China correspondent Ken White reports from Dalian.

‘Hi Martin, My favourite tipple here is Dragon seal 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s about $AU9 but in my opinion is above the rest for everyday quaffing. That said there is a great Cabernet Franc I drink every time I’m in Beijing, the name of which escapes me. [Possibly Changyu? Ed.]

I have only found it in Morels, a European restaurant in the San Litun district where the Embassies are situated. Sells for about 40 bucks in the restaurant. Yantai, which is just across the bay (three hours by fast ferry), is a fast growing wine area and the above wines stem from there.

Forget the whites. Long way to go before they become drinkable.

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by Martin Field

Pooles Rock Hunter Valley Semillon 2003 – up to $25 \_/\_/\_/
Grassy, lemon sherbet nose. Light-bodied style with lemon zest, fine honey and a crisp, citric acid finish. Will cellar well to 2011.

Grant Burge East Argyle Pinot Gris 2006 – $20-ish \_/\_/
Eden Valley, South Australia. Nose of tropical fruits and dried apples. Quite full-bodied for this varietal. Shows more of the Granny Smith apple on the palate leading to a dry, tangy finish.

Tallarook Viognier 2006 – up to $24 \_/\_/\_/
Tallarook, Victoria. Shows attractive aromatics of dried pears with a hint of oaky butterscotch. This wine has a creamy mouth feel with rich full flavours of dried orchard fruits. Finishes slightly off-dry with soft acidity.

Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2006 – up to $32 \_/\_/\_/\_/\_/
Marlborough, New Zealand. The benchmark of Australasian sauvignon blanc does it again with a nose of pungent grassiness, blackcurrant leaves and asparagus. All these characters and more combine on the palate, held together with lip smacking lime acidity. Delicious and persistent finish.

Red Knot Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 – up to $15 \_/\_/
McLaren Vale, South Australia. Purple edged crimson. Warm spicy plummy nose. Ripe plums continue on the palate with earthy undertones, medium tannins and good acid structure.

Sparkling Mad Shiraz – $12-15 \_/\_/\_/$
Clare Valley, South Australia. Nose of ripe blackberries supported by subtle French oak. Rich and smooth in the mouth showing flavours of ripe summer berries and lightly toasted oak. Ideal summer drinking.

Campbells Bobby Burns Shiraz 2004 – up to $22 \_/\_/\_/
Rutherglen, Victoria. Deep ruby appearance. Complex nose of plums, raspberries, aniseed and vanillin oak. Robust Rutherglen red shows good ripe fruit concentration, medium tannin astringency and a noticeably firm, food-demanding finish.

Taminick Cellars Durif 2005 – $15 \_/\_/\_/\_/$$
Glenrowan, Victoria. Nose of ‘fruits of the forest’ conserve, liquorice allsorts, vanilla and coconutty oak and noticeable alcohol (15.8%). A red wine for serious red wine drinkers. Extravagant fruit matches well with integrated American oak. Solid drying tannins lead to a long, warm ‘let’s have another glass’ finish.

Spitbucket rating system
Five gold spitbuckets \_/\_/\_/\_/\_/ – brilliant
\_/\_/\_/\_/ – classy
\_/\_/\_/ – first-rate
\_/\_/ – good stuff
\_/ – spit it!
An added $ or two denotes excellent value for money. Prices in Australian dollars.