Amazing wine. Deep and elegant at once. Seamless, just so seamless. Blackcurrant and bay leaf notes, woodsmoke and cedar, roasted nuts, some coffee, some salted black olive characters. Tannin is immensely fine-grained; the finish all-round feels confident and long. Spread; that’s what this wine has. Lots of spread. It’s championship material. It’s a long-termer.

A whole lot of blue and black fruit, some violet perfume, and no shortage of creamy mocha oak, also some iodine and crushed dried herbs. It’s full-bodied, rich in flavour, a Turkish coffee feel to tannin, chocolaty oak, dried blueberry and raspberry, lavish silty tannin to close, with oak and fruit having a fair old crack at each other, though the density of the fruit is probably the winner. It’s a bold wine, inky and ferrous, with no shortage of stuffing. It’s a throaty, almost Napa style of wine, and kind of showy in that way, though there’s no doubt it’s high quality.

This is a weighty merlot. It’s also a firmly structured one. Mulberry, redcurrant, coffee beans and saltbush notes merge into dark chocolate and earth. There will be no compalaints of this wine’s depth, or spread, or tannic framework, though it may (or may not) lack some x-factor. This latter comment is of course in the context that x-factor is a near impossible demand to make of a wine; given that it’s impossible to define, and that you only know it when you see it. In any case there’s ample weight on this wine’s bones, and it’s all delivered in svelte form.

Bursting with ripe peach, pear and pineapple with an expressive vanilla bean oak intensity and a lively tension from the lemon acidity. Long, herbaceous and fulfilling.

I can’t help but do a little happy dance for the savvy team behind Yangarra when I crack the seal on the Ovitelli Blanc. Grenache Blanc in capable hands – YAY. This is a blend of 73% Grenache Blanc and 27% Roussanne and it makes sense in the old country of McLaren Vale. Like anything Yangarra does, there is thought, consideration, trials and a purpose behind each decision made both in the vineyard and winery. It’s no surprise then that the fruit is handled with a portion macerated on skins for over 110 days, some batches whole bunch pressed and other elements with the finest pressure imaginable. All parts into ceramic eggs for fermentation. Sounds like a lot of work and you bet it is. However, what you are left with is a bouquet of alluring white gardenia, Cape jasmine and aloe vera gel. Star fruit, winter melon and mangosteen. All of this before a rattle of what you thought you knew of textural white wines. A lustrous and creamy palate that winds down your tongue. With hints of bee pollen, whey and almond meal, this has the force of a fighter jet with the soft wing flutter of a night owl. It’s dynamic and pristine. I’m completely enamoured. Drink with..hmmm .. geez something bloody brilliant made by someone very talented. Or perhaps the sweetest scallop nigiri placed at room temperature in your hand by the Sushi master.

Always the delicately fine wine and long awaited between vintages. Here they have selected berry sorting and 100% destemmed fruit that goes into ceramic eggs for 13 months. No pressings, no oak. Basically no Bull. This is NOT a red lollied water Grenache for slurping sake. This is style and substance and this, my friends, is Grenache in the hands of those that adore it. Fresh pomegranate seeds picked from their hulls. Goji berry, salted red plum, mace and dried porcini mushroom powder. It’s the slinkyness across the palate that curves with the finesse of skin tannins. Rosemary stem, thistle and pine needle with a savoury licorice root astringency. Such an elegant expression of site backed by pinpoint accuracy. Drink with roast figs, chalky goats cheese and pomegranate molasses.

Buttery, toasty influence on baked lemons and rye over hints of smoke. Creamy on the palate, luscious and textured.

A pretty white, with pear and lemon flavors that mingle with spices as this glides toward a plush finish. Drink now. 240 cases made.

A swathe of fine terracotta tannins suck up the fruit, tailoring a most evenly delivered palate of black cherry and rosehip fruit. Whole bunch (20%) brings ripe wood and nutty seed tones, lavender and violet lift. The oak delivers a cinnamon and anise kiss. An Upper Yarra Pinot of impressive gravitas, thanks to Ray Guerin’s east-facing, multi-clonal planting (MV6, Pommard, 114 and 115) at 300m elevation. Harvested 10, 12 and 15 March.

Complex, textural, with developing honey, roast hazelnut and lees nuances to the languorous, slippery, golden delicious apple and ripe citrus fruit. A touch of green apple peel too. Lithe, with balanced acidity to the lingering finish. Planted in 1997 to a single Chardonnay clone (I10V1), the east-facing Applejack vineyard in the Upper Yarra Valley, rises from 180m to 280m on grey clay loam. Harvested 3 and 6 March.

Muscular and taut – a slow burn – with icing sugar and dried pear-edged granny smith apple and grapefruit. Subliminal phenolic tension highlights the predominant Gingin and Mendoza clones, sourced from Leeuwin Estate in Margaret River, prone to large and small berries in the same bunch. Founder Phil Sexton planted this low-yielding vineyard in 1997 on shallow clay loam over granite and ironstone, at 130m to 201m on the north-facing slopes of the Warramate Ranges. Harvested 25 February to 2 March.

