(S) Brown Brothers: Prosecco NV, from VIC, Australia

Appearance
Pale straw-yellow with lots of small bubbles.

Smell
Apples, pears, acacia, peaches and citrus blossoms.

Palate
Off-dry and mildly acid with light body & matching alcohol. The flavours are primarily apple and pear, with some citrus sneaking in & the group of flavours lingering for some time.

Tale
The Prosecco grape, which the Italians insist should be called Glera, has been growing in the King Valley for more than 15 years and it is this history that local producers claim protects their rights to call their wines Prosecco, not Glera.

As for the Brown Brothers winery, the vines were first planted in the later half of the 19th century. In the first half of the 20th century the winery was already popular with merchants in Melbourne and as far afield as London, however this is also when Italian immigrant tobacco farmers joined the loyal customer base. Decades later when the local tobacco industry collapsed, Brown Brothers were largely responsible for helping the Italian tobacco growers transition into grape growers, and in many cases, become winemakers themselves.

This is a nice sparkling wine, but it's not going to wow guests. Then again, at this price, it doesn't need to be amazing to be good value! For some reason I thought this was a slightly disappointing $20 bottle of fizz - now realising it's almost half that price, I'm very happy with the purchase.

Price: $12
Quality: ☆☆☆
Value: ☆☆☆☆

www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_366852
www.brownbrothers.com.au/products/13533-prosecco

(S) Devil's Corner: Cuvee NV, from TAS, Australia

Appearance
Pale straw yellow, with constant streams of fine bubbles.

Smell
Apples, peardrops, acacia, some confected red fruits & faint hints of mango & pineapple.

Palate
Dry, with lots of crisp acid, a solid body/mouthfeel & you can sense there's a healthy dose of alcohol, but it's not obvious at all & actually quite well integrated. Similarly, the flavours are lively, but not bold or punchy & they're primarily apples, some lemon pith & subtle red cherry. The mousse is surprisingly thick and creamy, & the crisp mouthfeel lasts a long time.

Tale
Turns out Devil's Corner is now a Brown Brothers subsidiary, purchased when BBs were hedging against climate change by investing in Tasmanian wine, including the Pirie & Tamar Ridge wineries.
I won't rabbit on too long about the national (at least Victorian) treasure that is Brown Brothers winery, based at Milawa in the King Valley. That will come with the next wine review of their Prosecco/Glera-based sparkling wine (& I'll be sure to add a link to this page). In short, the Browns began winemaking in the late 1800s & helped the largely Italian population of the King Valley transition from growing tobacco to becoming vignerons when the local tobacco industry collapsed.

This is a really satisfying & great value wine! As a Tank Method sparkling wine (similar to Prosecco), it's never going to be a show-stopper or the main focal point of a wine tasting. These roles are reserved for Traditional Method wines (such as Champagnes & Cavas). This Devil's Corner is better suited as the wine you drink on a Christmas afternoon whilst digesting lunch, or as a party-starter for NYE celebrations, before you crack a vintage Champagne at midnight. This wine delivers delicious fruit with crisp acidity & pleasant drinking - everything you hope for in the $20 & under bracket!

Price: $20
Quality: ☆☆☆☆
Value: ☆☆☆

www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_757669
www.brownbrothers.com.au/products/13190-sparkling-cuvee

(S) Borgo Sanleo: Prosecco Brut DOC, from Veneto, Italy

Appearance

Pale straw colour with lots of bubbles early.

Smell

Fruity, with ripe peaches, melon, and pears, and some honeysuckle and blossoms on the floral side. Lots of sweetness & physiological ripeness on the nose, which is unusual for a sparkling wine.

Palate

As a Brut wine, this must be dry, but the residual sugars are definitely there. Unfortunately the acidity that normally accompanies sparkling wine is missing. Not much alcohol or body & the flavours mimic the nose, with ripe stone & tropical fruits. The flavours disappear almost as quickly as the harsh mousse. This feels a lot like overripe grapes that weren't good enough for still wines have been stuffed into a tank for a secondary fermentation in the hope that some CO₂  will hide their imperfections.

