In the second of our two part series, we delve back into the Barossa Wine Traveller, with exclusive permission from co-author Tyson Stelzer, to get a closer look at visiting one of Robert Parker’s favourites - Glaetzer Wines. For part one on Langmeil, click here.

Although Glaetzer wines was only established in the mid-1990s, its heritage runs much deeper. The first Glaetzers settled in the Barossa in 1888 and were among the earliest recorded viticulturists in the region. The name has remained prominent ever since, and today there are no fewer than eight winemakers in the family, working across South Australia and as far afield as Tasmania and New Zealand.

Ben Glaetzer took over the winemaking responsibility from his father in 2002. “Behind the scenes, my father Colin and uncle John have had a key influence on a number of significant Barossa labels over more than thirty years,” Ben explains. He has already made his own mark, cementing his name among the ‘rock star’ makers of the region.

Tasting Glaetzer Wines

Ben’s lifestyle is perhaps not dissimilar to a travelling rock star.

“I spend six months of the year making wine and six months on the road promoting it internationally and domestically, so this is my focus rather than cellar doors and tourism,” he explains. “To find our wines locally, Amon-ra and Anaperenna are available at 1918 and Vintners, and the local pubs have Wallace and Bishop. The full range is available to purchase at Tanunda Cellars.”

Infamous growers

“My focus is on making wines that are reflective of their particular regions,” Ben says. “Of all the Barossa subregions, Ebenezer is the one where the wine in barrel looks the most like the fruit in the vineyards. I want my wines to have approachability in their youth but also longevity. And that’s what I get from Ebenezer. We source from vines there reputed to be 130 or 140 years old and also young vines – by which I mean 20 or 30 years old. The older vines are not necessarily the best quality but are usually the most consistent.

“We have two great growers in Ebenezer that my father established relationships with during his days at Barossa Valley Estate. Sixth generation grower Adrian Hoffmann runs a vineyard with his father and also their neighbours’ vineyard. I take a large majority of their fruit. Adrian is keen to work with me because he understands how keen I am to showcase the best that the subregion can do. He has a real interest in the crop and the fruit but also in the finished product, so we taste together. We have a longstanding association and understanding and we reward him in a good year and we reward him in a bad year. That’s the beauty of dealing with guys like him. We both have young sons – five and six years old – and it would be great to think that in ten or twelve generations we can still be sourcing from the same people in the same region.

“Adrian is not doing much dissimilar to what his father, grandfather and great grandfather were doing. And he listens to the older generations, which is critical. He also prides himself on how many committees he’s on that are helping the Barossa. I have predicted that he will be Mayor of the Barossa in twenty years’ time!”

Wining kids

“I frequently take my son Wilbur up to the numerous national parks for a walk. It’s great up there. If you’re there between 7:30 and 9 in the morning or at sunset the roos are always out. The Barossa Bowland is a good spot for kids as well. It’s just been renovated and it’s well run. The Tanunda club has a kids’ room at the back, just off the dining room, with a TV and toys and things. Vintners and 1918 have good kids’ menus which are interesting and innovative. On Saturday morning the Farmers Market is good for kids. The kids can buy a bag of cherries or apricots or whatever is in season.”

The Barossa Wine Traveller is available from wineries throughout Barossa, as well as leading book stores across Australia.

Heartland Stickleback is part of the portfolio of masterful winemaker Ben Glaetzer. This rich, savoury red is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Dolcetto and Grenache sourced from Limestone Coast and Langhorne Creek in South Australia.

To view product page and for more details, click on Heartland Stickleback Red.

A few months back we said we would be conducting a short interview with one of the world’s top winemakers, Ben Glaetzer. True to his word, the man himself has returned exclusively for Curious Wines to answer your questions.

1. What Rhone Syrah producers do you admire (if any) and who in the wine trade inspires you?

First and foremost would be Guigal for their ability to produce regionally indicative wines across the majority of pricepoints and volumes whilst maintaining an aura of prestige about the brand.

