We aren't wine
"critics', 'writers' or 'commentators', we are just a bunch of everyday
wine lovers
having conversations with winemakers and anyone else we can
about Tasmanian wine, wines from that island to the north
and, on occasion, foreign plonk.
Andrew Hood - winemaker, bushwalker and sort of Collingwood supporter
The name Wellington has been applied to damn near everything - a mountain, a boot, a city and most importantly a wine. The man responsible for the last attachment, Andrew Hood, took time out from his busy semi-retired schedule for a chat. We sat outside the frogmore creek winery in brilliant sunshine and to a chorus of traffic, industrial sounds and the odd bird call found out a lot more about this internationally renown winemaker. .... more
It's just crushed grapes isn't it?
Punters understand that wine is crushed grapes. In fact a punter of our acquaintance is wont to exclaim at every tasting "hmmm crushed grapes". Some how this never stops being funny - it must be the way he says it. Anyway this got us to thinkin' are there differences in the way grapes are crushed as part of the winemaking process? Well yes as Dave Cush from Springvale Wines explains in this podcast. .... more
Red Wine in 09
It is that time of the year again where for a ridiculously small amount punters get to try a huge range of premium Tassie reds. We buffed up our happy dance booties and headed to the docks ... more
It's a wine tasting frenzy at Milton and Springvale
During our recent trip to the East Coast we got the opportunity to hear from the experts about the range of wines on offer at Milton and Springvale. Lucky for you we took our portable recorder so you get to hear Michael Dunbabin talk about the Milton range and David Cush take you through the Springvale range. So there you go, all the good stuff and none of the travel! ... more
Reflecting on the conscience of politicians
Here at Winepunters HQ we have often noticed when drinking fine Tasmanian wine that something funny happens on the way from stone cold sober to "I weally luv you mate!" ... more
It's the mostly Dave show this time
Talking to Tim and Dave not only expanded our knowledge of running a successful premium winemaking operation but we also learnt a bit about cattle and why you should send your kids off to boarding school .... more
Having a chat with the man from Milton
We already know Milton wines have at least one dedicated fan but until we went and spoke to Michael Dunbabin we didn't know anything else .... more
It's the Tim and Dave show
Talking to Tim and Dave not only expanded our knowledge of running a successful premium winemaking operation but we also learnt a bit about cattle and why you should send your kids off to boarding school .... more
How not to 'interview' people of international renown part 2
It is with much sadness but not a great deal of surprise that we have to report that PJ has done it again ... more
The last part of the Peter Shield conversation
Peter introduces us to Heron's Rise pinot something for which we are very grateful and leaves us with the thought that "Wine is not a product to be drunk like soft drink - it has to be aged to give it complexity" .... more
Julian Allport was a member of the One Bottle Gentlemen's Club
In this part of the conversation we take Julian Allport through the patented Winepunters personal questions and hear about the one bottle gentlemen's club .... more
Julian Allport talks about the Tamar Valley
In this part of the conversation we pick up the Julian Allport story from when he came back to Australia from the US.... more
Peter Shields tells more stories
Our fun park ride this is the second part of our conversation with Peter started on a reasonably serious note as we touched on the difference between making beer and wine from a business perspective but then quickly went back to the story telling nature .... more
Lets all say silly things about wine!
We were listening to ABC local radio (known as old people's radio by the younger members at Winepunters HQ - Ed) the other day and we were gobsmaked to hear a brewer making the statement that wine cannot handle spicy food. Surely this obviously inaccurate statement coming from someone who makes beer for a living would not be allowed to pass unchallenged .... more
Julian Allport - He 'makes magic with his hands'
Any industry needs the right balance between local experience and new blood. Experience provides the traditions, consistency and the stability and the new blood can provide energy and innovation. With regard to the Tamar wine region Julian and Fiona fall into the 'new blood' category. Although as you will discover Julian also has considerable winemaking experience .... more
Peter Shields - He's made Grange!
Talking to Peter reminded us of those interviews that Michael Parkinson did with Billy Connelly (Peter knew Billy before he was famous - Ed). Michael would ask one question and whoosh Billy would be off. The result was a very funny, entertaining but chaotic experience. .... more
Snarey lays down the law on wine and bushwalking
Well much to our surprise our recent impression of the $7 a litre Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon blend from Brique has created a minor flurry of comments. Many of you took us to task over our decision to take a container of cheap red into Tasmania's World Heritage area .... more
We go to the Meadowbank Mardi Gras!