Tale

Prosecco was originally named after a grape that was named after a town in the very North-East of Italy, sandwiched between the Slovenian border & the Gulf of Trieste. The grape has changed its name to Glera, however the town Prosecco still remains & gave its name to the DOC (region of origin) to the Prosecco wine in 2009, which is when the grape variety became Glera. In theory, any wine labelled Prosecco must come from this region in Italy, however many wineries, such as those in Victoria's King Valley (many who immigrated to Australia from Italy) still label their wines Prosecco, after the grape vines they planted decades ago.

I'd love to go on a spiel about the rich history of the Borgo San Leo winery etc., however I've just realised this is another Woolies 'home brand' special. It has no history or soul to speak of & has been made by a mercenary winery in Italy before being re-badged to look legit & sold to unsuspecting Aussies like myself. It appears the winery-for-hire in this case is Casa Vinicola Zonin, who make wines all over Italy & now in the US. It certainly feels like the Prosecco grapes they didn't want to put their name to have ended up in this bottle that's been sold to the Antipodes. After all, what would a bunch of convicts know about good Prosecco?!

Final word: I don't particularly like it & will most likely never buy it again, but for $11 it's okay & I'll drink it (although I'll drink almost anything made from grapes). I'm not angry, just very disappointed.

Price: $11
Quality: ☆☆☆
Value: ☆☆☆

www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_916249
www.zonin1821.it/en

(S) Freixenet: 'Vintage Reserva' 2013 Brut Nature Cava, from Sant Sadurní d'Anoia, Penedes, Spain

Appearance
Pale gold, with a frothy bead of medium-sized bubbles.

Smell
A wave of aromas leap from the glass at once, including grapefruit, sweet pineapple, apricot, red cherry, strawberry, pastry & marzipan. This cacophony of aromas are launched into your sinuses by the persistent fizz & it easily becomes a blur of smells.

Palate
Wow, this is different! Like most sparkling wine, it's dry & acidic, even a bit more acidic than most bubbles, but not at the same level as Champagne. Standard sparkling alcohol (12%), with a rich body & thick, creamy mousse/mouthfeel. The 'Wow!' factor lies in the richness of flavour, which is surprisingly pronounced & whilst there's definite signs of aging on lees (dead yeast), the stars of the show are the fruit & floral characters of Cava's homegrown heroes, Macabeo, Parellada & Xarel-lo. The dominant flavours are ripe grapefruit, baked red apples, nectarines, and some roasted almonds with a long biscuity finish. There's definitely no risk of confusing this with the subtlety of a traditional Chardonnay & Pinot-driven sparkling wine like the Yarra Burn from the same year.

Tale
Freixenet is a Cava powerhouse, as detailed in my review of their Elyssia Cuvée. The main differences between these two wines are the Elyssia is a multi-vintage wine that also uses the French Chardonnay & Pinot Noir grapes, compared to this single-vintage wine that only uses indigenous Spanish grapes. An interesting note for the wine is the 'Brut Nature' statement on the neck means no sugar has been added as dosage. the vast majority of traditional method sparkling wines (e.g. Champagnes & Cavas) have a few g/L of sugar added to balance the searing acidity. The acidity certainly shows through here, which would make it a great accompaniment to oily/fatty/greasy foods (think freshly cooked fish & thick-cut chips at the local pier in summer.... or hors d'oeuvres at a party).

I knew this was a great value bottle, but I expected it to be pushing $20, not hovering around $15. Truth be told, with the time & effort that's gone into making this one, it should cost well over $20 & closer to $30!

Price: $16
Quality: ☆☆☆☆
Value: ☆☆☆☆

www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_764899
http://www.freixenet.com.au/thewines/BrutVintage

(S) Petaluma: 'Croser' NV, from Adelaide Hills, SA, Australia

Appearance
Pale gold, with a very faint rose tinge & showing consistent small bubbles.

Smell
Floral & fruity! Plenty of peaches & nectarines, with apples, orchid blossoms, some tangelos and a hint of bitter almond.