2. You’ve been gaining incredible scores from wine advocate, Robert Parker. Is it tempting to tailor a wine to suit his palate?

Fortunately our wines have been well received across all of our 38 export markets, from Europe, through Asia and the USA and Canada. I admire RP’s overriding passion for wine, and that is the basis of his writing. He actually enjoys tasting and writing about wine. I find Matthew Jukes equally as passionate as are people like Jancis Robinson and Anthony Gismondi. It sounds clichéd but I very much enjoy the company and conversation of people such as these and don’t really spend much time watching the scores.

3. If you couldn’t make any more wine in Barossa Valley, where would you go to make your wine?

As strange as it may sound, I’d probably be in Champagne. Australia does make sparkling wines (Red and White), some of them are exceptionally good but none have the personality, elegance and charisma of a great Champagne from a great vintage.

4. A silly question perhaps, but what is your favourite grape variety, and why?

That’s a difficult one to answer as quite a few varieties show attributes and personalities that I enjoy. Classically speaking I have always admired well made Cabernet Sauvignon but I find that in most cases it requires other varieties blended in to make it complete (as in Bordeaux, Northern Italy and the Barossa).

Shiraz is obviously a passion for me, I enjoy the diversity of the flavour profile and the varietal/regional snapshot that can be created within the wine. The world’s best Shiraz/Syrah is generous yet elegant, structured and balanced and can be an exceptional food partner……(in contrast there are of course many that are overworked, to hot and dominating!).

My current favourites to grow and make are Lagrein (originally ex Trentino/Alto Adige) and Vermentino – both Italian origin but display characters that are ideal for the Barossa/Langhorne/McLaren Vale. These include a sturdy canopy which protects the fruit during some of our warm days and very good natural acid retention which keeps the flavours bright and fresh. Above all they’re producing very food orientated wines.

5. What do you feel is the long-term outlook for the Aussie wine industry?

Like any agricultural industry the Aussie wine Industry has had it’s fair share of peaks and troughs. As a whole the industry needs a degree of compression. There have been too many vineyards planted in the wrong areas, with unsuitable varieties by groups of people who are not well versed in the vagaries of growing, making and selling wine. This has led to overproduction at the lower price point as company owners try vainly to quit the stock that they have in their wineries.

There has been a significant impact on the top end as well, a lot of that is to do with the early Australian hype in the US market and producers feeling that creating dollars was more important than setting and maintaining sensible, affordable pricepoints. Australia is only a young country… we have a lot of growth yet and a lot of time to learn!

Thanks to Ben Glaetzer and Vicki Arnold at Glaetzer Heartland Wines, and to our readers for your contribution.

Our range from Ben:

Heartland Wines

Glaetzer Wines

Remember this? It would seem that investors are still putting their money into wine as a safe haven, as opposed to stock, and it’s also great to hear that Australia is starting to be taken seriously when it comes to ultra-fine wine.

Last week, fine wine auctioneers, Langton’s, reported that Australia’s ultra-fine wines increased in value by 64% during the past two years, defying the slump in the international fine wine market. The increase contrasts with an estimated drop of 20% since July 2007 in the Bordeaux-dominated international market.

No-one needs to tell us about how fine Australian wine can be. The upper Glaetzer range, including the Amon-Ra, has great ageing potential, with the likes of Langmeil producing wine to last 15 years and beyond, and the ‘04 Woodstock “Stocks” Shiraz, although drinking well now, could perhaps do with another year or two to fulfil its true potential.

Langton’s fine wine principal, Andrew Caillard, added that there was less ultra-fine wine produced in Australia than in Bordeaux and Burgundy. A top Bordeaux winery produced about 10,000 cases or more a year compared with 100 to 6000 by Australian equivalents. Those Old World die hards can write off Australian vintners at their pearl.

If you’re looking to invest in wine, whether it’s for financial investment or for future indulgence, do your homework first. Remember that the vast majority of wines are to be drank young - many (particularly inexpensive wines) will not drink well beyond three years. Don’t be afraid to ask a member of staff on their opinion. A good wine merchant will know their wines well enough to advise on ageing. When you get the wine home, store it somewhere cool where the temperature won’t fluctuate too much, and lay it on its side to prevent the cork drying out.

