The Auswine Forum

When over in the ACT 18 months ago I enjoyed the local Canberra District wines I drunk. I’m back over again this November and would like to get an ‘interesting’ selection of 12 mixed wines from the area sent to one Canberra address in advance. Besides Clonakilla & some Eden Road, Canberra District wines are virtually unobtainable in the UK these days thanks to EU bureaucracy/meddling. Grenache is a particular interest of mine (although I'm not sure if this is particularly successful in this area) and I'm not particularly enamoured, generally, by Pinot Noir. Also, are there any decent wine merchants in Civic (I used Ainslie Cellars [OK, not Civic] last time) that I could walk to (when is the magpie season?) for a browse? TIA.

The Ravenworth wines are worth tracking down. It’s riesling and sangiovese are especially note worthy.

+1 for Ravensworth. Sassafras also worth looking at for 'intersting' wines.

You'll be rid of those pesky Europeans sooner or later

The Collector shiraz's are very good IMO
well worth a visit

Add gundog marksman or Estate Shiraz, collector, nick O'Leary. All very high quality

There are no decent wine shops in Civic that I am aware of (Canberra resident for almost 40 years now) and Ainslie Cellars is the closest applicable option for what you are looking for. Not much grenache grown around here but Clonakilla makes a blend called Ceoltori, which was grenache predominant in the 2015 vintage and mourvedre predominant in the 2016 vintage. I tried the 2015 in a cellar door visit last year and quite liked it (and I am not normally a fan of grenache). The 2016 is already shown as sold out at cellar door on the website but Ainslie Cellars may have some - I am not sure if they sell it into the trade. The 2016 shiraz viognier will be available to trade such as Ainslie Cellars in early October. We are planning to visit cellar door shortly to try it but the claims are that it is as good as the 2015, which is very fine. I can't add much to the other suggestions, other than to mention Mount Majura (good tempranillo) and to endorse Ravensworth which is the personal venture of Bryan Martin, the hands on winemaker at Clonakilla. Enjoy the visit.

Plonk, a beer and wine shop with a presence at both the Fyshwick and Belconnen markets, has the best selection of Canberra region wines I know. I’m not sure whether it is only open on market days for the respective markets (Thursday to Sunday at Fyshwick and Wednesday to Sunday at Belconnen) or on other days as well. Neither are within walking distance from Civic unfortunately.

I've had some decent Rieslings from Helm Wines.

Matt@5453 wrote:I've had some decent Rieslings from Helm Wines.

Came in to make the same recommendation.

Bobthebuilder wrote:The Collector shiraz's are very good IMO
well worth a visit

I visited their CD back in August when we drove down to the mountains. To be honest I was disappointed with their wines BUT the tasting room was bloody freezing and the wines were cold. I tried to warm them up to get an idea of what they might be like but the tasting glasses were also freezing. Based on that experience I didn’t buy anything.

rooman wrote:

Bobthebuilder wrote:The Collector shiraz's are very good IMO
well worth a visit

I visited their CD back in August when we drove down to the mountains. To be honest I was disappointed with their wines BUT the tasting room was bloody freezing and the wines were cold. I tried to warm them up to get an idea of what they might be like but the tasting glasses were also freezing. Based on that experience I didn’t buy anything.

My experience with the 6 or 7 bottles I've tried that had between 5 - 10 years of age is they seemed very closed for quite a while before opening up considerably with air and a bit of warmth if cold. Infact I remember a year or so ago down at a farm opening the 09 reserve shiraz and being a bit disappointed for the first half hour, but by the end of the night thinking it was great, then the next night finished of the bottle and it was even better.

Thanks for the collective wisdom of the forum so far. There seems to be a nice list emerging

Ravensworth Wines - Riesling and Sangiovese
Sassafras Wines -
Collector Wines - Shiraz
Gundog Estate - Marksman’s & Estate Shiraz
Nick O’Leary Wines -
Clonakilla - Ceoltori
Mount Majura Vineyard - Tempranillo
Helm Wines - Riesling

Anyone ever been to the The Canberra Wine House? It’s in Dickson, where I spent year 11 & 12 at school, only open Wed-Sat. Can’t find a wine list on their website though. I'll look out for some Lark Hill MrV (Marsanne, Roussanne & Viognier) if they still make it as I enjoyed that on my last visit.

Gallagher Shiraz and Riesling can be particularly good value.
Do visit the Clonakilla cellar door. It’s nice and small and there’s likely to be something there worth purchasing.

Phil Wilkins wrote:Thanks for the collective wisdom of the forum so far. There seems to be a nice list emerging

Ravensworth Wines - Riesling and Sangiovese
Sassafras Wines -
Collector Wines - Shiraz
Gundog Estate - Marksman’s & Estate Shiraz
Nick O’Leary Wines -
Clonakilla - Ceoltori
Mount Majura Vineyard - Tempranillo
Helm Wines - Riesling

Anyone ever been to the The Canberra Wine House? It’s in Dickson, where I spent year 11 & 12 at school, only open Wed-Sat. Can’t find a wine list on their website though. I'll look out for some Lark Hill MrV (Marsanne, Roussanne & Viognier) if they still make it as I enjoyed that on my last visit.

Don't think you can go too far wrong with that list.

Unfortunately, I didn't/couldn't get to try most of these wines for varying reasons but appreciate the reccos. I didn't write up the 2017 Nick O'Leary 2017 Riesling.

The two CD wines I did buy/drink/wrote up were despite my mother's appaling wine glasses...

2016 Ravensworth ‘Seven Months’ White Blend
The colour looked like a slumbering southern Rhone white having spent seven months on skins in a ceramic egg. Not appetising but don’t let that put you off. The nose was striking in this Pinot Gris, Viognier, Gewurztraminer, Sauvignon Blanc blend. The palate is textured, exotic, herbal & complex. In all delicious and equally interesting but I wouldn’t be backing up the truck. AU$35, 12.5%vol, 90pts

The winemaker, Bryan Martin, cut his teeth at neighbouring Clonakilla.

2012 Collector ‘Marked Tree Red’ Shiraz Blend
Shiraz (96%), Viognier (4%). This drew me in right away with its textural qualities, integrated acidic freshness & chiselled structure. Medium bodied, very, very savoury on the palate with a tiny lick of fruit sweetness and complex accents. Finishes long. Just a shame these wines aren’t available in the UK. A bit of a bargain and note the lower alcohol from this Canberra District bottling. AU$28, 12.8%, 93pts

This is the entry level Collector Shiraz from grapes grown on granite and red shale loams around the Canberra District.