Palate
Dry, with some decent acidity, well integrated alcohol (13%) & a surprisingly full body. The flavour profile is unique! Dominant flavours are lemon tart, slightly unripe apples, followed by tart strawberries & raspberries. Frothy mousse (bubbles) & a moderate length finish.

Tale
This year (2016) Petaluma has celebrated their 40th birthday, having been founded by Brian Croser in 1976. The winery was established with a view to harvest site-specific grapes and produce terroir-specific wines, which was way ahead of the trends for Australian winemaking in the 70s. The early days of Petaluma focused on the established wine regions of Clare Valley & Coonawarra in SA, plus an adventurous foray into Adelaide Hills, which was yet to be discovered as a significant wine region.

Within the Adelaide Hills region, the Piccadilly Valley is planted with the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir that go into the Croser NV, which is named after the winery's founder. The current winemaker Andrew Hardy focuses on minimalist wine making to allow the fruit to express where it comes from (the terroir). Croser is made in the traditional method (aka. Méthode Traditionnelle/Champenoise), which means it had a secondary fermentation in the same bottle you buy. It's the most expensive way to make fizz & essentially the same method as used for as Dom Pérignon/Cristal/Bollinger, or any French Crémant or Spanish Cava. If you've got a more generous wine budget, look at their Late Disgorged option for ~$50, as it's got more than a decade of age on lees & I'm sure it would rival most Champagnes.

This is a nice bottle of bubbles & it's got a bit of a different taste to the rest of the sparklers that have been reviewed for Spring. It's easy drinking & definitely worth the $17 Dan Murphy's is asking (maybe not the $25 Vintage Cellars wants though).

Price: $17
Quality: ☆☆☆
Value: ☆☆☆

www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_339355
www.petaluma.com.au/our-wines/croser/croser-non-vintage/croser-adelaide-hills-non-vintage-sparkling.html

(S) Dopff Au Moulin: Cremant D'Alsace 'Cuveé Julien Brut' NV, from Riquewihr, Alsace, France

Appearance
Pale gold with lots of fine bubbles.

Smell
Floral and citrus aromas that open up to apples and later, some autolytic characters of buttered toast.

Taste
Dry & acidic with a refreshingly light body. The same fruits & flowers as on the nose, with growing yeasty characters. The mousse is powerful, but delicate & the flavours linger for quite a while.

Tale
As one of the oldest family-owned wineries in the world, Dopff Au Moulin have had plenty of practice at extracting the best from the foothills of the Vosges mountain range around the town of Riquewihr. The family lays claim to have produced the first Crémant d'Alsace in the early 1900s, after Julien Dopff spent 2 years training in Épernay in Champagne. Julien, whom this wine is named after, also introduced the design of a stemmed wine bottle in 1913. In order to prove the robustness of his design, Julien shipped his wine to Australia & back. This successful expedition lead to Dopff being the supplier of choice for long-distance sea voyages.

I'm unashamed to say I love this producer for their affordable & delicious wines. The last time I tried their Pinot Blanc it was rubbish, but for the most part, they do an outstanding job of bringing the best of Alsace to the masses. Interestingly, this appears to be made predominantly from Pinot Blanc, with some Auxerrois.

Price: $20
Quality: ☆☆☆☆
Value: ☆☆☆☆

www.dopff-au-moulin.fr/produit-cremant_d_alsace_cuvee_julien_brut-1.html
www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_904451

(S) L'Eglise St Martin: Blanquette de Limoux NV, from Limoux, Languedoc-Roussillon, France

Appearance
Pale lemon with an abundance of small bubbles.

Smell
Apples and green straw, with some floral notes & a growing presence of apple cider (probably due to the slight yeasty influence of aging on lees).

Taste
Dry & quite acidic with a light body. Apples are the signature flavour of the Mauzac grape, so it's no surprise this tastes a bit like apples! Otherwise, it's easy drinking, but pretty bland. The highlight is a delicate & creamy mousse, with a persistent finish. The mousse is almost like trying to stop a coke bottle from fizzing over by sticking it in your mouth. As long as it doesn't come out your nose, it's a good thing.