Attractive blackberries and dark cherries with ground cloves, cocoa and dried blue flowers. Full body. Firm and linear tannins with sleek texture and hints of bitter spices and dried herbs alongside the dark fruit. Solid and compact with notes of walnut at the end. Try after 2026.

A suave, perfumed Pinot with 'jazz hands', says Melanie Chester. Sourced from the Nocton Vineyard in Tasmania's Coal River Valley on calcareous and Triassic sandstone, this Pinot (planted to clones MV6, D5V12 and G8V3) hails from a long growing season. It is weightier, with plush cherry, blue and black berry fruit, balanced acidity and seamlessly ripe supporting tannins. Lavender and Chinese five spice make for a buoyant, expressive wine. Harvested on 22 April.

Tight, fresh and saline with a citrus-driven nose and an attractively pithy palate alongside intriguing orange spritz and old-fashioned lemonade flavours. Cut with lively acidity, it has good intensity and drive. Leased for 20 years, the Chardonnay (predominantly clone P58) was planted in 1988 on cooler south- and east-facing slopes on grey clay loam. Harvested 25 February, 28 February and 6 March with the east-facing slopes the last-picked.

Intensely perfumed, with Turkish delight and spicy nutmeg to the vibrant lolly-like raspberry and blueberry fruit. The tannins are a constant – not aggressive, but currently sitting a little apart from the fruit. Always picked a week after Applejack, this Upper Yarra vineyard was planted in 2001 to the MV6, 115 and little-known G8V3 clones by Lou Primavera. The north-, north-east- and south-facing red clay loam slopes sit at 230m.

Notes of ripe dark berries and chocolate hazelnuts with crushed rocks and spices on offer. Medium- to full-bodied with creamy tannins and velvety texture. Sleek and mellow in the finish. Drink or hold.

Aromas of blackcurrants, blackberries, dark chocolate, toasted cloves and licorice. Vivid and juicy with a full body and compact tannins, that are fine grained and polished. Long and seamless with delicious dark berry succulence. Drink or hold.

Savoury, with earth and graphite notes on a slightly reduced and closed nose – a function of nutrient-poor grey clay loam soils. In the mouth it reveals ripe plum, cherry and dusty fig flavours, with meaty undertones and a hint of tobacco. Still very young, this 100% destemmed Pinot needs time to flesh out. The fruit comes from the saddle of the Sexton vineyard, planted to the MV6, G5V15 and Abel clones.

Blueberry, iodine and oyster shell, liquorice, cedar and nougat, some floral notes and dried mint. It’s ripe and sweet fruited, all blackcurrant, boysenberry and blueberry, kind of like a pie with a spicy crust, but also a little ferrous and earthy, with firm ironstone and silty tannin, and a huge volume of flavour, all black olive tapenade and sage and sweet dark fruit on a finish of excellent length. It’s a bold wine, and kind of overt as a youngster, but should turn out well with considerable bottle age

Blackcurrant, dark raspberry, a little dried flower and herb perfume, mint, iodine, creamy chocolate and spiced cedar oak, also a dash of paprika. It’s dense and packed with graphite tannin, a lovely ferrous edge to it, tobacco, red and black fruit, deep and rich, but also fragrant to close with chocolate and pencilly tannin. Serious wine here, the highlight being the integration of (plentiful) oak and fruit, and a superb muscular tannin profile. Touch and go for 96 points really.

It’s a mighty red wine, weighty with fruit and oak flavour, but it’s also fresh and flowing. It’s the kind of wine that simply sweeps you along. Sweet raspberry, dense plum, cloves and assorted woodsy spice notes, along with soy, cream and cedar. There’s a chalkiness to the tannin, or at least a fine chalk-dust element, and a general impression of completeness. For all its grunt though I can’t really emphasis the freshness of the profile here enough. It makes this feel as though it’s something of a modern archetype.

Crushed raspberries, burlap and black tea make for an interesting aromatic introduction. The wine’s acidity is tangy, with fresh, tart strawberry and lemonade flavors. The tannins are soft and unobtrusive.

Crushed cherries, raspberries and dried cranberries here, together with savory herbs, dried flowers and wet stones. Medium-bodied, chalky and polished with delicious cherries and hints of red spices. Crunchy and vibrant finish. Drink now.

Aromas of lemon pith, pear skin, white almond and yogurt. Medium- to full-bodied with vivid acidity and a polished texture. Some chalkiness to it. Pleasant and satisfying, with a flavorful finish. Drink now.

An alluring Sauvignon Blanc from the Stonestreet Estate's Cougar Ridge Vineyard grown at 300m in elevation. The wine was fermented in stainless steel and various oak vessels, French, Austrian and German in origin. The aromatics are ripe stone fruit, sweet florals and a touch of savoury grasses underlined by wet chalk. The palate offers lush lemon cream, kefir lime leaf, beeswax and crushed limestone. Delicious.