September 2024 Manager picks

This month we are featuring fine wines of Hugh Hamilton. McLaren Vale Australia

Scallywag Chardonnay. Striking, subtle, and satisfying, the Scallywag sidles up and says ‘enjoy’. All white peach fluff, bake ready bread dough, bay and lemon leaves. Just a titch of vanilla and sage leaf too. A swaggerous Scallywag that knows it’s good and doesn’t mind telling you all about it. $16.99

Food Pairing: Baked Rainbow Trout with Lemongrass, steamed Pak Choi and coconut rice.

The Villain Cabernet Sauvignon. Intense varietal lift. Brambly black fruit backed with sliced cayenne, paprika, green olives, and roast chestnut. A garden of lift; Dried thyme, oregano, and effusive florals sprouting exotically throughout. Sandalwood, cinnamon, and rose. Split stone, graphite, and blood. Supple, muscular, taut, poised. $19.99

Food Pairing: Roast beef short ribs, sautéed wild mushrooms with fresh parsley

The Rascal Shiraz. “Shiraz and McLaren Vale”. A famous pairing. Black fruited and brooding, dense and earthy. Black denim, licorice, mollases and black tea leaves. Right in the heart of the palate the black yields to deep red – Raspberries, cherries, and hibiscus. Spiced throughout with cinnamon quills and star anise. Cigar leaf richness. Emery texture supporting a solid palate. To let it really shine will take patience. Cellar well and be rewarded, or enjoy now in all it’s jostling youth $19.99

Food Pairing: You’ll need your barbecue nice and hot. Char Siu BBQ Pork, Balsamic-Soy Mushrooms.

Jim Jim Shiraz (Australia) The Down Under Underdog. Toasty red-fruit lift. Plums, strawberry shortcake, violets, and light baked spices. A soft and rich palate. Bright with crunchy fruit and lip smacking blue fruited vibrancy. $12.99

Food pairing: Blue Ribbon BBQ half rack of pork ribs, the garlic mashed and the Saturday night game of the week. Yummy!

Black Ops Blend. Dense dried spice and violets are followed with an entire Black Forest of heady fruit. Plums and blackberries. Iodine and beets. Rose and coal smoke, Black tea and raspberry. All opulence in the mouth. A steady wave of fruit and firm grip ploughs down the palate. Bombast but with both charm and class. Bold, brooding, and intense $19.99

Food Pairing: Team it up with a classic Reuben Sandwich; perhaps swap out the corned beef for smoky beetroot to match the mix.