Tale
Good: As a Blanquette de Limoux NV, this wine must contain at least 90% Mauzac, a grape that is essentially extinct outside of the Limoux region. The other 10% can be made up of more Mauzac, Chardonnay or Chenin Blanc, both of which can make outstanding sparkling wines by themselves. These Blanquettes are always produced according to Methode Traditionnelle, the same method as in Champagne, which involves the wine maturing in bottle with dead yeast cells to add complexity & biscuity characters.

Bad: The bottle proudly states that the wine is named after 'the 12th century church, L'Eglise Saint Martin, in Limoux - the French town famous for creating the world's first sparkling wine in 1531.' In terms of history & a story behind the wine, it may as well be named 'Carrefour Express - Blanquette de Limoux', after the local supermarket in Limoux, as this wine has nothing to do with the old church.

Ugly: The wine appears to have no website or winery to speak of, however it is imported by the Woolies' liquor company (Pinnacle Drinks) & according to the bottle, it was produced by Jean-Claude Mas, the chief winemaker of Domaines Paul Mas, also in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of Southern France. Being named after a supermarket may be more fitting after all...

Conclusion: Having dealt with the elephant in the wine glass, this is a perfectly acceptable & quite refreshing sparkling wine, but if you want something that looks impressive & will impress friends, the ladies & the gents bold enough to admit they love bubbles, then I strongly recommend spending another $5 & grabbing a cracking Frexinet Cava!

Price: $15
Quality: ☆☆☆
Value: ☆☆☆☆

www.paulmas.com/?lang=en
www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_729982

(S) Sieur d'Arque: Crémant de Limoux 'Grand Cuvée 1531 de Aimery' NV Rosé, from Limoux, France

Appearance
Pale salmon pink with persistent bubbles.

Smell
Red fruits (strawberries, cherries & red apples), peaches, orchard blossoms & a hint of straw.

Taste
Dry & acidic with a light body. Pleasant flavours of fresh apples, strawberries, cranberries & a refreshing spritz of lemon juice. A fairly aggressive mousse & long-lasting finish.

Tale

The cooperative Sieur d'Arques make this rosé Crémant, along with about 60% of all wines from the Limoux region in the very south of France. Being a French Crémant, it's made using the same methods as Champagne, just with a shorter minimum time 'on lees'.

Being a Crémant de Limoux, it must be made from 40-70% Chardonnay, 20-40% Chenin Blanc, 0-20% Mauzac & 0-10% Pinot Noir, but where the combination of Pinot & Mauzac must be 10-20% & the combination of Chardonnay & Chenin Blanc constitutes the other 80-90%. Simple! Right? At least it's delicious!

The 1531 in the name refers to the first written record of sparkling wine being made by Benedictine monks of the St Hilaire Abbey near the own of Limoux. The cooperative is named after the fabled local lord at the time, who drank 'flascons' of this sparkling wine during celebrations. Whilst this modern offering from Limoux is delightfully refreshing, one 'flascon' is enough for one day.

Price: $16

Quality: ☆☆☆☆
Value:  ☆☆☆☆

http://sieurdarques.com/public/?p=%20110&lang=en
www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_738681

(S) Riccadonna: Asti Dolce DOCG, from Piedmont, Italy

Appearance
Pale lemon yellow with a steady stream of fine bubbles.

Smell
Grapes! This one actually smells like grapes, with a healthy floral dose of honeysuckles & lillies, and lychee.

Taste
This is off-sweet, but with enough acid to balance the sweetness. If you like the nose, the palate won't disappoint. Punchy flavours that are typical of Muscat (the Blanc Petits à Grains variety), with grapes, quince & blossoms the stars of this show. Being an Asti, there isn't much of a mousse to speak of (not many bubbles in your mouth), however the flavours do hang around a long time.

