Guide to Buying Australian Wine


In Australia , wine has become the new beverage of choice for people in all walks of life. Moreover, Australia has developed an enviable reputation amongst wine drinkers and appreciators the world over. My shopping .com. au can help you make the right selection of wine for any occasion and to suit any taste. Listed on their website, you will find some of the most celebrated labels and award winning wines and you can make a selection based on reviews, price and supplier, regardless of why you want to purchase wine.

Wine

There are essentially three reasons that we can think of why you might want to buy wine: to drink in some social occasion, to give as a gift, or as an investment with a realisable future.

Buying wine to drink

Winemaker Greg Gallagher at the Charles Sturt University, South Australia, says judging a good wine is simple. "It starts with asking, 'do you like it?' "he says, \"and finishes with 'did you like it?'" When you have a list of favourite wines, all you need to do is find them on my shopping .com. au, and you will find out where it's sold for the best price.

But, because it's not always easy remembering the name, style and vintage of the wine you enjoy, it's a good idea to keep a record of wines you drink that you really like (and those that you'd prefer to avoid), for future reference.

When you're buying wine to drink, there are a number of considerations you might like to bear in mind, the first being: what is the occasion? It stands to reason that a wine for an intimate dinner with a partner might be a different choice than one for a footy night with the boys. Sharing a wine with someone is a lot more than simply sharing the drink. It\'s also sharing your taste, your values and your standards, so it pays to think carefully about the occasion and the company with whom you are sharing the wine.

A second consideration might be what is accompanying the wine? Wine is often enjoyed with a meal, but you might like to consider also how the occasion (or meal) will develop. Matching the perfect wine with the perfect food and mood is an exhilarating experience, and is often at the heart of great memories.

You may also want to consider the ambience of the occasion. A wine for enjoying at an evening symphony concert will have a different character to that enjoyed at a beach picnic.

Buying wine as a gift

Wine makes an excellent gift for many reasons. It's an easy purchase; you can buy a wine to suit practically any budget. And it is a demonstration of your taste and standards, subtly imparted to someone whom you may care for.

However, as well as meeting your taste standards, you also need to choose a wine that will meet the tastes of the receiver. It pays to find out what sort of wine that person enjoys, and buy within that person\'s style or region preferences. A person who enjoys sweet white wines will appreciate a gift that matches that personality.

Buying wine as an investment

Some wines make a good investment because they are rare and have an established reputation causing them to appreciate in value. Possibly the most famous of these in Australia is Penfolds\' Grange Hermitage, a Shiraz style Claret that has been made since 1951 (a bottle of that vintage now might set you back $50,000 or more if you can find one). Although young in terms of wine heritage, Australia has some notable wines that do and will appreciate in value.

A good investment wine is not necessarily a guarantee of a high quality drinking wine. The investment values are arrived at by reputation. A particular vintage may have enjoyed popularity for any number of reasons and become scarce because only a limited number of bottles were produced. What results is a collectors market and wine changes hands through auctions, private sales, estate dissolutions and wine club memberships.

What makes a good investment wine however, is the fact that you are able to sell the wine at some future date for a sum greater than what you paid. Therefore the condition of the wine-or more importantly, the bottle-is of paramount consideration. The provenance of an investment wine is important. Before buying, you need to establish its history of origin and previous ownership. Satisfied that the bottle is in good condition, once in your possession it needs to be cellared correctly in the absence of heat, light and movement. You should document your ownership and the conditions of its cellaring before selling it to a new buyer.

What makes good wine?

The winemaking process

The quality of a wine is affected by a wide variety of factors that occur in and as a result of the winemaking, cellaring and handling processes. One of the key factors is the terrain and climate, commonly referred to as a \'region\', where the grapes are grown. Different conditions affect different varieties differently. A Shiraz style from McLaren Vale in South Australia , for example, is a heavier and darker wine than the same style from the Swan Valley in Western Australia , which tends to be lighter and more peppery. A Chardonnay from the Hunter Valley is more full-bodied than one from Margaret River .

While knowing which vines are best suited to a soil type and climate is one aspect, another is knowing when to pick the fruit for particular effect. The fruit\'s flavour at the time of picking is a major character of the residual flavours of the wine. After initial fermentation, some winemakers choose to ferment in oak, others not to. Using oak affects the reduction of tannins in the wine. Different types of oak-English, American, old-affect the flavour and character of the wine as it matures to its nominal alcohol level. It is in the barrel that a lot of transformations in flavours and character occur, and a great deal of skill is required to know exactly when to bottle the wine.

Different winemakers have different techniques and, while a good wine can\'t be made from bad grapes, it is largely the winemaker\'s skill that produces a good wine.

Taste

One of the ways we can tell the quality of wine as judged by its taste, is whether it has had successes in any of a number of wine shows held around the country. Experts from the wine industry judge wines on their quality and medal winners enjoy the benefits of being recognised and written about in the main media.

