They say, ‘good things come in threes…’ Back to the Future, definitely. Godfather Trilogy, absolutely. The first and second Chicago Bulls three-peat (’91-’92-’93, then ’96-’97-’98), big time… So, what about Rootstock Sydney, 2015? “The collaborative spirit from food and wine people… was palpable.” A lot has changed since 2013, when Rootstock Sydney humbly tumbled out … Continue reading ‘Good Things Come In Threes’ – Rootstock Sydney 2015
Natural, organic, and biodynamic winegrowers of Australia and New Zealand, unite! inGRAPESweTRUST presents…. What’s In Your Glass? was held for the third time in a row in sunny, beautiful, Newcastle, and featured over 60 artisan, natural, organic and biodynamic wines from right across these two great countries! “It can’t be done,” they said. “Small wine events … Continue reading Newcastle Knows What’s In Your Glass… 2015
I bought a wall planner on Friday the 3rd of January, took it home and laid it out flat, on the living room floor. I started looking at dates over 6 months away which I thought would be suitable to host a wine event, which I’d created and co-organised last year called, “What’s In Your … Continue reading Cheers Newcastle! – What’s In Your Glass? 2014
“Just as any fad becomes a fashion, a fashion becomes a trend, a trend becomes a change; so then, when enough changes unite, it becomes a paradigm shift…” The Wine Idealist has taken a small step into the realms of self-publishing by releasing, ‘Wine Idealism’, A Brief Introduction into the Changing State of Australian Wine. A … Continue reading Wine Idealism – The Changing State of Australian Wine
Two years ago I attended the first Real Wine Fair as a nervous wine novice. I went to taste some wine to, perhaps, include on the list of a West London wine bar I worked in. That experience changed my perception of Australian wine forever. Two years later, I’ve been given the opportunity to go to the Real Wine Fair again, … Continue reading Advance Australia and New Zealand Real Wine Fair – 2014
1978, and a young Morgon winemaker named Marcel Lapierre is experimenting in Beaujolais with no-sulphur winemaking, from grapes grown organically. In doing so, Lapierre along with a few local cohorts, had unwittingly caused the modern genesis of vin naturel… or natural wine. Of course this didn’t happen overnight, but soon enough, with the help of some Parisian sommeliers, … Continue reading Avril Lavigne et Le Vin Naturel – Is Natural Wine a Fad?
Coming back bigger and better is a term usually reserved for rubbish sequels of big blockbuster films, and a bit of a cliché these days, but this is fact, not fiction, and Rootstock 2014 was bigger, and we were all excited to see just how much better it was going to be. Expanded over two … Continue reading The Rise of the Counter Culture – Rootstock 2014
– GO TO ROOTSTOCK! – Just about every Australian and New Zealand winegrower I’ve written about, here on The Wine Idealist, will be at this weekends festival. Taste their natural, organic and biodynamic wines and meet them all in person, along with an entire two days jam packed with international winegrowers, artisan food, beer and … Continue reading Go! to Rootstock, Sydney – 2014
Bloody good, if you ask me. In 2013 I had the distinct privilege of speaking to so many passionate winegrowers and makers throughout Australia (and New Zealand) all because I wanted to find out if more bottles like Castagna’s Genesis Syrah existed across this wide brown land. What I found was not only are there … Continue reading Happy 2014! – How Good is the Aussie Wine Scene?
“It’s about the rock and roll”, says Tom Belford, from Bobar Wines, Yarra Valley, “you get some grapes and make some wine… it’s like you hang a mic from the ceiling, play some music, and make an album.” Bobar, is the passion project for Tom and Sally Belford, two viticulturists who met and studied together … Continue reading Rocking Out! – The Creative Simplicity of Bobar Wines.
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