Leftover wine can be a very sad thing. If left out for too long, wine will begin to oxidize and then sadly, your juicy rich drop will turn quickly into a not-so-delicious vinegar of sorts.

But all is not lost when you find yourself with leftover wine that you do not wish to send down the drain. We have three very fancy and extra delicious recipes for you that will not only put an end to the off-wine-woes, they will also wow and delight your taste buds (and guests) when you serve them up!

Red Wine Butter 

Simple to make and can be stored in the fridge for a couple of weeks until you’re ready to serve. The very best way to enjoy this incredibly indulgent butter.. In a big knob melting on top of a perfectly cooked steak! 

This recipe calls for a classic dry Red Wine. Our 2017 Delano Shiraz is full-bodied, peppery and deep… the perfect match to your steak and an excellent wine to use in this recipe (if you ever have any leftover!)

1. In a small saucepan, combine approximately 1 cup of leftover red wine with some minced garlic (amount of garlic totally depends on how much garlicy-ness you prefer) and a small squeeze of honey.
2. Simmer over a medium heat until the mixture has a thick, syrupy consistency.
3. Allow the syrup to cool completely and then mix it together with a block of softened butter, a pinch of fresh chopped rosemary and a few cracks of black pepper.
4. Once all of the goodness is mixed together, spoon onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Roll the wrap over and twist the ends to form a log shape.
5. Place in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours before serving.

Buy your 2017 Delano Shiraz HERE

Grown-up Cheese Toasties 

Believe us when we say this... once you’ve tried Grown-up Cheese Toasties, you will never ever want to eat a regular Cheese Toastie ever again. don’t say we didn’t warn you.

A smooth and flavoursome red is favourable in this recipe, we intentionally save a glass of our 2019 Imperial Palace Cabernet Sauvignon whenever a bottle is open just so we can whip this up for an afternoon snack the next day.

1. Melt 1-2 tablespoons of butter in a pan on medium heat. 
2. Add in ½ teaspoon of fresh minced garlic and a pinch of fresh thyme.
3. After a minute or two, slowly whisk in a tablespoon of plain flour (This will thicken quickly).
4. Whisk in your red wine, little by little (you’ll need approx ¾ cup) 
5. Reduce the mixture until it is thick enough to coat a spoon.
6. Spread the mixture onto 2 slices of bread, add a slice of your cheese of choice (Gruyere is our favourite!) and sandwich the slices of bread together.
7. Butter the outside of each slice and pan fry until golden on the outside and gooey on the inside.

Buy your 2019 Imperial Palace Cabernet Sauvignon HERE

Wine Slushie

Now we know it’s cold and wintery out there, so this recipe may be best put away for a couple of months until the evenings are warm and sitting outside with a cold drink is appropriate (and achievable) once again.

Almost any red wine will work with this recipe. We love a wine that is medium bodied and full of red berry flavours so we reach for 2020 Nericon Pinot Noir.

This recipe could not be any simpler if it tried. Simply freeze any leftover wine you have in an ice tray and keep it stored in the freezer until you’re ready to whip this one up:

1. Add to an electric blender, a 1:1 ratio your frozen wine cubes and frozen cherries, raspberries, strawberries or blackberries (or a combination of all). 
2. Add a drizzle of honey and a squeeze of lemon juice (to make it a little sweet and a little tangy) 
3. Blitz away! 

Savoury garnishes work beautifully with this mix… something like fresh basil or thyme.

Buy your 2020 Nericon Pinot Noir HERE

Ladies and Gentlemen, roll up roll up. Today we have a very special treat for all our vino loving followers! Pull up your socks and tighten your seatbelts because today friends, we go on a journey throughout history and celebrate some of the very best (and even slightly strange) Wine World Records!

Go on, pour yourself a glass of your favourite vino, get comfy in your favourite wine sipping spot & have a scroll through the wondrous Wine World Records below. You can thank us in advance for the new trivia facts you’ll have under your belt now too.

Tallest Champagne Glass Tower

Understandably, the key skill requirement for assembling a champagne glass tower is to have very, VERY steady hands. Luuk Broos of the Netherlands and his team may also have the world record for the steadiest hands as well as the tallest champagne tower! 

Completed in January 2008 at the Shopping Center Wignegem, Belgium, the staggering tower consisted of 43,680 glasses and was 66 rows tall, with a total height of 7.26 m

Largest Cork Mosaic

Art lovers rejoice! This world record, albeit a slightly strange one, belongs to Albanian artists Saimir Strati who in September 2008 completed a visually stunning "Mediterranean-themed" mosaic made up of 229,675 wine bottle corks.

The artwork took 27 days to complete and stretches a whopping 988sq feet! Next time you’re visiting Albania, swing into the Sheraton Tirana Hotel and Towers to check it out!

The Most Expensive Bottle of Wine

1945 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, Romanée-Conti Grand Cru (try saying that 3 times in a row super fast!) was sold in 2018 for astonishing $558,000 USD! 

Many of us may ask...but why was it so expensive? While not a lot is known about the private collector who purchased the history-making bottle, according to bloomberg.com what we do know is that The 1945 vintage of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti is legendary, a virtually unobtainable “unicorn wine.” The year was hot overall, the wines super-concentrated, and thanks to hail and frost, production was small. Only 600 bottles of Romanée-Conti were made, and, at this point, very few are left. There is really no normal opportunity to get it.

