I recently returned from an extended trip to the States that took me to both California and Pennsylvania. The two states offered up a world of difference in terms of what, where and how (which may also leave you with many whys) you can buy wines.

Pennsylvania is the most archaic and depressing experience as it is still 100% owned and operated by a State government agency called the LCB (Liquor Control Board). It is a thriving, billion dollar piece of Communism right in the heart of the land of democratic freedom that, as much as it strives to be better (creating so-called ‘Premium’ wine centres) is very much the McDonalds of wine. No matter what store you visit, the wine selection is always the same, ordered from a centrally controlled and managed Politburo list.

California, on the other hand, is the vinous version of free love, with not just excellent wine stores dotting the landscape but everybody and his mother (supermarkets, dairies, bodegas, delis) stocking the stuff and completely free to make their own varied selections from whatever corner of the world that may tickle their fancy.

And boy oh boy does the US of A get choice — the US wine market is a top tier export destination for any wine-making country, with close to 3 billion litres of wine consumed annually (the latest numbers are for 2010). Per capita consumption has reached an historic high (closing in on 10 litres per person). So the basic question is: How does our Australian wine stack up in these two distinctly different but huge wine markets?

Representation and Selection:

I have to say, from a simply empirical observation standpoint, Australian wine would rate an Average to downright Bad. And ironically, the Bad rating goes to Aussie wine representation in the free-to-choose market of California, while Communist Pennsylvania’s selection holds a very decent range of drops (75+ by my count) as well as the usual swill suspects like Yellowtail, Jacob’s Creek, etc. I made the rounds of almost a dozen of my favourite quality wine stores in LA and San Francisco and could only really cite one (The Jug Shop, SF) as serious about our wine — as they have been for a decade or more. And if you are talking about restaurant wine lists, the operative word is ‘zilch’.

Price:

I found that given the parity of the Aussie dollar to the US dollar (so a realistic apple to apple comparison) the wine prices appeared to be all over place — in some cases almost spot on to our home price, in a few cases decidedly way cheaper (Clarendon Hills wines: $29 or Pillar Box Red:$7) and many substantially dearer (Rosemont Show Reserve: $30). There are a multitude of possible reasons for this (winery/distributor pricing, export costs, US customs / import tariffs, local taxes, store markups/sales) but what was clear was that the Aussie wine prices, confined to their own category, tended to slide towards the higher end (close to $20 or more a bottle) with the exception of the known and unloved (by us) critter wines. Almost 80% of the Aussie wines in the Pennsylvania State Store listings where priced higher than $20 — some by more than twice that price.

The more important price comparison though is obviously between Aussie wine prices and the rest of the world on the shelves, as that is a crucial ‘Y’ in the road for the US wine consumer. And here we are having our pants beaten off of us in the under $20 world, where the $9 – $12 a bottle segment is the fasting growing and the Australian entry here is Yellowtail or Jacob’s Creek, whereas there are plethora of good wines coming out of Argentina, Spain/Portugal, Chile or even France flooding the cheaper end of the US wine-buyers market.

Attitude:

There certainly seemed to be a negative consumer and retail view of our wines. If the $9 to $12 segment is where you mostly buy your wines, you are pretty much stuck with Yellowtail, Lindemans and Jacob’s Creek level wines from Australia, which would make the choice of a nice Argentinean Malbec or Spanish Rioja a no brainer. From the wine retail side, if the consumer ain’t buying it, they ain’t stocking it even if they like the wines. In an expansive chat with the owner of one of my San Francisco go-to wine stores, he told me that they just don’t sell at those prices (ironically, he had just said goodbye to 3 Aussies trying to sell him wine).

I am not writing anything that the Australian wine industry does not already know, just offering a recent observational survey from a passionate Australian wine supporter.

Here are a few GFC (Gulpable For Cheap) reds that are light on the wallet and easy quaffers….

Tintara Cellars McLaren Vale Shiraz 2008 $9 – $11

I do not usually take much heed of Dan Murphy’s wine panel recommendations as it is hard enough to find one person’s palate that matches mine let alone a committee’s. Though I would have to admit that in the last year or so things seem to be looking up with some decent selected drops and this is one of their winners (92 points). One of the Hardy’s stable of vineyards, Tintara Cellars has been around the block once or twice having been established in 1861. The standout nose and taste of this Shiraz is chocolate – with a decent dose of mixed spices thrown in for good measure. And it is an exceedingly generous bottle of juice – no sharp edges or fault lines to stumble over.

Quarisa Johnny Q Shiraz 2008 $11 – $13

Though many folks often whinge about the typical Aussie fruit bomb shiraz, there is still a place in the world of wine for drops of this style or nature – especially when they are as subtly well made as this one. The man behind this wine is John Quarisa (hence Johnny Q), who has 24 years of wine making experience and the Jimmy Watson (2004) Trophy and Stodart Trophy in Brisbane perched in his cabinet, which grants him some credibility. Deepest of deepest reds in the glass, with oodles of dark fruits on the nose, the palate follows through with a not-at-all sappy wine but one with good balance, length and perfectly soft tannins. BBQ juice if ever there was any and at such a pleasurable price — $11 at Nick’s.

Moulin de Gassac Guilhem 2010 $10 ≠ $12

This is the baby wine from the famed Mas de Daumas Gassac from the Languedoc region in the Southern Rhone Valley. An absolutely gorgeous blend of Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre and Carignan that is rich and ripe with plum fruit, soft and lush on the palate but still delicate with just the right amount of rustic qualities. Should be anyone’s house wine without a doubt.

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While we’re very good at whining, we also love a good glass or seven of wine. So, for all our drinking pleasure, Duncan Wilcox has been providing the Tribune’s reviews and tasting notes since 2009. Follow El Wino on Twitter: @The_Wino

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