Good Morning!

This past week I got slammed with emails but my favorite email question was from my Uncle Fred, he was asking what I know about the wines from down under, he really likes the Merlot that is produced my Lindeman. Well, Uncle Fred will get the family treatment and move to the top of the line…plus his birthday is this week so Happy Birthday!

About 10-12 years ago I was on an Aussie wine crusade. I went to wine tasting at Kuhn’s wines in Carmel, IN and a young guy named Art, said these wines are the next great thing. Me being me at the time, just wanted to taste everything and anything and every time I would head to the wine shop I was picking up anything and everything from Australia.

When I think back to it, I loved the simplicity of the labels from down under. They either had just text like Penfolds or Lindeman or they had great cartoony labels and fun names like Yellow Tail and Little Boomie (meaning Boomarang). I really took a liking to the Shiraz, it was big and bold lots of fruit and high, really high alcohol. I later learned the Shiraz grape is the same grape as the Syrah grape.

While reading about Australia I found out there are 5 major wine regions and then they are divided up yet again into 60 smaller areas with a total of 103 specific geographic locations for wine production. Most wines are all grown in the southern part of the country, I guess someone could be growing something in the north, but I have not read about it yet.

I started poking around to find out when the Aussies really started getting some traction in the US with their wines and I read that Jess Jackson the founder of Kendall-Jackson wines started growing grapes in Australia to off set the opposite growing season. I also know that the most famous wine that had come out of Austrialia at that time was made by Pensfolds called Grange. From what I have read about this wine, it used to be called Hermitage and after 1986 is was just labeled Grange made with mostly Shiraz from the southern part of Australia and a small amount of Cabernet.

The Grange is considered to be one of the best wines ever made in the land of the outback and kangaroos. I tried this wine back 8 years ago at a private winemakers dinner and to be honest, it was really good but I was so new to tasting at that level, I am sure it’s beauty was lost on me. There are many massive amounts of wine being made and consumed from Australia, they are the 4th producer (2007), about $5.5 Billion in sales and though I think their wines still sell very well, I am not sure they became as popular here in the US as expected.

A good friend of mine who owns a wine retail shop in Chicago, Don Sritong Owner of Just Grapes, told me a story about his wife and the wines of Australia and the people there and their love of life and lust for adventure. His wife is an Aussie and he said once you go to the vineyards, meet the people who make the wines and feel their passion, you will have an emotional connection with the wines and you will always be drawn to them. Thanks Don! Hearing about his adventures and experiences with their wines opened my mind.

Plus Shiraz is so yummy with grilled meats…It makes me want to grab a tri-tip, fire up the grill and find a great bottle and say cheers to the great winemakers of Australia and Happy Birthday to Uncle Fred!

Good have a great weekend and find a bottle to join in the fun.

Much LOVE and wine,
Tammi