Adding to its value is the fact that after the 1945 harvest, the vines were ripped out and the vineyard replanted (queue sad music) and the next vintage of Romanée-Conti wasn’t until 1952!

Oldest Wine in The World

Found in 1867 in the tomb of Roman soldier, the Speyer Wine Bottle is believed to be the oldest wine in existence. Historians believe this wine was bottled in 325-350 AD, making it approximately 1700 YEARS old!

Featuring a wax seal a wine inside that resides with olive oil and herbs, the bottle is on display in the Pfalz Historical Museum in Speyer, Germany

Largest Wine Cellar

The incredible cellars of the Milestii Mici wine-making plant in Moldova contain over 1.5 million bottles of wine. Let’s just all take a moment to let that sink in... ONE AND A HALF MILLION BOTTLES!!!

The bottles are stored in 55 km of underground galleries that were excavated in lime mining operations. The first bottle was stored in 1968, and new vintages are added each year. Milestii Mici is also the name of the town in which the cellar is situated and certainly one to add to your itinerary next time you swing through Moldova.

Whilst aiming to achieve a cellar of this size might be a tad unrealistic for many of us, it is never too late to start your wine collection journey and join the club of wine enthusiasts (or obsessors) by adding to your very first cellar. A great wine to get you started is our GY Welldo Cabernet Sauvignon which is beautiful to drink now but will also reward careful cellaring for 5-15 years

If you’ve never tried Sparkling Shiraz before, imagine a cool, vivid purple frothy liquid that fizzes, bubbles and oozes aromas of blackcurrants, blackberries, chocolate, cherries and strawberries. Once the bubbles settle in your glass, you’ll taste all of that fruitiness along with hints of oak and spice. 

Sparkling Shiraz is one of Australia’s most iconic contributions to the wine world. Inspired by the Sparkling Burgundy’s of France that originated in the 1800’s, Australian Sparkling Shiraz takes our unparalleled Shiraz Wine and enhances it with the brilliant effervescence of sparkling wine. 

While Sparkling Shiraz is produced throughout many Australia wine regions, The Barossa is the mecca of Sparkling Shiraz and you’re highly unlikely to find a Barossa Sparkling Shiraz that isn’t well rounded, full bodied with a great balance of acidity and tannins to tingle your taste buds.

Sparkling Shiraz pairs brilliantly with a variety of foods such as Asian style barbecue pork and teriyaki salmon, glazed ham, roast lamb and even to match your desserts of rich pudding and dark chocolate. However, in our opinion, there is nothing that pairs better with Sparkling Shiraz than a big-ol delicious pizza!

The fizz and tingle of the bubbles in the Shiraz cut through the fat of the gooey-melty cheese and the array of red and black fruits flavours combine with the savoury-ness of the pizza to create a little moment of fruity-cheesy heaven in your mouth! The secret is to make sure your Sparkling shiraz is lightly chilled and not too cold so that you get the full experience of berry, oak and spice.

Ready to throw a Sparkling Shiraz and Pizza Party? We’ve got you! Our CBTD Sparkling Series Shiraz Cleanskin is (you guessed it) straight out of the Barossa, always a crowd pleaser and exceptionally priced!

So go on, pour yourself a glass of lightly chilled Sparkling Shiraz, whack a slice of ozey cheese pizza in your gob and enjoy the magic! You can thank us later.

Winter is officially upon us and it is the perfect time to break out the warm fluffy socks and whip yourself up a batch of warm and toasty Mulled Wine.

Picture yourself here… Its a dark winter night, you’re wearing your fluffiest socks and have just finished lighting the candles (or even better, the fireplace) and your home is filled with the aroma of orange, cinnamon, honey and rich red wine. You pour yourself a mug of warm and steamy mulled wine, sit down in your favourite comfy spot, pop your feet up and take in a deep whiff of the sweet spicy magic drink in your mug…and smile. That's the Mulled Wine effect.

So what is Mulled Wine? Very simply, Mulled Wine (also known as Glühwein) is a classic winter warmer made from red wine, citrus fruits and spices, served warm.

While Mulled Wine dates back to the second century, variations across the globe have evolved over the centuries and most countries and regions have developed their own recipes. Some use honey, others add cherries.. finding the perfect balance between sweet and spicy is what creates the magic of Mulled Wine.

The key to great Mulled Wine (if you haven’t guessed it) is the Red Wine you use. You’re looking for a rich and fruity wine that is sturdy enough to handle the heat and can balance the spices.

With aromas of cherry + blackcurrant and it’s soft rounded finish, Diva Coloratura Merlot is the perfect drop for your next batch of Mulled Wine.

The classic recipe is simple and quick to make, here is our favourite mix:

2 small oranges or 1 large

1 bottle of Diva Coloratura Merlot

¼ cup brandy

1 to 2 tablespoons honey, to taste

2 whole cinnamon sticks

3 star anise

4 whole cloves

Mix all ingredients (except honey) in a heavy bottomed pot and heat slowly. 

Add your honey to taste - finding that perfect balance of sweetness

After 10-15 minutes, your home will smell incredible and your Mulled Wine is ready to enjoy with your favourite people.

However you give it priority in your life, when combined with a decent glass of anything wonderful, the gift of cow to humanity may be life-assertingly good.