Our Wine of the Week

Latta Vino Granite Riesling 2019

97 Points - Stuart McCloskey “The bouquet is immensely appealing, offering scents of orange and rose blossom, orchard fruit, quince, spring flowers and a little citrus. More classical and missing those petrol aromas found in some Aussie Rieslings. Clearly, the wine is young, incisive but carries itself with much confidence. Bracing acidity is missing which allows the pure fruit flavours of apricot and tangerine peel to shine. Rose petal and jasmine (essence-of-Gewürztraminer) which is fascinating. The profile is pure, spiced and I love the dash of white pepper and phenolic grip on the finish. The finish is very long indeed and will develop for a decade or more in the bottle. I’m detecting some salt after a minute or two and more white pepper. Incredibly charming, thoughtfully produced and one of the most classical renditions of this varietal found in Australia. As ever Owen bottles unfined, unfiltered and untinkered…”

£21.00 per bottle

Sourdough with vache curd, grapes poached in vinegar and grapefruit juice

To be honest, we had some grapes lying around that were on the way out and we are loath to waste anything. We have a whole lot of random vinegars lying around plus we had an abundance of grapefruit from our frond & farro homestead. Tracy messed around a bit and voilá. A tasting topping to spruce up some curd. I love making sourdough, so there are always slices hanging around the house.

Vinegar and wine are often a bit off, but soften by the cheese it goes really well with the freestyler dry white, just cooler than room temperature.

Ingredients

1 Bunch of green or red grapes
50ml chardonnay vinegar
Juice of one grapefruit
Vache curd (Goat curd will do if you can't get any vache)
Fresh sourdough

A Vinorium favourite and
a previous Wine of the Week

Customer Feedback

“My favourite discovery so far has been JC’s Own Freestyler, it has opened my eyes to some of the different grapes and styles from Australia. I love the Rhône and this is a grape that flourishes in that environment, so to find an Australian wine just as good if not better than anything coming out of the Rhône was wonderful. Particularly as it is a fraction of the price of the best of that region.“ - Simon

"A wonderfully infused perfume of fresh, sliced pear, fennel, orchard fruits, white flowers, smoky minerals and a faint whispering of wild honey."

JC's Own Freestyler 2019

97 Points - Stuart McCloskey “A wonderfully infused perfume of fresh, sliced pear, fennel, orchard fruits, white flowers, smoky minerals a faint whispering of wild honey. As JC set out to achieve – the palate offers substantial texture and grip from the tannins. Lots of nerve to admire too. I will say this wine is far more serious than JC lets on! It’s taut, focused, unadulterated, and packed with ripe, apple, pear, quince, and soupçon of honeysuckle… There’s a lovely line of juicy acidity which runs straight through the core and compliments the salty / smoky mineral finish perfectly. The length is to be admired. Very impressive and will thrill those who are seeking great northern and southern Rhône wines on a budget, which is a tad unfair on JC and this fabulous wine. Super-impressive and I'm taking a 12-pack home… Do not over chill and served in Zalto Bordeaux glassware. Drinking from 2020-2025+”

£21.50 per bottle

Fig & Stout Beef Empanadas

I’m a massive fan of pastry products and the depth of flavour of slow roasted beef and stout is always going to get you thinking about a red wine of sorted. The tricky part is tomato and wine, it can be a tricky thing to pull off. By roasting the tomato in making the relish it takes an edge off the acid and give a rounder, deeper flavour that the softness of grenache will always go well with.

So for me, the carbonic fermentation of the Ferine Grenache gives sweetness and savouriness, just like this dish. This is a perfect winter weekend dish, slow cook the beef on a Saturday and bring all together for lunch on Sunday. Thumbs up!

Ingredients

" Very impressive and will thrill those who are seeking great northern and southern Rhône wines on a budget"

JC's Own Ferine Grenache 2018/19

Jaysen Collins (winemaker)  - "I love Grenache, I love its versatility and its drinkability. I was mostly drawn to getting involved with the process and leaning to more textural, structured and savoury versions. Then one day I got to thinking, what about just doing nothing and let the grapes do the work.

So I chucked a few bins of hand-picked Grenache grapes into a tank with a bit of CO2, sealed the lid and came back several weeks later. When I lifted the lid I was hit with a whole lot of gassy funk, but in a really good way. It was wild and feral but mostly intoxicating. So for a few weeks after I just jumped on top of these bunches, breaking them up, in real terms to build structure, but mostly to get lost in the ferine like smells that filled the air."

