Unfortunately, from a wine drinker’s perspective, that also can be a weakness.
Sure, you know what you will get year after year with the big brands but, if you are looking for vintage or regional variation, it just isn’t there. 
I love wines with regional character and this is where smaller companies actually have an advantage over the big boys. They generally have to source their fruit from within one region, even if they can draw on several vineyards to do so. The result is wines with regional character but possibly vintage variation and that is something I enjoy. The subtle character changes from vintage to vintage are what makes the wine scene so appealing.
Enter the Mr Mick range from Clare Valley based Tim Adams wines. These are named after Tim’s winemaking mentor the late, legendary Mick Knappstein, for many years the winemaker at Leasingham and the man behind some of my favourites Clare wines, the Leasingham Bin range, including Bin 7 Riesling, Bin 49 Cabernet Sauvignon and Bin 56 Cabernet Malbec.
I love wines with regional character and this is where smaller companies actually have an advantage over the big boys. They generally have to source their fruit from within one region, even if they can draw on several vineyards to do so. The result is wines with regional character but possibly vintage variation and that is something I enjoy. The subtle character changes from vintage to vintage are what makes the wine scene so appealing.
Enter the Mr Mick range from Clare Valley based Tim Adams wines. These are named after Tim’s winemaking mentor the late, legendary Mick Knappstein, for many years the winemaker at Leasingham and the man behind some of my favourites Clare wines, the Leasingham Bin range, including Bin 7 Riesling, Bin 49 Cabernet Sauvignon and Bin 56 Cabernet Malbec.
I’m not about to suggest that the Mr Mick range meets or even tries to match those very high standards, we are talking after all about some of Australia’s classic wines, but they offer excellent drinking at an affordable price. 
In the range are (all from the 2021 vintage) riesling, pinot gris (Limestone Coast fruit, the only outsider), vermentino, rose, sangiovese and grenache, tempranillo and shiraz (both 2018s) and 2016 cabernet merlot, along with a sparkling NV Gela Cuvee Brut made from chardonnay and semillon and named after Mick’s wife, Gela, and a Mr Mick Tawny ($20 for a 500ml bottle) based on pedro ximenez, with some parts up to 20 years old.
All except the tawny have a suggested price of $17 and often appear in wine retailers for $15, making them very good value drinking.
You can find out more at www.mrmick.com.au including how to join the Mates of Mr Mick wine club.
Andin a similar vein, you should explore the Coast to Coast range from West Cape Howe, which showcases the many wine riches of Western Australia's Great Southern region. They're similarly priced to Mr Mick and offer good value drinking with recognisable regional flavours. Check out www.westcapehowewines.com.au
No comments:
Post a Comment