a girl and a glass

Last time I wrote about a wine from Ashton Hills I was talking about their chardonnay .  Today I want to tell you a little bit more about their winery and their Pinot Noir.  I mentioned how much I enjoyed my first visit to Ashton Hills in my last post, but I forgot to mention how pretty the winery is and the fantastic artwork Stephen has displayed at the cellar door (and just outside in the case of the image above).  Perched on the side of a hill you arrive to sweeping views of the valley and vines.  The cellar door is small and cosy.  We arrived just as the previous tasters were wrapping up so we didn't have to wait too long and had the place to ourselves.  It's always fun when that happens because you really get to find out a little bit more about the wines, and the winemaker. Anyway on to the Pinot Noir.  Actually there are 3 - the Estate, the Piccadilly and the Reserve.  All equally wonderful and deserving of their own reviews. ...

Do you ever pull out a wine from your wine rack and wonder where did that come from?  I'm usually pretty good at remembering what I've bought and where I've bought it from, but occasionally I'll pull something randomly from the rack (it's kind of like pot luck night) and my memory will completely fail me.  That's definitely the case this today's wine - although I won't forget it now :-) Tim Knappstein has been making wine for a long time. In fact it's in his blood. He's a third generation vigneron (that's the fancy word for wine maker), based in the Adelaide Hills.  They make a good range of wines, but I think they are really known for the pinot.  The Sabre (what I drank & pictured above) is particularly well awarded.   As you can see from the picture, the colour is a lovely crimson - with lots of berry red.  To smell it is just what you would expect from it's hue - fresh, berries and a hint of spice.  To taste it's ...

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. ...

It's #winewednesday and time for another lovely bubbly wine.   Henschke's Blanc de Noir . I've blogged about another Henschke wine before... the Gewurztraminer  which I love.  But this is a new favourite that's rising in my opinion.  Made with 100% Pinot Noir these grapes come from Lenswood in the Adelaide Hills, not the Barossa.  It's a great dry drop but with a hint of berries and some spice.  A great yellow straw colour in the glass, and very easy to sit and sip.  It's a fabulous wine for a special occasion and priced right at around $50 per bottle. On a side note I kind of love that there is a bottle cap on top of the bottle.  Not a deciding factor in why I'd buy it - but I love thinks like that. Cheers Sally