In this pictorial we follow the progress of the 2006 vintage of Bush Vine Mataro which provides much of the fruit for two of our icons wines - the Bull's Blood and the Heinrich. more...
The biennial Barossa Vintage Festival.
is fast approaching, and Rolf Binder @ Veritas Winery is holding three fantastic events - and your'e invited.
The week starting Easter Saturday to the Sunday following is set to be a big one as the Barossa dons its party frock for over one hundred events at the various wineries, churches, art galleries, barrel halls, vineyards, and village greens.
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One of the great joys of travelling and working in foreign markets is that you get to know some people really well. Glen Mendez is one such person and I thought from the stories he tells I would ask him about his life in wine …….
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HJ Hansen is the business through which we sell our wines in Denmark. A major importer, wholesaler and retailer, HJ Hansen sells premium wines from around the world. One of their main responsibilities is to educate their staff in the wines, styles and regions from where it came. This incentive recently included a fully funded trip to Australia for the two sales staff who sold the most Australian wine and showed the most knowledge of Australian wines.
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Chuck Hayward began working at the fine wine store, The Jug Shop (Pacific Avenue, San Francisco) in 1986. They began to stock Australian wines in 1987 which makes them a pioneering US store for Australian wines. It is now one of the top stores in the US for Australian and New Zealand wines. Currently about 20% of the sales above $10.00 are from Australia and N.Z. and they stock few critter wines. The Jug Shop specialises in small wineries and to keep this category interesting Chuck has made some 20 visits to Australia. He feels he brings an outsiders and a US perspective on his visits as he seeks out what will sell and how to promote it. Chuck is always on the look-out for new wines and wineries.
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Our relationship with Belgian wine importer, Ad Bibendum, is a very important one, and their wine list reads like a history of Veritas Winery. As importers of fine boutique wines they have been great supporters of our products over the past six years.
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We wrote about talking and tasting with the Wine Spectator’s Editor at large in The American Wine Spectator Hits Town. Harvey’s notes covering 16 Australian reds appeared in the Wine Spectator Insider, June 27th, 2007. Here are his thought about wines I make, with scores and approximate prices in U.S. dollars.
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Rolf Binder Wines @ Veritas Winery topped the judges list at the Marananga Regional Wine Show on the weekend. The Veritas 2005 Bull's Blood Shiraz Mataro Pressings was the big winner, collecting the Fabro-Weld trophy for Best Red Blend, as well as the Fineline Printing trophy for Best Wine of Show. The judges commented that the wine had a "tight, but well concentrated palate" with "spicy fruit and tarry" flavours.
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"In the mid-90s I was one of the first Australian booze-hacks to review The Malcolm, a massive Barossa shiraz clocking in at 16.1 per cent alcohol.
"The wine had been consummated in a moment of blind passion by Barossa winemaker Rolf Binder and British wine merchant Noel Young. The idea was to see how far the shiraz style could be pushed - how much ripeness and oak could be crammed into each glass. The wine went on to become one of the first overpriced (back then its $80 price tag was outrageous) cult reds praised by US critic Robert Parker - praise which in turn spawned a tsunami of taste-alike, pumped-up wines.
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Our beloved Winemaker, Rolf Binder, and his trusty Wine Stylist, Julie Donnellan, visited Melbourne and Sydney in June for the annual Good Food and Wine Shows.
Set up in a striking black shell scheme, the Rolf Binder Wines display was accompanied by other notable Barossa wineries - Peter Lehmann, Bethany, Elderton, Murray Street, St Hallett, Landhaus, Schild Estate, Gibson's Barossavale, Hentley Farm, and Rick Burge Family Winemakers.
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Tim White writes the weekly wine column in the Australian Financial Review and on March 30th said this about the Rolf Binder Barossa Valley Shiraz 2005:
"Classic Barossa Valley shiraz aromas abound here: grassy wheaty, with sweet spicy fruitcake and tarriness, too. Deep and fleshy in the mouth with stewed plums and brighter sparkly berries. Sandy tannins to close, and dry. Great value at this, 93/100."
When Harvey Steiman hits town it’s a big event as the American market is very important for producers of warm climate Australian reds.
Harvey Steiman’s widely read articles in the Wine Spectator cover many topics from the best restaurants in San Francisco to wine maker interviews and country reviews. As is the Spectator’s custom, he like the other senior writers, specialises in reviewing the wines of a range of countries or regions. To our delight and we think Harvey’s he covers Australia. Our last conversation with Harvey was
Lunch with Harvey Steiman, San Francisco.
