Half Marsanne, the balance of Rousanne and Viognier, sourced exclusively from the Mitchelton estate vineyard. Airstrip is a lively but tight blend of vigorous white fruit. Modest crop levels ranging from 2 to 3½ tonnes per acre give this wine its core intensity. Each individual block is managed and vinified separately to allow the different qualities of each variety, shaped by the unique vineyard site and soil profiles, to shine through. The individual parcels of fruit are moulded together during blending to produce the unique Airstrip style.

$2499each $297DOZEN EACH DOZEN Mitchelton's vines are rigorously husbanded, careful monitoring of fruit ripening ensures harvesting occurs at the time of the fruit's optimum maturity. The juice is cold settled, racked and warmed before innoculation with selected yeasts. Some of the lime green yoghurty textured juice lees is retained when racking the juice, adding complexity to the final Airstrip blend. Marsanne and Roussanne are barrel fermented in 20% new french oak while the Viognier is barrel fermented in four year old french barrels to retain purity of fruit expression. All barrel fermented wines are individually barrel selected to ensure the harmony of oak and texture in the final blend. Alcohol 13.0%

Intense aromatics of jasmine, ripe peach, lemon thyme and mango. A textured, full and generous palate framed by balanced acidity. Flavour notes of poached pear, honey, bran and hints of lemon zest meld to produce a complex, full bodied wine. Marsanne is the rare specialty of Central Victoria - this region boasts the largest plantings outside France - but Viognier and Roussanne are even rarer in Australia. The Marsanne develops body and character, Viognier typically develops distinctive perfume and spice. Roussanne is prized for its ability to give stone fruit flavours and texture. Intense, well defined and impeccably balanced, the three grapes have been brought together into a very fine food orientated wine.

Cellared by David Traeger until recent release, the 2003 has developed beautifully and expresses a sensational growing season . Cabernet Sauvignon, with a dash of Petit Verdot, and a larger proportion of Merlot has been matured for twelve months under a combination of good French Nevers oak hogsheads, yielding a complex wine with an earthy palate and well evolved, aged flavours. Dark berry and black curranty aromas, the well structured palate is influenced by the finely grained oak, a tightly knit wine, and very ready to enjoy.

$2599each $309DOZEN EACH DOZEN The winemaking aim is to produce elegant and distinctive wines reflecting the unique regional characters of the Goulburn-Nagambie region, through the use of traditional methods, with the benefit of the latest technology. David Traeger wines was established at Nagambie in the eighties, and David himself, after a successful stewardship at the Mitchelton Estate winery, now sits on the board of directors at hugely successful Dromana Estate. Traeger made use of the winemaking facilities at Sommerset Crossing Winery in Seymour to make this excellent and complex red blend, an arrangement that has seen David's twenty-five years of successful winemaking experience, benefit both of the joint venture labels. Approx alcohol 14.0%

Velvet red with dark robes. Bouquets of lively red berry and cassis, subdued notes of fresh cut cedar, raisined and meaty aromas of currants and plums. The complexity of the blend comes through with hints of wet earth and truffle, chocolate and tobacco. On the tongue are flavours of red currant and blackberry, stewed cranberries and fruit preserves, the sweet and savoury flavours are well supported by good oak hints. Palate is thick and chewy, round, full and velvety, generous and deeply interesting. Finish is mellow, and lingering. This wine's been cellared by David Traeger, and whilst ready to enjoy right now with game and roast meats, can still be be classed as a keeper for laying down to develop even further.

After a long history of producing the Nagambie Lakes most memorable vintages, David Traeger puts much focus on his locally sourced Shiraz, abiding by traditional vinification practices to assemble distinctive red wines with elegance and finesse. David Traeger is an old hand with decades of experience, including an award winning stint at Michelton.

$2299each $273DOZEN EACH DOZEN Grapes are harvested at peak maturity from good vineyards in the Nagambie Lakes region. A judicious selection of fruit is followed by a combination of traditional vinification techniques and modern technology, aimed at producing limited volumes of elegant and distinctive wines. David Traeger knows his source vineyards well, isolating the finest parcels of Shiraz. Abundant sunshine permits full physiological ripeness, achieving smooth tannins and fleshy characters in the grapes. The finished wine is matured a year or more in a selection of finely coopered oak barrels, just the right amount of time to achieve the style which David Traeger aims for. Oak characters are evident without dominanting the fruit.

Deep red colour. Showing characters of sweet spice and dusty hints along with some pepper and finely integrated oak. The palate is well structured, oak being unobtrusive and tannins well integrated. Ripe fruit flavours and sweet alcohol give the wine great mouthfeel, delivering the finesse and length which is expected of David Traeger.

