James Halliday’s articles
Take the Grenache challenge
The results of the sixth annual James Halliday Grenache Challenge were released on 4 November 2022. I'm the patron of the Challenge, but play no part in the judging (other than the use of my name). I accepted the invitation to be involved because I...
Head Wines: At $28, this is one hell of a wine
Alex Head dealt himself an unusual hand as he wove his way into the heart of fine wine. First up was a degree in biochemistry from Sydney University. It was not inspired by wine, but a love of science, majoring in biochemistry. But little by little...
Jaw-dropping: put this $30 rosé on your list
Charlie/Charles Melton and I share a discarded Christian name, he christened Graeme, I Francis James. Peter Lehmann gave Charlie his first job (it lasted 10 years) and without ever explaining why, simply ignored the birth certificate. My parents...
Three top Coldstream Hill wines
I haven't hitherto written a column for this magazine – or any other publication – on Coldstream Hills and its wines thanks to the obvious conflict of interest arising from my background as CEO of Coldstream Hills from 1985 to 1996, when a public...
The making of Koomilya McLaren Vale wines
Steve (Stephen) Pannell has always thrown himself into the deep end, cost benefit analyses of passing moment (if at all). His darting eyes and rapid speech are but part of a prodigious intellect coated with unquenchable optimism. Since 1990 he has...
A good year for Windows Estate winemaker, Chris Davies
Chris Davies must have had Dutch masters in mind painting angels on pinheads when he planted the first vines of Windows Estate at Yallingup, Margaret River, in 1996. He was only 19, but made the decision from the outset that he, and he alone, would...
The making of Wirra Wirra wines
Wirra Wirra has always been one of my favourite wineries. Its founder was Robert Strangways Wigley, a member of a wealthy Adelaide family, who studied law and architecture, played cricket for South Australia, and found ways to outrage the...
The making of Chapel Hill wines
This is a cautionary tale, showing that in wine, the very big (Woolworths-owned Endeavour Group) can happily live with small high-quality wineries. Endeavour Group's retail sales in FY21 were $10.1 billion, and it's a multi-layered business. It...
The road to Mount Terrible
If you are the owner and winemaker of a small winery in Australia it helps to have a sense of humour. It is essential if you are self-taught and don't know the name of your banker – unless, that is, you are either terribly poor or terribly wealthy....
The making of the Sons of Eden wines
When winemaker Corey Ryan and multi-skilled viticulturist Simon Cowham established Sons of Eden in 2000 they already had years of experience in the Barossa and Eden Valleys. Ryan has now racked up 25+ Barossa vintages, and also worked in New...
