Dan Murphy's and Other Wine Deals

[year of the roo]

It was on this site.

https://www.ozcouponscode.com/voucher-vintage-cellars-4352.html?click=yes&promotion_id=1923673

I'm sure it was. Do you doubt me that this is an employee's staff card?

 

[glasszon]

It is common knowledge in Australia, that you dont touch a pinot under $20. It has a large palate range, from the light rasberry funk of the Gippsland producers such as william downie or lightfoot and sons, to the Calafornian medium bodied cherry bomb style most notably seen from Central Otago pinots that have dominated our market the last decade or so. If you were brought up on big bold Barossa's, this is probably not the variety for you and your wallet will thank you for it.

Drinking wine is very subjective and unfortunately we also drink with out eyes, so more expensive wines are generally "percieved" as better. If your criteria is value for money/soft tannins/full bodied red, I'd suggest either:
- An aged value red like a chalambar, wynns black label, john duval, or st hugos. Ageing softens tannins but back vintages are more difficult to find.
- Otherwise for current vintages, aim for a cool climate shiraz from perhaps the Port Phillip area. Off the top of my head, 10x by Tractor Estate, Yabby Lake, Farr, or Mayer Syrah from the Yarra come to mind. These are outside your $20-$30 range (unless on clearance), but if you're trying to find something "comparable" to a 389 quality, we have to be more realistic.

I highly recommend heading to a (reputable) restaurant and having a chat with the Somm (COVID safety allowing). If you are a newbie to wine, let them know and alot would be delighted to help out. Wine "discovery" is a great experience! Of course, there are ALOT of bullshit wine lists out there selling overpriced mediocrity i.e. Quay, which unfortunately plagues the industry. But if you're up for trying new things, this is the way.

Alot of times, "memories" are attached to wines, which enhances its experience. You may have had the 389 on a honeymoon to Magill Estate, and everytime your wife sees the wine, it draws out those pleasant memories. Such subjective attachments are often unmatchable, simply because of psycology. Finding a replacement for such is also impossible because those memories are unique, so the only alternative is to create new memories with new wines. This is why at CellarDoor's there is often a "story teller" whose purpose is to dramatize a story to their wines. I know this is may be going way too deep into things, but the comment "get us 70-80% of the way there" just kinda irked me the wrong way. I hope it helps you understand why it is so difficult to scale wine "value".

Thanks for your in-depth reply. I am certainly keen to try more variety at a good restaurant, but given I am in Melbourne, that might not happen until 2021!

There are some very good feedback in this thread, thanks everyone for the help in guiding this complete wine newbie along the journey, I will try to buy some of the bottles mentioned such as Yalumba Signature and go from there.

I hear your frustration, I normally drink whisky and my wine question about replacing Penfolds 389 is no different to the million "what should I replace JW Blue with" question out there. I have very limited knowledge and at the moment we drink very little red wine because either they are horrible (tried buying discounted red wine listed on ozbargain, let's just say it didn't go well) or far too expensive to drink on a regular basis (Penfolds 389), so I am trying to find a happy medium so we can have red wine more often.

Thanks again for everyone's help, I have subscribed to this thread so I don't miss out on wine deals in the future!

 

[Jczer000]

I have subscribed to this thread so I don't miss out on wine deals in the future!

This is the best way to drink better more affordably!

 

[kevviek]

Thanks for your in-depth reply. I am certainly keen to try more variety at a good restaurant, but given I am in Melbourne, that might not happen until 2021!

There are some very good feedback in this thread, thanks everyone for the help in guiding this complete wine newbie along the journey, I will try to buy some of the bottles mentioned such as Yalumba Signature and go from there.

From the sounds of things a cool climate Shiraz might be a good match. Try a bottle of Mt Langi Ghiran Cliff Edge - usual price is around $28. If that suits your palate then there's a few other options around, especially local Victorian wines.

 

[boomy]

This is the best way to drink better more affordably!

Be careful, it’s also the way to spend more on booze

 

[Daver6]

Red wine newbie here, my wife loves Penfolds 389 because it is very "smooth" with very little tannin. Obviously at that price we can't afford to drink that every day, would anyone be able to suggest what we can buy in lieu of Penfolds 389 that is more affordable? Something that would be an easy drinker and wouldn't have lots of tannin?