One of Australia's most satisfying and consistent, dry Verdelho wines, expressing fine varietal characters, refreshing and crisp with good palate weight and solid structure delivered by the quality fruit and vinification. A superfine construct from the best Victorian vineyards, displaying dry and spicey tropical aromas with hints of white peach. David Traeger will continue to make one of Australia's most popular Verdelho wines well into the future, it always offers mouthfilling flavours of cooler climate orchard fruit, complimenting acids and a lingering, stylish finish.

$1699each $201DOZEN EACH DOZEN Something of a signature for David Traeger, his Verdelho remains a stylistic hallmark for Australia. The unique qualities of the Verdelho grape as vinified by the likes of Traeger have achieved a national marketing edge. From an award winning history at Michelton, Traeger struck out on his own, producing one of the country's most widely recognized pure varietal wines. Fruit is sourced from specialised sites which are husbanded to yield grapes which can meet the exacting standards of a demanding winemaker, the Avenel vineyard at Nagambie Lakes and from good sites in King Valley. Bottled early without any oak influence, all handling is completely reductive to aid in retaining vibrant fruit character.

Green gold in colour. This crisp clear white has lemon and lime aromas with a touch of white peach on the nose and a lingering display of spice. Clean scents of avocado and snow pea, a nuance of honeycomb. The fascinating bouquet is followed by rich fruit salad flavours, a touch of upfront flintyness brings with it a flavoursome crisp palate, excellent mouthfeel and good length. Drinking beautifully now alongside all good food.

Euroa Creeks is a hand crafted single vineyard Shiraz, only sixty cases of the inaugural vintage were available in Australia. The eight acres of vine are nourished by a number of creeks that have traditionally brought just enough water to make the land arable. In recent years the area has been drier than usual, vines have truly struggled and tonnages are at their lowest, but the grapes have been packed with flavour. Vintage 2006 was an almost perfect growing season and 110 cases of Reserve were produced. Vintage 2007 was totally wiped out by frost.

$5499each $657DOZEN EACH DOZEN Exclusively Goulburn Shiraz, grown by Jo and Andrew Gall, vinified by David Lloyd, owner operator of Mornington's Eldridge Estate. Lloyd was keen to see what happens when a cool climate winemaker delves into warm climate Shiraz. Located a little east of the township of Euroa, the vineyard produces intensely flavoured grapes which are hand picked and crushed in the field over the course of several days. The batches of juices and skins are then brought back to the winery at Red Hill for fermentation, pressing, ageing and bottling. Treated to an extended maturation, Euroa Creek wines are aged in a selection of American and French oak barrels, a high proportion of which are always new.

Dark brooding red colour, plum and dark berry hues. An intensely flavoured and perfumed Shiraz in the Rhone style, rich red berry nose with a little cinnamon, vanillan and spice, flavours of plum which follow through to the palate. Euroa Creeks is always rich and powerful, endowed with the classic blackberry Shiraz characters, firm tanins and great length. Vintage 2006 claimed Gold Medal at the 2008 Great Australian Shiraz Challenge.

An exclusively Strathbogie Ranges Shiraz, most of the grapes come from Rocky Hill Block at Whitegate, with a further component from Block 6 at Upton Run. The magic of this wine evolves while ageing in a collection of very old, large English oak casks. These barrels are home to a hundred years of bugs and bacteria which impart complexity, allowing the wine to breath, integrating fruit and taming the tannins. A beguiling wine of striking colour and elevated aromas, pristine fruit and a persistent, flavourful finish which conjures up images of wilderness and game.

$2999each $357DOZEN EACH DOZEN Shiraz is inoculated to various yeast strains and vinified at 23°C under sweep-arm fermenters which tend to develop vibrant perfumes and gripping tannins in the finished wine. A number of ferments create a shallow cap for good extractions. AWRI796 is a neutral yeast which permits the grape and terroir to express itself. Enoferm Syrah is a high glycerol producer which contributes mouthfeel while enhancing the bouquet, contributing violets and black pepper. Upon completion, the majority of components spend time in large and well seasoned 5000 Litres English oak casks. The remainder is treated to maturation in a selection of small format oak, new and prior use French oak hogsheads and puncheons.

Deep red, youthful, purple at the rim. A well perfumed wine with highly aromatic nose exhibiting violets, pepper and spice. Restrained chocolate oak behind a complexity of dried fruit characters. Rich, dark fruit flavours on the full bodied palate, concentrated and offering very good length.

