discounted dozen' of other wines.


Vinodiversity's March specials

Grenache Gazumps Grange

A bottle of Barossa Valley Grenache has sold at a charity auction in Florida for $US70,000 ($89,000), the most expensive bottle of Australian wine ever sold. This beats the previous record for a bottle of Grange ($US64,000). The grenache was a six-litre bottle of 2002 Torbreck Les Amis Grenache. And the event was a charity auction so the pundits think that it is not a real price. Still, 2002 was a very good year for SA grenaches.

In case you are interested in finding out about other grenaches, I suggest you look at Vinodiversity's grenache page


See The story in The Age

Cool Climate Wine Show

The public tasting of the The Red Hill Cool Climate wine show will be held on Wed-16th March.

Red Hill is a central location on the Mornington Peninsula. There will be plenty of Pinot gris on show along withn a smattering of other varietals. There is also an Awards dinner and a Symposium.
Cool Climate Wine Show Details