Here's the brief: delicious reds that are perfect for warmer spring weather; light on their feet, vibrant and packed full of flavour… and of course, great value.

And just like the Mixed Dozen we are matching three reds from Australia to three red from France, Italy and the USA to see who comes out on top. Of course, the only real winner here is you. Corny, but true.

Pinot and shiraz are on the list with some cool climate goodness from the legends at Shaw & Smith and their brilliant 2021 Shiraz as well as Mornington stalwarts Crittenden and their top notch Cris de Couer bottling. They are going up against to fantastic examples from the Coursodon in the northern Rhone and Elk Cove from Oregon. I think this one will be too close to call so don' even bother, sit back with a glass and take it all in.

Of course, with Italian varietals taking off in Australia in the last couple of decades we had have a bit of a head-to-head clash. This time it's Brash Higgins from the Mclaren with his juicy and plush nero d'avola versus one of our favourite examples of the varietal from Feudo Montoni and its home in Sicily. So good!

Fragrant, well-balanced Pinot Noir offering energetic red cherry/strawberry flavours with attractive floral lifts. There’s a touch more weight on this release than has become customary for this label but even so it’s generally slender and elegant. It’s good now but into the medium term it will age well. CAMPBELL MATTINSON, The Wine Front 

The cooler season seems to suit Cri de Coeur as of all the pinots, this has the deepest colour – a vibrant garnet, and has amalgamated the best at this early stage. Fragrant with florals and autumn leaves after rain with flavours of morello and sweet red cherries, tamarind and turmeric, pepper and aniseed melding into the medium-bodied palate. The raw silk tannins have some sway and are just coming into unison, with the acidity allowing a lingering finish. JANE FAULKNER, Halliday Wine Companion 

WINE REVIEW / TASTING NOTE

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Fermented in amphora and on skins for six months with about 20% whole bunches. A deeply brooding expression of nero, this is bristling with savoury flavour: black plum skin, olive, dried black cherry, panforte, amaro, chicory root, tobacco, roasted hazelnut, bitter coffee. Time on skins has built a formidable wall of tannin, but what a pleasure it is, the chewy, mouth-filling impact of long extraction of natural tannin, pressed judiciously and at a mindful point. It’s an imposing, almost imperious wine, with alcohol creeping up, but it all makes such perfect sense. It’s an impressively individual take on the variety. Bravo. MARCUS ELLIS, Halliday Wine Companion 

From the estate vineyard and appropriately made in amphora.

It’s soft, supple, it’s sweet with ripe cherry fruit, maraschino strong here too, pomegranate juice. Red berry ahoy! It’s attractive and slurpy, perhaps a bit of a hole in the middle of the wine but a joyous expression with ripeness and concentration on hand. That being said, pretty elementary, straightforward, albeit easy to get stuck into and appreciate. A bundle of fun. MIKE BENNIE, The Wine Front

In a cloud of crushed violet candies, sugar-dusted currants and hints of sage evolve, making the 2020 Nero d'Avola Lagnusa a total aromatic pleasure. Soft-textured and round, this impresses further with ripe red and blue-toned fruits, complemented by sweet spice over a core of vibrant acidity. The Lagnusa finishes remarkably fresh yet long, leaving the mouth-watering while still resonating on hints of blackberry and a bitter twang of sour citrus. ERIC GUIDO, vinous.com 

Feudo Montoni enjoys a long history in the Valledolmo region of central western Sicily. Their cellars are housed in the baglio (a typical Sicilian building) built by the noble Aragonese family in 1469. The property was purchased by current owner and winemaker Fabio Sireci’s grandfather Rosario in the late 1800s. The old-vine material at Feudo Montoni has proven to be an invaluable resource, and many other Sicilian producers have sought out cuttings from these venerable old vines.

While Nero d’Avola grows practically across the whole of Sicily, the resultant wines vary dramatically based on where it is planted. There is a level of refinement and purity coupled with vibrant aromatics in the wines of Feudo Montoni, due in no small part to the high altitudes of 500–600 metres. These wines couldn’t be further from the riper, broader styles synonymous with the low-lying coastal vineyards of Sicily. 

This is a beautiful release of Shaw + Smith Shiraz. It’s even-handed and well tempered but then it’s all joy from there. A forest of berries, a walk through flowers, peppers flung through and rubs of woodsy spice; the combination of fruitiness, savouriness, seriousness and fun is a highway to pleasure, built on wine. For all that the tannin is another dimension in itself; fine, lacy, assertive and savoury at once, complete with its own twiggy spice notes. It’s drinking beautifully and it will continue to do so. (96) CAMBELL MATTINSON, The Wine Front 

Leaner, lighter and fresher than what I recall, although picked later than usual. A cool and attenuated year, more Euro of styling, the platform. Real vibrato! Satsuma plum, lilac, Bing cherry, star anise and clove meld with white pepper, cedar and vanillin-framed tannins that drive proceedings long. Savvy bunch and oak assemblage confer poise and authority. Classy, while needing time to shed the oak cladding. NED GOODWIN MW, Halliday Wine Companion