What makes you break into your happy dance? Is it watching video clips of people falling down? Or do you agree with Homer Simpson who said 'ball in the groin - it works on so many levels'. Well for our resident sparkling wine expert Michelle it's the thought of a vertical tasting of sparkling wines from one of her favourite producers .... more
We drink wine straight from a (sort of) milk carton
Hmmm wine from a sort of milk carton - evil from the depths of hell or not a bad idea? Sure it's a question nobody has asked but we intend to answer it anyway. .... more
Update on the binge drinking issue
You may remember our rant about the ineffectiveness of government interference in our god given right to enjoy a drink (click here). Well we have been vindicated. A recent report has shown that since the Labour government introduced the increased tax on alchopops to 'address binge drinking in teenagers' there has been an increase in the number of teenagers seeking medical attention due to excessive alcohol consumption. Way to go 'social improvers' now the kiddies are drinking more of the hard stuff like spirits because they are cheaper. Is there anything more ridiculous than a pollie wanting to be seen to be acting decisively.
Stuart Nettlefold - It's all about him
Hear the last part of our conversation with Stuart. We ask him the patented winepunter personal questions. ... have a listen
The safety nazis seize on report findings
Sorry about the tabloid inspired heading but a recent news item got the goat of everyone here at Winepunters HQ. It seems everyday we hear about something else that increases your risk of cancer ... more
We try the Milton 2008 Gewürtztraminer
"Milton
is the best wine in
Tasmania, end of story!" - Danny (fisherman, surfer and Mary's Husband)
Well in
the face of such a massive recommendation - Danny wouldn't dare say
anything
without Mary's stamp of approval - I had no choice I dropped
everything and went looking for someone to whom I could say "a bottle
of your finest Milton my good sir!" ... more
Stuart Nettlefold - He's a WITty man
Winepunters.com tries to cover all aspects of the Tasmanian wine industry so we thought it was about time to hear a little about how the industry deals with political, economic and other industry wide issues. This meant going along to see Stuart Nettlefold - the Executive Officer of Wine Industry Tasmania (WIT) - and conducting a 'grown up' interview. ... more or have a listen
The Tasmanian Wine Show, we enter the inner sanctum
Based on the emails we have been getting it seems punters just want to know more about how everyday wines become award winning wines. So we set off to another wine show in our never ending quest to understand the world of swirl, sniff, sip, spit. ... more
The final bit of our chat with Paul Stranan
The final part of our chat with Paul Stranan focused on his wines and explaining to him that Jancis Robinson is just a tinny winny bit famous. We also discover he is a Houghtons White Burgundy fan. ... more or have a listen
Punters demand answers!
Actually the punters who email us are usually far too nice to demand anything. They're more of your polite request variety and politely request they did. So we just dropped everything and went searching for answers ... more
How not to 'interview' people of international renown!
PJ had the opportunity to interview Huon Hooke and James Halliday at the 2009 Tasmanian Wine Show. 5 to 6 minutes in the big time. Did he cover himself in glory ? Well he certainly covered himself in something! ... more
Shouty emails from the North
Recently Mark Smith featured our humble website in his column "off the vine"(The Sunday Examiner 4th Jan 09). Now, like any self respecting Z grade celebrity, we gratefully accept any publicity but it has resulted in some shouty emails from our northern Tasmanian 'friends'. Here is just a taste - by the way the emails were longer but we took out the really rude bits ... more
Wine Talk for Punters
Want to amaze yourself and your friends with your grasp of the more technical aspects of wine? No? How about being able to foil those wine snobs who are making your life hell? No!? Well this is awkward, we went to a lot of trouble getting Fred Peacock to explain wine shows and a few of the more technical terms you hear bandied about. ... more
We chat to Paul Stranan - the viticulturalist from the East
Paul Stranan has traveled a long way to end up on the East Coast of Tasmania. He was born in Canada but his family originally came from what's now known as the Czech republic, however winemaking is definately in the genes. ... more or have a listen
The Taste of Tasmania is 20 years old
The Taste of Tasmania (affectionaly known as 'The Taste' which runs from 28th Dec 2008 to 4th Jan 2009) is 20 years old this year. To celebrate this momentous occasion I have written a poem ... more
Which Wines Won What
We have had a bit to say about the recent Hobart International Wine Show but, in the interests of completeness and to help all you punters who simply must drink award winning wine, we have compiled the complete list of Tasmanian winners from the 2008 Show. ... more
Merry Christmas from Winepunters
We
have taken a minute out from
over indulging in wine, food and general foolery to say we hope you all
have a
great Christmas. You'll note we don't tell you to have a
great Christmas, we just mention that we hope that you do. If
anyone
tells you to "Have a great day" or something similar remember
to retort "Don't tell me what to do!". You can follow up with "You're
not the boss of me" if you don't think that is over kill.
We
hope you have been enjoying the blog this year (our audience is slowly building
- thanks for that - Ed)
and we will be back early in the
new year with more podcasts and some extra features. We'll
try to
make the website more technologically supersplendiferous once we learn
how.