This is one of the first video recipes I saw from Lookandtaste and it’s what excited me most about their concept. Classic dishes, superbly demonstrated by a top class chef, on demand.

It’s amazing how many people are quite comfortable cooking complex and intricate recipes from books, but hand them a lovely piece of prime steak and they panic. (Sorry, I’m talking third party but I’m one of those people!)

Niall’s demonstration shows how to cook the perfect steak in just a few minutes - this is fast food but with the right cut of meat the same fast food you’ll get in a Michelin-starred restaurant.

A big, juicy steak demands a big, juicy wine and your local wine merchant’s shelves will be packed with appropriate matches. You can get great value Malbecs from Argentina or Chile that are just made for steak - see how our Tesoro de los Andes Malbec-Shiraz performed on Robert Francis Wine - but my first choice will always be Australia and specifically Barossan Shiraz.

The Barossans have almost cornered the market for that big, bold, fruit-burst expression of Shiraz, and their heritage and vines pre-date many of Europe’s most prestigious regions.

Try this (nearly!) organic Earthworks from the Langmeil Winery for bursting black fruit and hints of peppery spice. Or for a bit more complexity and spice treat yourself to the very classy Shiraz/Grenache Wallace from our favourite winemaker Ben Glaetzer. Then get onto Michelin for a star of your own.

Heartland Shiraz continues to achieve that magical double: popularity with both wine experts and the general consumer. The Heartland range comes from the same man responsible for the 100 Parker Point Amon-Ra. In our humble opinion, Ben Glaetzer (pictured left) is one the world’s best winemakers.

The magical double was made official when the 2004 Heartland Shiraz was chosen as best out of a record 762 entries over 15 classes, not only by a panel of judges but also by a separate panel of wine consumers, in the 2005 Advertiser/Hyatt South Australian Wine of the Year competition, judged in its home state capital, Adelaide.

Among its latest credits are a gold medal at Mundus Vini 2007, Germany’s most important wine competition. At home, the 2006 was selected among the Hot 100 South Australian wines by the Adelaide Review magazine and Australia’s Top 100 wines ‘07, as selected by the The Advertiser in Adelaide.

Winestate magazine, in its ‘Best Wines of 2007′, gave the 2006 five stars and equal top in its category. Toni Paterson MW in ‘What to Drink 2007′ said: “This wine is over the top in every way… but it has been exceedingly well made - so if you like your wines laden with blackberries, plums, prunes and five spices, you’ll adore this one. It is great value: better than many more expensive wines.”

The last I heard, the ‘wine of the people’ is to start flying high - as the wine selected for serving on board Singapore Airlines business class. It has been so popular with us lately, not just because it’s the perfect winter warmer, but it simply represents incredible value for money. Especially with 10% off until the end of February, you can pick up a bottle for €12.59.

Here’s your (impossible) challenge for the week: Find a wine as good as the Heartland Shiraz in your local supermarket for under 18 quid.

With the property market going bang and Bank of Ireland shares being worth about as much as a penny chew, it’s time for investors to revise their portfolios. If anyone watched “Beat the Bank” with Duncan Bannatyne on BBC2 it would seem that some of the best investments come in the form of art and, yes… wine!

This made us think about Aussie icon, Amon-Ra, which received a perfect score from America’s and arguably the world’s most worthy wine critic, Robert Parker. Set to be fully evolved by around 2025, this red powerhouse will most likely drink through 2040. It would only be speculation to imagine how much it will be worth by 2025 or 2030, but it’s hard to imagine it going any way but up, whereas the FTSE and NASDAQ….?

What a great way to secure your future. While markets go into turmoil, houses become worthless and banks begin to crumble around us, we can sleep soundly at night knowing that Glaetzer’s Gold is looking after us from afar.

Amon, sorry Amen, to that.