Mitchelton was originally a grazing property known as Blackwood Park. The soils and mesoclimate are significantly influenced by the presence of the pristine Goulburn River which surrounds the property on three sides, shaping the unique environment and mesoclime. In turn, geological shifts, ancestral river flows and climate have created distinct soil profiles on individual blocks. Priority is given to monitoring sugar and acid profiles while grapes are ripening, timing of harvest is critical to achieving optimum balance and intensity in the wine.

$1699each $201DOZEN EACH DOZEN Riesling is sourced from seven blocks across the estate, predominantly duplex red-brown earths with friable soft sandy loam topsoil overlying well structured blocky red subsoils. Picking occurs during the early hours of morning in the midst of the cool Goulburn nights. From the crusher, to the press and in to the settling tank, fruit is protected with cold temperatures and judicious gas coverage to preserve the fragile aromas and flavours which are so vulnerable once the skin is broken. Settling is short and cold, racking is clean and gentle in preparation for inoculation to a vigorous neutral yeast strain to ensure an even, cold ferment of 10° to 14° for two to three weeks. Alcohol 12.5%

Pale antique gold in colour with green highlights. A delicate yet powerful nose of lifted floral and citrus aromas with a hint of musk. Flavours of freshly cut lemon and lime fill the palate, balanced by crisp acid which ensures the wine will develop superbly in the bottle. Intense citrus and floral flavours are balanced by a clean, mineral acid structure.

A flagship Victoran effort, traditionally crafted from Shiraz grapes picked off the oldest and most superior blocks within the Mitchelton estate vineyard. The vines receive little water so they drive their gnarled roots deep down through the sandy soil layers in search of moisture. These veteran vines are naturally devigorated and unirrigated, ensuring small, intensely flavoured berries which are placed aside to create this eminent edition of Victorian Shiraz.

$4499each $537DOZEN EACH DOZEN Predominantly from the Old Faithful Crescent and D Blocks, a third of fruit is picked off an elite block at Heathcote, contributing structure and complexity. Grapes are treated to an extended skin contact for up to three weeks, extracting deep colour and soft tannins. A temperatuture controlled, submerged cap vinification in potters and small open fermenters is followed by transfer to a selection of new and seasoned French oak barrels from select cooperages, for completion of malolactic and eighteen months maturation. Parcels remain on lees and remained unracked to preserve freshness, individually barrel selected in blind tastings before determining the final assemblage. Alcohol 14.6%

Intense deep purple, violet hues. Rich aromas of brandied cherry, smoked charcuterie and festive pudding, a nose that continually shifts in and out of red currant/ mulberry reduction sauce, mocha, cocoa and kirsch. A finely boned wine which balances the power of fruit with a delicacy of structure. Rich, opulent fruit marries with cinnamon/ nutmeg/ aniseed spice, all framed by a structure of chocolatey textured tannins which partner the persistence of flavour perfectly.

Reams of Goulburn Valley varietal characters, a medium bodied Sauvignon Blanc, juicy with natural sweetness, yet dry on the finish, plenty of savoury personality as well as lively minerality.

$1999each $237DOZEN EACH DOZEN Sheltered by hills of ironbark forest, the region around the Passing Clouds valley offers an ideal growing climate for premium wines. The tiny hands-on winery deals exclusively with hand-picked and sorted Sauvignon Blanc, carefully pressed and fermented in open vats. Totted up with additional batches of Sauvignon Blanc from selected Goulburn Valley growers, the grapes underwent the same traditional winemaking techniques as the estate's classic red Cuvées. A vintage beset with all the pestilence in nature's vast armoury. Low rainfall and no irrigation combined with well drained deep soils, have yielded a small a small crop of intensely flavoured fruit, impeccably balanced into a ripe and satisfying wine.

A clear wine, straw in colour. A fresh, crisp, grassy Sauvignon Blanc, tropical fruits and gooseberries give this wine its strong varietal character. Refreshing tastes of red and green apple, green vegetables and orchard fruit, the musky aromas wind round and round the fat, broad palate, moving from dry sobre, crisp elements to characters of wet, soft tropical fruit salad, nashi and passionfruit with persistent grassyness and minerality, it's very intense, ripe and clean. A juicy, vibrant backbone that's full of mineral and gooseberry clings to the mouth with clean flavours before a fresh, tangy finish. A pleasant wine, subdued in places yet abundant with regional highlights, Passing Clouds finishes deliciously clean and crisp.

