Zonte’s Footstep is a proudly independent Australian wine producer established in 2003. Named after the house-cooling breeze of the ‘Lake Doctor’. These winds arrive from the Great Southern Ocean direct from Antarctica, reviving the vines and vignerons alike in the peak of summer heat.

Forgive me flogging the proverbial dead horse but Langhorne Creek is such an underrated region for delicious, generous, top value reds. This is further evidence of that. Deep blood red in colour with notes of spices, chocolate, animal hides, herbals, dry vegetation, red fruits, warm earth, charcuterie and more. The wine is well balanced, supple of texture, full of richness of flavour, finishing with satiny tannins and excellent length. The team suggest drinking it with “anything off the grill (preferably charcoal that is)”. Love this wine now but it will surely improve over time. If you can hold off for three or four years, even better, but don’t be afraid to put a case in the cellar for a decade. Tasted: October 2022; Drink: 2022 - 2032; Price: $30.00; Rating: 93 Points; Ken Gargett

Black ruby color. Aromas and flavors of fresh pepper on olive tapenade, blackberry cranberry, grass cuttings, and cocoa nib with a supple, crisp, dry medium-to-full body and a warming, layered, medium-long finish displaying suggestions of lamb and beef burger with red fruit vinaigrette sauce and arugula, smoked sage, plum, and pipe tobacco with crunchy tannins and a suggestion of oak flavor. This lovely Shiraz invokes a warm summer evening with grilled meats and a whiff of smoke. Rating: 92 Points & Best Value Australian Shiraz; World Wine Championships 2022