Recommended wine producers featured in the broadcast are listed in brackets.

Episode 1 – We kicked off the season looking at the A to Z of grape varieties and starting with A we discussed in more detail Assyrtiko (Domaine Sigalas, Santo, Gaia, Jim Barry)., Albariño (Castro Martin. Tscharke, Stanton and Killeen, Andrew Margan, Chapel Hill) and Aglianico (Sutton Grange, After 5 Co in Barossa, Fighting Gully Road, Chalmers and Billy Button). We tasted the wonderful Jim Jim Sauvignon Blanc 2022 from Hanging Rock and discussed winemaking approaches. In news that week we looked at problems in Bordeaux and Hawke’s Bay. Music supplied by Squeeze and the Isley Brothers. Listen Here

Episode 3 – We had our first winemaker in the studio with Jean-Paul Trijsburg tasting his 2021 Carmenere. Jean-Paul discussed the origins of the grape and his winemaking career. We discussed the Prosecco Wars and the advancement of A.I. In the alphabet we got to C. We only brushed the surface of Chardonnay (Bannockburn, Giant Steps Sexton, Shaw and Smith, Freycinet Vineyard, Moorooduc estate) and Cabernet Sauvignon (Yeringberg, Wynns Coonawarra Estate, Yering Station Reserve, Sally’s Paddock, Henschke Abbot’s Prayer, Cullen) Robyn discussed their food matches. Chenin Blanc (Corymbia) and Cabernet Franc (Hoosegg, Best’s, Leconfield and Granite Hills) got an honourable mention. The Chicks sang about a Landslide and we finished with Scary Pockets and Kenton Chen. Listen Here

Episode 4 – This episode saw the introduction of a new segment called “the rest is wine history’ where we delved into the rich history surrounding wine. D, E and F were explored stopping briefly to look at Dolcetto food matches and Fiano (Coriole, Lo Stresso, Brown Brothers). We then tasted the fabulous 2019 Vinea Marson Friulano #10 from Heathcote. In our first outing of ‘the rest is wine history’ we looked at ‘what have the Romans ever done for us’ with a fitting clip from the film –The Life of Brian. The contribution of Garry Crittenden was discussed in news and we had time to make recommendations from Chandon, Koerner, Jim Barry, Scotchmans Hills and Vinea Marson.
Music was from Satana and Celeste ‘stop this flame’. Listen Here

Episode 5 – Went to air on the 26th April 2023. We were delighted to have Ollie Rapson from Lyons Will Estate in the outdoor studio (listen out for the Kookaburras) We tackled the G grape varieties and discussed that floosy Gouais Blanc (Chambers Rosewood) Graciano (Ottelia) Garganega (Pieropan, Inama, Munari) Gewurztraminer (Delatite) Grenache (Samuel Gorge, Eperosa, Silver Spoon Estate, Yangarra Estate, Richard Hamilton, Rockford) and finally Gruner Veltliner (Domaine Wachau, Prager, Hahndorf Hill and Artis). Ollie walked us through Gamay and the winemaking of their wine. We finished on a quick review of the recent Strategem Bendigo Winemakers Festival (GilGraves, Waterwheel, Lome Vineyard, Black Estate, Balgownie Estate, Mandurang Valley Wines, Chaperon and Turners Crossing). Music supplied by Prince and Tash Sultana. Listen Here

Episode 6 – It was time H to L in grape varieties. Some interesting ones including Lagrein (Cobaw Ridge, Mount Towrong) and Lambrusco. In the rest is wine history we cover a short history of Port and a case of death on the Douro. In ‘what’s in the glass’ we tasted the wonderful Brown Brothers Patricia Cabernet Sauvignon. Recommendations included wines from Chateau Tanunda and Best’s. Do you know the Bishop of Norwich? No? Learn why he makes an appearance in this episode. Music sometimes takes longer to select than the wine content, this week it was from one of my favourites – Anita Baker and Melbourne’s Telenova. Listen Here

