Master of wine and today I'm going to Cover a topic that was requested by you Guys I'm going to talk about a country From the other side of the globe or some Might even say from Down Under Australia I will give you an introduction into us And we're going to taste some beautiful Wines from Aussie land so you might even Want to say crikey might Um mate mate might But anyways let's go [Music] Some years ago I traveled through Australia for a while to see the country Taste some wine and surf for a bit to be Honest I was a little bit disappointed By the countryside because for long Stretches it all looks the same but I Was really impressed by the wine culture And the people most wineries have salad Or so you can just pull up at the winery Taste some wines and learn a little bit About the region and the winery which is Just great I also think that Australia Is constantly evolving and it used to be Associated very much with Technical and Fairly cheap wines but today the Landscape is far more exciting and Diverse but let's back up a little Australia is one of the most recent Additions to the wine world and it has Grown quickly over the last few Centuries when European settlers arrived First in Oz there were no wild vines
Like there were for example in North America the first Vineyards were planted In the late 18th century and the Industry grew quickly in the 19th Century veloxera also came to Australia In the 19th century but it did not Spread widely and many wine growing Regions are still philosopher are free There was a period in the early 20th Century when Australia focused heavily On the production of fortified wine Rather Glenn musket is one of the Remaining wines from that period but Things changed significantly in the 1950s cold fermentation the use of Stainless steel the focus on high Quality grape varietals and high hygiene Levels in the winery improved the Quality of Australian once significantly And made them very reliable even Compared to their old world peers today Australia is well established as a wine Producing country most of the wineries Can be found in the southeast of Australia in the states of South Australia and New South Wales but you Can also find some great Wines in Western Australia Tasmania and to a Lesser extent maybe in Queensland if you Think of Australian climate as hot and Dry and that's not entirely true most of The mind-growing regions are influenced By cooling winds from the Pacific and Some regions are actually at higher
Altitude levels like for example orange That sits above 600 meters in altitude But Australia can be really hot too and If you look at the most widely planted Grape varieties you find some warm Climate and some cool climate grape Varieties Shiraz Chardonnay Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot and sauvignon blanc she Rests the most widely planted grape Variety and while Australians have Adopted the spelling Shiraz it's Actually exactly the same red variety as Surah over time it has also become a Style descriptor so if you see wines From other countries labeled Shiraz they Tend to be a little bit richer and more Concentrated than turas from the same Country but now let's get into the wines Of a selection of Classics as well as Newcomers here so this tasting should be Nice let's crack open some bottles and By the way I don't actually think I will Need this too much today because in Australia most ones are actually covered Under screw caps even the really good Stuff so the first one is the 2021 Terror Hunter Valley semio the hunter Valley is in the east of Australia right Outside of Sydney and it's an Interesting region for the grape variety Some of you on the style of the wine is Very particular and I do really like it The Terra family is very much linked to This wine style they came to Australia
In the 1850s and they planted Shiraz and Seminole and they're still making the Stuff so they must be doing something Right the average age of the vines is 40 Years the fruit is harvested early in The morning to retain the freshness it's Then fermented in stainless steel and The wine well it's a very low alcohol Wine with 11 of alcohol it's quite fresh Quite delicate not very aromatic at all But it gets really complex and Interesting with age so it would Actually be a mistake to taste this now Because it's 20 21 way too young this is A baby but I think I have an older Vintage somewhere there on one of those Shelves Bear with me Okay so this is the 2015 vintage so this Should be a little nicer a little more Complex so leave this for the future and Drink this now this was definitely the Right decision this is beautiful it's It's just coming of age so it's Developing those tertiary buttery Butterscotch biscuit flavors It's really interesting you gotta taste It to really understand what it is but Once you once you get into it it's a Very easy wine to pick out in a blind Test because it's so special it's really Light and I call the acidity is fairly High you have those complex flavors There it's really animating really yeah
