Tyson Stelzer

The winter of December 2001 to January 2002 brought with it the the privilege of touring the wine regions of France. In visiting more than sixty producers, my wife Rachael and I enjoyed private tours and tastings of some 300 wines from barrel and bottle. This site presents only the best of these, in an attempt to share my experiences with fellow wine friends at home in Australia. The notes and ratings are my own honest and unbiased impressions.

The best of the wines of France. If I were asked to sum them up in just two words, my response would have once surprised even me: Intense fruit. From the rich honeyed apricot of a mature champagne to the fresh blackberry of a young Bordeaux, the fruit purity is second to none.

Given another two words I would add: Elegant structure. In the best white wines, a delicacy that is quite sublime to my Australian palate. In the reds, a tannin structure that, while mouth filling and long, is fine and gentle. The iron fist in a velvet glove has never before hit me so decisively.

Loyalty, patriotism and value for money aside, the very best of what France is producing is almost universally a level above Australia’s top wines. I found this to be true in the dazzling sparkle of Champagne, the delicate complexity of Chablis, the rich fruit of Burgundy, the complexity of the sweet wines of Alsace and Sauternes, the sublime aromas of Condrieu, and the seemingly eternal lifespan of an intense Bordeaux.

But quality comes at a price, and at the value for money end of the market Australia trumps France practically every time (for this reason I continue to buy and drink Australian wine over French wine). Not only that, Australia also holds a couple of top cards in its hand. Hermitage and Cote Rotie are producing some very smart Shiraz, but at every price point it would not be difficult to find a better example in Australia. The same is true, to an even greater extent, of Alsace and Riesling. Australia has a largely undiscovered treasure in its dry, long-lived examples of this variety. If it plays its cards right, this could be an international success story waiting to be told.

On the following pages I unfold the very best of the French wines that I experienced. Some have long been household names; others are little known treasures awaiting discovery. All are excellent. Regrettably, many are expensive. Investments in intense fruit and elegant structure.

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St Joseph &
Cote du Rhone

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