£21.50 per bottle

Crispy Pork Belly with Aromatic Sweet Fish Sauce, Green Mango, Papaya and Asian Herb Salad

We have had some great and respectful pork producers here in the Barossa and I’m a sucker for crackling! The slow cooked pork can get rich and gooey, so we love to brighten it up with a zingy , acidic salad that lets you go back for more sweet pork.

Anything fatty needs acid and the Asian Salad knocks out heavier reds, so Chardonnay, Freestyler or the crisp Bluebird Grenache get a gig here.

Ingredients

" I set out to make a great drink that brings
a true sense of delight."

JC's Own Bluebird Grenache 2019

Jaysen Collins (winemaker) - I always get mesmerised when I see a flock of birds floating and drifting in the wind. It brings a sense of freedom and joy to me. I knew the bluebird is the symbol of happiness so I had a concept for the label – I just needed the wine!

So with this idea floating about in my head, I set out to make a great drink that brings a true sense of delight. I found an east facing vineyard in the shallow soils of the Adelaide Hills that just gets the morning sun – no baked flavours here. I got rid of the stalks and just fermented this as whole berries. Just before coffee in the morning and after a cold beer in the afternoon I quickly give it a plunge by hand, nothing too serious or strenuous. It’s bottled early to catch the brightness I’m looking for, meaning it’s dangerously drinkable whenever you need a pick me up.

£21.50 per bottle

Slow Roasted Lamb Shoulder with Herb Salad and Pomegranate

Slow cooking anything in the cold Barossa winter has many benefits.  The wafts from the kitchen smell great, the house heats up and once its in the oven you just have to sit down, drink wine and just wait it out.

The lamb is really succulent, so the herb salad and pomegranate just cuts through it.  Anything grenache based is perfect for this, forget that old cabernet myth.  My first choice with slow cooked meat is tannin, which means the Rock:It is the best fit of the bunch.

Ingredients

"It rolls full and ponderous through the palate in the best possible way."

JC's Own Rock: It GSM 2017/18

Mike Bennie (The Wine Front) "From Jaysen Collins of Massena fame, this is a punchy wine from this excellent producer. All those varieties are co-fermented – a defiance of the blending norm of many Barossa producers. It’s thick and slick with deep flavour, inky consistency, muscular tannins and a soft, syrupy finish. All that said there’s a tension in the wine despite the heft and flavours, though mostly about ripe berry, plummy fruit, show licks of sarsaparilla, savoury spice and malt with some meatiness. It rolls full and ponderous through the palate in the best possible way. It’s a thumper done with shape and form in mind. It’s very good."

£21.50 per bottle

Salt Crusted 90 Day Aged T-Bone with Roasted Baby Potatoes & accompaniments of Celeriac Remoulade, Chimichuri & Pickled Beetroot

Barossa Shiraz and a quality, dry aged T-Bone make perfect partners.  On Sunday’s we like to make a late lunch with a glass of wine, sit back with the family and just relax.  The accompaniments can be made ahead of time, so all you have to do is get the steak to room temperature, season it well and cook it up. Slice T-Bone, serve with accompaniments and enjoy with a bottle (or two!) of Greenock Shiraz.

I tend to play around with Grenache a bit more in the winery, but when it comes to Shiraz I tend to opt for simplicity – a good vineyard, long slow ferments and some supporting oak tick all the boxes.

Ingredients

""It rolls full and ponderous through the palate in the best possible way."

JC's Own Rock: It GSM 2017/18

2018, Mike Bennie (The Wine Front) "Jaysen Collins from Massena, well, he is his own man, but that’s his day job, doing a side project here. Or is Massena the side project? No matter. Some great wines emerging from this label, reminiscent of Standish in some respects, power but elegance, shaped by tannins, and the like, but wholly its own thing too. The last JC’s shiraz wine reviewed here was 2016 and from Stonewall, this from Greenock and 2017. Bold, brash, assertive red of booze-soaked stewed berries, sweet spice, earthy savouriness, brined black olives with a match between the fog of scent and wall of flavour. A freight train through the palate but finds graphite-licked tannin plumes and good shape with a surprisingly fresh and buoyant finish. Yes, a big red, but finds a groove, indeed, carves one out and leaves a lingering train of autumnal but sweet flavours. It’s a pretty darn epic wine here."

