Red Wines

The Australian side is the largest and covers most of the classic regions. Teusner and Schild Estate from the Barossa, Fox Creek and Geoff Merrill from McLaren Vale, Elderton, Shut the Gate from the Clare Valley, Narkoojee and Wood Park from Victoria, Leeuwin from Margaret River, and Domaine A from Tasmania's Coal River Valley. Penfolds appears at the top end.

Italy runs through Zenato in the Veneto, including Ripassa and the Amarone Riserva Sergio, Castellani for Chianti and Sicilian Nero d'Avola, Collazzi for Chianti Classico and Castello di Cigognola for Piedmontese Barbera.

France covers Bordeaux through Chateau St Georges, Cahors Malbec through Chateau du Cedre, Burgundy through Domaine Collotte's Marsannay, the Rhone through Charvin, and Beaujolais through Chateau de Pizay.

Spain is small but serious. Bodegas R Lopez de Heredia's Tondonia and Bosconia Reservas are among the most traditional wines made in Rioja, alongside Familia Larchago.

If you want a single grape rather than a country, the Shiraz, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache pages are the faster route.

History

Red wine is made by fermenting the juice in contact with the skins, and almost everything that separates one red from another follows from that. Colour, tannin and much of the aroma come from skin contact, so time on skins, temperature and how often the cap is worked all shape the result before a barrel is involved.

Europe organised itself around place. French appellation law from 1935 fixed which grapes could be grown where, so a Bordeaux label tells you the region and, by implication, the blend. Italy and Spain built comparable systems.

Australia organised itself around grape. Labels lead with Shiraz or Cabernet rather than the region, which made the wines far easier to understand for new drinkers and is a large part of why Australian wine exported so successfully from the 1980s.

The two systems have been converging. Australian producers increasingly name a specific site, and European producers increasingly put the grape on the back label. The practical result for a buyer is that you can now shop either way, and this range is built to support both.

How to drink it

Temperature does more for red wine than anything else you can control, and most Australian homes serve it too warm. Aim for 16 to 18 degrees for full-bodied reds, 14 to 16 for lighter ones such as Pinot Noir and Beaujolais. In summer that means twenty minutes in the fridge.

Decant young, tannic wines: Barossa Shiraz, Cabernet, Amarone, Bordeaux. An hour is usually enough. Old wines with sediment should be decanted carefully off the deposit and drunk fairly soon after, because they can fade quickly once opened.

Glass shape matters less than people claim, but a larger bowl genuinely helps aromatic wines.

For food, the old rule still holds up: match the weight of the wine to the weight of the dish. Tannin and protein work well together, which is why steak and Cabernet is a cliche that keeps being true.

Once open, most reds hold two or three days with a stopper in the fridge. Take them out half an hour before pouring.