Adelaide

On to Adelaide, Monday. Rent a car and on to Red Heads; our own little winery and our home from home in McLaren Vale. The place is looking smarter. There's a car-park! And a garden of herbs. But the famous sign had a run-in with a tractor and is lying on the ground. So be warned if you are planning an imminent visit. There’s no sign. Though there is an old red tractor sitting on the junction of Kangarilla and Foggo roads. That's it, the new sign?


You can view it on Google Maps.
See two red roofs; that's Red Heads. Justin says he'll get on the roofs and paint 'Red' and ‘Heads’ so it'll be visible from space!

Here, in South Australia, it hasn't rained at all. It’s a burnt and worried land. There is a serious water shortage. You can have water to irrigate your vines. But it costs a lot of money. Some can't afford to. Some can. Some cheat and pinch water. We went to visit the Mouth of the River Murray. Where it flows into the sea. Except it doesn't anymore. There's no mouth.

There's a great deal of interest in vine varieties that don't need so much water. Like "Sangiovaysee, Mate"; (Justin's speciality). And Grenache ('Hoop's' speciality). Spent days rough driving our hire car (it looked like Hell when we returned it) through vineyards and back tracks seeing what was available in the way of unusual old fruit. Old vineyards that have somehow survived the regular bouts of uprooting and re-planting and which now could represent a sort of national treasure. There are these old Touriga, Bastardo and Tinta Negra Mole vineyards at the top end of Barossa, just round the back of the huge new Wolf Blass plant. Portuguese grapes … probably just what's needed for drought conditions. How did they survive? Well, Justin's on the case and we saw how they are being re-pruned (lower yields) re-wired and posted. Justin wants to call the resulting wine when it arrives; 'Night of the Living Red'. The wines that came back from the dead, you see. Very Justin, that.

Now, about Hoops; (Adam Hooper); Chief Winemaker at Red Heads as Justin travels the world selling the wines. Hoop's own brand is 'La Curio', which is now available on the front-of-plane

Quantas wine list as well as trendy bars and us. Hoops was named South Australian Winemaker of the Year by Decanter magazine. He's grown his hair and 'Musketeers' style facial hair since his stint for us, Flying Winemaking in St Tropez last summer. St Tropez has that effect on people. So he looks sort of ... Wicked! But he isn't really. Humble and modest he still drives - and possibly lives in - a beat-up old green camper van; hippy-fashion. Am watching him dart about the tub fermenters as the harvest starts to arrive. He has Mitch from a wine shop in Calgary and Kurt, his agent in Queensland as this years cellar-rats. Spouting poetry as he goes, and always trying something new, this boy is an artist. He just described how he chilled his juice so hard in an attempt to keep more fruit flavour. "Basically, I make a one ton sorbet and try to ferment it'" That's our Hoops!

There's more fruit from the Barossa this year as they seem to have had an exceptionally good vintage. Fruit (you don't say 'grapes' if you are a winemaker) is more expensive than last year due to last year's shortages. But there are hopes that this year's (relative) abundance could cause prices to drop towards the end of harvest. We have a presentation from Justin on how things are going. Very well, with booming sales in the USA and now Australia. But it seems I haven’t been telling his story enough in the UK … “you’re lagging behind, mate!” The long saga of trying to get a bar licence is in its fourth year. But we are now down to just replacing some broken flooring. So maybe by next year! They laid on a dinner to show just what they will be able to do. A fantastic evening. We also ate extremely well at the new Saltbush Bistro on the seafront at Aldinga Beach, as well as old favourites; the Star of Greece, Fino (in Willunga), the Victory Inn and Market 190 in McLaren Vale High Street. You are spoilt for choice here. And it’s getting better. We just missed being taken to the Salopian Inn by Nat McMurtrie (Pikkara Wines) who was born there - in the Inn!Saturday, Rod Stewart did a concert on the property next door. Advertised as 'On the Green' it was more like 'In the Dust' what with the drought.

Visited lots of wineries. Outstanding was Chapel Hill – the winery of the even more award-bedecked Michael Fragos. He used to be head winemaker at Tatachilla and made us so many wonderful wines until it was sold and production ceased in McLaren Vale. He has class does Michael; polished wines of great class.

Also Scarpantoni, in McLaren Flat, all cock-a-hoop at winning the Oz wine equivalent of the FA Cup; the 'Jimmy Watson Trophy'. The brothers grow all their own grapes, and it’s still a family-owned, mid-sized winery of the type which was becoming a rarity when the mega-groups were going round buying them all up. That unfortunate trend now seems over and there is the happy sight of quite a few new independent wineries opening up. The boys do a great unoaked chard but their white specialty is Sauv Blanc. We tried the sensational fermenting juice/wine; all milky white. Its something the consumer never sees unless he goes to one of the 'Heureige' winery-bars around Vienna in October, or risks exploding his insides with the ' Bourru' of Bordeaux.

I always wished I could give customers a taste of this dangerous delight but how can you bottle something that's fermenting like crazy? Michael and Fillippo Scarpantoni always joked about winning the Jimmy Watson when they and their parents started up back in the early 80's. They went so far as to tempt fate by naming their first vineyard; 'J.W. (Jimmy Watson) Brothers Block'! 20 years later, they actually earned the right! (The late Jimmy Watson had a wine bar in Carlton, Victoria and put up this trophy for the Best One Year Old Red in Australia).

Also visited Lou – and daughters – Miranda's place in Barossa. The Miranda Brothers were almost our earliest suppliers in Oz. Then they too got bought out. But they - or the next generation Miranda's - are starting up again. Good to see. The old guys can still do it.

Postscript.

The last four days we were there the temperature shot up to 38 C. And stayed there. We've been home in the UK 10 days now. And apparently its still 38 in the Vale. Longest heatwave ever. And its supposed to be Autumn there. The latest fruit to come in had a potential alcohol over 20%!!! I don't think anyone ever got a wine to ferment out that strong. It’d make good port though.

But as we seem to be saying all the time now; what is happening to the world?

Sydney

Arrive sore, pallid, coughing and blinking in Sydney summer sun to visit the Laithwaites team who opened a sales office here last year. They call themselves 'Wine People' and work out of a tiny old house in Darlinghurst. (So this Christmas if you want to send wine to your Aussie Auntie, we will happily get them to do that for you. Just call my office or check them out at www.winepeople.com.au).

We opened up in Sydney partly because Australians are now drinking increasing amounts of European and American wines. (Check out any good Sydney restaurant wine list). Partly its to do with us being better placed if we are actually on the ground here to be able to dig out more 'real' (and rare) little Aussie wineries in a marketplace totally dominated by huge groups making 'brands' in huge factories.
And they are searching out quite a few farms, because there is a bit of a backlash in Oz toward sterile brands and a renaissance of small, start-ups going on - whose wines Laithwaites will soon have in the UK too.

But perhaps mainly its because - and this is a purely personal view - Australia currently sits at the centre of the known wine world - and if we are to live up to our recently being called 'most successful wine merchant on the planet' we really need to be present and competing successfully in the hottest market in the world; Oz.

So here we are; squeezed into this really tiny house with a 'dunny' out the back and listening to exciting tales that remind us so much of our own start-up in a wooden shed under a railway arch 39 years ago. Start-ups are hard going. And the Oz market is probably the toughest in the world.

That's why Aussie wines are so bloody good; here, if you are NOT bloody good you just won't survive. And many don't. There are no comfort-blankets of ' famous appellations' to protect you here; you've only your own name to offer and you are only as good as your last wine score.
Anyway our little team will have to fight very hard to survive. But they are a very impressive bunch of Aussies and Brits. I'll keep you informed.

Incredibly, in view of I don't know how many years of drought, it’s been raining in Sydney all summer. But we hit a period of four days of brilliant sun. Staying at the Sheraton on the Park (which is good), and walkable from the office. And also from Circular Quay, where the tubby Queen Victoria is moored and the elegant QE2 just arriving. Causing traffic jams and marooning us at Manly because the ferry couldn't squeeze past those two great Queens as they had a very slow, historic, ceremonial, passing hoot at each other.

Can I recommend The Boathouse on Blackwattle Bay if you like oysters and perfect, fresh fish. It’s next to the fish market.

We meet with family and watch nephew Martin do a 2km swim through shark-infested waters with hundreds of other Aussies, some considerably older than me. Mad, the Aussies, but you have to admire.

Argument with cocky wine waiter at Bondi Beach; I say there's no need for me to taste the Semillon first. Because it can't be corked, can it; it’s screwcapped?. Mate, It can still be oxidised he says. 10% of Aussie wine is oxydised. Nonsense I say Aussie wine is never oxidised. He pours the wine round and goes. We drink. Its bloody oxidised isn't it!

Can't swim at Bondi. Having the pacemaker implanted last week has left me looking all cut and bruised like the victim of a small shark attack.

There would be screams. So just stay clothed, British fashion, knotted hanky on head.

From somewhere near Adelaide, South Australia Its CLEAN-UP AUSTRALIA DAY!

Yesterday (Mar 2) was national 'Clean up Australia Day'. On telly, they've been banging on about it for weeks. So along all streets and across all parks in this fair and sunburnt land people were out in force today with their plastic bags. Quite impressive, really.

So, I and my energetic wine buyers, over here as usual to cherrypick the new vintage before anyone else, decided we today, we should do our bit to help. Here’s how:

Vintage 08 has begun here unexpectedly early. A sudden 'spike' of hot weather and the grapes suddenly accelerated to full ripeness... About two weeks early.
Causing no end of chaos.
Worse than usual problems of space in wineries.
So we had some fun going round today.

"Clean-up?," we said, wittily, "Can we help you chaps"? Maybe you'd like that pile of boxes with our name on, over there moved out EARLY - like now - on to this week's ship for Britain? You know; "Clean-Up Australia?"
They love a joke, do Aussies.
"Right....That'd be great, Tony".
"Well... If you forgot that price increase/cut off a few dollars more. Etc. maybe we really could" ?? ....
All fall about laughing. But we got the deals in the end.

Of course to avoid space problems in our own warehouse when this lot turns up in a couple of months we too must shift a few extra cases now.

So here’s the – shameless – salesy bit. Help us (and yourself!) by having a look at the tempting deals we’ve got on the Aussie wines in our cellars right now. I just had a spin through the rest of the site and noticed we’ve a 12-for-8 deal (if I read correctly, that’s four free bottles!) of Kelly Country Shiraz.

I’ve always been a big fan of this – has all the satisfying oomph we Aussie fans expect (no, demand!), but because it’s from cool-climate Victoria, there’s great elegance and a lovely white pepper edge here too. Same deal – four free bottles – on Warburn Estate Merlot – think Aussie Pomerol. Very chcocolaty, very moreish. That’s just a couple – plenty more to get you thirsty.

Do have a look – you’ll save the buyers and me from being criticised for over-enthusiastic buying – but more importantly you’ll drink very well and make some very tasty savings. Cheers!