A mixed case containing either 3 or 6 bottles of each of the following:

Patritti Shiraz, McLaren Vale, Australia 2018
When this deep, inky liquid was poured into our glass, it felt like that moment on a roller-coaster when the safety bar is lowered, the train jerks forwards and you feel that mild sense of panic. Australian Shiraz can be a bone-shaking experience that knocks you from pillar to post, so we braced ourselves, but this wasn’t a rattling assault on the senses, they had cushioned the seats and oiled the wheels, so it glided over the rails and we were able to enjoy the ride and appreciate all the twists and turns. I have now run out of rollercoaster analogies, and I’m quite proud of myself for not using any of the obvious ones!

This white-knuckle ride of thrilling loop the loops [You’re fired! - Ed.] is the best value Shiraz we have tasted since Mad Dog Munzberg’s ‘Mad Dog’ Shiraz 2013 and anyone lucky enough to have bought a few bottles of that before Mad Dog hung up his secateurs, will know that’s a mighty fine compliment. It’s deep and dark, with aromas and flavours evoking blackcurrant cordial, blueberry jam (but it’s not jammy), vanilla and chocolate nibs. The texture is glossy and silky, not dark or tannic, proving that bigger isn’t always better. Patritti’s JPB ‘Limited Release’ Shiraz is a much more ‘impressive’ wine with a higher score (96 points), but it’s cumbersome and unwieldy and weighs in at over 15% alc. There’s a reason why tennis rackets aren’t 6 feet wide. There’s a point at which something reaches perfect form and balance and it applies to wine as much as it does to tennis rackets. Now there’s a sentence I never thought I would write. 14.5% alc. Drink now-2035.

JancisRobinson.com: “Smells of blackcurrants splatted on hot stones, indigo ink bleeding into wet card, rain on an angry day. Feels like parchment; ink on wet card; smudging kohl eyeliner off a rain-wet, cold, angry cheek. Yours. Tastes like a train station when you're there to say good bye; like sucking Ribena from a tiny box carton through a straw when all you want to do is cry; like hot tarmac after a rainstorm and dusty bitter black olives and that shock of tannin landmine the first time you put a sloe berry in your mouth; and it tastes like the sweet lippy dribbly kiss of your kid who's just been foraging for bramble berries and the blue-black stains go from chin to forehead to fingers to knees. It tastes like those grass-stained, earth-bruised, berry-blue plump knees. GOOD VALUE. (TC). Drink now-2030.” 17 points

Patritti Cabernet Sauvignon, McLaren Vale, Australia 2018
There are so many Cabernet Sauvignons in the world, so why buy this one? Well, we're obviously going to say it's delicious, and it really is, but over and above that, it has a touch of class about it. 'Class' is a pretty nebulous term, but you sure as hell know when it isn't there. Invite Sharon Osbourne into the royal enclosure at Ascot for a vivid demonstration. This Cabernet Sauvignon comes from vines grown on the free-draining ancient, 56-millon year old soil known as the North Maslin Sands, so the vines have to work extra hard to find nourishment, thereby producing small crops of intensely flavoured grapes. The vineyards themselves are situated along the Sellicks foothills where the vines are exposed to both the cooler gully winds and strong coastal influences keeping the wine fresh and vibrant. All parcels were individually matured for 15 months in 500L oak puncheons (50% new French, 50% seasoned French and American) before being blended and bottled.

At £18.95 you are getting a serious wine absolutely brimming with varietal personality with its fresh blackcurrant leaf character alongside the pure and ripe cassis fruit, notes of hedgerow, marjoram and a delicate dusting of mint-infused chocolate powder. 13.5% alc. Ready to drink, but will hold for at least another 4-5 years.

JancisRobinson.com: “Silver-green needles of cedar and capsicum and dawn-dew-cold-clenched laurel threads woven deftly through plush fruit that starts red-bleeding crimson and spills and spreads, bruising into the purple blues of cassis and bramble berries. Tarragon and chocolate mint throw cold but sensuous semi-colons between the effusively smooth glide of ripe rhapsody. Harp-lines of pale-green herbs. A wine that is trying to do nothing but cajole, entice and persuade you to be here right now, nowhere to go, all efforts at resistance abandoned. A Cabernet that is leaning into its place, its time, its space, not trying to be anything else and you can just feel that almost zen-like sinuosity. For the yoga practitioners out there, I would describe this as a Cab Bālāsana, in child's pose. VERY GOOD VALUE. (TC). Drink now-2026.” 16.5 points

The Australian Wine Companion: “This is a fine example of a saline, robust maritime Cabernet. It maximises the Vale's exposure to retain varietal typicity without the excess of examples from other warm regions: blackcurrant, hedgerow, plum, tapenade and a twine of sage and bouquet-garni-doused tannins, pliant and salty. The oak (25% new French; 75% seasoned French and American) is nestled into the fray nicely. The pH better tuned. The finish long and snappy.” 91 points