Balgownie are one of our nation's great small vineyards, pioneers of the reprise in Bendigo viticulture, with the foresight to establish vines in 1969, the first local plantings in over eighty years. Grown to terrains very near the tailings of Victoria's original gold rush, the auspicious Balgownie vines yield discreet yet exquisite harvests of the most edifying and undervalued Victorian vintages. A bespoke favourite amongst enthusiasts of the old school style in elegant and finely boned Aussie Shiraz, Balgownie represent the essential accompaniment to meaty eggplant inspired recipes, or a princely roast of lamb, the best of.. Balgownie begets the best of bendigo»

Beechworth attracts the most artisanal winemakers, the region's rich mineral soils and parched, undulating terrains, breed wines of vigorous flavour, crystalline textures and boney savoury tannins. The first parcel of Crown Land in the region was acquired by Isaac Phillips in 1857, he christened his estate Golden Ball and built a hotel named Honeymooners Inn, servicing miners on their way up the steep trails to the Beechworth goldfields. The old pub remains but the surrounding land has been turned over to viticulture, planted to vine in the nineteen naughties, it produces a quality of wine that's reserved for the nation's most exclusive winelists. Served by savvy sommeliers and savoured by the most.. Small batches of beechworth's best»

Clonakilla are one of our nation's most eminent vineyard wineries, a tiny production operation, established by a CSIRO scientist at Murrumbateman, very near Canberra. It turned out to be a fortuitous planting, with a climate not dissimilar to Bordeaux and northern Rhone, the Clonakilla property now occupies a rank next to the mighty Grange on the prestigious Exceptional Langtons Classification, it yields vintages of Australia's most invaluable Shiraz. At $26.99, the estate's entry level belies its stature and excellence within the pantheon of great Australian wine, an essential experience this week for all enthusiasts, a canny choice for shrewd and judicious aspirants of elite new world Shiraz... Here's what our most picky pundits prefer»

The family Hentschke have been Barossa farming since 1842, they know from good soils and settle on nothing but the finest land. Keith Hentschke chose a special site along Greenock Creek, at the intersection of Gerald Roberts and Jenke Roads, near the ancient winegrowing hamlet of Seppeltsfield to plant vines in the early 1990s. They now yield vintages of the most amazing intensity, saturated with the essence of grand Barossa Shiraz, an international wine industry favourite and a sagacious selection this.. Savour a sip of seppeltsfield»

Right across the road from Jasper Hill's Emily Paddock,a precious parcel of ancient terra rosa soil was acquired and planted to vine by a baronial Mornington estate, highly accomplished growers with a consuming aspiration to grow the finest Shirazin all Heathcote. They settled on a coveted site along Drummond's Lane, strewn with unique green Cambrian shards, a sacred place to yield the top growth amongst single vineyardHeathcote Shiraz. Decades later, the vintages remain excruciatingly measured in availability. Painstakingly hand made, arcanely labelled behind the monikers, Pressings, Block F and Block C, the cherished editions of Heathcote Estate represent the Grand Cru of identifiably terroir driven, small vineyard Australian Shiraz... The likely lads of drummond's lane»

Kalleske are one of our nation's most distinguished winegrower families, Barossa through and through, heirs to the tradition of Prussian pastoralists who established South Australia as one of the world's great viticultural precincts. The family Kalleske were the quiet achievers behind the stellar quality of fruit, at the heart of the most memorable vintages Penfolds Grange. Old sites and ancient vines, a tally of which have been branded under the Atze's Corner label, a regal range of stately Barossa wines, irresistibly underpriced in terms of provenance, excellence and sheer delight. Spectacular bouquets, redolent of freshness, fragrance and fruit, astonishingly balanced to perfection, meaty, mouth filling palates, layered with punnets of savoury ripe.. Small batches of the barossa's very best»

Bringing you the fruit of old Barossa vineyards, which have been handed down from generation to generation, crafted in the traditional old world way, by a commune of family growers who have delivered the most memorable vintages since early settlement. The label says Soul Growers but the harvests were historically bottled by the nation's most illustrious brands. Today, these veteran families of Australian viticulture can bring their princely harvests to market under a moniker that defines a tradition of village winemaking and a culture of reverence for the land. Ancient rootstock Grenache and Mourvedre, bespoke clones of Cabernet and Shiraz, prodigal plots of Pinot Noir. This magnificent range of varietals are all remarkable for their seamlessness,.. Views of venerable old vines»

Returning to his home along the Nagambie Lakes after the completion of service during World War II, Eric Purbrick discovered a cache of wine, hidden circa 1876 under the family estate cellars. Though pale in colour, it was sound and drinkable after seven decades. The promise of long lived red wine inspired Purbrick to establish new plantings at Chateau Tahbilk in 1949, today they are some of Victoria's oldest productive Cabernet Sauvignon vines. Having barely scraped through the ravages of phyloxera and a period of disrepute, the fortunes of Tahbilk were turned around by Purbrick who was the first to market Australian wine under its varietal name. Tahbilk proudly hosts the largest, single holding of Marsanne on the planet. Tahbilk's original rows of.. Phyloxera, ancient cellars & seriously old vines»