Australian_Gourmet_Traveller_2017

(Jacob Rumans) #1
2017 Vigna Cantina
Rosato di Sangiovese,
Eden Valley, $25
Don’t be fooled by the
delicate hue. This is pink
wine with plenty of savoury
flavour and terrific tangy,
mouth-tingling freshness.
It pairs wonderfully well
with char-grilled fish.
torzimatthews.com.au

2010 Tedeschi Capitel
Monte Olmi, Amarone
della Vapolicella, $217
One of the best examples
of amarone – vino di
meditazione – I’ve ever
tasted (and I’ve tasted lots):
stunningly rich, pure black
cherries, wrapped in layers
of chewy tannin. Imported
by enoteca.com.au

2017 Margan Albarino,
Hunter Valley, $30
Grown miles from the sea,
but exactly the kind of
white you want when
there’s seafood on the
table. Crisp and tangy and
refreshing, it has lovely
succulent melon fruit
flavours that linger on the
palate. margan.com.au

2011 Tim Adams Reserve
Riesling, Clare Valley, $29
This is an extremely
reasonable price to pay
for a classic Clare riesling
with five years’ bottle
age. Still fresh and
lime-juicy, but beginning
to fill out with toasty,
savoury richness.
timadamswines.com.au

Leclerc Briant Brut
Réserve, Épernay, $90
The Champagnes of Leclerc
Briant, now available in
Australia, deserve to be
widely known. I love the
fresh fruit and finesse in
this non-vintage; the Brut
Rosé and 2007 Millésime
are also superb. Imported
by frenchvine.com.au

Rosa – and is garnished
with both orange and lemon.
And others see the Spritz
as more of a concept than
a recipe. This Must be the
Place in Sydney’s Oxford
Street, for instance, is billed
as a Spritz bar and always has
a few variations on offer – but the Gloss Spritz, for
example, with its strawberry, Ketel One Citroen,
watermelon riesling and rosewater, is not
something you’d be likely to encounter in Italy.
Ever since my first Spritz encounter in Venice
(it was a Campari Spritz, by the way), I’ve
experimented with various ingredients and
combinations. I’ve found – as have many others


  • that the 3-2-1 rule is a good guide to mixing a
    perfect version of the drink: three parts sparkling
    wine, two parts bitter liqueur, one part soda
    water. Some people advocate using a rocks glass,
    some a large-bowled wine glass. I like to go
    halfway with a stemless wine glass that’s roomy
    enough for plenty of ice and a citrus slice.
    And I know the Spritz is a classic Italian
    aperitivo, but I find myself mixing an all-Aussie
    version on warm, golden Australian afternoons,
    using a good prosecco from Dal Zotto in Victoria’s
    King Valley, the brilliantly dark, bitter Red Økar
    riberry-based liqueur made in the Adelaide Hills,
    Capi soda water, a slice of Mildura-grown
    blood orange, and a home-cured green
    olive from my backyard. ●


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“Many people
both in Italy and
beyond assume
that ordering
a Spritz means
you’ll get an
Aperol-flavoured
sparkling drink.”

Drinks

GOURMET TRAVELLER 55

PHOTOGRAPHY ANDREW FINLAYSON (SPRITZ) & RODNEY MACUJA (TOP DROPS). ILLUSTRATION LAUREN HAIRE

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