It's a beautiful wine it's a bit of a Shame that it's not more popular outside Of Australia in the old world in Europe You don't really see it all that often But it's really good and this is 10.5 Percent of alcohol so it's even lower so It's a low alcohol wine with no sugar This would be on every wine list really And on top of that this is like 16 US Dollars retail so it's fairly cheap and For me this is a 93.1 So definitely worth seeking out so the Next one is the 2021 grosset Springvale Riesling from Claire Valley clairvale is A cooler climate but the wine still tend To have quite a lot of intensity there's Lots of sunshine so sometimes you get Quite intense petrol notes in those Wines that can put me off a little bit But grasset is one of the best producers In the region and their wines are pretty Amazing usually so let's see whether This one is the winery was established In 1981 and they really focused on the Grape variety Riesling really wanted to Make great single Vineyard rieslings and They also were one of the first to Champion screw caps at a time when they Were not commonplace in Australia you Might not wonder what is the difference Between Australian clairvale Riesling And German reasoning for example and for Me there are some differences first of All you oftentimes have quite pronounced
Petrol notes they are not so pronounced Here I don't really fight them here Because they work the grapes really well But you do find them quite often but a Very distinct fruit flavor that I often Get from Australian rieslings is lime so You have a very intense lime flavor here As opposed to more lemon notes in German Rieslings for example This wine is super interesting because It has such a intense flavor profile but It's also delicate in a way but the Great intensity and richness on the Palette really shows off the quality of This Vineyard and the winery so the wine Is Super Fresh and vibrant it's very Very long it's not broad but it still Has power and intensity It's a pretty good Riesling so again This is a 30 US dollar Riesling and it's Just beautiful I'm actually going to Rate this 94 points I think it is Really profound really yeah it has quite A lot of texture and great one that's it So the next one is the 2019 Patrick Sullivan Ada River chardonnay from Gippsland that retails for around 50 US Dollars Patrick Sullivan used to work For an importer based in London and in 2010 he decided to get involved in the Australian wine scene he went to Gippsland which is a cool climate region Outside of Melbourne because he wanted To make really fresh and vibrant wines
There the region is very much influenced By the Pacific so cool Arctic currents That cool down the temperature there Quite significantly so this is actually The only one for which I need my Corkscrew The Grapes come from 40 year Old Vines the juice is fermented Spontaneously put into barriques for 12 Months he claims to be very low Intervention so he Farms The Vineyards Organically or biodynamically and Doesn't really add or remove much so I Have never tasted the wine before so Let's let's taste it by the way as this Is the only cork in this tasting let me Just kind of give the camera a good Smack Well that wasn't great anyways Let's taste for a long time Australian Chardonnays were quite Rich flabby Oaky Oftentimes they were chipped and not Necessarily fermented or aged in Barriques and they were quite boring but Over the course of the last few decades There were actually more and more wine Makers trying to make leaner fresher Wines some actually went too far and Produced really acidic and harsh Chardonnays but today the scene is much More complex so you actually have quite A few of those big and rich and bulky Wines but you also have some ones that Are much more refreshing much more Interesting much more well they have
More energy in my opinion this one is Certainly one of the more New Wave ones Made in the fresher and leaner style It's quite fresh quite vibrant the fruit Flavor is a bit well there's a little Bit of lemon but there's also a little Bit of Pineapple a little bit of peachy Flavors coming through and then there's The oak that is quite well integrated But it's also a little bit sweet on the Pad it's actually quite fresh acidic the Alcohol is fairly low it's it's well 13 So it's like medium high I think this is Actually an interesting one but it's not The best made Shadow name in this style In the Finish you even get some Christmas bias I don't know I don't know Whether it's the oak I think the grapes Are a little bit too exotic maybe it's The Clone or the ripeness level of the Fruit but Um it's not the most balanced wine and At 50 US dollars retail it's actually Well certainly outperformed by the Previous two white ones but it's not a Bad one at all I would rate this 89 Points I think it's very good but it's Not outstanding the next one is the 2015 Ocean age Pinot Noir from the morning Peninsula and it retails for are around 40 US dollars the morning Peninsula is Close to Melbourne it's quite cool and Well the Pacific influence makes it Possible to produce really good pinots I
Think this is one of the hot spots for Pinos in Australia and this is I think a Winery that has a pretty good reputation So the winery's name is not a reference To the movie but it's a reference to Golf but I don't know much about golfing They started around about 20 years ago And they've really focused on the Pinot Varietals this wine is made from Hand-picked grapes they were cold soaked For a certain amount of time and then Fermented and aged in Oak punches at 380 Liters apparently the pension and Yeah out comes this one so let's taste It so again you might wonder how does Pinot noir from Australia compare to Burgundy and that's kind of difficult I Think Australian pinots tend to be in General very clean very hygienic so they Are not they don't really have a lot of Funk and wild flavors but this probably Has changed quite a bit over the last Few years the wines tend to be more Fruit forward more rich on the palate More concentrated but it really depends On the producer and the location of the Vineyard so this is actually fairly Light In Color it's not a very dark Pinot I mean you can make Pinot in a Darker way as well and this is certainly More on the lighter end it's also Slightly Browning I mean this is the 2015 vintage so not a recent vintage so It's going to be interesting to see how
