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Select wine merchants Buying wine online is a useful and convenient way to source wines from unusual wine varieties. There are many advantages, and a couple of pitfalls to buying wine online.

Select wine merchants Buying wine online is a useful and convenient way to source wines from unusual wine varieties. There are many advantages, and a couple of pitfalls to buying wine online.

Notable for producing Shiraz, the grape is by far the most important variety for the region, accounting for about 50% of the total crush. The area’s thin soils, limited water, and warm summers harness Shiraz’s natural vigor and produce intense flavored fruit, and wine with a deep purple color that can last decades in the bottle.

In recent years, like a lot of people, I’ve been buying more of my wine online. The picture I would prefer to hold of myself is the fellow who faithfully patronizes (perhaps plagues?) the local wine shops rather than browses some brightly arrayed screen. To be sure, I’d rather be there in person, discussing a wine’s qualities with an enthusiastic merchant rather than passively scrolling through professional tasting notes. And I believe in the importance of neighborhood proprietors (whether they sell wine or house paint) to a vital, thriving community; they’re the hubs of the real social network.

Originating from the beautiful area of South Australia McLaren Vale wine has been making a name for itself for over 100 years. Many vineyards continue to be family owned and have been developed into boutique vineyards. Visitors who discover this area are pleased to learn about the dozens of restaurants and cafes offering local and international cuisine.

It is called Syrah in its country of origin, France, as well as in the rest of Europe, Argentina, Chile, New Zealand, Uruguay and most of the United States. The name Shiraz became popular for this grape variety in Australia, where it has long been established as the most grown dark-skinned variety. In Australia it was also commonly called Hermitage up to the late 1980s, but since that name is also a French Protected designation of origin, this naming practice caused a problem in some export markets and was dropped.

In recent years, like a lot of people, I’ve been buying more of my wine online. The picture I would prefer to hold of myself is the fellow who faithfully patronizes (perhaps plagues?) the local wine shops rather than browses some brightly arrayed screen. To be sure, I’d rather be there in person, discussing a wine’s qualities with an enthusiastic merchant rather than passively scrolling through professional tasting notes. And I believe in the importance of neighborhood proprietors (whether they sell wine or house paint) to a vital, thriving community; they’re the hubs of the real social network.

McLaren Vale, the home of the Curtis Family Vineyards, is just 45 minutes’ drive south of South Australia’s capital of Adelaide, has been making wine for one and a half centuries. That’s not as long as wine has been made in Italy, but the results are just as encouraging. And how a family with its ancestry dating back to the 15th Century has brought its expertise to McLaren vale with a new range of wines with an impressive European lineage.

Curtis family entering the Chinese wine market with premium McLaren vale wines. The Curtis Family Vineyards are established just west of the township of McLaren Vale

The survey of the ‘rich and extensive valley of McLaren Vale’ was completed three years after proclamation, in 1839 by John McLaren. McLaren was appointed as Senior Surveyor was given the task of surveying the southern districts of Adelaide. McLaren divided up the south of Adelaide into three districts – B, C and D. B reached from Holdfast Bay and extended south as far as the Onkaparinga River, it was opened to the public in February 1839. Section C was to include all the land south of the Onkaparinga River to Willunga Hill. Section D included land from Willunga to Encounter Bay.