6 reds to have on your radar this winter

Superstate Winery Pinot Noir is bright, light and full of a big raspberry flavour thanks to a co-fermenting process. WTF is co-fermenting? It’s a fancy way of saying the pinot grapes were crushed together with the raspberries and left to ferment together in a stainless-steel tank for 12 days. The result is a really melded flavour. Pinot noir meets raspberry wine. However, this doesn’t mean it’s super sweet. The raspberry flavour is mellowed by the aromas of carefully chosen florals and dark cherries. There’s no oak and no fining. This is a truly new breed of wine ripe for the tasting. And yes, co-fermenting wine might just be the next big thing. 

A bottle that also serves good karma. The Jim Barry 2020 Nurse Series Shiraz is the product of a partnership with Dan Murphy’s to help fund specialist McGrath Breast Care Nurses. Two dollars from every bottle goes to the McGrath Foundation, but that’s not the only reason to buy it. Notes of dark chocolate, violets and blackberry give this full-bodied wine a deep and complex flavour that we’ve completely fallen in love with.

Some of the best occasions are caused by a juxtaposition of casual and fancy. A night in a 5-star hotel eating McDonald’s French fries, dinner at your local BYO thai and a bottle of Lanson, a ball gown worn to the zoo. Newcomers Greasy Fingers are playing into this space of unexpected thrills, with a premium wine made to be matched with the unrefined food, chiefly, a burger. Their Shiraz is dense, dark and brooding with ripe berries and sweet mocha oak. There’s a hint of jam and kick of spice that pairs unnaturally well with a cheeseburger. Share it with a friend who’d usually order a beer with their burger and blow their mind.