Food & Wine USA - (10)October 2020

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THE NEW AUSTRALIA R E T HIN K

EVERYTHING YOU KNOW ABOUT THE

ISLAND CONTINENT’S WINES.

A LOT OF PEOPLE MIGHT look at me funny if I said that Australia

was the greatest wine-producing country that people in the

U.S. know very little about, but in a weird way, it’s true. Australia

is one of the most exciting wine places on the planet right now,

but our view of it still seems too stuck in the cheap-cheerful-

chunky Shiraz zone. That view is changing, but it’s changing

slowly—and not nearly as fast as Australia is minting ambitious

new winemakers and groundbreaking new wineries, even as

older names there are redefining people’s expectations. Great

Pinot from Australia? No problem. Killer Riesling? Got it.

Chardonnay that’s lean, vivid, and racy? Sure thing. Eye- and

palate-opening natural wines? Definitely.

The only hitch is that some of the most compelling names in

this wave of great wine make tiny, tiny amounts of it. Two of

my favorites from my tastings—winemaker Joshua Cooper’s

stunning Captains Creek Vineyard Chardonnay and a stellar,

savory Pinot from Levantine Hill in Yarra Valley—come to the

U.S. in such minimal quantities that I couldn’t really list them

here (but if you see a bottle of either, grab it). Regardless, there

are plenty of others that do arrive here in more reasonable

quantities, as these 10 great bottles indicate. —RAY ISLE

2019 YETTI & THE KOKONUT

HIPSTER JUICE RED ($30)

“Yetti” is winemaker Dave Geyer,

“Kokonut” is partner Koen Jans-

sens, and this wittily named nat-

ural wine, made from a host of

grape varieties, is just a straight-

up delight. Lightly herbal, zinging

with acidity, ultra-low in alcohol

(9.1%)—chill it down and enjoy.

2018 PENFOLDS MAX’S

CHARDONNAY ($25)

Named in honor of former head

winemaker Max Schubert (the

creator of Penfolds Grange,

easily Australia’s most famous

wine), this precise, lemon-zesty

white will change your mind if

you think Aussie Chardonnays

are all big, oaky clunkers.

2019 TIM SMITH BUGALUGS

BAROSSA GRENACHE ($25)

Australian Grenache gets

far less attention than fellow

Rhône import Shiraz (i.e.,

Syrah), but who knows why.

This wine, with its luminous

garnet hue, fresh raspberry

flavor, and hint of pepperiness,

is impossible not to like.

2016 CIRILLO THE VINCENT

GRENACHE ($37)

Spiced cherries and a light leather

note are what this silky, medium-

bodied red calls to mind. Cirillo

owns the oldest Grenache vineyard

in the world, planted in 1848, though

this wine comes from vines that

are merely 88 years old or so (their

1850 Ancestor Vine bottling is $90

but worth the splurge if you see it).

2017 TYRRELL’S HUNTER

VALLEY CHARDONNAY ($23)

Founded in 1858 by English

immigrant Edward Tyrrell and

still owned by his descendents,

Tyrrell’s is one of Australia’s

oldest wineries and still one of its

best. Sweet citrus notes and a

flinty-oak-spicy finish make this

a brightly appealing Chardonnay.

2018 D’ARENBERG THE

HERMIT CRAB VIOGNIER

MARSANNE ($18)

One of the less fancifully named of

winemaker Chester Osborn’s many

wines (“The Solipsistic Snollygoster,”

anyone?), this blend of white Rhône

varieties offers lots of engaging

peach-melon flavor and a crisp,

lively finish.

2018 POWELL & SON EDEN

VALLEY RIESLING ($31)

Dave Powell made his name as

the founder/winemaking savant

of cult winery Torbreck. He left

in 2013 and bounced back with

Powell & Son, where he makes

intense Shirazes—as well as this

stony, mouthwatering Riesling

from 80-plus-year-old vines.

2018 DANDELION VINEYARDS

LION’S TOOTH OF MCLAREN

VALE SHIRAZ-RIESLING ($30)

Shiraz and Riesling are unlikely

partners, but in Elena Brooks’

hands, the combination works

effortlessly. Blackberries, white

pepper, and a lime-leaf note

from fermentation atop Riesling

skins—a surprise, but a good one.

2018 ALKOOMI BLACK LABEL

RIESLING ($25)

Australia is a source for some

of the world’s best dry Rieslings,

and this one is hard to argue with.

Aromas of lime peel and talc and

minerally, completely dry flavors

that suggest limes squeezed over

stones—bring on the raw oysters.

2017 JIM BARRY THE BARRY

BROS RED ($15)

Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvi-

gnon come together in this

lively, red cherry–rich wine

from a top Clare Valley winery.

It offers a lot of straightforward

pleasure and is much more

complex than many similarly

priced Aussie reds.