It's kind of well kept together after Seven years of Aging so this smells of Ripe strawberries a little bit of Blackberries as well they're certainly More berry fruit flavor and more rich Flavors than dark black flavors coming Through so it's quite a delicated Elegant one I don't think that I would Age it much longer than this I think It's right in the window in the drinking Window right now I don't think it needs More h on the pad it has grip and Freshness it's quite complex and Complete I think it's actually really Fun I mean it's not a very serious Pinot So I wouldn't rate it super high I think For me this is like a 90.1 it's Interesting it's juicy it's fruit Forward But I don't think that it really has Many layers we're moving on to the 2016 Wins the siding Cabernet Sauvignon from Kunawara that retails for around 15 US Dollars punawara is an Aboriginal word Meaning Honeysuckle and it's really Famous for Cabernet Sauvignon and iron Rich Terra Rosa soils the Wind Winery Under the lead of John riddock was one Of the first to plant vines in the Region in 1890 and the sighting is Actually named after the train line that Goes up to Adelaide it was really Important in order to kind of sell stuff Sell wine back in the days when you
Couldn't just drive up there very Quickly so this is definitely more of an Entry-level wine for win and it's Actually made with barriques so the one Is aged and Bricks but it's also Aromatized I want to say with staves Staves that you put into stainless steel Tanks usually in order to get some of The the oak flavor into the wine but not Necessarily spend all that money on Barrels corner of our company often Reminds me of Bordeaux you find some of The pencil shaving flavors you also have Sometimes some of those green flavors Coming through that you don't get in Bordeaux as often today anymore this Certainly has all of that so It smells of Cassis you also have some Oaky flavors coming through you Definitely also get some eucalyptus Flavor in my opinion which is a great Pointer to Australian wines for me the Tenants on the palate are quite grippy The acidity is quite High it feels a Little bit out of whack I don't know Whether they acidified here well it Feels like the acidity just doesn't sit Right This is more of a commercial one I think It's not necessarily showcasing the Beauty of the region and the quality of The producer it's it's good though it's Not bad at all I'm going to rate this 87 Points I think it well clearly shows
Cabinets on your characteristics but It's not necessarily a complex one it's Something that you just drink on a Tuesday and evening with the steak so The last one is the 2018 galetza Bishop Shiraz from Russell Valley that retails For 25 US dollars for us our Valley is One of the most if not the most famous Wine growing region in Australia it's Outside of Adelaide and it produces rich And concentrated mostly red wines that Can be absolutely outstanding the Glitter family came from Germany and They are very influential in the wine Scene producing great wines the wines Often always have those symbols from Greek or Egyptian mythology and the Bishop is apparently named after Ben Glazer's mother but don't ask me what His mother has to do with a bishop I don't know I don't want to know so This dress is aged in old and only five Percent New Hawks heads so bigger volume Barrels and Let's see what it tastes like so this Month of blackberry licorice Cassis it's Quite intense and in your face and it Really reminds me of my time in Australia just traveling around eating Great food from the barbecue and Drinking some of this style of wine like Rich and concentrated and hedonistic red Wines that can be just beautiful it's Funny how a smell can transport you back
In time and this is happening right now And the palette it's actually really Juicy Rich the talons are there they are Well balanced with the acidity with the Overall body so it's not a hot rich and Over concentrated wine it's quite Balanced even though it has 15 of Alcohol well I think this is actually a Beautiful one I like the fact that it's Not well super Oaky I think I'm going to Rate this 92 points it's complex Rich Beautiful really good did she rests okay It's actually time for the summary and This time I mean the first two wines Were just the most beautiful Wines in my Opinion and they are both light vibrant Refreshing white wines not necessarily Something that you associate directly With Australia but Australia produces That so these are certainly worth Seeking out this is much more classic But I also really liked this glitter Shiraz and the others were also good Um I think not all of them were Outstanding but this was certainly a Very interesting tasting to get back Into Australia and to travel in time in My head a little bit so thank you for Watching if you like this video then Please like it down here subscribe to my Channel if you haven't done so already My question of the day is what do you Think about Australian wines do you Drink them or not comment down below I
Hope I see you guys again soon until Then stay Thirsty [Music]