Episode 7 – We covered M and there was alot, focussing on Malbec (Wendouree, Woodlands) Marsanne (Yeringberg, Tahbilk) Merlot, Mourvredre (Silver Spoon, Richard Hamilton, d’Arenberg) and Muscat. In other parts of the show we discuss orbiting the earth, Hollywood films, dumb German wine consultants and Mozart. In ‘what’s in the glass’ we had a treat tasting the Yeringberg Marsanne Roussanne 2011 which gave us the opportunity to look at how a white wine ages. Finally in news we discussed a major bankruptcy and Gambero Rosso tasting in Melbourne. What an episode. Music was a classic by Duran Duran and Mathilda Homer. Listen Here

Episode 8 – Was the turn of Nebbiolo and we explored the variety with a tasting of Protero Nebbiolo by Steve Pannell from his Adelaide Hills vineyard. We also introduced a new segment of ‘put a cork back in it’ looking at inexpensive (to a point) wines and see if they are worth drinking. During the ‘rest is wine history’ we looked at the fascinating development of Mateus Rose, a wine many of us grew up with. Listen here

Episode 9 – Plenty of P’s in this one and of course Pinot Noir was the focus. We discussed lip stinging varieties and meet Constance and Woody, sounds like Toy Story, but they are something to do with Palomino. We enjoyed tasting Buckshot Vineyard Primitivo 2019 from Heathcote. Music was from Delilah Montagu and the Style Council. Listen Here

Episode 10 – We covered Q and R. There are no Q’s but plenty of R’s such as Roussette, Ruby Cabernet, Refosco, Robolla Gialla, Roditis and Roussanne. Oh and one called Riesling. In the rest if wine history we covered Champagne facts, fallacies and myths in the ‘story of giggle water’ I got the chance to read one of my favourite poems by Alan Seeger who died in the trenches at the age of 28. In what’s in the glass we tasted the unique Freeman Vineyard Secco Rodinella Corvina 2017 from Hilltops. Music from UK artist Ed Black and Pete Murray. Listen Here

Episode 11 – S was a big task. Sagrantino, saperavi, schioppettino, silvaner and seyval blanc. Before moving onto the heavyweights of sangiovese, sauvignon blanc, semillon and finally shiraz. It was the Hunter Valley’s turn in ‘what’s in the glass’ and we tasted the classic Tyrrell’s Vat 8 Shiraz Cabernet 2019. We are getting close to the end of the alphabet and it has become a crash course in grape varieties.
Music was supplied by Mica Paris and Laurel.

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Episode 12 – The turn of T’s and Tempranillo was given plenty of airplay. We reviewed a $5 wine from Aldi made from Tempranillo and Bobal in our segment “put the cork back in it” where we taste an inexpensive wine and decide if it is worth drinking. We also tasted an excellent Tannat from Coolangatta Estate. In ‘the rest is wine history’ we looked at Clarets both in wine regions and football team!
Music was supplied by Sad Café and Everything But the Girl

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Episode 13 – The final episode of the first series. Some said we wouldn’t make it to the end but everything worked out fine. We whizzed through the UVWXZ. Sorry no Y’s. We covered 159 grape varieties in 13 episodes. which I think is an admirable achievement. In the rest is history we looked at the life of James Busby. On tasting was Sutton Grange Viognier 2021.
Music was supplied by Eskimo Joe and Judie Tzuke.

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Series 2 Episode 1 – After a well earned break and a winter escape to Europe we are back for series 2. In this series we look at the wine regions of Victoria. Naturally we started in our own ‘backyard’ the cool Macedon Ranges and Sunbury. In this segment we look at the history, climate, soils, topography, what is planted and my favourite producers in the region. In the studio we had winemaker Cameron Leith from Passing Clouds winery as our guest. Cameron brought along his award winning 2022 Estate Chardonnay to taste.
Music was supplied by Boz Scaggs and Steph Strings.

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Series 2 Episode 2 – It was the turn of the Pyrenees wine region where we discussed the classic producers in the area such as Taltarni, Sally’s Paddock and Dalwhinnie. Amazing that Neill Robb is still making wines into his 8th decade. In the studio we had Scott Harrington from Glenhope Vineyard. What a great story about an old vineyard with new owners. We tasted Scott’s first vintage Granitic Shiraz. In news we looked at the latest figures from the OIV in France on world production.
Music was supplied by Joe Jackson and Leisure. In case you are not aware the music I choose is one old and one new song. New being a recent recording and often new artists. Even the old songs might be new to you!

