"I hope this selection of wines showcases a small insight into how I enjoy wine. I am still interested in smell and texture and variety and region but my world is totally driven by producer over anything else. When I find a producer I love, I stick with them on their journey. There are so many imitators out there trying to emulate what someone else has already done.

And then there are those who just work with the land and the grapes they are gifted and capture their dreams, hopes and determination in their bottles of liquid energy. I don't want wines that look like some things should look like, I want wines that express themselves."

— James Erskine

"What a treat to work with some of South Australia's oldest Chenin Blanc. This block is in the deep, white sands of Blewitt Springs, planted in the 1940s. Very simple wine making allows this wine's purity and power to shine.

I’ve championed McLaren Vale Chenin for more than a decade and am excited to see its profile finally rising. This wine is ready to rock now or be cellared as long as you can resist."

"Tom Shobbrook and I have been mates for more than fifteen years. We have shared so many adventures together with our wines around Australia and the world. Since I met Tom he has worked with Riesling, a classic in his home region of Eden Valley/Flaxman Valley. Many people love and adore his light expression of Shiraz "Poolside" but I really wanted to share one of the finer wines he vinifies.

There's so much texture loaded into this wine, that you'll never tire. The aromatics hum from the glass and unfurl with time. This wine holds everything that South Australian Riesling classics seek but is unmistakingly Shobbrook and not afraid of showcasing the inherent texture of Riesling that is so often removed through fining and filtration."

"Collecapretta wines come from the heart of Umbria. For generations, the Mattioli family have been cultivating these rugged hillsides, living in the tiny hamlet of Terzo la Pieve which the Romans once called Collecapretta (hill of the goats). The first time I tried one of their wines I thought to myself, “wow, this wine has an energy similar to my wines.” So many people only taste wines and forget to feel the wine i.e. how does this wine make me feel? Is it a shy wine or a proud wine, is it brash or flamboyant?

I've worked my way through an entire mixed case of Collecapretta's wines over the past two years and the wines continue to evolve beautifully and provide us with plenty of joy. This wine is a rich amber wine with plenty of fluidity and chew across the pallet. Herbaceous on the nose but with an underlying juxtaposition of tropical scents."