Wine

A new breed of chardonnay - lean, tight and bright - is upping the ante for this food-friendly varietal, writes Peter Bourne.

Spanish Acquisitions

Patterson Lakes doesn't immediately spring to mind when talking about wine, unless the conversation is with Rollo Crittenden. As it turns out, that's exactly where he's making wines now. He leases the modern winery to accommodate all the work, but this young winemaker also produces pinot noir and chardonnay with a fair smattering of Italian varietals and has added Spanish to the mix. Just for fun. And it's good. Crittenden's latest label is Los Hermanos, meaning siblings. Not surprising, as his ...

Packing A Punch

Sometimes it just helps if your family, in this case David and Catherine Lance, had the wherewithal to buy a patch of land that would one day prove its worth as a pristine cool-climate vineyard site. Back in the mid-'70s just two rows of chardonnay were planted at their Yarra Valley property but more followed and over time, their winery known as Diamond Valley became renowned, in particular, for outstanding pinot noir. Fast-forward to 2005. Diamond Valley's brand and wines have been sold but the ...

Wine Lesson 181

Chardonnay is still worth drinking