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Alain is the winemaker at the large and important cooperative Cave de Tain in Hermitage, Rhone Valley. I took the opportunity to talk with Alain about winemaking and Hermitage.
Alain was in the Barossa as the Rhone official who looks after the French end of the Rhone-Barossa Exchange Scholarship to have discussions with us about enhancing the programme. Each year either Barossa winemakers go to the Rhone or Rhone winemakers come to the Barossa for the vintage. It is generally agreed that this is most beneficial to both regions. Alain himself has worked in Chile and in America and would love to make wine in the Barossa.
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A few months ago the Parker scores were published. The opinion of Parker is very important in the U.S. market and indeed has a ripple effect around the wine drinking world. Many consumers are influenced by the opinions of his journal the ‘Wine Advocate’. These wines were presented to Parker in September last year and are covered in the story Tasting with Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Below are his wine tasting notes and the score for each wine. I understand this is the last scoring that Parker will do for Australian wines as the job has been handed to another staff member.
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Serendipity is an advanced liquor store in Columbus, Ohio, and they are great supporters of my wines plus Australia in general. I thank them very much for this very kind review about my approach to wine and the generous comments about the Barossa Valley.
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Pippa is a director and 50% shareholder in the U.K. wine importers Seckford Agencies. Pippa distributes Rolf Binder wines in the U.K and on a recent visit to Australia I took the time to ask her about the trade and any general comments she had about Australian wines.
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The U.K. agent of Rolf Binder Wines is Seckford Agencies and a 50% shareholder of this company is Richard Harvey-Jones of Seckford Fine Wines. He was in the Barossa in early November and we asked Richard about his most amazing fine wine business.
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The following comments came from the Cambridge (U.K.) based retailer and wholesaler Noel Young. They cover his own business, views on the British trade and how he sees the appeal of wines from various countries. Noel is my partner in the Magpie Estate brand and he sells a lot of Rolf Binder wines. I rely a lot on his thoughts about the U.K. trade and various wine trends.
The end of the regular season of the Australian Rules Football has arrived and so ends the World Famous Veritas Football Tipping Competition.
Star Cellar Door/Marketing Manager Julie Donnellan has held the lead since round 15 and at the end of round 22 there she remains. Well done Joolz! Equal second to Christa, Carlene and David Fa. The other David gets the wooden spoon.
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One of the wines of which we are most proud is the Veritas Bulls Blood. Rolf senior came from Hungary so a red he made in 1967 was named Bulls Blood. Despite my recent label change our Australian customers want us to retain the name though internationally Bulls Blood is called Rolf Binder Hubris (Apologies to our International customers who may be puzzled by this story). This wine is also referred to by some as Binders Pressings.
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Christa Deans' excellent winemaking skills were rewarded over the weekend with the award of the trophy for Best White Wine for her 2005 Barossa Valley Chardonnay. The Marananga Wine Show is held annually and only wines that are grown and produced on the Western side of the Barossa are eligible to enter.
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In late May I had lunch with Harvey Steiman of the Wine Spectator in San Francisco. Here is his report of that lunch. Some reader’s comments to Harvey’s article are also posted.
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The annual Good Food and Wine Show is on again in Melbourne and Sydney. Rolf and Julie set up a stand in Melbourne with a contingent from the Barossa Valley. Other local wineries represented at the show with Rolf Binder Wines were Barossa Valley Estate, Elderton, Rick Burge, Murray Street Vineyards, and Schild Estate.
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Every year, the leading Australian wine magazine, Gourmet Traveller WINE, selects one winemaker as the Australian Winemaker of the Year. This year, Rolf has been recognised as one of Australia's greats, and is a candidate for this title. Past winners include fellow Barossan, Ben Glaetzer, Vanya Cullen of Margaret River, and Andrew Spinaze, chief winemaker at Tyrrell's in the Hunter Valley. All are vignerons highly credited for their talents, and it is a great honour to be placed in such esteemed company.
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This review of the Bulls Blood Shiraz Mataro Pressings 2003 appeared in the April-May, 2006 Gourmet Traveller Wine. The judges were Huon Hooke and Bob Campbell. This is what they said:
"..this wine has more gut's than grace! Herbal pea-pod, mineral and spice aromas, lead into a tannic, powerful palate which is somewhat aggressive. It's fruit driven in style, generous and concentrated." Cellar 2-12 years.
Liquor Licensing Act 1997: It is an offence to sell or supply liquor to a person under the age of 18 years, or to obtain liquor on behalf of a person under the age of 18 years. This web site is operated by Veritas Winery Pty Ltd ABN: 80 098 219 553 Licence No: 50800044
Red Wines
We received a letter and photo from a customer from thirty years ago, which we just had to share with you.
