a girl and a glass

I first tried David Hook wines on my last trip to the Hunter Valley early in 2012.  We'd just bought a brand new car an thought it would be a great opportunity to break it in with a trip up to the Hunter for the day.  I think our stop at David Hook was about the third for the day.  We went there on a recommendation from a friend who spends a lot of time up in the Hunter and thought I might like their wines.  As you can see from the photo of the magnum of Chardonnay sitting on top of my wine rack - clearly I did. The chardonnay is a pale yellow colour with tinges of green that seems to be characteristic of most modern Chardonnay's.  The nose is quite fruity - but more citrus focused with a touch of stone fruit.  The tast is clean and crisp, but not overly light.  It's refreshing with quite a bit of acidity but with no bite.  After the first sip you'll notice a bit of oak and some nuttiness but this just makes it feel very well balanced an ...

Today I'm moving out of South Australian Wines and sharing one from Western Australia - the Vasse Felix Chardonnay.  Sadly I don't have an awesome story to tell from a visit to the cellar door as I'm yet to go there in person, however I think I've tried almost every wine they make.  So that makes me a connoisseur right?  Ok I know I'm hardly that.  I just know what I like and why I like it.  And I also know that my tastes have changed a lot over time, and I'm glad for that.  It means I'm always falling in love with new wines... anyway enough rambling.  Anyone would think I've had a glass or two before sitting down in front of my keyboard. To the wine! The colour is a delightful yellow - not too strong, but definitely not weak and pale.  To smell you'll get some hints of fruit - but nothing too strong, and a touch of oak.  The taste is lovely.  Some complexity without being overwhelming.  A bit of fruit, but there isn't any o...

I only discovered Ashton Hills Vineyard last November on a trip to SA with friends.  It's a tiny little vineyard and the cellar door is only open weekends and public holidays - but the wine is bigger that you would imagine.  The cellar door is situated on the side of a hill and filled with quirky artworks and sculptures made by local artists.  The winemaker, Stephen George established the site in the early 80's and has been producing wines for well over a decade.  It's the kind of winery that you wouldn't ordinarily stumble across because the production is quite small, but when you do discover it you're glad that you did.  (And I'm very glad we did because I have quite a few of his wines on my rack now). Ok on to the wine.  This chardonnay was fantastic to taste.  The colour is bright - think of fresh straw that still has tinges of green.  The nose is pretty funky which is really interesting - think stinky cheese or mushroom notes and you'd...

The Lane Vineyard is one of my favourite places to visit in the Adelaide Hills.  We usually start the day off doing a tasting nearby and make our way there for lunch and tasting.  Pro tip... if you want to go for lunch make sure you book - it's always full.  Situated on it's only little hill and valley the views from the deck are stunning.  Last time we were there for lunch there was a large party out on the balcony for a pre-wedding celebration and they definitely had the prime location to relax over several bottles of wine in the afternoon.   The thing I love about this Chardonnay is that it's a great classic example of what a modern Chardonnay is all about.  There are no buttery, oaky flavours here.  And it's not that horrendous yellow tone that so many Chardonnays in the 80's were either.  No.  This wine is a beautiful pale straw colour. The nose is like the fresh orange blossoms outside my house, with a hint of stone fruit. ...

Well it's that time of the month again... time to change varietals.  Time to spice things up.  Time to make a change and figure out what I'm going to be drinking this month.  I've decided to go with a wine I love.  It's had a bad rap over the years.  I don't blame Kath and Kim  but I do blame some of the overly buttery and oaky varieties I've tried.  To be honest it never used to be one of my favourite wines either. But..... in the past few years I've found a new love for this wine.  There are producers out there doing stunning things with the grapes and the taste is just amazing.  Have you figured out what I'm talking about yet?  It's Chardonnay.  Yep Chardonnay.  Don't expect me to post about big buttery oaky Chardy's though.  There will be none of that around here.  I'll be going for the crisp, full, delicious, drink every drop in the bottle kind.  If you've been keeping the Chardy's at bay I hope that you...