Tale

The Riccadonna brand was born in 1921 of Ottavio Riccadonna, in the town Canelli in the province of Asti, in Piedmont, Italy. Ottavio was a wine & vermouth producer, whereas Canelli is famous as the birthplace of sparkling wine in Italy & it still produces a very large portion of the nation's sparkling wines.

These days Riccadonna is instantly identifiable by the long neck & rounded bottle. It's a smashingly good sweet drink for a warm day & only 7% abv. The sweetness (akin to fruit juice) will keep you coming back for more - don't say you haven't been warned.

Price: $13

Quality: ☆☆☆☆
Value:  ☆☆☆☆☆

www.camparigroup.com/en/brands/sparkling-wines/riccadonna
www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_72320

(S) Ninth Island: NV, from TAS, Australia

Appearance
Pale yellow with lots of frothy bubbles.

Smell
Subtle aromas of freshly cut apples and hints of citrus.

Taste
Dry & less acidic than expected for a sparkling wine, with the familiar flavours of both red & green apples, and citrus zest. Most of the fizz appears to show in the glass, rather than in the mouthfeel, which disappears after a short while.

Tale

Ninth Island is a small piece of land just off the north of Tasmania, which can be seen from the vineyards where this wine's Chardonnay, Pinot Meunier & Pinot Noir are grown. The Kreglinger brothers George & Christian established their family business in 1797 in Antwerp, & in 1893 the business expanded to Australia. The wine estates are a relatively recent venture, including the acquisition of Pipers Brook Vineyard in 2001.

The wine achieves their stated goal of being a consistent & easy-drinking style. The only issue is it's not anything more. It's nice to drink, but not worth seeking out from the crowd.

Price: $19

Quality: ☆☆☆
Value:  ☆☆☆

http://kreglingerwineestates.com/buy-wine/ninth-island/non-vintage-ninth-island-sparkling/
www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_903583

(S) Yarra Burn: Vintage 2013, from Yarra Valley, VIC, Australia

Appearance
Pale gold with persistent bubbles.

Smell
Fresh aromas of red apples, strawberries, forelle pears and citrus blossom.

Taste
Dry & somewhat acidic, with the expected flavours of crisp apples, red fruits followed by a touch of ripe grapefruit & white peaches. These flavours linger a surprisingly long time after the prickly mouthfeel has dissipated.

Tale

Founded in 1975 & now owned by Accolade Wines, almost as the little sister to Arras, based in Tasmania (they even share the same great winemaker, Ed Carr).

There's not much of a story behind these bubbles, however it's a wonderfully refreshing sparkling wine with lots of apple characters.

Price: $18

Quality: ☆☆☆☆
Value:  ☆☆☆☆

http://www.yarraburn.com.au/sparkling
www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_25665

(S) Maschio: Valdobbiadene 2013 Prosecco Superiore DOCG, from Veneto, Italy

Appearance
Pale lemon with very fine bubbles.

Smell
Very faint aromas of blossoms & orchid fruits, however nothing jumps out of the glass.

Taste
Dry, however not as acidic as expected for a sparkling wine. Flavours of honey and orchard fruits (nashi pear & apples) limp aimlessly across the palate. A surprisingly flat mouthfeel rounds out an unexciting experience.

Tale
in 1973 Bonaventura Maschio converted his family's winery in northern Italy into a state-of-the-art wine producing facility. The success of this revitalised winery was such that Maschio Chardonnay & Pinot Rosa are now the 2 biggest selling wines in Italy. As a Prosecco, Glera is the sole grape variety used, which used to be called Prosecco until a name change in 2009.

This particular Prosecco DOCG is an acceptable & inoffensive wine that would be perfectly serviceable on a sunny afternoon. It's just not an exciting or distinctive example of what the Glera grape can produce.

Price: $15

Quality: ☆☆☆
Value:  ☆☆☆

www.cantinemaschio.com/en/sparkling-wines/valdobbiadene-docg/
www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_776571

(S) Frexinet: Gran Cuvée Brut NV "Elyssia" Cava, from Sant Sadurní d'Anoia, Penedes, Spain

Appearance
Pale gold with fine bubbles.

