Wine with Meg + Mel

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We thought this would be a neat little rosé experiment. Instead, it turned into a reality check about how we buy wine, how we judge “quality”, and how quickly our brains fill in the blanks when we see a price tag.

We line up four Australian rosé wines from Dan Murphy’s at $5, $15, $20 and $30, all the same vintage, and we deliberately pick labels that do not name the grape variety. Then we blind taste, argue over colour, and get very specific with descriptors: raspberry and grapefruit bitterness, strawberries and cream lollies, candied orange peel, that “wet stone” mineral thing, and even the odd grey-edged “pigeon eye” look. One glass feels hot and short, another feels straight and structured, and we start wondering whether we’ve been unfair on rosé or whether some styles really are built for a simple, cold, summer serve.

To keep it grounded, we lean on the WSET-style BLIC method (balance, length, intensity, complexity) so we’re not just saying “yum” or “yuck”. Then we reveal the prices and let’s just say our confidence does not age well. It sparks a bigger chat about whether expensive rosé always delivers, what you’re actually paying for in Australian wine, and why context matters as much as the bottle.

Wines of note from the Episode: 

- Mr Mick Rose - part of Tim Adams

- Story at rose with ice at the tennis was Jacob's Creek

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A lot can change in the wine world while you’re away, and coming back to the headlines can feel like whiplash. We’re unpacking the big Australian wine industry moves that sit behind the bottles you see every day: Treasury Wine Estates offloading brands, the unexpected upside of wineries returning to family ownership, and why that shift matters for legacy, investment, and the long game in the vineyard. We also talk frankly about the messier side of business when companies go under, including what administration can mean for growers and suppliers who too often end up funding the system through slow, staged payments.

Then we get specific about the labels and the shops. We dig into Endeavour Group’s place in Australian wine retail through Dan Murphy’s and BWS, what “Pinnacle” actually is, and why clearer disclosure of private-label and “ghost brand” wines is a win for transparency. If you’ve ever wondered who made the wine in your trolley, this chat gives you practical ways to work it out, plus why industry pressure is finally pushing things in a better direction.

From there we zoom out to wine tourism and food culture, with Michelin’s South Australia visit putting a global spotlight on winery restaurants and destination dining. And because wine can be ridiculous, we also cover a jaw-dropping Italian heist involving 30,000 bottles, forklifts and trucks, plus what that says about the fine-wine grey market and anti-fraud tech. We finish with listener questions on Diam cork and cork taint (TCA), and whether aged Riesling needs air to show its best.

If you enjoyed the mix of news, theory, and real-life drinking advice, subscribe, share this with a wine mate, and leave us a review. What’s the one thing you wish wine labels were forced to make clearer?

Message us on Instagram with more listener questions and we will answer them on our next Wine News Episode!

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Wine can be the most welcoming drink on the table, and somehow we’ve also managed to make it intimidating. We’re joined by Western Australia’s Cyndal Petty, a wine communicator with a deep hospitality background, to unpack why the way we talk about wine often forgets the person actually drinking it. If you’ve ever looked at a wine list and felt like you needed a dictionary, this one is for you.

We chat about Cyndal’s “portfolio career” in wine writing, hosting events and masterclasses, and building Sommelier of Sorts, a project that brings together Australian wine art prints and roaming dinner parties. The big idea is simple: wine lands best when it sits inside culture. It doesn’t have to be a lecture to be meaningful, and it doesn’t need the word “education” to help people feel more confident and curious.

From there, we get honest about the wine industry and hospitality industry realities: why finger-pointing at venues helps no one, what restaurants actually need to list more Australian wine, and what’s going right now in more casual, fun spaces. We also tackle QR codes on tables and why they can make service feel uncertain, which matters because great service is often what makes wine taste better.

We finish with practical advice for anyone nervous about talking to a sommelier or walking into a curated wine shop, plus a fascinating look at multisensory wine tasting and flavour perception through soundscapes. If you care about Australian wine, Margaret River culture, and making wine feel human again, hit play, then subscribe, share this with a mate, and leave us a review. What’s one wine rule you’re ready to drop?

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We taste how time changes sparkling wine, comparing lees-aged cellar release bubbles with an older bottle-aged Blanc de Blancs that turns fruit into caramel, fudge and nuts. We also break down how sparkling rosé gets its colour and sweetness, so you can buy with confidence and pair it with food like you actually mean it. 