While not every medal winner is a wine that suits our taste, it is as a direct result of the shows and competitions that Australian wines have grown in popularity and quality. At My shopping .com. au you can compare many award winning wines.

What's your taste?

Regions and style

When you are shopping for wine, one of the first questions to answer is whether you are choosing a red wine or a white wine. Once you have decided this, you can then start to narrow down the different styles. Begin with the question of whether you are seeking a dry wine or a sweet wine.

Styles of wine are named after the region from which the grape originated. In the popular dark reds you have the Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Merlot styles that tend to be drier wines. Lighter reds feature Beaujolais , Pinot Noir and Rose styles and these tend toward sweeter wines.

Popular white wines include the Chablis, Riesling, Semillon, Chenin, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay styles in dry wines, with Traminer Riesling, Moselle and late picked Verdelho in the sweeter styles. Aperitifs include sweet and dry sherry and Marsala . Dessert wines include Sauternes, Muscats and Ports.

Many wines are now presented as blended wines, a way to offer wider variety in taste and a way to use up less popular grapes and thereby minimise waste in the industry.

Australia has more than a dozen identified wine growing regions that produce distinctive wines of the main styles. The Barossa Valley in South Australia is possibly the most famous region with the richest heritage, and features many labels from sub regions such as Claire Valley , McLaren Vale, Langhorne Creek and the Adelaide Hills. These regions produce some of the most spectacular Riesling wines, and Shiraz styles in the country. East of this region, near the border with Victoria lies the Coonawarra district (also known as Riverland), famous for its Cabernet Sauvignon. In Victoria lie the Yarra Valley and Mornington Peninsular districts. The Goulbourn Valley lies on the border with New South Wales . The Hunter Valley in New South Wales produces some of Australia\'s finest wines, while in the West, Margaret River , t4he Swan Valley and the Plantagenet districts all produce fine wines.

Trends

Recent economic conditions and consecutive years of oversupply have changed much of Australia\'s wine market. There are many small boutique wineries whose products can be bought direct from the cellar door. Many of these wines are featured on my shopping .com. au by style and region.

The wine industry is encouraging the buying of wines and cellaring them (storing them in a cool place) for a period of time and enjoying them at a later time. To cellar your wine, store it somewhere cool, dark, airy, and free from vibration and dampness. Temperature stability is the most important factor in preserving wine in the cellar. Storing wine in an environment where the temperature varies gradually with the seasons is better than in a room that varies with the day and night.

For long-term storage, the ideal cellar temperature is 18 degrees Celsius and a relative humidity of 60-75%. Warmer conditions accelerate the development of wines, which could mean a reduction in the pleasure of drinking them.

The second phenomenon to occur through oversupply is the introduction of cleanskins, a method of selling wine without a brand label. This is presented as being \'money saving\' because of a reduction in marketing expense, however the real cost saving per bottle is around 3-5 cents (the cost of printing and applying a label).

Clean skins enable a wine producer to present a lower cost bottle, but this is mostly achieved by not having to identify the origins of the grape, or the varietal blends that make up the wine. And while it is true that some clean skins are eminently drinkable wines, evidence suggests that they are generally of a far poorer quality than branded label products. It is suggested that you taste the wine before purchasing any clean skins.

Wine is a high fashion product, and wine trends emerge on a regular basis. The best way to follow these trends is to shop using My shopping .com. au -- comparing prices and suppliers, and following medal winning labels.

Andrew Gates is a writer for Australian comparison shopping site - http://www.myshopping.com.au, My Shopping .com. au helps you compare wine - http://www.myshopping.com.au/PT--142_Wine and buy online from top-rated online stores. You can also read wine reviews - http://www.myshopping.com.au/PT--142_Wine and specifications.

How to choose a wine that tastes good; some tips for selecting a wine We'll start this article by asking these two questions: " Why is wine so confusing? " and " Does selecting a wine intimidate you? " If your answer to the second question is yes, then you are not alone! Most people have been to a liquor store or a restaurant and been absolutely overwhelmed and intimidated by the sheer variety and number of selections offered. The variety of choices among wine varieties, brands, labels, and prices seem almost infinite. Herein lies the problem: There are just too many choices. So what is the solution to too many choices? Well, the answer in a few words is:  Discover your own preference for wine taste. Many people know when they like a wine. But the difficult part is understanding why. What do you like about it, and how do you describe what it is that you like about that wine? Is it light or full bodied? Is it tannic or not? What are tannins anyway? Is it fruity or sweet? Do fruity and sweet mean the same thing? And, if you try and like a Shiraz , does that mean you will like all Shiraz ? All these questions can be answered by tasting wines, and then tasting more wine! Yet tasting is not enough as you must pay attention to what you are tasting. In my opinion, it is a good idea to learn with comparative tastings. Take for example the Chardonnay grape. It is grown in Mornington Peninsula , Victoria and also in Margaret River, Western Australia. Tasted side-by-side, you may first think that both Chardonnay's have little in common, yet they are both made from Chardonnay grapes. When you taste a wine of the same variety side-by-side, you can easily begin to learn the differences between a full bodied and a light bodied wine; and a low tannin wine and a high tannin wine, etc. Tips on how to choose a wine that is right for you

Step 1: Decide if you want a white wine or red wine
Decide whether you want a white wine, red wine, sparkling wine, dessert wine or fortified wine. This will narrow down your choices and give you some direction.

