Aussie wine

[JSA Aude]

Having just returned from a quick trip to blighty and had some cracking Aussie wine, does anyone know of supermarkets that stock such.  Nothing against the French but lovely to have a change. Thanks

[Alexis]

You can find it all over.  Very small amount grudgingly displayed but it is there.

I bought some on Saturday.  Bit dear though.....!

[Llwyncelyn]

Have a look at the week end business press the Aussie market is in melt-down.

I prefer Rhone the French here in (50) think there is nothing like Bordeaux but how they can drink some of the stuff is beyond me.  Still once more I go off topic the OH says it is an age thing

[Georgina]

[quote user="Llwyncelyn"]

Have a look at the week end business press the Aussie market is in melt-down.

I prefer Rhone the French here in (50) think there is nothing like Bordeaux but how they can drink some of the stuff is beyond me.  Still once more I go off topic the OH says it is an age thing

[/quote]

Sometimes in the Geant "small shelf" don't blink or you'll miss it. Look for "Etrangers".  Californian wine is a good wine too.

 

Georgina

[Dog]

Auchan just had a wine fair with some great Aussie, Chilean and Argentine wines.

[Clair]

Lidl have a light and great tasting Californian Zinfandel (rosé) at €2.49...

[Alan Zoff]

When I asked my friend - in a very rural part of France - who describes himself as a wine connoisseur what he thought of Australian wines, he said he had never tasted any - nor Californian, South African, Chilean. etc. I said then he could claim only to be a connoisseur of French wine, rather than of wine in general. To which he replied: "It's the same thing".

Not that he is narrow-minded or anything. (In fact, he a super bloke but just, well, very French.)

[Clair]

Same type of comment from my sister (French), who considers that if a wine is not from France (or Italy at a push), it's bound to be of poor taste and quality.

I made her take a blind taste of Chilian, French, Australian and South African whites (can't remember which now), but she still found a reason for prefering a non-French wine (the French one must have been a bad year!! [:P])

[Eslier]

They make some very good wines in Australia but they make some pretty awful over sweet over oaked wines too. What the aussies have been good at is marketting their wines, to the extent that many of the rubbish wines have become the new "Blue Nunn" type wines that so many people want to drink now but, in time, it may lose favour. The important thing is that if you enjoy drinking some of these wines then that's great, because it should be about what you enjoy. Be adventurous however and try some of the lesser known, perhaps more expensive Aussie wines and you may well discover some gems.

There are so many excellent wines from around the world, some (like the famous New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs) are already well known but there are many others from places like South Africa which are yet to receive the widespread general public aclaim that is overdue.

The influence that the southern hemisphere wine growers have had upon the wine industry in France is beginning to show. We are now seeing more single grape varieties - simply labelled and sold as such - and producers who are starting to worry a little less about that old fashioned and often meaningless Appelation Controllée label. You may have to visit  the independant wine merchants to see the greatest indication of this trend  however as the supermarkets are less inclined towards setting trends than simply meeting demand. 

France is the "daddy" of world wines and let us not forget that the greatest wines are still recognised as coming from France. On the other hand, within the huge quantity of wine which is produced each year there is of course a lot of very ordinary, and sometimes poor wine. That's not to say that the ordinary wines aren't often very good value - they are, and that's what most French families will drink on a daily basis. To start to understand why French is the worlds greatest wine producer however, you need to be trying some of the better wines every now and then. You don't have to spend a lot, there are lots of first class wines available in supermarkets and wine merchants at between 8€ and 20€ a bottle. If you aren't sure what to buy then think about which grape varieties you like best. If you like Pinot Noir then try a good Burgandy; if you like merlot then try a Pomerol; if you like sauvignon blanc, try a Pouilly Fumé; if you like chardonnay, try a Chablis. These are just a few examples but it's not a bad principle to start you off. Beware buying the cheapest of these labels however as they often dissapoint.

The important thing is to drink what you like. Not everything will appeal to everyone and we will all have our own personal likes and dislikes.  On a personal note, I think my current favourite is probably good red burgandy (which I got hooked on after I discovered how much I enjoyed New Zealand Pinot Noir) A Cotes de Beaune premier cru at about 20€ from our local wine cave is amazing value. For whites, maybe a New Zealand chardonnay (look out for the Serresin label - just as good as Cloudy Bay if not better).  My personal dislike has to be anything from Spain - yes I know they make some excellent widely acknowledged wines, but depsite trying loads from cheap to expensive, I haven't found anything I like.

It might amuse some to learn that the world famous Cloudy Bay winery in Marlborough, New Zealand is actually owned by Veuve Cliquot the French champagne house !

What a great subject !