Thank god for social media, because that’s how I recognised the Thomas “Braemore” Semillon on the menu at North Bondi Fish, and it’s the best wine with seafood I’ve had in a while. Anyone used to the usual drumbeat of Australian wine may not recognise this Hunter Valley Semillon at all, as its flavours are so delicate and clean they can seem barely there. That’s exactly why it works so well with the silky flesh of wood-fired Yamba prawns, creamy Moreton Bay bugs, fresh scallops or lobster linguine, because the textures match each other perfectly. It’s as essential to seafood as a lemon cheek and as decadent as a stolen lunch hour at the beach, and once you’ve tasted it, you’ll want it again, which is why we went back to the restaurant the very next day to do just that.
Clever marketing can make you buy something the first time, but it won’t make you buy it a second time. Australian wine marketing has worked very well at the cheaper end of the market for a long time, perhaps because it’s a land of long distances, where a message has to be as clear and simple as a smoke signal to travel from one side of the planet to the other. At lower prices, the wine delivers what it says, the message is simple, and the customer has little to lose, which can’t always be said for fine wine. I didn’t find this wine through marketing, though. I found it through Twitter, word of mouth and the trusted recommendations of wine friends, and I agree with my old boss Nick Ryan that it’s a “cut above.”
Sydney rock oysters and Thomas “Braemore” Semillon 2014
Practical details
Thomas “Braemore” Semillon 2014 winery notes
Review by Nick Ryan
RRP: AU$30
Stockists
Related post: The Mysterious Lady: Hunter Valley Semillon
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