Congratulations to Brian, who has just been nominated by the Liquor Merchants Association of Australia for their industry poll of the 21 most outstanding and influential individuals in the liquor industry over the last 21 years.

While we know it …

The weather in the Eola Hills of Oregon is about to blow up as a big storm system drops out of the Gulf of Alaska on Saturday afternoon, the 23rd of October. We are picking the Riesling at Tunkalilla Vineyard …

Autumn in Oregon, sunshine, cool air and spectacular autumn leaves. We’re very lucky  to have no rain yet in one of the coolest and latest vintages ever in the Eola Hills where Tunkalilla Vineyard Riesling is squeezing the last bits …

17.5 points / 20

Brian Croser, never one to shy from a challenge, managed to create one of the greatest Tiers to date during the fierce heat of March 2008. The notes of lemon, grapefruit and citrus zest are subtle …

This wine is a knockout punch for Oz chardonnay that gets little respect on the world stage. Tiers Vineyard was the first vineyard planted in the Adelaide Hills since the 19th and marks the centre of the Piccadilly Valley. The …

Brian Croser is one of Australia’s most influential winemakers, and he has invested heart and soul into this vineyard on SA’s Fleurieu Peninsula. This is the third vintage from what Croser has deemed a “distinguished site” and it’s regarded as …

How do a couple of winemakers achieve such different results from fruit grown in the one vineyard?

Petaluma began its life in 1976 when Brian Croser bought some riesling fruit from Mitchelton, Victoria, and made the first Petaluma wine, with …

Barossa and McLaren vale get the lion’s share of the accolades, but other parts of South Australia are producing world-class wines that are distinctly different.

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At Petaluma, the early emphasis was on sparkling wines, back in 1976 when Brian …

Brian Croser chose one of the coolest, dampest spots on the Fleurieu Peninsula to plant pinot noir vines after identifying Foggy Hill as a “distinquished site.” The veteran winemaker’s faith has been rewarded with delightful 2009; ethereal aromas are followed …

I’ve watched this Pinot develop over three vintages and as the vines age, this Pinot gets better and better, so I guess belief in a site is really worth it, I suppose Brian Croser being the winemaker does no harm …

If winemakers have a final frontier of achievement, it’s Pinot Noir. Dressed in the velvet of burgundy, red wines from this ancient French grape occasionally achieve a grandeur that seems beyond even Bordeaux. There’s an incandescence in those rare, sublime …

TAPANAPPA is an Australian-French consortium founded by Brian Croser (ex-Petaluma), Bordeaux-born Jean-Michel Cazes and Champagne Bolinger. The international nature of the partnership is echoed in this tasty wine. It takes the very Australian blend of cabernet sauvignon and shiraz (with …

The 2008 Foggy Hill Pinot Noir has been named in Robert Geddes MW’s Top 100 Wines, in the latest edition of his Australian Wine Vintages (aka the gold book).

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The 2008 Tiers Chardonnay has been named in Australia’s Top 100 Wines by Robert Geddes MW in his latest edition of Australian WIne Vintages (aka. the gold book).

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Good hue; a very intense pinot, with red and black fruits, the latter predominant, interlaced with fine but markedly savoury tannins. Needs at least three years. Cork.

14% alc. Rating 94 Drink 2015 $50 Date Tasted Jul 09…

Well I suppose if you have to have one you might as well have a good one: lovely cork.

Creamy caramel tinged oak and a mix of cherry, plum and raspberry fruit with a slight rosy fragrance. Mid-weight with a …

Tapanappa is a South Australian-based consortium comprising the legendary Australian winemaker Brian Croser of Petaluma fame and two French partners, including Champagne Bolinger. From the specialy selected Foggy Hil vineyard on the Fleurieu Peninsula, this is perfectly poised pinot with …

Good hue; a 60/30/10 blend of Cabernet Sauvignon/Shiraz/Merlot with a very obvious infusion of French oak on bouquet and palate; has excellent texture and structure, and none of the tannin challenges of the Merlot. Cork.

14% alc. Rating 94 Drink …

Excellent crimson hue; potent merlot red fruits and hints of savoury herb on the way through the palate meeting firm, slightly dry, tannins on the back-palate and finish. Needs patience. Cork.

13.5% alc. Rating 94 Drink 2020 $71.50 Date Tasted …

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Last year’s ’06 Merlot sold out in the blink of an eye and so this year I have given the nod to the imperial Whalebone Cab/Shiraz. Fiendishly difficult to pin down, the flavour and aroma of this wine shapeshifts in …

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Industry doyen Brian Croser thinks the modern chardonnay is the result of winemakers using better grapes grown in cool climates. while its resurgence is as simple as consumers seeking greater “sophistication”.

“There has been an incremental increase in the …

I’ve banged on before about the quality of the Tapanappa range, particularly the Tiers Chardonnay, and I recently had the opportunity to put this quality to the test, with Brian Croser putting on a masterclass that pitted the Tapanappa wines …

Let’s hope the chateau-length quality cork does justice to the wine through its life time, for this has marvellous varietal fruit flavour and intensity; immaculate oak handling adds the finishing touch; swells on the mid-palate, but is held by impressive …

Tapanappa Wines has appointed Penny Claiborne as its new market manager, looking after the Sydney and Melbourne fine wine markets in both the on and off-premise sectors.

Claiborne previously worked for one of the USA’s largest fine wine stores, Sam’s …

Just a short note on this one. A blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Shiraz and 10% Cabernet Franc from the Whalebone Vineyard in Wrattonbully. On the nose, milk chocolate, blackcurrants, mulberries, iodine and a touch of tomato leaf and …

Saw that there was a note for this 2006 Tapanappa Cabernet Shiraz in last year’s Big Red Wine Book (well in advance of its release) and – noting the 91 point score – wondered whether we?d been a bit harsh. …

I notice that this review was in last year’s edition of the Big Red Wine Book – but didn?t make it to the site. An oversight. Not sure who wrote this one – Mr Walsh or myself. In any case …

Quite different in many ways is Croser, who never quite extricated himself from his former life at Petaluma, still waking up to see the winery a short walk away from his back door and hearing the trucks hurtling down his …

The 2004 vintage of Tapanappa’s Merlot was limited to just 150 cases, and comes from a cool vintage where the grapes were harvested a week later than normal. The nose has very full fruit, with red plums and a touch …

The Cab Shiraz is available in slightly higher volumes, with around 1400 cases produced. As well as 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Shiraz, there is a further 10% of Cabernet Franc completing the blend, all cropped very low at 2.5 …

This is only the second vintage of the Tapanappa Pinot Noir. It has an immediate charm and delicacy, with soft, curranty and gently smoky aromas leading onto a palate that somehow manages both intense fruit sweetness and elegant freshness. There’s …

The Tiers vineyard was planted in Piccadilly by Brian Croser in 1979. This 2008 vintage was was a particularly hot one, but perhaps because the wine was picked early, it has retained a really vibrant edge. The earliest releases where …

It’s hard to believe eight years has passed since Brian Corser launched Tapanappa, his premium label that concentrates on ‘terroir wines’ from specific vineyards in South Australia. Croser found fame as owner and winemaker at Petaluma, one of Australia’s icon …

From the highest, coolest vineyard on South Australia’s Fleurieu Peninsula, this pinot is a product of a high-powered Australian-French collaboration. Fragrant and delicate floral and undergrowth aromas give lift to sour cherry fruit and malty richness. It has a silky …

Australia’s biggest producers are to blame for the country’s wine crisis, says Brian Croser. Speaking at a conference in Adelaide, Croser – founder of premium wineries Petaluma and Tapanappa, and Decanter Man of the Year 2004 – savaged the top …

The following excerpt comes from Huon Hooke’s article on South Australian wine regions:

Adelaide Hills enjoys closer proximity to costal breezes than Eden. Especially in the cooler, higher parts, it is spared the extreme heat that bedevils Adelaide and lower-lying …

This release from the Brian Croser/Jean-Michel Cazes/Bollinger venture is plump with juicy plums, cherries, currants, spice and cocoa. Fresh and crisp, the oak is finely woven in, adding to the wine’s complexity and length.…

Xavier Bizot was in London last week to show the latest vintages from the Tapanappa range of top end Australian wines, the brainchild of his father-in-law Brian Croser.

