richard hamilton

I’ve got another confession to make, I drank it cool. Everyone has got their chains to break.. the Sauvignon Blanc rule. Sharing a bottle or two of wine with friends can make their company enjoyable. When Sauvignon Blanc is their drink of choice, there is little chance of us sharing the bottle. My white selections are that of a red wine drinker so I prefer Riesling, Semillon and the occasional ballsy Chardonnay. I was cooking for some friends and I knew the lady wife of my mate loved Sauvignon Blanc. I put the Richard Hamilton 2014 in the fridge as I cooked up a storm. Prosciutto wrapped chicken roasted with chorizo, tomato, capsicum and other parcels of goodness including grilled zucchini. Finishing off the 919 Tempranillo as I cooked, I anticipated having half a glass of the Sauvignon Blanc with my meal to be polite. I had two big glasses of the Richard Hamilton Sauvignon Blanc and thoroughly enjoyed it. Crisp and zesty with some green apple on the palate. There is still passionfruit

A simple premise, a simple plan... To break bread, share a glass and have a good old chin wag with some great people. This was the mantra we set out with when we first said “hey we should have a Grenache dinner to celebrate International Grenache day”. And after a few tweaks and re-interpretations, that is exactly what we ended up with on Friday the 19th September. The back drop to this was the stunning shop front and workshop that is home to The Props Dept and Justin Hermes Design. And a better place we could not have asked for to have our guests, no not guests, our friends, join us for dinner. First drop off the rack was Year Wines 2012 McLaren Vale Grenache and the words I heard a lot were “SO GOOD” (and not in reference the Delta Goodrem endorsed milk!). A beautiful way to start off the night - Luke and Caleigh make small batch Grenache from vines dating back to 1958 and the 2012 was their debut wine under their own label - and a pretty impressive one at that. [caption id="attachment_1350"

It’s always handy to have a guide to good drinking over the Christmas period. Here’s my pick for the best bots to crack this Chrissie.

Bird in Hand Sparkling It’s an unusual wine this one with enough fruit and sweetness to keep the occasional wino happy and enough quality fruit to shift curmudgeonly wine snob from miffed to mollified. Pleasures best on its own but suspect it would be all over the turkey if given a sniff. Most accommodating Sparkling. Dandelion Vineyards Rosé 2011 A delight from its light pink hue to its delicate, near dry ending. The fruit in this is sourced from an 85-year-old bush-grown Grenache vineyard. Unusually the wine was left to wild ferment and stored on a bed of dead yeast in old barrels for a bit. The result is a superb texture with pristine and bright Grenache flavours and a whip crack of acidity that made me stand up and pay attention. Sugar is very low at four grams per litre residual; more is not needed because of the wine’s stunning fruit and texture.