Tasting notes
LECONFIELD MERLOT 2017 / $26
Paul Gordon is Coonawarra’s unsung hero; his Leconfield wines are regular winners across the national wine show circuit. Gordon takes the much-maligned merlot grape to new heights with his 2017 vintage. Mouth-filling flavours of blueberry and Damson plum mingle with mocha spices. The tannins are slinky, the finish lifted and lively. Try it with a mild lentil curry.
PENLEY ESTATE SPRING RELEASE CABERNET FRANC 2018 / $35
Winemaker Kate Goodman has breathed fresh air into Penley wines since joining in 2016. There’s no better example of Goodman’s craft than this nouveau-style cabernet franc. The bright, lithe-framed wine has perfumes of fresh raspberry and white cherry, with a zippy acid-etched finish – perfect with hoisin-marinated pork and Hokkien noodles.
PARKER COONAWARRA ESTATE 95 BLOCK 2015 / $65
Sydney businessman John Parker founded his eponymous winery in 1985 and the stalwart Hesketh family now holds the reins. The 95 Block was indeed planted in 1995, with petit verdot adding depth and spice to the more structured cabernet sauvignon. With blackcurrant and boysenberry aromas, this bold and super-concentrated wine deserves to be cellared or matched with a juicy steak.
THE MUSICIAN BY MAJELLA CABERNET SHIRAZ 2016 / $18
Five generations of the Lynn family have called Penola home as blacksmiths, graziers and storekeepers before planting their first vines in 1968. The Musician is the valuefor-money sibling of the Majella icon, The Malleea. It has aromas of mulberry and ripe blueberry with a whiff of clove and allspice. It is medium weight yet generously flavoured with juicy black fruits and a final thrust of tannin. Ideal with pork and fennel sausages.
WYNNS COONAWARRA ESTATE JOHN RIDDOCH CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2015 / $160
Depth, power and longevity are the hallmarks of this Coonawarra icon, first made in 1982, and the 2015 vintage stands proudly with its predecessors. Ripe mulberry, blackcurrant and boysenberry mingle with bitter chocolate and staranise. The finish is powerful, making it an outstanding wine that needs time in the glass and venison pie.