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Season 2 Episode 3 -The episode just before Christmas 2023. We featured the Grampians wine region and focused in on Best’s, Seppelt and Mount Langi Ghiran. We tasted the excellent Cliff Edge Shiraz 2020 from Mount Langi. We also had the return of “put a cork back in it” with a tasting of Yalumba Y Series Lighter Chardonnay. Low or no alcohol wines are an increasingly popular segment of the market and we decided to look into them.
Music was supplied by Level 42 (one of my favourites) and New Zealand singer Bic Runga.

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Season 2 Episode 4 -We travelled to Heathcote. Discovered it had one of the shortest gold rushes in Australian history and discussed the impact of women in the region. We tasted Silver Spoon The Hallmark Shiraz. In this episode we launched our Ripping Yarns segment where we delve into the poetic catalogue of creative tasting notes. We discover there are some real doozies. Music featured Steely Dan and Al Green. Image courtesy of Sanguine Estate.

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Season 2 Episode 5 -It was the turn of Bendigo and the Goulburn Valley to be put under the spotlight. The rich history of Tahbilk was a feature in looking at the Nabambie Lakes sub region. We turned to Coonawarra for a tasting and opened The Composer by Majella 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon. Ned Goodwin’s poetic prose was put under the spotlight in Ripping Yarns. Music was by Olivia Dean and John Miles.

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Season 2 Episode 6 An episode devoted to the fortified wines of Rutherglen and explaining how to the classification system works and ways to tell the difference between Muscat and Toqaque. A white wine (De Bortoli Rutherglen Estate Arneis 2021) was chosen to look at the newer styles being produced in the area. In poet’s corner (Ripping Yarns) it was the turn of Paxton Wines and a reading of their Mataro tasting note. Music came from Amy Winehouse and Shakatak.

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Season 2 Episode 7 Beechworth, King and the Alpine Valley was investigated and we recommended Castagna, Golden Ball, Giaconda, Brown Brothers, Pizzzini, Dal Zotto and Billy Button, amongst others. In “what’s in the glass” we tasted a Marsanne from 1927 vines from Tahbilk. In ‘Ripping Yarns’ we had a recital of a Matthew Dukes tasting note on Torbreck’s Run Rig. There was music from Patti Smith and Proxima Parada.

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Season 2 Episode 8 Geelong and Henty were the spotlight. Bannockburn wines, Clyde Park, Austin’s, Scotchmans Hill, Provenance and Bank’s Road were all recommended places to visit. We also recommended Crawford River in Henty. We had the return of ‘The rest is wine history’ and a summary of the achievements of Pam Dunsford. We judged a $6 wine from Dan Murphy’s in ‘Put a cork back in it” There was music from Patrice Rushen and The Doobie Brothers. Image is Austin’s wine winemaker Dwayne Cunningham.

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Season 2 Episode 9 We tackled the famous Yarra Valley, featuring a top 12 of producers including some of our own favourites including Yeringberg, Yering Station and Giant Steps. We tasted the Yeringberg Pinot Noir 2019. In Ripping Yarns we discussed the poetic merits of Mike Benny’s description of Powell & Son Kraehe Marananga Shiraz 2016. There was music from Grover Washington Jnr with a bit of help from Bill Withers and Elton John and Dua Lipa with Cold Heart

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Season 2 Episode 10 We discussed growing Pinot Noir in the Mosel Valley. Tasted a complex Pinot Gris from Orange in NSW. The life of Ian Hickinbotham was explored in ‘the rest is wine history’ and the region of Mornington Peninsula was investigated with some 10 wineries recommended to visit. We also squeezed in a couple of more wine recommendations including sparkling and a cool climate cabernet from Wombat Forest, an outstanding Shiraz from Tahbilk and a sumptuous Crozes Hermitage. The passing of Steve Harley was noted with a classic from him and new music came from the excellent Brandi Carlile.

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