Our relationship with Belgian wine importer, Ad Bibendum, is a very important one, and their wine list reads like a history of Veritas Winery. As importers of fine boutique wines they have been great supporters of our products over the past six years.
We wrote about talking and tasting with the Wine Spectator’s Editor at large in 
Rolf Binder Wines @ Veritas Winery topped the judges list at the Marananga Regional Wine Show on the weekend. The Veritas 2005 Bull's Blood Shiraz Mataro Pressings was the big winner, collecting the Fabro-Weld trophy for Best Red Blend, as well as the Fineline Printing trophy for Best Wine of Show. The judges commented that the wine had a "tight, but well concentrated palate" with "spicy fruit and tarry" flavours.
"In the mid-90s I was one of the first Australian booze-hacks to review The Malcolm, a massive Barossa shiraz clocking in at 16.1 per cent alcohol.
Our beloved Winemaker, Rolf Binder, and his trusty Wine Stylist, Julie Donnellan, visited Melbourne and Sydney in June for the annual Good Food and Wine Shows.
Set up in a striking black shell scheme, the Rolf Binder Wines display was accompanied by other notable Barossa wineries - Peter Lehmann, Bethany, Elderton, Murray Street, St Hallett, Landhaus, Schild Estate, Gibson's Barossavale, Hentley Farm, and Rick Burge Family Winemakers.
We thank Tony Love, food and wine critic for the Adelaide Advertiser for this review titled - Precious Ruby.
When Harvey Steiman hits town it’s a big event as the American market is very important for producers of warm climate Australian reds.
Alain is the winemaker at the large and important cooperative Cave de Tain in Hermitage, Rhone Valley. I took the opportunity to talk with Alain about winemaking and Hermitage.
A few months ago the Parker scores were published. The opinion of Parker is very important in the U.S. market and indeed has a ripple effect around the wine drinking world. Many consumers are influenced by the opinions of his journal the ‘Wine Advocate’. These wines were presented to Parker in September last year and are covered in the story 
Pippa is a director and 50% shareholder in the U.K. wine importers Seckford Agencies. Pippa distributes Rolf Binder wines in the U.K and on a recent visit to Australia I took the time to ask her about the trade and any general comments she had about Australian wines.
The U.K. agent of Rolf Binder Wines is Seckford Agencies and a 50% shareholder of this company is Richard Harvey-Jones of Seckford Fine Wines. He was in the Barossa in early November and we asked Richard about his most amazing fine wine business.
The following comments came from the Cambridge (U.K.) based retailer and wholesaler Noel Young. They cover his own business, views on the British trade and how he sees the appeal of wines from various countries. Noel is my partner in the Magpie Estate brand and he sells a lot of Rolf Binder wines. I rely a lot on his thoughts about the U.K. trade and various wine trends.
The end of the regular season of the Australian Rules Football has arrived and so ends the World Famous Veritas Football Tipping Competition.
One of the wines of which we are most proud is the Veritas Bulls Blood. Rolf senior came from Hungary so a red he made in 1967 was named Bulls Blood. Despite my recent label change our Australian customers want us to retain the name though internationally Bulls Blood is called Rolf Binder Hubris (Apologies to our International customers who may be puzzled by this story). This wine is also referred to by some as Binders Pressings.
Christa Deans' excellent winemaking skills were rewarded over the weekend with the award of the trophy for Best White Wine for her 2005 Barossa Valley Chardonnay. The Marananga Wine Show is held annually and only wines that are grown and produced on the Western side of the Barossa are eligible to enter.
The annual Good Food and Wine Show is on again in Melbourne and Sydney. Rolf and Julie set up a stand in Melbourne with a contingent from the Barossa Valley. Other local wineries represented at the show with Rolf Binder Wines were Barossa Valley Estate, Elderton, Rick Burge, Murray Street Vineyards, and Schild Estate.
Every year, the leading Australian wine magazine, Gourmet Traveller WINE, selects one winemaker as the Australian Winemaker of the Year. This year, Rolf has been recognised as one of Australia's greats, and is a candidate for this title. Past winners include fellow Barossan, Ben Glaetzer, Vanya Cullen of Margaret River, and Andrew Spinaze, chief winemaker at Tyrrell's in the Hunter Valley. All are vignerons highly credited for their talents, and it is a great honour to be placed in such esteemed company.
This review of the Bulls Blood Shiraz Mataro Pressings 2003 appeared in the April-May, 2006 Gourmet Traveller Wine. The judges were Huon Hooke and Bob Campbell. This is what they said: