The craving killer, a lush, earthy and spicy wine designed for cool nights, hearty food and maximum comfort. Big Red has plenty of blue fruit on show with a near-even split of Syrah and Merlot from Birdwood. There’s a herbal edge and lovely dusting of olive tapenade, a signature of Merlot. The tannin extraction has been restrained to keep this in a cool climate style with plenty of drinkability.

Never ones to stand still Brendan & Laura Carter of Unico Zelo decided to launch Tropo, a collection of wines that taste exactly how they look. Fun, contemporary ’throw the bottles on top of ice’ styles that are uncomplicated and do we dare say ’smashable’? wines. I think they would approve. This year’s releases all hail from Adelaide Hills from growers they have known and worked with for many years as part of their former Harvest co-op concept, so the connections and relationships continue to this new brand. – Unizo Zelo