The six producers we're highlighting today are some of the most-loved amongst the DD ranks. They consistently over-deliver in quality and value for money, and they've gained devoutly loyal followings because of it.
We have the great single vineyard wines of Andrew Thomas in the Hunter, final stocked of the tiny-batch Yarra cuvees from Dappled, a couple of Clare stars in Tonic and Adelina as well as McLaren Vale maestros Aphelion and Vanguardist.
It's a killer roll-call of some of our most popular producers - so, in no particular order, lets get on with it below!
Vanguardist
Michael Corbett at Vanguardist is on a killer run, vaulting himself to the front of the pack of small-scale indie producers out of the Vale. The mission is simple: bring premium, authentic, small-batch wines to a market they see as crowded by "overly commercialised wines". This is a new look at wine from McLaren Vale - filled with texture, vibrancy and personality.
We have new releases from Michael's Petite Vanguard label, that are known for offering tremendous value for money. The Grenache is pristine and plush, the Pet Nat is fizzy and fresh. It's everything you could want and more from this part of the world.
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Adelina
Adelina wines are the epitome of the classy side of the Clare Valley. Col McBryde and Jen Gardner have a stunning range that features some of the region's finest premium examples of Shiraz, Grenache and Cabernet Blends.
Both of these smart winemaking cookies have a PhD in microbiology, and between them they have a pretty serious winemaking background. We think they're one of the Clare Valley's most exciting wineries, and have been massive fans of theirs since the early days of DD.
We have a wide range of the Adelina wines in store at the moment, all of which are a joy to drink.
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Tonic Wines
Glenn Barry has built himself a devoted cult following for his eye-catching, left-of-centre, small-batch South Australian wines. We have two new reds from Glenn, the first peek at his 2021 releases and they look (and taste!) fantastic.
We have the newest version of the wine that started the Tonic story, the 2021 Mataro (94pts TWF) and the new 2021 Malbec (93pts TWF)!
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Dappled
Shaun Crinion has firmly solidified himself as one of the country's best value producers over the last handful of years. We'd go as far as to say they are up there with the most stunningly sophisticated range of wines under $40 a bottle in Australia.
Shaun's beautiful Yarra Valley range is one of the best buys in the country.
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Aphelion
When our first bottle of Aphelion Grenache arrived at DDHQ in early 2017, we knew we were onto something special. Rob Mack was a star on the rise and we were in from day dot.
This year saw Rob take his Grenache game to a whole new level, with the culmination of a seven-year project to isolate the best parcels of Grenache from his top vineyard sources. The 2021 releases are exceptional and demanded entry to the Classification - from the excellent value Welkin wines right through to the limited release single block reserves.
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Thomas Wines
Andrew 'Thommo' Thomas is one of the modern-day legends of the Hunter Valley. He has made some of the region's greatest wines for over three decades and he is regarded as one of the modern masters of Hunter Valley Semillon and Single Vineyard shiraz.
We have an excellent selection of Thommo's iconic wines available currently, including some of the hugely-reviewed 2019 and 2018 Single Vineyard Shiraz and his iconic new 2022 Braemore Semillon which are flying out the door.
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