Can You Keep a Secret?

Howdy all

If you have a healthy interest in wine - you buy a few bottles here and there, visit cellar doors, wine expos etc - then along the way you've probably made it onto numerous wine-related email lists.

Or perhaps you have been talked into one of those 'wine club' deals (possibly when under the influence of what seemed like a particularly good drop at a quaint cellar door), and get sent a mixed case of wine 2-3 times a year, only to find that there's only a couple of bottles that really tickle your tastebuds, while the remainder really aren't much chop.

The majority lure you in with the promise that you 'can send anything back you don't like, and we will replace it free of charge.' Yep, sure, but what's the chance the replacement is going to be any good either? And who is really going to be arsed packaging up a half-consumed bottle of paint stripper, schlepping to the Post Office with it, to no doubt face a mini-interrogation as to the contents, before parting with some hard-earned cashola to send it on its merry way. (And all this effort for a bottle that has done nowt to get you in a merry way!)

In the electronic age, it doesn't take long for an Inbox to get overwhelmed by an avalanche of wine-related emails spruiking "Great Offers!," "Cancelled Exports!" and "Halliday 5 star Rated Winery Half Price Cleanskins!" It's very easy to get confused by all of this information and downright tempting to delete the lot. However, the trick is to pick the wheat from the chaff, as there are some great websites and offers out there.

The problem I have found with a lot of the so-called Wine Clubs (apart from getting locked into a seemingly life-long contract, which is harder to escape from than Alcatraz), is that the wines overall can be so damn bland and uninteresting. I have often wondered if these are just bin ends or zhuzhed-up cleanskins (that they've slapped a benign-looking label on as an afterthought). There never seems to be any 'wow factor' to any of them, and if there has been one that I've been vaguely impressed by, I have a near impossible time finding it anywhere other than through the wine club - which seems a bit suss to me... but anyways I digress...

However, in recent times I have had the pleasure of discovering a fabulous website called Secret Vines (www.secretvines.com.au). Secret Vines is a boutique wine business based in South Australia's McLaren Vale, run by Tim Althaus (who just happens to be Marion from Masterchef's other half!).

Tim puts together some seriously drinkable six-packs, comprising top-notch hard-to-find local drops, and also little beauties from further afield. To date I've purchased three different cases from Tim, and have been absolutely stoked with the contents of every one. He's even managed to make me reconsider my thoughts on riesling with a lovely example from Western Australia!

The beauty of these packs is that you have choices: 'straight white,' 'straight red' or a mix of both, and usually in two different price points. Also, you are not locked into any contracts so can just buy whenever your personal stocks are depleted, or you're in the mood for a bit of wine discovery session.

It's a great way to explore new varieties and regions in the comfort of your own home and Tim is always more than happy to discuss drops that you particularly liked (or alternatively, didn't) and suggest others that may seduce your senses and put a smile on your dial. He's also very flexible and will customise the six-pack to your liking - i.e. if you dead-set HATED chardonnay (although I can't imagine anyone would) you could replace that with a variety that didn't induce dry-retching :/

So, I sincerely recommend checking out this website and sampling some of the more-ish vinous treasures contained therein! And tell Tim I sent you!

Yours in Plonk

The Plonker x