Full Red Blend Wines
Single varietals are great, no argument here. But there is something magical about a winemaker’s ability to blend two or more different varieties to create something very, very special, that in some cases can be greater than the sum of its parts. Whether it’s the iconic Aussie blend of Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon, or a GSM and its variants, or the latest trend towards blending more new world varieties, we love a nice red blend. These are the latest red blends to leave the Tasting Panel grinning goofily with wine dribbling down their chins...
- Bleasdale Frank Potts 2021$39.00A casual 97 points from James Halliday! Oh, and four trophies and a 'stacks on' pile of golds and top gold medals. This is dense and complex, whilst also being taut and linear. Awesome now (post decanting), but will live for 20 years with careful cellaring, perhaps more. Red and black fruits here, with quality cedary spindles and exceptional length. Learn More
- Briar Ridge Limited Release BDX 2022Special Price $35.00 Regular Price $40.00Dark fruits and chocolate and a burst of rosewater on the nose. Black and blue fruits and cedar in the mouth. Tannis are fine and supple, making this particularly enjoyable now - but don't be afraid to chuck this away for a decade either. Learn More
- Ca 'Botta Alta Valpolicella Ripasso Superiore 2020Special Price $60.00 Regular Price $65.00A stunning Valpolicella made using the Ripasso method, or 'repass'. Highest quality, high altitude Corvina, Rondinella and Corvinone are fermented on the pressed skins of an Amarone ferment, giving higher alcohols, colour and a good degree more complexity. Rich, dark and savoury, this beast offers ripe cherries, white pepper, chocolate, graphite, minerals, blackberries and more. A moreish and complex red wine that pairs majestically with roast meat and ragu. Learn More
- Ca 'Botta Cerviero Rosso Veneto 2020Special Price $79.00 Regular Price $89.00In theory this is an entry level wine for Ca’ Botta, carrying the IGT designation rather than the more favoured DOC or DOCG status. Why? Because this is a wine made using Amarone methods using primarily Amarone varieties with the inclusion of Cabernet which is not allowed in Amarone production... They add Cabernet to build freshness and change the tannin profile... to make something as good but a little different to a traditional Amarone. 2.2 kilos of fruit are needed to make just one bottle. Structural, black and intense, with complex flavours, fruit sweetness and exceptional length. A wonderful opportunity to try an exceptional Amarone style wine from the region. Learn More
- Ca 'Botta Torcinato Valpolicella Superiore 2018Special Price $89.00 Regular Price $99.00Our 3rd vintage of the Torcinato, and absolutely the finest to date. This is a big and exceptionally well-structured and refined wine which requires at an hour in a decanter before drinking. It is powerful yet silky smooth, with intense red and blue fruits, cola, tobacco, blackberries, cherries and fresh thyme. Fruit is air dried prior to fermentation for 45 days meaning that 1.6 kg of fruit are required to make each bottle! Learn More
- Carlos Serres Gran Reserva Rioja 2016$80.00
The most refined and profound of the Carlos Serres wines - a blend of Tempranillo, Graciano and Mazuelo, entirely sourced from the Finca El Estanque vineyard. Only 2% of Rioja wines are released as Gran Reserva, with the best fruit treated to at least a couple of years in oak, generally more, before being bottled at anywhere between 5 and 10 years of age. Carlos Serres choose to release the wine when it is ready to drink.... and this, the 2016 vintage is excellent, offering mature and ripe black fruits, cinnamon, minerality and more. The palate is rich and smooth, tannins plentiful but resolving, the finish long and satisfying. Beautiful now and will cellar for another 5+ as well.
Learn More - Ca’ Botta Costa Rossa Valpolicella Ripasso Superiore DOC 2018Special Price $100.00 Regular Price $120.00The word ‘Superiore’ on the label means this wine is produced from the winery's highest grade of fruit. ‘Ripasso’ means repassed... a process whereby the fermented wine made from air dried grapes has pressed skins from their Tenuta Cajo Amarone added to it. This kicks off a second fermentation and softens tannins while adding body, fruit intensity, complexity and richness. This wine is a seriously mean mutha, packed with thyme, rosemary, black pepper, plums, blackberries, smoke, graphite, smoked meats, charcoal, star anise and plenty more. A gorgeous savoury mouthful of complexity and satiation. Approx 1.8 kg of fruit are required to make each bottle! Learn More
- Dandelion Moonrise Kingdom Shiraz Grenache Petite Sirah 2020Special Price $100.00 Regular Price $120.00Wow! A rich, voluptuous yet well structured red from Dandelion’s biodynamic Firehawk Farm vineyard. Inky black fruits are pierced by blackberries and then scented with cedar and spice. Long, rich and balanced. An exceptional wine. Learn More
- Farmers Leap Pillar Box Red 2021$22.00This is a gorgeously vibrant blend of Shiraz and Cab from the Limestone Coast. It has heady perfume of red fruits, blue fruits and florals leading to a palate bursting with cranberry, blackcurrants, mint, cedar and a hint of eucalypt Learn More
- Glaetzer Wallace Shiraz Grenache 2021Special Price $30.00 Regular Price $35.0084% Shiraz and 16% Grenache sourced from 50-100 year old vines yielding at less than 1.5 tonnes per acre. Old oak here and mostly French, a wonderful fragrance of plum and lavender leads to a palate offering the same plus raspberries, anise, pepper and more. Crazy that a product with this fruit source, which is beautifully executed, retails for just $25 a bottle. Learn More
- Kilikanoon Meymans Shiraz Cabernet 2020Special Price $35.00 Regular Price $50.00Always a standout from the Kilikanoon stable, with pretty much every vintage rated at somewhere between 95 and 97 points. The 2020 is the most concentrated yet- perhaps owing to the vintage being significantly smaller than normal. Bucketloads of black fruit, violets, blackcurrant pastilles, black tea, acidity and a truckload of fine tannins here. Get it in a decanter and serve with a rare T-Bone. Should improve for 15 years, maybe more if cellared correctly. Learn More
- Lake Breeze 'Bernoota' Shiraz Cabernet 2022$22.00From the Halliday guide, Campbell Mattinson offers 'No Aussie red-wine drinker will be left disappointed.' It's a rich, luscious wine, blackcurrant flavours tumbling through vanilla and mint, tobacco notes made cuddlier by the general creamy softness of the palate.'. Wine critic Nick Ryan reckons this is the best value for money Aussie red and has been for the last 30 years. Learn More