4

Balter XPA,

Currumbin, $5

Brilliant balance of

new-wave bitter hoppy

perfume and old-style

refreshing Aussie

drinkability. No wonder it

was voted number one in

this year’s GABS Hottest

100 craft beer poll.

balter.com.au

2017 Rieslingfreak

No 5 Off-Dry Riesling,

Clare Valley, $25

John Hughes is winning

awards left, right and centre

for his rieslings – such as

this scintillating, pristine,

refreshing example of the

off-dry style with a hint of

tingly grape sweetness.

rieslingfreak.com

2016 Nocturne Cabernet

Sauvignon, Margaret

River, $45

Julian Langworthy has built

a reputation as one of

Margaret River’s best

cabernet makers with wines

like this; intensely flavoured,

beautifully poised, it’s good

now and will also cellar well.

nocturnewines.com.au

2015 Bellebonne Vintage

Rosé, Tasmania, $65

Nat Fryar was winemaker

at Jansz for many years

and knows Tasmanian

fizz better than most, so

it’s absolutely no surprise

that the first wine under

her own label is gorgeously

elegant and refined.

bellebonne.wine

Animus Arboretum Gin,

Macedon Ranges, $115

Bold, complex, intriguing

gin, with layers of

aromatics running from

the bass notes of bush

tomato up to the high

notes of citrus. A little

stronger than most, too,

at 50 per cent ABV.

animusdistillery.com

the bright, snappy

style ofwine it

produces. One of

very few producers

of mammolo in

Australia, Koerner

Wine in the Clare

Valley uses the grape

to produce a very light-coloured, perfumed red that’s

only a step away from a rosé. If you like pale, dry pink

wine but want something with a little bit more body

and chew, give this a go.

ÖKÜZGÖZÜ

The name of this Turkish variety means “bulls eye”,

because the vine is known for producing big fat

bunches of very large black grapes. It’s a traditional

variety from eastern Anatolia, and is enjoying a surge

of popularity along with the growing interest in Turkish

wine thanks in part to progressive producers such as

Vinkara. Like the other grapes profiled here, öküzgözü

produces fashionably medium-bodied red wine with

refreshing acidity.

Turkey isn’t the only very old wine-producing

country with ancient indigenous vines that has

attracted the attention of sommeliers and critics:

other red varieties include xinomavro from northern

Greece and saperavi from Georgia. Expect to see more

of these wines shipped to Australia as this trend grows.

Öküzgözü tastes a bit like an earthy, savoury

grenache crossed with a fleshy pinot, and is a great

match, not surprisingly, for spicy Turkish lamb

grilled over charcoal.●

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“Turkey isn’t the

only very old

wine-producing

country with ancient

indigenous vines

that has attracted

the attention of

sommeliers.”

Drinks

Reds Marble side table

from The DEA Store.

O Series pinot noir glass

from Riedel. Stockists p176.

GOURMET TRAVELLER 55

PHOTOGRAPHY ROB SHAW (MAIN) & RODNEY MACUJA (TOP DROPS). STYLING AIMEE JONES. ILLUSTRATION LAUREN HAIRE