Five wines to try at The Red Series

SEPPELT Original Sparkling Shiraz (Seppelt Great Western)

If there’s one wine that that proudly says ‘Western Victoria’ in a single glass, this is it. Sparkling Shiraz is a uniquely Australian style and Seppelt Great Western has been part of its earliest history since it was first made there in the 1890s. Rich and generous, full of Shiraz character and lifted by bubbles, it’s a red wine made for celebration and ever-versatile food pairing.

Lead winemaker Clare Dry brings the same precision and respect for heritage to this wine as she does to everything in the Seppelt portfolio — honouring tradition while keeping it fresh, vibrant and very much alive. Try Sparkling Shiraz with just about anything from dark chocolate to bacon and eggs.

Grampians Nebbiolo (Clarnette)

Italy’s great red, Nebbiolo is the grape behind Barolo and Barbaresco. It demands a patience most winemakers find difficult to justify, but Leigh Clarnette has never made wine for the impatient. Fermented for three weeks on skins and aged in seasoned oak for 15 months, it is a wine still quietly coming together – revealing rose petal, spice and silky tannins to those willing to slow down, pay attention and be open to pleasant surprises.

Estate Red (Blue Pyrenees Estate)

Built around Cabernet Sauvignon and complemented by classic French varieties, the 2024 Estate Red speaks of place rather than any single grape. Carefully selected from different parcels of fruit across the Estate vineyard, each variety contributes exactly what it should – a result that is precise, generous and perfectly made for pairing with a hearty winter’s meal. Some wines are greater than the sum of their parts.

Sally’s Paddock Red Blend Redbank

There’s a reason that Sally’s Paddock has become one of the Pyrenees region’s most celebrated wines, with a cult following collected over nearly 50 vintages. Established in 1973 at Redbank from a single non-irrigated site, it draws on very modest crops of exceptional quality Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Malbec. These grapes are hand-picked, small-batch fermented with wild yeast, hand-punched and basket-pressed in the old Australian way. Deeply individual and absolutely built to age. If you’re looking for something to take home and cellar, start here.

The Virginia Merlot (Black & Ginger)

Not every wine at The Red Series is what you’d expect and that’s exactly the point. Hadyn Black has built Black & Ginger around a simple but quietly radical idea: that wine should be fun, accessible and never take itself too seriously. The Virginia Merlot is a perfect expression of that philosophy: a less common variety, given the care and curiosity it deserves, shaped by a winemaker who would rather you discovered something new than reached for the familiar. Come with an open mind. Leave with a new favourite.

Optional wine to swap out one of the others;

Bin No. 0 Shiraz
Best’s

Great Western

No Red Series cheat sheet would be complete without a nod to Best’s Great Western — one of the Grampians’ most storied estates and home to vines dating back to 1866. The Bin No. 0 Shiraz is bold, approachable and deeply expressive of the region, made by winemaker Jacob Parton whose instincts for cool-climate style have already earned him significant recognition. A benchmark Grampians Shiraz, and essential drinking at any winter wine event worth attending.

Cliff Edge Shiraz (Mount Langi Ghiran)

There are Shiraz wines and then there are Grampians Shiraz wines. Sourced from carefully selected blocks across Mount Langi Ghiran’s sweeping vineyards, it captures everything that makes this part of Western Victoria so compelling — cool climate, old vines, granite soils and a long slow ripening season that builds intensity and finesse in equal measure. Chief Winemaker Adam Louder was born and raised in the Grampians and has spent 32 harvests around the world honing his craft. The Cliff Edge is the result – deep, complex and unmistakably of its terroir.

The Red Series takes place at the Ballarat Mining Exchange: Friday 17 July (4–7pm) and Saturday 18 July (12–3pm and 4–7pm), with an optional Shiraz Masterclass on Saturday evening. Early bird tickets on sale now at events.humanitix.com/red-series-2026

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