Smell
Subtly fruity, with green apples, white stone fruits & citrus aromas dominating.

Taste
Dry & quite acidic, with clean & razor-sharp flavours of almost-ripe apples, white peaches, lime cordial, a hint of sour cherry, with a very mineral & chalky mouthfeel. Plenty of bubbles give this a fine, but assertive mousse.

Tale
A marriage between two great Spanish wine families at a time when the Phylloxera epidemic was wrecking havoc on the local red wine industry, lead to the creation of a new cava-producing winery Freixenet. Despite first producing sparkling wine at the outbreak of WWI, this family-owned winery in the Penedes region, south of Barcelona, now sells more bottles of sparkling wine than anyone else in the world, making up 80% of the Spanish export market. Being a cava, the wines are all produced in the traditional method that is still used today in the Champagne region of France.

This Elyssia Gran Cuvée combines the traditional Champagne varieties of Chardonnary & Pinot Noir, with the local cava varieties Macabeo and Parellada. Whilst the Elyssia lacks some complexity & finesse of your typical Champagne, it's a great budget alternative, for those who want a quality NV bottle of bubbles at less than half the price of most entry-level Champages.

Price: $20

Quality: ☆☆☆☆
Value:  ☆☆☆☆

www.freixenet.com.au/TheWines/ElyssiaGrand.html

www.freixenet.co.uk/The-Range/Elyssia
www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_764140

(R) Pepperjack: Shiraz 2014, from Barossa Valley, South Australia, Australia

Appearance
Deep ruby with purple rims.

Smell
Early: Violets, boysenberries, blackberries, tobacco & cedar.
Later: Crushed violets, a mixture of ripe & unripe blackberries, shaved cedar & crumbly clay.

Palate
Dry & with medium acidity, bulky, grippy & young tannins that all together give a nice & rich mouthfeel. Flavours of ripe forest fruits, plums and finishing with roasted pepper & spice. These flavours linger long after the wine is gone.

Tale
Nigel Dolan followed his father Brian's footsteps as winemaker at Saltram Estates (Barossa Valley, est. 1859). In 1996, Nigel was named Australian Red Winemaker of the Year, which was the same year he launched the Pepperjack label, aiming to capture the essence of the Barossa - "rich, honest & vibrant reds of consistent quality". Having matured for 12 months in various types of oak, the wine is enjoyable now, however will improve and settle with several years aging.

Price: $23

Quality: ☆☆☆☆
Value:  ☆☆☆

www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_144469
https://www.pepperjack.com.au/our-wines/pepperjack/barossa-shiraz

(R) Saint Cosme: Cotes-du-Rhone 2010, from Rhône Valley, France

Appearance
An inky purple with ruby edges.

Smell
Early: Earthy & alcoholic red fruits, predominantly plums.
Later: The red fruits blossom with time & plums are supported by forest fruits, tobacco & something faintly floral.

Palate
Surprisingly acidic & tannic, with tannins that coat the entire mouth. The palate is a tad vegetal, with spiced plums & a hint of tobacco. A fantastic food wine!

Tale
Located north of the village of Gigondas, Saint Cosme is the most ancient estate in the southern Rhône region. Built on the site of a Gallo-Roman villa, the Château de Saint Cosme has been owned by the same family since 1490, with the 14th generation producing some outstandingly affordable wines. The local geography is situated at the crossroads of two geological faults, which provides a diversity of soil types. The Saint Cosme Chapel sits at the top of a hill in the middle of the vineyards, dating as far back as the 11th century. This particular Côtes du Rhône is 100% Syrah (aka. Shiraz). The back label suggests graphite, strawberry compote, liquorice & lilac, but that might be getting a bit carried away.

Price: $20 (current vintage is 2013)

Quality: ☆☆☆☆
Value:  ☆☆☆

www.saintcosme.com/en/wines
www.saintcosme.com/cotes_du_rhone_rouge_2010.pdf
www.vintagecellars.com.au/Red%20Wine/saint-cosme-cotes-du-rhone-750ml_6100573