In South Australia I was born

Heave away, Haul away!
In South Australia 'round Cape Horn,
We're bound for South Australia!

As you might have guessed, this post is about Aussie wines. A week ago, I was able to attend a fantastic tasting presented by South and The Jug Shop in San Francisco.

South is a wine bar in SOMA that specializes in wine & food from Down Under, and I love it. I've picked out my favorites (ok, fine, the wines I purchased) to write about, since there were so many to drink that night and I lost track of my tasting notes at the end! The Traveling Winemakers of the Country Vintner is a road show of Aussie offerings (with one New Zealand host for good measure). This wine event gave us Yanks an opportunity to taste some smaller production and country vintner examples in a fun format, at a small venue.

We tasted a large variety of wines, from five wineries from all over Oz - Pemberton and Denmark, way out Western Australia-way, over east to South Australia's Adelaide Hills, a few clicks north to the Barossa Valley, then across the Tasman to NZ's famed Marlborough district.

• LOOSE END - Barossa Valley, South Australia

Loose End gets my Gold Star winner of the night award. Rob's GSM blend was stunning and RIDICULOUSLY affordable! The 2005 Loose End GSM Blend retails for $16, and is a smooth ripe blend of 43% Grenache, 30% Shiraz, and 27% Merlot. For a full bodied red with dark fruit and spice, you cannot beat this for the money.

The other wine that Loose End poured was a classic Aussie Shiraz. Typically, I am not a huge fan of the Barossa Shiraz that we get here in the states, mainly because I find them over oaked and over manipulated. This was the exception to the rule. The 2005 Loose End Barossa Shiraz Viognier blend is fermented on 4% of Viognier grapes which gives this wine a beautiful aromatic quality and softens the hard edges you can sometimes find in Shiraz, and shows blackberries, chocolate and and earthly backbone.

• Vinaceous Wines & West Cape Howe - Denmark, Western Australia

Vinanceous wins for Best Label Design. In addition, the content of those bottles were AMAZING!

The 2006 Vinaceous Red Right Hand blend of Syrah, Grenanche and of all things Tempranillo, was unusual. It showed as a juicy red, with some interesting spice and great body. I also enjoyed the Snake Charmer Shiraz. While more expensive than the Loose End, at only $24, this was an affordable wine as well.

The other label produced by this winemaker, West Cape Howe, had a lovely Unwooded Chardonnay that was really creamy and delicious without having that overpowering oak characteristic. I don't drink very much white, but I really enjoyed this wine with its crisp & juicy flavors, topped with some mineral and citrus. For less than $20, you can drink this at a Barbie, a picnic, or at the beach.

I could go on for days here, but these were my favorites. Thanks so much to South & The Jug Shop for their hospitality and great wines! Please stop by The Jug Shop to pick up your own Down Under in a Box and if you're in San Francisco, check our their tasting events HERE!

Pinot Envy indeed!

Last night I had the opportunity to attend a New Zealand Pinot Noir tasting of Calvert Vineyard wines at The Jug Shop. Being a pinot-phile, and planning a trip to NZ next year, this was a terrific opportunity for me to hone my Pinot tasting skills.

NZ is pumping out some amazing Sauvignon Blancs and Pinot Noirs these days, and the Central Otago region, located on the southern end of the South Island has been cranking out some amazing examples.

The tasting offered three wines produced from the same vineyard, in a variety of styles, all from Calvert Vineyard. For you wine geeks, you can see a block map here.
Calvert Vineyard Block Plan


2006 Felton Road
This was the first wine we tasted, and right off the bat I tasted red fruit, cola, and cherry. It had an earthy backnote, with a hint of violets.

This was a fruit forward wine, and did not show immense oak.

2006 Pyramid Valley
This wine was ever so slightly different than the Felton Road, with it's woody flavors and increased chewiness.

The difference was in the handling of the fruit, which was 100% destemmed and whole cluster fermented for 15 months in French Oak. This extra time in the oak added the texture and complexity.

2006 Craggy Range Calvert Vineyard
This is an example of an over extracted Pinot Noir done well; yes, it was a rich and bold wine, and not a delicate flower, but we all loved it and it clearly has a cult following if only 2 cases are imported in to the US.


These wines are difficult to find in the States, and I was happy to be able to take advantage of The Jug Shop's tricky negotiation skills to taste these gems. I even left holding in my hot little hands, a promise of delivery for a three-pack of these treats. How could I ressit? With only 2 cases imported of the Craggy Range, it is an excellent opporutnity to do a horizontal tasting of some of the world's hottest new growing regiosn.

Hey, if your wines were this good, woudln't you keep them for yourselves? I know I would!