Our standout favourite wine had to be the Chandon Cellar release from 2013. Stunning depth, smooth finish and a long LONG finish.

https://www.chandon.com/en-au/product/chandon-cellar-release-2013

• three stages of ageing in méthode traditionnelle sparkling and what each one changes 
• cellar release and late disgorged wines preserving freshness while building brioche and toast 
• bottle ageing sparkling wine and why colour deepens as mousse fades faster 
• tasting for quality using mousse, mouthfeel and a timed finish 
• sparkling rosé colour made at the start via maceration versus added at the end with grape must 
• “Tashe” style rosé and why late colour often means more sweetness 
• food pairing strategies using contrast, complement, and “completing the mouthful” 
• how to read vintage, non-vintage, and multi-vintage on labels 
If there’s any terms we’ve missed out, let us know, hit us in the DMs 

All the wines tasted (except the 2006 Blanc de Blanc) are available through the Chandon Shop!

https://www.chandon.com/en-au/collection/all

Slide into the DM's on Instagram and let us know your thoughts on Sparkling wine and what you thought of the episodes! 

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Sparkling wine looks effortless in the glass, but the work behind it is anything but. With Meg away in Spain, we (Mel and Austin) crack on with a proper deep dive into Traditional Method sparkling wine, the bottle-fermented approach that underpins Champagne and some of the best Australian sparkling wine. If you’ve ever wondered why “Method Traditional” on a label usually means more complexity, finer bubbles and a higher price tag, we walk you through the exact reasons, step by step.

We start where most people never get to taste: base wine. It’s high acid, lower alcohol, and honestly a bit shocking when you try it on its own. From there we explain blending, the part we see as the true artistry, because winemakers shape the final style from parcels that don’t taste anything like the finished product. Then we get into the science of the second fermentation in bottle, where yeast plus grape must creates alcohol and traps carbon dioxide to form bubbles.

After that, we unpack the delicious bits: ageing on lees for brioche, toast and nutty notes, plus how “time on lees” also changes mousse and bead. We break down riddling and disgorgement, from old-school hand turning to modern gyropalettes, and finish with dosage, the tiny final addition that can make an acidic wine feel seamless. Finally, we taste and compare a classic Brut blend against Blanc de Blanc, with practical food pairing ideas for seafood, spice and richer mains.

To get even more Sparkling Wine info listen to some of our older episodes!

To Hiss or POP!

https://open.spotify.com/episode/6uEUAadf6yXgG3unNaeWJi

All about Sparkling Wine

https://open.spotify.com/episode/4Bh5mhWboPsxTod3JN35c1?si=jHnw7DO6QMWwrBXRHzghFg&utm_source=copy-link

If you love Champagne-style sparkling or want to buy smarter, hit play, then subscribe, share the episode with a wine mate, and leave us a review. What’s your go-to: Brut or Blanc de Blanc?

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Wine is a “sexy” industry right up until you see what the hours, expectations, and unspoken rules do to the people who make it. We’re joined by three powerhouse voices from very different corners of wine: Jess Clark from Dexter Wines with deep production experience, Imogen Gardner, Public Affairs Director at Treasury Wine Estates, and Jill Boyer from Adelaide University, teaching and shaping the next generation of wine professionals.

We talk about the quiet talent drain: why a 50 50 split at the start of wine degrees can later turn into a sharp drop-off in leadership, and why people often leave without making a sound. From harvest and spray season workloads to the “martyr mentality”, we unpack what drives burnout and what actually helps retention: better planning, realistic rostering, clear communication, fair compensation, and workplace psychological safety. We also dig into the “sexy job tax” and how glamour can hide underpayment, overwork, and boundaries that get trampled.

Then we go wide on the future of the Australian wine industry: GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro, changing health trends, and why “drinking less but better” could be an opportunity rather than a threat. Imogen explains how nutritional labelling and kilojoules can build consumer trust, and we explore AI in wine, from vineyard sensing and forecasting to label compliance, plus the risk that AI erodes entry-level training if leaders aren’t intentional.

We finish with the practical reality of pregnancy, parental leave, and returning to work in production roles, and why flexible work, cross-skilling, and job design keep knowledge in the business. If you care about sustainable wine careers, better workplace culture, and the long-term health of Australian viticulture and winemaking, hit subscribe, share this with a wine mate, and leave us a review.

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A premium Yarra Valley name going into administration is not the headline anyone wanted, but it is the one we need to talk about. With Meg away, we jump into Wine News and break down what “administration” actually means, why Mac Forbes matters to Australian wine, and the bigger message hiding underneath the gossip: critical acclaim, top reviews, and a strong personal brand don’t automatically protect a winery when the market is tight and cash flow is under strain.

From there, we take the energy of the Australian Women in Wine Symposium and pull out the themes that stick. We talk leadership and workplace culture, then dig into the idea of the “sexy job tax” the trap where industries that look glamorous (wine included) often ask people to accept longer hours, lower pay, and shakier conditions. If we want to keep good people in wine, we can’t rely on vibes and freebies. We need sustainable jobs.

