★ OTHER WHITES

2021 Jim Barry Wines Assyrtiko, Clare Valley

Assyrtiko is perfectly poised for our climate and food, giving an array of nashi pears, green apples, briny acidity and a pleasant, sundrenched hay vibe that most of us can only imagine. Delicious and uncomplicated. Drink it in the short term for maximum freshness. EL 12% alc.

RRP $35 / Drink 2024 / Jim Barry Wines ★★★★★ jimbarry.com

2021 Kerri Greens Ohne Gewürztraminer, Mornington Peninsula

Such a contrast to the tighter rendition in 2020, yet this is no less fabulous. It’s just richer, fleshier and riper, but not heavy. Lychees and musk, poached quinces topped with cinnamon and drizzled with rosewater syrup. Tannins add a slippery, textural coating and grip across the full-bodied palate. JF 12.5% alc.

RRP $30 / Drink 2026 / Kerri Greens ★★★★★ kerrigreens.com

2021 Stanton & Killeen Wines Arinto, Rutherglen

S&K are making a name for their promotion of Iberian grape varieties. Here, Portugal's arinto speaks loudly, without the presence of oak, in citrus, green apple, orange peel with musk. Shows a clean, dry pair of heels. JP 13% alc.

RRP $30 / Drink 2025 / Stanton & Killeen Wines ★★★★★ stantonandkilleen.com.au

2020 Yangarra Estate Vineyard Roux Beaute Roussanne, McLaren Vale

Arguably the finest white wine in the Vale. A few contenders. A lustrous deep yellow. Saline, as is so much in these parts. Then a decompression of rooibos, the ripest lemon that sits as a figment of the imagination, raw pistachio and green olive-brine martini. Thick, intense, powerful and yet, tiptoeing across a drawbridge of phenolics, almost the daintiest powerhouse that I've pirouetted with. NG 13.5% alc.

RRP $65 / Drink 2037 / Yangarra Estate Vineyard ★★★★★ yangarra.com.au