2016 Bellvale Pinot Noir and 2016 Myrtle Point Lightfoot & Sons Pinot Noir

All good Pinot Noirs are alike; each bad Pinot is bad in the same way too. Of the things you can rely on in life, like taxes and death (well, maybe not taxes if you are an immoral corporation), another is that a good Pinot Noir will come from Gippsland, Victoria. Of course, New Zealand and Tasmania, as well as the Yarra Valley, are sources of good PNs. The 2016 Bellvale Pinot Noir has jam in its perfume with a light, short, smooth palate of pepper and just a sense of sweetness, being a little chocolate-ly, and you might hallucinate caramel. The 2016 Myrtle Point Lightfoot & Sons Pinot Noir is a semi-opaque ruby red, with jam in its perfume and a smooth palate.

2015 Bisci Verdicchio Di Matelica

The 2015 Bisci Verdicchio Di Matelica (Not Mettalica, but a commune of Italy!) is surprisingly golden in colour, when I expected the pale lemon of Riesling which it resembles. Initially it has the aroma of Miss Havisham's cordoned-off wedding room, then later of peanut oil. The palate immediately says 'Adult'. Just like Semillon, this is not a grape for children; it's too serious.

2016 Mas Des Bressades Costières de Nîmes Cuvée Tradition Vin Blanc

It is still relatively rare to see Grenache Blanc in an Australian bottle shop. But it is among the most delicious of grapes. Usually it will come from the South of France, or Spain. The 2016 Mas Des Bressades Costières de Nîmes Cuvée Tradition Vin Blanc is a combination of Grenache Blanc, Roussanne, Marsanne and Viognier (a common combination). It has a musk and vanilla perfume and vanilla on the most untroublesome, drinkdownable palate.

 

2017 Domaine de La Grenaudière Muscadet

The 2017 Domaine de La Grenaudière Muscadet comes in a distinct embossed narrow bottle—similar to a Riesling bottle of the long, thin-neck type—with a baronial-reminiscent gold label. Muscadet is a summer-reminiscent wine, and a pleasure to drink. Like drinking cake, but, really, not sweet. I've only come across one other where I live: Domaine des Amoureux Muscadet. Just as I have left my predictable pattern of sourdough and ciabatta, leave your predictable grape for the less-predictable!

2016 Artea Alpes De Haute Provence Rosé

 It is a truth universally acknowledged that a Rosé from Sud de France, specifically Provence, must be good. And the Artea, from Syrah, Grenache and Cinsault, makes for great drinking. The small sprig of lavender on the label is another feature of Provence. The Rosé is salmon ballet-pink or pale-bronze-almost-orange. The beautiful palate revels in its own minimalism: think of a corridor of taste. But there's citrus on that palate too.    

2017 Petracavallo Fiano

The 2017 Petracavallo Fiano, a southern Italian grape, is made in Mottolo south-east Italy, with organic or biodynamic grapes picked by hand, from spontaneous fermentations (without added yeast or bacteria), with no filtering/clarification, and minimal mechanical and chemical manipulation. I was shocked by the bright gold colour, because Fiano is often a pale lemon. While it smelt of milky fruit, it was overwhelmingly medicinal on the palate, and I had no sense of recognising the grape. This particular natural wine wouldn't convince a newbie drinker that Fiano is terrific. Its label is unusually plain for an Italian wine, textually heavy, but still with a sense of its Italian origins, given the lovely hand-signature of Vito the winemaker.

Squealing Pig New Zealand Pinot Noir Rosé

Squealing Pig New Zealand Pinot Noir Rosé from Marlborough, is milky in perfume, pale copper in colour, with a very dry palate, perhaps not luscious enough, but would be good with salami pizza.