When my parents had my youngest brother Henry, Willy and I thought that that was it… no more siblings, we could each have a third of the parents love. For a while now, we have realised that we were wrong….
Two years ago Swallows’ Tale from South Africa came onto the scene, then Puna Snipe from Chile and now Hooded Plover from Oz!! These three babies lovingly put together by the father (Anthony), with labels drawn and designed by the mother (Penny) are now pride of place! We flock around them, enthusing about them, drinking them and selling them to others who want to join in the flurry… no one imagined that they would fly this high, but they have and it’s fantastic! Today it’s Hooded Plovers turn to bask in the limelight and gain the recognition it deserves for being one of the best tasting Aussie house wines to hit the Irish Market in the last 6 months.
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| The back label of the bottles |
On his trip last spring AT tasted many grapes, lobsters and wines!! In fact we’ve decided that perhaps the older 3 children should come on the next trip away to help choose child number 7!
AT scoured SE Australia for a suitable juice with which to put together our first own-label Australian blend. He toured NSW, Victoria and S Australia exploring and tasting in the Hunter Valley, Mudgee, Heathcote, Bendigo, Yarra Valley, Adelaide Hills, Coonawarra, Mount Benson, McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley and more. The diversity of styles from region to region and the quality of wines, most of which we haven’t seen on the Irish market, is very encouraging. On a negative, thousands of acres of vineyards, chiefly in Hunter Valley, are being dug up. A legacy of some of the big brands in their search for quantity to meet market demand. After this trip, we are much more conscious of regional wines.
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| AT sampling the grapes |
Our entry level Hooded Plover (Reservas and single regionalised varietals to follow) are a reflection of the quality of wines available at this level if we search hard enough. The grapes are sourced in NSW. We’re hoping now we’ve introduced Hooded Plover to Ireland it won’t need preservation orders!
We’ve already had enquiries about where to buy Hooded Plover. You may find it happily nesting amongst the wines in your local restaurant’s list. If however it’s being shy you’ll find it on:
