Today
- Drinks With Max Allen
- Life & Leisure
Max Allen’s pick of wines to woo your Valentine
Champagne is all very well, but true love means giving something that will surprise and delight with its seductive depth and complexity.
- 43 mins ago
January
- Drinks With Max Allen
- Life & Leisure
Barossa winemaker proves busy people can have it all. Well, sort of
With two vineyards, a winery and a two-year-old, “Life’s a bit ... saturated,” says Brett Grock. Still, he’s found the time to put his artwork on his labels.
At $3000 a bottle, grenache is hitting new heights
The renaissance of this red variety is a worldwide phenomenon, including in France where it’s been firmly reappraised.
- Drinks With Max Allen
- Life & Leisure
Harmony in a glass: How this venerable wine estate recognises Country
Connection to culture is crucial to the fifth-generation family custodians of this must-visit Victorian vineyard.
Six winemakers start a shiraz revolution with a tonne of grapes each
Once the king of Australian reds, the variety has lost its gloss in recent years. With the results of a bold experiment in, that could be about to change.
December 2024
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- Life & Leisure
Max Allen picks the best wine books to give
One Thousand Vines will change the way the reader thinks about – and enjoys – wine. Plus, three vintages to sip along the way.
- Updated
- Drinks With Max Allen
- Life & Leisure
Max Allen’s 5 best chardonnays for summer drinking
The grape variety goes super well with seafood, and the quality coming out of Australia is equal to that of much pricier French whites.
- Drinks With Max Allen
- Life & Leisure
Max Allen’s guide to stocking a bar trolley
This selection of nine ingredients – all from Australian makers – will have your cocktail cabinet ready for Christmas action.
A toast to the five best champagnes of 2024
The year may be nearly over, but there’s plenty left to celebrate. Pop a bottle of our drinks editor’s favourite bubbles to do it in style.
November 2024
Max Allen’s top 20 drinks of the year
After 12 months of tasting, our expert reveals his picks of 2024: a diverse bunch of white and red wines, and a couple of non-alcoholic stunners.
- Drinks With Max Allen
- Life & Leisure
Will this blueberry drink tempt you for Christmas?
Stock up on the latest batch of this non-alcohol wine alternative for delicious – and virtuous – summer quaffing.
- Drinks With Max Allen
- Life & Leisure
How one man’s mission to save a rundown vineyard won him global renown
When viticultural expert Dylan Grigg bought his plot of old-vine grenache in the Barossa, it was a mess. Now it’s a destination for travelling winemakers.
- Drinks With Max Allen
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Tolpuddle’s new tasting room is another great reason to visit Tasmania
One of the island’s most revered vineyards is opening its doors to the public.
Is this Australia’s best shiraz?
These wine show judges certainly think so: the Great Australian Shiraz Challenge turns 30, and it’s needed now more than ever.
October 2024
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- Life & Leisure
Ever heard of a beer farm? This paddock-to-pint brewery is onto something
Provenance is all around you at Devilbend Farm Beer Co, where Mike Shaw grows his own ingredients, from barley to hops – even the yeast.
- Drinks With Max Allen
- Life & Leisure
Soak up the Melbourne Cup atmosphere at these top wine bars
Settle in, order a glass, and watch the world go by at these five fabulous institutions.
This Australian winemaker has just won a global award for his sparkling
Ed Carr is more than happy to pick up the international awards and bring them home to a smaller, local wine company.
- Drinks With Max Allen
- Life & Leisure
This World War II cognac could be yours for a ‘mere’ $1299 a bottle
Plus, how to join in celebrating a decade of rare 10-year-old Australian single malts.
- Drinks With Max Allen
- Life & Leisure
Hands down the best non-alcoholic wine I’ve tried
Based in Berlin, Kolonne Null partners with wineries in Germany, France and Spain to source wine that is then de-alcoholised.
September 2024
- Drinks With Max Allen
- Life & Leisure
Heading to Hokkaido? The Nikka distillery is a must
When Masataka Taketsuru returned to Japan from Scotland a century ago he brought the expertise to make great whisky, a love of all things Caledonian and a wife.