The 4th edition of the Australian Wine Guide recommends wineries and individual wines to assist consumers in touring wine regions and purchasing wines. The following is a list of Outstanding and Highly Recommended wines.

Australian Pinot Noir - Outstanding

Bass Phillip Reserve 04 (Gippsland), Bindi Block 5 05 (Macedon Ranges), Bindi Original 05 (Macedon

Ranges), Curly Flat 03 (Macedon Ranges), Dalrymple Special Bin Reserve 05 (Tasmania) , Domaine A 03

(Coal River), Freycinet 05 (Tasmania), Henschke Giles 05 (Eden Valley), Yeringberg 04 (Yarra Valley)

Australian Pinot Noir - Highly Recommended

Bass Phillip Estate 04 (Gippsland), Bay of Fires 05 (Tasmania), Coldstream Hills 05 (Yarra Valley),

Coldstream Hills Reserve 05 (Yarra Valley), Hungerford Hill Tumbarumba 06 (Tumbarumba), Paringa Estate

05 (Mornington Estate), Pirie Estate Reserve 05 (Tasmania), Phillip Island The Nobbies 05 (Gippsland),

Silk Hill 04 (Tasmania), Spring Vale 05 (Tasmania), Stoney Rise 05 (Tasmania)m Stoney Vineyard 04 (Tasmania), Stoniers  KBS, Windmill and Reserve  04 (Mornington Peninsula), TarraWarra Estate 04

(Yarra Valley), Willow Creek Benedictus 04 (Mornington Peninsula)

Australian Shiraz - Outstanding

Bindi Pyrette 05 (Heathcote), Cape Mentelle Wallcliffe 03 (Margaret River), Castagna Genesis 04

(Beechworth), Chateau Tanunda Lyndoch 05 (Barossa Valley), De Bortoli Reserve Release Syrah 04

(Yarra Valley), Henschke Mount Edelstone 04 (Eden Valley), Kilikanoon Reserve 02 (Clare Valley),

Meerea Park Alexandra Munro 05 (Hunter Valley), Paul Osika 04 (Heathcote), Saltram the Eight Maker

03 (Barossa Valley), Thomas Kiss 05 (Hunter Valley), Torbreck The Factor 04 (Barossa Valley),

Torbreck The Sturie 05 (Barossa Valley), Watershed 04 (Margaret River).

Australian Shiraz - Highly Recommended

Arakoon  Doyan 03 (Mclaren Vale) , Bannockburn 03 (Geelong), Chateau Tanunda Greenock 05

(Barossa Valley), Clonakilla Hilltops 04 (Hilltops), Coriole 04 (McLaren Vale), Giants Step Sexton Jones

Block 04 (McLaren Vale), Gilberts Reserve Shiraz 04 (Mount Barker), Hardy’s Tintara 04 (McLaren Vale), Kilikanoon Covenant 04 (Clare Valley), Meerea Park Terracotta 05 (Hunter Valley), Penfolds Kalimna

Bin 28 04 (S.A blend), O’Leary Walker the Clare Reserve 04 (Clare Valley), Olivers Taranga HJ Reserve

02 (McLaren Vale), Penley Estate Special Select 04 (Coonawarra), Picardy 03 (Pemberton), Plunkett

Reserve 04 (Strathbogie Ranges), Pyrenees Ridge Reserve 05 (Pyrenees), Richmond Grove Limited

Release 02 (Barossa Valley), Seppelts Mount Ida 04 (Grampians), Thorn Clarke William Randell 04

(Barossa Valley), Torbreck Descendent 04 (Barossa Valley), Waterwheel 02 (Bendigo), Wonga Estate

04 (Heathcote).

The 4th edition of the Australian Wine Guide will be published in 2008 and contain additional coverage on Australian wine regions. The new edition will also recommend wineries and individual wines to assist consumers in touring wine regions and purchasing wines. On a monthly basis this website will feature a small selection of recommended, highly recommended and outstanding wines that I taste as part of my ongoing research to produce the guide.

Click on the Hyperlink to go directly to the wineries website.

Rosé Wines

Kilikanoon Second Fiddle Rosé 2006, A firm rose with good length, packed with fruit. Strong strawberry and cherry aromas. Nice drop.  Highly Recommended.

Dromana i Rosato 2005. Very pale with a lovely light pink salmon colour. Delicate floral nose with hints of raspberry. Dry, good length, savoury and excellent length. Highly Recommended.

Scorpo Rosé 2006,  Mornington Peninsula, Vic. Barrel fermented Pinot Noir rosé, oak used is old so minimal pick-up. Pale salmon colour. Elegant rose petal, floral notes with light crisp palate. Bone-dry and elegant. Recommended. 

Golden Ball Cherish Saignee 2005 (Rosé) Beechworth, Vic. The 05 is drawn from a blend of Shiraz, Merlot and Grenache. Free-run juice was collected then settled and fermented in French barriques.  The wine has a glorious salmon pink colour, similar to the rosé of Provence. Lovely lifted floral, rose-petal aromas. Rich and powerful (for a rosé) on the palate with lovely mouth texture, retaining some good acidity. Excellent value. Highly Recommended.

Castagna Allegro 2005 (Rosé), Beechworth, Vic A wild yeast barrel fermented Shiraz rosé with a lick of Viognier (there should be a new term identified for this wine style for both Castagna, and Golden Ball. As rosé seems too simplistic). Inviting pink coral in colour, the wine displays savoury, floral, potpourri notes accompanied by lifted fruit aromas of strawberries and apricots on the nose. Those savoury notes continue on the palate with intensity not seen in any other rosé I’ve tasted. This wine is elegant and textured with great length, simply superb drinking and worth every cent. Don’t over chill. Outstanding.

Click here for Red Wine Reviews

Attention Wine Producers

If you would like to submit samples for consideration in the next edition of the Australian Wine Guide as well as reviews on this website please contact Clive Hartley on the following email address. contact@australianwineguide.com