Although he told the drinks business that it was hard work to …

ONE of the country’s leading winemakers has pointed the finger at Australia’s big wine corporations, accusing them of being responsible for the industry’s major problems.

An oversupply of grapes and the decline of our international wine reputation had left the …

Perhaps the best of this line. It has an abundance of savoury, mellowed complexities from time in barrel and bottle. It’s soft and elegant, with fine tannins and supple texture, superb balance and length. 15+ years.…

Regular readers will know I’m a big fan of Brian Croser’s Tapannapa, a decidedly terroir-driven project started by the ex-Petaluma winemaker in association with two French partners. This is only the second vintage of the Tapanappa Pinot Noir, sourced from …

One of Australia’s prominent winemakers blames the major wine corporations for damaging Australia’s wine reputation.

Brian Croser, chief executive of Tapanappa Wines in the Adelaide Hills, says the large companies, who’ve produced the ‘branded commodity wine’, have led to the …

There’s an awful lot to be said for wine legend Brian Croser’s Tapanappa Foggy Hill Vineyard Pinot Noir. Meticulous site selection, superlative vineyard management and carefully judged winemaking have created an utterly unique expression of Australian pinot noir, which sits …

Very dark/black fruited nose which has a synergistic blend of both varieties and oak. Shows just a hint of the green notes sometimes associated with the region, leading into a smooth and satisfying palate with a rather approachable lick of …

he first of Tapanappa’s Wrattonbully wines tasted here, this merlot displays a wonderful vibrant lift to its somewhat minty/herbal edged red plum and boysenberry notes, with oak integration looking pretty good right now. It displays great freshness to its aroma. …

It presents a very youthful expression of bright red cherry notes with savoury accents and definitive spice, fresh cedar/vanilla oak also plays a part. The palate announces itself with a beautifully silken, sensuous texture, the likes of which I’ve almost …

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o interesting to see Tapanappa using 50% new oak with this wine, when Petaluma use 100% and charge a hell of a lot more for their Tiers Chardonnay, which isn’t necessarily any better a wine. The 2008 Tapanappa is quite …

Legendary winemaker Brian Croser who created the Petaluma label, established Tapanappa at Wrattonbully on SA’s Limestone Coast, in 2002. This has a rich mouth-feel with great concentration and depth to the black fruit flavours. Whalebone vineyard is 32 years old …

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?Chardonnay from the Hills too was expected to perform well and it did, with B. Croser’s Tapanappa tiers topping at 9.2/10, but do you think he got too much wood on it to be a record, or was there a …

Last week my bloodstream was replaced by a stream of 2008 burgundy in my veins. (We are just about to publish more than 1,350 tasting notes on this intriguing vintage, the result of intensive tasting during a week in Burgundy …

Much like the dinosaurs, it once seemed that Australia would stride the wine world unhindered forever ??but how times have changed. Ken Garrett examines what the category must do to regain its former dominance.

If H. G. Wells had ever …

Bringing a decent bottle of wine can help tame a prospective father-in-law while quietly creating an impression of worldly sophistication. If you’re opting for a red MH wine expert Ken Gargett, a wine judge and the author of Don’t Buy …

Burgundy, France, is the epicenter of the Chardonnay grape’s world, but the world itself has taken on this white grape as it’s own. Chardonnay is one the most widely grown grape varieties in the world and can be found pretty …

The 2008 Tapanappa Tiers Vineyard Chardonnay received 97 points, making it equal top Chardonnay.…

Chef Emma Reeves gathers friends and family for a relaxed festive feast at Lady Bay Beach.