The wines from Darlington vineyard
It's all very well to listen to us or someone else bang on about what they think of a wine but really you want to know what the vigneron or winemaker has to say... I mean they ought to know right? ... more or have a listen
26.11.2008
So much puntering, so little time
Sorry folks we completely underestimated how difficult it would be to produce 'hilarious' content about Tassie wine every week when you have to make money to feed yourself as well. The site will now be updated every fortnight.
We go to the Royal Hobart International Wine Show
In case you are like me and have never been to a wine show in the past I need to give a brief explanation of the wine show caper. ... more
Here's the second part of our conversation with Darren Brown from Puddleduck vineyard
Since Puddleduck wine is sold exclusively through their Cellar Door we wanted to quiz them about Cellar Door Etiquette ... more or have a listen
We talk to Darren Brown from Puddleduck vineyard
What's in a name? Well in some cases it's everything. In response to the age old question - how does my vineyard stand out from the crowd? - Darren and Jackie, like many in the wine industry, agonised over what to call their vineyard. ... more or have a listen
'The Brothers Shiraz' from Campbells
Winepunters.com is usually about Tassie wine but occasionally we head to that Island to the North for some big Reds ... more
A 'punter' email gets us thinking about binge drinking
Generally we don't pay much attention to the rantings of politicians, frankly we would rather stick sharp objects in our eyes, ultimately it does less damage to your well being. ... more
We hear from the 'punters' on the big issue
At last, someone tackles the 'big' question. We wanted to know "is sparkling wine a man's drink?". ... have a listen
Hear what the 'punters' thought of the white wine weekend
Punters tell us what they thought of the event. Due to PJ's incompetence we managed to lose some of the interviews during the editing and for this we humbly apologise ... have a listen
We chat to Mark Smith wine writer for The Examiner
We started this site because we love wine but we also wanted to learn about web development, podcasting and the wine industry as a whole. Everything we have done so far has been self taught and we have always been interested in finding out how the professionals operate. ... more or have a listen
The second part of our chat with Fred Peacock from Bream Creek
This part is probably our favourite because we concentrated on the Bream Creek wines themselves. Prior to the conversation we purchased a bottle of 05 gwurtztraminer from Bream Creek. ... more or have a listen
More chats from the white wine weekend
You can now hear from Tony Park the President of Winesouth and he has a couple of surprising things to say ... have a listen.
We chat with Fred 'the veteran' Peacock from Bream Creek
Can you remember the first Tasmanian wine you ever drank? If you live in Southern Tasmania there is a very good chance that it was a Bream Creek. Mind you, if you live in Melbourne, Sydney, Sweden or Canada your answer may well be the same. ... more or have a listen
Here's the final part of our chat with Neil Snare
Neil was so interesting we decided that he deserved to have a third installment. Here it is ... more or have a listen
We went to the White Wine Weekend!
If you have been looking out your window lately you would have noticed that spring is on the way. This is both a good and a bad thing. On the plus side, the days are getting longer and warmer. So I am looking forward to spending more time in the surf and eating summer fruit and veggies from my garden. ... more
The youngest winemaker in Australia?
We went to the Winesouth White Wine Weekend at the IXL Atrium in Hobart and, aside from having a great time, we met Jazzy who we believe must be the youngest winemaker in Australia. Luckily for us she agreed to have a quick chat ... have a listen
Part two of our chat with Neil Snare of Winstead Vineyard
If you are interested in some of the decisions that have to be made when making wine then we think you will enjoy what Neil has to say in the second part of our conversation .... more or ... have a listen
The 06 Pinot Noir from Drew Wines
Hmmm chicken with a spicy BBQ sauce, do you go for a white or a red? I was pretty certain a late picked / harvested Riesling would do the job but damn it I wanted a red. Let's go and see what's in the wine cellar ... more
Stop calling her your girlfriend!
We have only been around for a little while and already we are causing controversy. The feedback is coming in thick and fast - er thin and slow - er anyway we have received some ..... more
Chatting with Neil Snare from Winstead Vineyard - part one
As we headed up the Midland Highway to the world's second most famous Bagdad, PJ thought "how am I going to spend an hour of my life talking about Pinot Noir without sounding bored or dismissive?" Fortunately Neil Snare took care of that by clearing up a few misconceptions we had about Pinot ... more or have a listen
The 04 Schonberger from Bream Creek Wines
This wine is a bit sneaky, it lulls with its laid back approach and just when you think "it's good but it's not great", you try it with food ... more
The 06 Late Harvest Riesling from Pooley Wines
There you are staring at the most beautiful roast pork you ever saw and you're thinking what do I drink with this ?... more
Our first chat! - Matt Pooley from Pooley Wines
We took advantage of the fact that Matt was too nice to say no when we asked him to let us invade his cellar door and put him under the blow torch Punter style... more or have a listen
Winepunters.com launched!
Just what the Internet needs more ill informed opinion. Calling us ill informed is probably a bit harsh, although even we acknowledge that Winepunters.com is not another wine related website authored by wine experts and thank goodness for small mercies ..... more