We also zoom out to the structural moves shaping the next few years: leadership changes at Australian Grape & Wine and the Australian Wine Research Institute, France paying growers to rip out vineyards, and South Australia’s $109 million wine industry transition and growth package that finally hints at a pathway for growers who need options. Then we hit climate change, with Champagne warming up and English sparkling wine looking more and more like the cool climate sweet spot.

We finish on a high with a shout out to Brendan Carter’s international communicator win, plus a genuinely funny listener report from London on a KFC pop-up pairing chicken with La Vieille Ferme wine. If you like smart wine analysis with a bit of chaos, subscribe, share the episode, and leave us a review. What story do you want us to dig into next?

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Meg was meant to be on mic. She misread a message, didn’t show, and we made the only sensible choice: pour a glass and turn our producer Austin into today’s guest. The catch is he’s drinking warm Pinot Grigio in the morning, and we’re using that questionable “liquid courage” to test a bold claim. If you listen to a wine podcast long enough, can you pass a WSET Level 2 style quiz?

We run through real WSET Level 2 multiple-choice questions and unpack the why behind the answers. Think vineyard fundamentals like the key latitude band for wine regions, what actually affects temperature in the vineyard, and whether “hand-picked” automatically equals quality. From there we step into winemaking mechanics, including the correct order for most red winemaking (crush, ferment, press), how red wine gets its colour through skin contact, and what old oak vats do once they stop adding oak flavour.

Chardonnay lovers get plenty too: we talk barrel fermentation, lees stirring, and why botrytis and flor yeast belong in very different wine conversations. Then we zoom out to wine education itself, comparing WSET Level 2 and WSET Level 3, and asking an uncomfortable question about how much these exams reward essay skills over real trade experience. Meg even storms in mid-recording to react to the warm Pinot situation and help settle a final grape-variety stumper.

If you’re studying WSET, building your wine vocabulary, or just want a funny, practical wine lesson you can use at the bottle shop and at the table, press play. Subscribe, share this with a wine mate, and leave us a review, what score do you think you’d get?

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We catch up with our old mate Warwick Tiernan to unpack how a lifelong love of food, travel, and good chats at bottle shops turns into genuine wine confidence. We taste our way through a Victorian long lunch and focus on stories, regions, and smart buying rather than wine jargon for its own sake. 

Follow us on Warwicks long lunch and taste along!

Wine 1: Redbank King Valley, Elevage Prosecco - https://www.redbankwines.com.au/products/elevage-prosecco

Wine 2: Mitchel Harris, Sabre, 2019 - https://mhwine.com.au/products/cabernet-sauvignon-2021-copy-3

Wine 3: Scion, Viognier 2023 - https://www.scionwine.com.au/products/viognier-2023

Wine 4: Vignerons Schmoltzer & Brown, Nebbiolo 2025 - https://www.differentdrop.com/products/2025-vignerons-schmolzer-brown-village-nebbiolo?srsltid=AfmBOoqAqqNIhdzPIR2JP_RyaGl-WjQIAp3_BND7vGnGpzWLqWZmWHZ8

Wine 5: Tahbilk Cane-Cut Marsanne 2019 - https://www.tahbilk.com.au/2019-cane-cut-marsanne-500ml

Let us know if you've tried these wines before and if you love them! We'll be back next week with the long awaited return of Mel in a new Wine News episode!

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We follow the trail of wine and war across the 20th century and it gets stranger, darker, and more human than most wine trivia ever admits.

We talk through why the French state treated wine as a cultural and strategic necessity in World War I, including the famous daily ration that grows over time. From there, we look at what war does to vineyards in practical terms: destroyed vines, shortages of copper and sulphur for sprays, labour gaps filled by women and children, and the early push for growers to band together to keep supply moving. It’s wine history, but it’s also logistics, morale, and survival.

World War II shifts the lens to occupation and control. We unpack what happens when Champagne, Bordeaux, and Alsace sit under Nazi rule: chateaux commandeered, Champagne diverted, and producers quietly fighting back by hiding the good stock and sending decoy piquette instead. Along the way we connect the long shadow of wartime supply to later oversupply and subsidies, then bring it home to Australian wine culture, from fortified wine habits to irrigated soldier settlement regions and the Yarra Valley’s stop-start story. We even explain the surprisingly wartime origin story behind the Aussie word “plonk”, plus a teaser-worthy detour into modern wine fraud and the Rudy Kurniawan scandal.

If you enjoy wine storytelling with real history underneath it, subscribe, share this with a wine mate, and leave us a review. What’s the most surprising wine fact you’ve heard lately?

Let us know if you're keen to hear more Wine History and even Wine Fraud!

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