Shaved summer salad with raspberry vinaigrette, served with 2007 Tapanappa Tiers Vineyard Chardonnay, Adelaide Hills.…

The Tapanappa Pinot [08] from Fleurieu is outstanding.…

The nose shows attractive red berry-spice aromas, and very fine tannins persist with the fruit on a medium-weight palate.…

BRIAN Croser continues on his march to perfection even though his army of admirers would probably agree he has already scaled winemaking’s highest peak.

When he offloaded his pride and joy – the super-premium Adelaide Hills winery Petaluma, which he …

The only stuggler in this lineup (though it is the cheapest), maligned by the perils of this ridiculously hard vintage. Day old roast beef nose with some curious, gumbooty overtones, it smells sweaty, horsey and dried out, leading to a …

One of a very limited number of single vineyard Cabernet Shiraz blends, this savoury, firm and rather old world inspired red blend is extremely classy but also desperately in need of time.

With a bright, yet dusty, red/black fruit & …

Apparently the Whalebone vineyard turns 35 this year, with Brian first sighting it back in the early 80’s when he was working with Geoff Weaver (who was producing Cabernet from it). The vineyard shares the same celebrated soil structure as …

A powerful wine, with great structure and length, but very slightly grippy on the finish. 18 Points…

Much more enjoyable than the last time I tasted it (big bowled Riedels help) this is definitely not a Burgundian Pinot, yet it’s still a stylish wine. Sour cherry and rhubarb on a stalky, rather masculine and brawny nose. It’s …

Quite brilliant. Rich, exotic, powerful modern Chardonnay. Oaky, nougat nose with ultra fine wood showing quite prominently, before a sour and textural, finely spicy palate thats very much in the oaked grapefruit style contemporary cool climate style. Very finely delineated …

The product of the ever restless Brian Croser, Tapanappa is Croser’s Australian project setup which was setup in partnership with the Cazes (of Chateau Lynch Bages) and the Bollinger families, soon after the sale of Petaluma in 2001.

There is …

Medium red-purple, not star-bright; a very attractive mix of sweet red and black fruits with seamless quality oak and fine, ripe tannins. Rating 95 Drink 2014…

Good hue; a very intense pinot, with red and black fruits, the latter predominant, interlaced with fine but markedly savoury tannins. Needs at least three years. Cork.

94 points.…

an unusually hot year this has a toasty nose and an expansive, generous palate with the dusty eucalypt character I recall from the 2006 tasting and dark rich, chocolate-edged fruit. Big ripe tannins complete the heady picture; like the gout …

deep opaque purple with a crimson rim and an equally youthful, opulent, lifted nose with plum with red and blue berries and liquorice. Class in a glass, the palate is rich with velvety tannins, saturated with sweetly ripe fruit balanced …

sweet red cherry nose with 5 spice which flavours follow through on the palate. A touch muddy, despite quite present tannins ? perhaps young (4 year old) vines yet to find their voice?…

Brian Croser is the man who founded pioneering winery, Petaluma, the first in the Adelaide Hills. He is known as Australia’s original ?terroirist? for his unrelenting pursuit of his countryman, Dr AC Kelly’s vision of 1867 that ?in the great …

FEW people are more qualified to speak on the current state of the Australian wine industry than Brian Croser.

He has done it all ? wine educator, global winemaker, wine judge, and wine administrator.

The founder of the famed Petaluma …

Tapanappa Wines (a partnership between the Croser family, the Bollinger family and the Cazes family, of Chateau Lynch Bages) has decided to bring its Australian distribution in-house. Since its foundation in 2005, Tapanappa has been distributed by Fine Wine Partners, …

Elegant and harmonious, this is silky in texture, with lovely blueberry, currant, plum and spice flavors playing out with refinement and style, finishing with a meaty, savory note. Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Cabernet Franc. Drink now through 2020. 1,400 cases …

Lively, refined and beautifully focused, showing citrus, pineapple and green berry flavors that linger on the deft, complex finish. Best from

2011 through 2018. 1,500 cases made.?H.S.…

Velvety and rich, no heavy hut intcnse, with cherry, spice and wet earth aromas and flavors, with a distinct mineraliry on the finish that doesn?t quit. The length is impressive. Drink now through 2015. 630 cases made.?H.S.…