Haha, fair point. I know Penfolds 389 is similar to JW Blue: Clearly no other bottle can replace what it does, but I am hoping to find a bottle at around the $20-$30 range that would get us 70-80% of the way there, especially given Penfolds 389 keeps going up in price each year!

I did some quick search and I heard people recommend Pinot Noir wines, am I on the right track? I am trying to find a bottle to surprise her in a blind test vs 389, thoughts?

Firstly, I'm not saying this to be a wine ponce, but to help you out when you go to a bottle shop and try to find a cheaper version of 389. A 389 is actually going to have pretty high tannins. I suspect what your wife is getting at by smooth is that it's a pretty balanced wine with generous fruit and (American) oak. Your research into wines with lower tannins is accurate in pointing you towards Pinot. However, Pinot is going to be nothing like 389.

So, I would suggest your wife might enjoy other Barossa Shiraz, especially relatively oaked reds. Give the Penfolds Bin 28 a go as well as St Hallet Blackwell Shiraz. Someone else suggested the Yaluma Signature and I'd agree with that too. Another one to try that punches well above its price point is the Metala white label Shiraz/Cab. If you have access to Rockford wines, then their Rod and Spur would be another wine to try.

Happy tasting!

 

[qaz]

For the Wynns Black label cab sav fans out there, VC have it for $25 per bottle.

fyi there's 2014-2017 and the myColes number for 5% off is here - don't forget 2.5% Cashrewards/ShopBack

 

[Bill Bosworth]

Firstly, I'm not saying this to be a wine ponce, but to help you out when you go to a bottle shop and try to find a cheaper version of 389. A 389 is actually going to have pretty high tannins. I suspect what your wife is getting at by smooth is that it's a pretty balanced wine with generous fruit and (American) oak. Your research into wines with lower tannins is accurate in pointing you towards Pinot. However, Pinot is going to be nothing like 389.

So, I would suggest your wife might enjoy other Barossa Shiraz, especially relatively oaked reds. Give the Penfolds Bin 28 a go as well as St Hallet Blackwell Shiraz. Someone else suggested the Yaluma Signature and I'd agree with that too. Another one to try that punches well above its price point is the Metala white label Shiraz/Cab. If you have access to Rockford wines, then their Rod and Spur would be another wine to try.

Happy tasting!

Post automatically merged: Jan 23, 1975

Firstly, I'm not saying this to be a wine ponce, but to help you out when you go to a bottle shop and try to find a cheaper version of 389. A 389 is actually going to have pretty high tannins. I suspect what your wife is getting at by smooth is that it's a pretty balanced wine with generous fruit and (American) oak. Your research into wines with lower tannins is accurate in pointing you towards Pinot. However, Pinot is going to be nothing like 389.

So, I would suggest your wife might enjoy other Barossa Shiraz, especially relatively oaked reds. Give the Penfolds Bin 28 a go as well as St Hallet Blackwell Shiraz. Someone else suggested the Yaluma Signature and I'd agree with that too. Another one to try that punches well above its price point is the Metala white label Shiraz/Cab. If you have access to Rockford wines, then their Rod and Spur would be another wine to try.

Happy tasting!

I agree, yalumba signature or blackwell, both not too young and well breathed, should appeal to a non-expert palate that likes 389. Really not so sure about the langi cliff edge recommendation. A lovely wine but more austere and less sweet than the other wines we've mentioned.

 

[Bill Bosworth]

Post automatically merged: Jan 23, 1975

I agree, yalumba signature or blackwell, both not too young and well breathed, should appeal to a non-expert palate that likes 389. Really not so sure about the langi cliff edge recommendation. A lovely wine but more austere and less sweet than the other wines we've mentioned.

I wonder too about something like a seppelt mt ida. It's straight shiraz but the Grampians aspect and the handling adds some things that bring it closer to the 389 than a barossa shiraz...

 

[Bill Bosworth]

I wonder too about something like a seppelt mt ida. It's straight shiraz but the Grampians aspect and the handling adds some things that bring it closer to the 389 than a barossa shiraz...

