Glug Headlines

Wines from the Golden West, Others Close to Home and Swinging by Napa

Mon, 30 Mar 2009

by David Farmer
The following wines were sampled at a BYO when I was visiting the boom town of Perth late last year. The evening began with an Amberley Margaret River Semillon Sauvignon Blanc 2007 which was O.K. and not too demanding. I have often wondered why they blend these two varieties in the West. Is it because they are a natural fit or was the choice driven by some other means? The blend certainly works and is now part and parcel of all Margaret River producers though I was informed that years ago they had too much semillon and not enough sauvignon planted. So it was a way to get rid of semillon, a variety that try what we will, consumers have trouble relating with. The first of the 100% Margaret River sauvignon blancs are now moving into the market place.

What is the Game Now for Our Large Companies?

Thu, 26 Mar 2009

by David Farmer
Our wine exports are taking a tumble, the local market has stalled and to add to our misery a big chunk of the white wine market has been seceded to New Zealand. On top of this we have a large oversupply sitting in tanks and a new vintage is on us - although the hot weather in January-early February may limit production.

The Beauty of the Five Point Judging System

Thu, 26 Mar 2009

by David Farmer
When tasting wines, opinions differ so I enjoyed the recent Winestate for November-December, 2008, in which two different judging panels coincidentally reviewed some of the same wines. The Australian reviewers looked at 291 pinot noir's of various ages while New Zealand reviewers were looking at recent releases of New Zealand pinots. Of the hundreds of wines appraised, ten were the same, these being Central Otago pinot's from 2007.

His Wines - Justin Lane an Unusual and Very Talented Winemaker

Fri, 20 Mar 2009

by David Farmer
Justin Lane has a different perspective about what a wine should be and currently is having fun with Italian varieties. We began with the Viottolo Viale Sangiovese 2005 (with some cabernet) made from McLaren Vale fruit and I found a wine with structure and length, very enjoyable, Italian in outlook but I wanted more though this may be because I'm a bit of an amateur with this variety.

Hermann Thumm of Chateaux Yaldara

Wed, 11 Mar 2009

by David Farmer
I note the death of Hermann Thumm, the founder of Chateaux Yaldara, born 13th December 1912- died 16th February, 2009. A few months ago I read his autobiography 'The Road to Yaldara' and realised I had not recognised the achievements of this, in my view, singular and very inventive wine maker. I wish the book had been much longer.

An Interesting Warm Up - Then Pay Dirt

Tue, 3 Mar 2009

by David Farmer
The world of fine wines continues to grow and of great interest is the startling quality leap from countries with long vinous histories like Austria and the steady improvements from many other historically important regions further to the east such as those of Hungary and Croatia.

The End of Another Wine Review at Fosters

Fri, 27 Feb 2009

by David Farmer
Another day, another business review of the Fosters wine division. Naturally it started with a bit of cost cutting. I was amazed to find they still had three wineries to close; next, they are to unload a bunch of unwanted brands and lastly will sell some vineyards.

What Ever Happened to Rosemount?

Fri, 27 Feb 2009

by David Farmer
Thinking about the new strategies for Fosters wine got me wondering again about the reasons for the fall of Rosemount. Recall that it was back in 2000 that Southcorp purchased Rosemount which gave the Oatley family a large shareholding in Southcorp. They later purchased more shares. The CEO of Rosemount, Keith Lambert took the top job at Southcorp and embarked upon some adventurous restructuring. What I do not understand is why he let the brand he helped build fall apart.

The State of Play - The Local Wine Market

Sun, 22 Feb 2009

by David Farmer
The total wine volume sold in Australia in 2007-2008 was 479 million litres. Of this, 426 million litres was made locally for an 89% market share with the rest being imported for 11% market share. As we have noted before the historic imported share has varied from 4%-6% with much of the dramatic climb of recent years coming from the growth of New Zealand wine with French sparkling also bounding ahead.

Broadening the Palate Broadens the Mind

Fri, 13 Feb 2009

by David Farmer
A lovely day was spent travelling to many wine regions. Here is what I found. Starting with a white the Cono Sur Central Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2007 (Chile) I found a pretty basic wine, not all that enjoyable for my taste and I began to ask, why bring wines like this into a country awash with wine? Then I thought why not, it offers a difference and the consumers can make up their own minds.