2018 Wine Packs

A meditation on all things red that aren't Shiraz or Cab. We've got Touriga, Grenache, Tempranillo, Mataro, Montepulciano, Negroamaro and Aglianico happening here, and a smidge of Shiraz in the Kilikanoon GSM. All things alt red, all offering a very different pathway to pleasure than straight Shiraz and Cabernet. Not that there's anything wrong with that!

It's been a while since we rolled out a double dozen. Fair to say they have always sold well and offer excellent coverage for the requirements of the silly season.

Crackers here like Mitchell Kalmar - a $50 a bottle, single vineyard Shiraz, Deep Woods SBS - a trophy winner from Margaret River. Showblock Rosie, a 95 point, $85 a bottle blend from McLaren Vale and Greenock Estate's Sieger old vine Barossa Shiraz. Retail on this one is $50 and it represents incredible value. We reckon there are a couple of Barossa producers who'd offer this wine at $100 or more.

All up 24 bottles worth $964 for just $15 a bottle and the bulk of your Christmas entertaining catered for beautifully!

We love a cellared red here at WD. Take a massive red, give it a few years to marinate in its own juices, softening a little and losing the rough edges, and we're hearing 'hello, Saturday night'! Here's how it might unfold. It’s Saturday night and near-spent charcoal is shimmering wobbly blues and greys ‘neath the griddle, whilst a hint of wood smoke tantalizes your olfactories. The sounds of a salad being constructed threatens to accost your reverie. You deny this repugnant intrusion, note that two magnificent slices of aged steak have just reached room temp, and usher your mind towards their perfect bottled accompaniment. It will come from somewhere superb, perhaps the McLaren Vale, Barossa, or the Clare Valley. It might be a perfectly-cellared Mitchell Peppertree Shiraz, with its savoury sensibility and whisper-fine tannins, or perhaps a glorious Coonawarra Cabernet, all violets and blue fruit on a bed of cedar, or really any of the other beautiful wines in this dozen. You snap out of your reverie and snap open your chosen bottle. It’s time to pour a glass, place those steaks mindfully on the griddle and perhaps conjure up the tiniest salad plates imaginable. Today is not a salad day!

A Chrissie sixer for us means 6 of the best but without corporal punishment. Even your wallet will be ok given the baked in discount.

This contains a bottle each of

Wicks Pamela Sparkling, a trophy winning Adelaide Hills sparkling which is made using the Champagne method. Its one of the best Aussie sparklings money can buy.

Dowie Doole's Sparkling Shiraz, made entirely from an A-grade Shiraz solera which has been in continuous use since 1996. Stunning fruit and just slightly sweet, this is exceptional.

Jeanneret's Sevenhill Riesling- 96 points from Sam Kim. This offers an ethereal fragrance and a powerful core of intense Riesling fruit. Lively and beguiling simultaneously.

Kilikanoon Tregea Cabernet - this is Kilikanoon's Flagship Cab; rich and densely fruited, needs decanting and might just be the perfect thing to have with roast Lamb.

Lone Palm Old Vine Grenache. Old Vine Grenache with a splash of old vine Shiraz. !00% Barossa Valley, 100% French oak. Spicy, black fruited and beautifully balanced.

Irvine Grand Merlot 2018. Australia's greatest Merlot; rich and smooth, laden with ripe tobacco leaf, plums and more. Just a beautiful thing to put in your head.

We are pretty confident this is the best Cab Family varietals pack we've ever put together. For $295 you'll be getting 2 bottles of Irvine's Grand Merlot, worth $300 - yep the one where 2 vintages have been awarded best Merlot in the world. Rest of the pack is compelling too - a couple of bottles of Kilikanoon Tregea Cab. This is their flagship Cabernet which retails for $96 a bottle. A couple of Dowie Doole's flagship Architect Cab, a $90 a bottle, tiny production stunner and arguably the best McLaren Vale Cab available right now. Showblock Cab... another 96 pointer. Rounding the pack out, a couple of bottles apiece of the Karl's Scepter Coonawarra and Barossa Cabernets - sure these might not be super premiums like the wines above, but they are very, very good; much better than quaffers. All up $995 worth for just $295.

Shiraz might be King, but in a world where Charles/Chas/Chuckles of Windsor looks like an anemic alternative to his departed mum (bless ‘er cotton socks), we thought we’d offer you some alternative varietals actually capable of out-performing even the previous incumbent. Yes, Charles might be a watery Moscato to Her Maj’s compelling Barossa Shiraz, but we reckon we’ve conjured some alternatives which would see Charles abdicate and QE2, if she were still imbibing, pour a second glass.

All up $698 worth of alternatives for just $199.

Check the full notes below for more details.

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