Maybe even turkey flat shiraz if you want a very nice non-huge barossa. But hard to get for $30. More like $40

 

[chonka]

I've missed today's posts (no email notifications again) but incase it hasn't been mentioned. Thewinecollective and mywineguy have free shipping, no minimum spend of to have Andy discount code hanging around

 

[Sbv72]

I've missed today's posts (no email notifications again) but incase it hasn't been mentioned. Thewinecollective and mywineguy have free shipping, no minimum spend of to have Andy discount code hanging around

Free shipping to some areas. Regional and country areas miss out.

 

[qaz]

I've missed today's posts (no email notifications again) but incase it hasn't been mentioned. Thewinecollective and mywineguy have free shipping, no minimum spend of to have Andy discount code hanging around

Today at 9:30 AM

 

[YNWAJUVEN]

Firstly, I'm not saying this to be a wine ponce, but to help you out when you go to a bottle shop and try to find a cheaper version of 389. A 389 is actually going to have pretty high tannins. I suspect what your wife is getting at by smooth is that it's a pretty balanced wine with generous fruit and (American) oak. Your research into wines with lower tannins is accurate in pointing you towards Pinot. However, Pinot is going to be nothing like 389.

So, I would suggest your wife might enjoy other Barossa Shiraz, especially relatively oaked reds. Give the Penfolds Bin 28 a go as well as St Hallet Blackwell Shiraz. Someone else suggested the Yaluma Signature and I'd agree with that too. Another one to try that punches well above its price point is the Metala white label Shiraz/Cab. If you have access to Rockford wines, then their Rod and Spur would be another wine to try.

Happy tasting!

I was about the point out the same thing, 389 is pretty tannic unless is well aged. A well made Barossa Shiraz should fit what your wife taste bud (fruity, smooth, etc), try to stay away from the high alc % (over 15%) one though.
I am current drinking a 2017 Blackwell, which I think I enjoy more than 2012 389 (needs more time).
The other alternative and my all time fav is Rockford, Basket Press(Shiraz), Rod & Spurs (Cab/Shiraz) and event their Rifle range (Cab) are all really smooth and well made wines.

 

[billbro]

The other alternative and my all time fav is Rockford, Basket Press(Shiraz)

Not sure this solves the price issue unless you buy it as part of the allocation.

My fiance finds the Blackwell when young pretty huge, she will at least drink the Grant Burge Balthasar though.

I think the answer as pointed out by a few people is that it's pretty much going to be a bottle that has been laid down for a few years for the tannins to mellow out.

 

[Jwag1]

Not sure if this will work for anyone else. When adding 1 bottle of Chapel Hill The Vicar at BWS it shows $22.50 then goes back to the normal clearance price of $37.50 when adding multiple. I’ve just cleared out 3 bottles at one store with 3 individual purchases

 

[Dr Ralph]

Not sure if this will work for anyone else. When adding 1 bottle of Chapel Hill The Vicar at BWS it shows $22.50 then goes back to the normal clearance price of $37.50 when adding multiple. I’ve just cleared out 3 bottles at one store with 3 individual purchases

$65 starting price for me.

When I add it to me card it comes up as $50, save $25.

 

[glasszon]

Not sure if this will work for anyone else. When adding 1 bottle of Chapel Hill The Vicar at BWS it shows $22.50 then goes back to the normal clearance price of $37.50 when adding multiple. I’ve just cleared out 3 bottles at one store with 3 individual purchases

Looks like a store dependent glitch, I can get it to $22.50 after adding one bottle, but it goes back to $37.50 on the checkout page.

 

[There'sOnlyOneJimmy]

I managed to get it to $22.50 on a single bottle by adding 2 bottles of some other wine. But they didn’t have anything else I wanted to buy (to only get 1 bottle of Vicar per 3 bottle transaction). Pity, my store had 8 bottles and I would have cleaned them out...

 

[redmaxo]

My recommendations for the 389 lite as follows;

- Head Old Vine Shiraz
- Sons of Eden Zephyrus
- Kay Brothers Hillside Shiraz
- John Duval Entity Shiraz
- Turkey Flat Shiraz
- Mr Riggs Shiraz
- Adelina Shiraz Mataro