£36.50 per bottle

Explore this unique collection of Barossa wines 

JC's Own Mixed Eight Pack

Contents

1 x JC's Own Angaston Foothills Grenache 2018
1 x JC's Own Bluebird Grenache 2019
1 x JC's Own Ferine Grenache 2019
1 x JC's Own Freestyler Marsanne 2019
1 x JC's Own Greenock Shiraz 2018
1 x JC's Own Originale Grenache 2016
1 x JC's Own Rock: It GSM 2018
1 x JC's Own Sierra Nevada Foothills Pinot Noir 2016

£209.35 per case of 8

View all JC's Own Wines

Brand new wines from our latest exclusive producer

Mulline is an exciting new wine brand created by Ben Mullen and Ben Hine and we are absolutely thrilled to be their UK agent. The purpose and concept of Mulline is to produce single site, structural wines with definition and freshness that bring new ardour and vitality to the Geelong region.

or browse their fantastic wines below

James Halliday included Mulline in the Wine Companions 'Best of the Best' selection for their Syrah, Chardonnay and stunning Fumé Blanc'.

2019 Bannockburn Syrah

2021 Best Shiraz Wines - Wine Companion Awards

98 points - Stuart McCloskey “The fragrance is quite extraordinary and certainly one of the sexiest with blueberries, blackcurrant and damson – an entire hedgerow of ripe black fruits.  The palate feel is velvety and the sweet fruit saturates every facet. This is far from a ‘big’ blousy wine as Ben’s careful hands are again on show. The freshness is astonishing as are the perfectly judged oak and acidity. Incredibly fine and filled with lots of verve. Amazing purity and I wouldn’t be surprised if key critics (those who appreciate this style) make this wine the next Aussie (Syrah) cult. Perfect balance and the approachability is difficult to comprehend. Very, very beautiful and an amazing UK debut.” 

£32.95 per bottle

2019 Portarlington Chardonnay

2021 Best Chardonnay Wines - Wine Companion Awards

97+ - 98 Points - Stuart McCloskey “The bouquet is inviting with poached apples and pears (lightly spiced), lemon oil and lots of sea spray which builds fabulously with more aeration. A wine of great delicacy with the balance between fruit, structure and acidity pitch perfect. The palate is chiselled and laser-like with racy acidity. Saline, lemon, green apple and flint. Very sophisticated and intellectual, but natural all the same. The focus and purity feel unforced – very contemporary. Bottle age will develop this wine into an absolute beauty. It certainly has the pedigree and structure to offer at least a decade. Oh so graceful and the finish lasts for minutes… I predict this will score 98 to 99 points with a few years bottle age.”

£32.95 per bottle

2019 Sutherlands Creek Pinot Noir

97++ / 98 Points - Stuart McCloskey “So pure and wonderfully delicate. The bouquet is alluring with cinnamon stick, warmed earth, forest floor, sweet spice and violet – very Burgundian and Ben’s time with one of Burgundy’s great, Domaine Dujac is clearly on show. The tannins are super-fine, almost whispery. Wonderful transparency (there is no hiding with this style), sweet fruit and pangs of freshness. The fruit is spiced and feels exotic – a twist of black pepper to balance the sweetness. Harmonious and beautiful being the most accurate description. The finish is long and seamless. Wonderfully accessible but 4-6 years of bottle age will unlock the wine’s true complexity. A real triumph…”

£32.95 per bottle

Mulline Bannockburn Fumé Blanc 2019

2021 Best Sauvignon Blanc Wines - Wine Companion Awards

98 Points - Stuart McCloskey "The bouquet is ultra-pure and sings with honeyed quince, touches of apple, apricot and warming ginger with more aeration. The palate is confident, unforced and a joy to sample. More complex than most Australian Sauvignon Blancs and full of charisma. I love the youthfulness which provides good bite and pithiness, although the palate offers much depth and breadth. Sumptuous in parts despite its infancy. Very impressive and certainly one of the best examples of Aussie Sauvignon Blanc currently available. Long, incredibly satisfying, juicy, moreish and sophisticated. This will be incredible in 5 years.”

£32.95 per bottle