This stylish wine displays maximum regional character derived from cool climate origins in the Strathbogie Ranges, silky luxurious plum and cherry flavours with a distinct spicey, peppery tang. Careful ageing in a mixture of oak adds savoury notes to a richly textured palate, well balanced and loaded with charm.

$1799each $213DOZEN EACH DOZEN Shiraz fruit that's been slowly ripened on a remote, cool climate vineyard in the Strathbogie Ranges. The wine was inoculated in a range of vessels including a static fermenter, open fermenters and ten tonne roto fermenters. Each fermenter is subject to varied handling techniques and translates into a remarkably different looking wine. The static fermenter usually produces the fruitiest, roto fermentation makes the most robust component whilst an open fermentation translates into the most complex with good middle palate tannins. Blackwood Ridge spent fourteen months under a mix of well saesoned good old oak, including some very large (5000 litre) English casks which are a century old.

Blackwood Ridge is plum red in colour with a hint of purple at the rim. Aromas of blood plums, sweet berry fruits, some varietal leafiness, dark chocolate and pepper, on the palate this wine feels full and rich. Completely redolent with cooloish high altitude characters, red fruits like plums and cherries, the distinctive drive of the exquisite Plunkett wood treatment, all wrapped in ribbons of sweet black pepper. The palate is lush and full-bodied, the tannins are soft and supple, a drink for real roast beef and red wine gravy. Fully mature Shiraz with supple texture and rich fruit, it is well balanced and has great length of flavours, it's a cracker.

Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot excel in the Strathbogie Ranges. Assembled into a single wine, they capture the heart of suitors desiring a soft, early drinking table red. 490m is an inspired effort by the team at Plunkett Fowles, who consummate the most gratifying wines from within the environment of their high altitude home. A vibrant Cabernet Merlot with a slowly ripened cool climate palate and the most congenial tannins. Soft and approachable, desirous of your friendship, loves pizza, a shared bowl of pasta or a quiet drink by the fire.

$1499each $177DOZEN EACH DOZEN Perched on a hill at the edge of the Strathbogie Ranges, the stunning Plunkett Fowles winery with its arching roof is a local landmark visible from afar. This sizable operation is the result of a merger between Plunkett Wines, Dominion Wines, and Strathbogie Vintners. The partnership between the Plunkett and Fowles families came together in 2005 with the acquisition of a new and beautiful winery. The Plunketts bring practical ability in making brilliant wine and fine tuning the machinery that helps to do it, Fowles bring a wealth of experience and skill in the arts of management. Following the harvest and crush, inoculation and vinification, 490m was treated to a spell of ageing in a combination of tightly grained oak barrels.

Bright scarlet in colour. Rich and dense bouquet with complex aromas of liquorice and ripe plum, chocolate and cherry, violet and spice. This wine is essentially dry on the palate but is rich with sweet fruit characters, damson and black cherry, blueberry, bramble and cassis. 490m carries a fine balance of alcohol and tender tannins, kept invigorating and vital by refreshingly light acids. It is medium bodied with a fine structure and very good length. To accompany veal tortellini or an eggplant lasagna.

Alan and Noni Plunkett planted a small, unirrigated vineyard on the Strathbogie Ranges in 1968, the first in the region. Today, the Plunkett Fowles vineyards occupy over five hundred acres of the choicest ground on the Ranges. At 490 metres above sea level, the vines are stimulated by the coolness of spring to produce small berries, while in summer the low rainfall and intense sunshine nurture fruit that is dense in colour and flavour. Cool and crisp, with a hint of the tropics, 490m is a refreshing Sauvignon Semillon, ideal for chilling with friends.

$1499each $177DOZEN EACH DOZEN The Plunkett and Fowles families have a deep appreciation for the granite rich Strathbogie Ranges. For decades they have worked hard accumulating extensive local knowledge, pioneering fruit growing techniques, gaining an intimate understanding of individual vineyard blocks and experimenting with creative winemaking. Their greatest sense of achievement comes from crafting wines that they love to drink and share. Plunkett Fowles retain the best fruit for their own estate labels. 490m is an assemblage of Sauvignon Blanc with Semillon, inoculated to select yeasts and treated to a cool, temperature controlled fermentation in tank to preserve freshness and retain vital fruit characters.

Pale straw colour with green hues. Primary aromas of citrus and slate, thistle and lychee, nettle and cumquat. The ripe expressions of the bouquet continue onto the palate, where they merge with tropical fruit and minerality. Bright characters of lemon and lime on the elegantly structured palate, complimented by tropical flavours of lychee and gooseberry, greener elements of snow pea and lemongrass, supported by a refreshing and persistent, lingering acidity. The wine of choice to accompany light cuisine.