Step 2: Decide on your preferences for wine taste
Have a think about your own preferences for the taste of a wine. (Tip: Use your knowledge from your comparative wine tastings to help you.) As a minimum, decide whether you prefer a dry or sweet wine . (Dry is the term used to describe the absence of sweetness in a wine.) If you know your preferences for other wine characteristics, then it will also be a good idea to decide on these. If you don't know your preferences then I have included a short description here to help you in your comparative wine tastings. 1. Low Tannins vs. High Tannins : Tannins are a vital ingredient in wines, especially red wines. It comes from the stalks, skins and pips of grapes. Tannins in a young wine produce a bitter, puckering taste on the palate. 2. Short Palate vs. Long Palate : The "length" of a wine is the amount of time the sensations of taste and aroma persist after swallowing. Usually, the longer the better. 3. Low Acid vs. High Acid : Acids of various types are present in wine, and are essential to the wine's longevity and also to your enjoyment. Too little can affect the wine's quality and too much can spoil the wine. A higher acidity makes the wine more tart and sour tasting; whereas a low acidity results in flat tasting wine that is more susceptible to spoilage. Acidity is that quality that makes your mouth water and your lips pucker, and without it, wines (and anything for that matter!) taste pretty flat and one dimensional. However, when acidity is present in the right quantities, it is the element that makes all of the other flavours in the wine stand out, including the undertones of fruit, spice and herbs. The flavour in wine that you would describe as tangy, sharp, refreshing, bracing, bright, crisp or zingy is the acidity. 4. Light Bodied vs. Full Bodied : To get a picture of the differences between a light-bodied wine and a full-bodied wine think about milk as an analogy. Light-bodied is analogous to skim milk and full-bodied wine analogous to full-cream milk, and the variations in the "body" of wne are like varying levels of fat-content in milk. What makes it even easier, is that a wines body is directly proportional to its alcohol content. On every wine label you'll notice a percentage of alcohol by volume. Note how it applies to body:     7.5% - 10.5% indicates light body 10.5% - 12.5% indicates medium body 12.5% and over indicates full body 5. No Oak vs Heavy Oak :  Wines might be stored in oak barrels, usually to impart extra and more complex flavours. French, American and German oak barrels are widely used in Australia . Oaky describes the aroma or taste quality imparted to a wine by the oak barrels in which it was aged. The terms toasty, vanilla, dill, cedary and smoky indicate the desirable qualities of oak; charred, burnt, green cedar, lumber and plywood describe its unpleasant side.

Step 3: Buy wine that is well looked after, like at the cellar door
It is important to purchase wine from liquor outlets that take proper care of their wine, e.g. buying direct from the winery's cellar door is a good option. Extreme heat or cold, direct sunlight, and dramatic temperature fluctuations are not good for wine. Also, before you buy, make sure the wine is filled up to the neck of the bottle, the cork is not pushing out of the bottle, and there are no signs of leakage.

Step 4: Enjoy exploring the variety and diversity of Australian wine
There are lots of good reasons to explore all of the wines that Australia has to offer in all its diversity. Don't just stick to the well-known varieties like Chardonnay or Shiraz - experiment with other whites like Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling and Gewurztraminer or reds like Zinfandel, and Pinot Noir.  Also, try examples of a particular variety from different wine regions to understand how regional conditions affect the wine's character. Expose yourself to every type of wine. The more you taste the more you will understand and the easier wine selection will become.

Step 5: Buy by the case
When you find a wine you really like, consider buying wine by the case (12 bottles). Most wineries will offer you a 10% or 15% wine discount when you purchase a case of wine or more.

Step 6: Only rely on your own taste buds
The ultimate goal of wine buying is to buy wines that taste good to you. Just because a merchant, friend or wine writer says a wine is good doesn't mean you'll like it. Conversely, don't shy away from a wine because someone else says that it is no good. The only judge of good taste in wine is you. And herein lays one of the biggest benefits of so much choice: you are sure to find wines that are perfect for your own unique taste buds. All you need is just a little knowledge as described above and the willingness to explore. If you are interested in comparative wine tasting, www.boutiquewineries.com.au may be a good place to get started