Australian Wine – A Starter Guide

Happy Weekend,

Every time you go wine shopping, you bring two things with you:

1) Your wallet

2) Your bias

You navigate the store looking for the familiar, and you never venture into the unknown parts of the wine world.

For my English speaking wine drinkers, they balk at suggestions of Germany, France and Italy.

Why? Language barriers and few variety names on the labels.

So, let me introduce you to the perfect place to expand your horizons. Somewhere that is undervalued, but more familiar to your current wine sensibilities.

Hello, Australia.

Here’s how and why you should be drinking Australian wine.

The #1 Problem With Australian Wine

In the United States, Australian wine gets a bad rap.

Most people think of all the crap littering our wine shelves: Yellow Tail and 19 Crimes.

But with this bad reputation comes an advantage for the savvy shopper: VALUE.

Avoid the bulk stuff with loads of marketing, and you’re bound to find something you like.

The #2 Problem With Australian Wine

Because of the bad reputation, most U.S. wine retailers don’t carry many good-to-great Australian wine options.

As a result, the Australian section is often the most disappointing square feet in any wine shop. The selection is limited. You can find me sadly sauntering to another section after hoping for exciting Semillon.

So, to find great Australian wines, you need to be up for adventure.

Bring your bowie knife, because you’ll be digging into the bottom of bins and keeping your eye out for bargains.

Australia Wine Varieties

Australia makes some delicious and expensive wines.

There are great Cabernet Sauvignons, Chardonnays, Rieslings, and Shiraz…and that’s only the start.

They also make solid Rhône style blends. In fact, just this week, I had a closeout special 2016 Torbreck Cuvee Juveniles that blew my socks off.

So, what should you look for?

3 Great Entry Level Bottles of Australian Wine

Torbreck Cuvee Juveniles – Great value Rhône style blend.

Robert Oatley Signature Chardonnay – Easy drinking, enjoyable Chardonnay.

Pewsey Vale Eden Valley Dry Riesling – Bone dry Riesling. Consistent and great value. Try this is you’ve never liked Riesling before.

Mid to High-end Australia Wines

Leeuwin Estate Prelude Vineyards Chardonnay – A baby version of the big bottle coming up later.

Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz – Top example of Cab Syrah blend.

An Approach to Relaxation Sucette Grenache – Sandy soil Grenache at its finest.

The Icons

Penfolds Grange – THE Australian wine.

Torbreck The Laird – Another epic Barossa Shiraz.

Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay – Australia’s Signature Chardonnay.

Australia In A Nutshell

Australia offers opportunity to explore your favorite grape varieties in a familiar, readable format.

Once you get past cheap stuff, you have a wide range of options.

From great values to some of the world’s greatest wines—Australian wine is underpriced compared to many comparable wines.