The Cork Dork | Giggly Grapes

Riesling Wine Guide: The Sweet-and-Dry Shape-Shifter

09/12/2023

Bottle and chilled glass of Riesling with green grapes and lime on a timber table

Bone dry in Australia, sweet in Germany, brilliant everywhere: what Riesling tastes like, how to serve it, the food it loves and a Central Otago bottle to try tonight.

Australian Riesling: Why It Tastes of Lime and Ages for Decades

09/12/2023

Glass of pale Riesling beside fresh limes on slate

Australian Riesling is dry, not sweet. Why it tastes of lime, how Clare and Eden differ, how long it really lasts and what to eat with it.

Clare Valley Wine Region: Riesling Country, Two Hours North

08/12/2023

Clare Valley vineyard rows over low hills with a stone cottage

Australia’s best Riesling country, the valley that talked the world into screwcaps, five cellar doors and a 35 kilometre trail you can ride between them.

Agiorgitiko Wine Guide: The Noble Red of Nemea

07/12/2023

Glass and bottle of Agiorgitiko with dark grapes, plums and oregano

The blood of Hercules, and Greece's answer to Merlot: what Agiorgitiko tastes like, how to say it, what to eat with it, and the closest bottle you can buy tonight.

Airén Wine Guide: The Unsung Hero

06/12/2023

Glass and bottle of Airén with green grapes and olives

The most-planted white grape you have never ordered: what Airén tastes like, why most of it becomes brandy, what to eat with it, and the closest bottle you can buy in Australia.

Best Wine for Sangria: What to Buy (and What to Skip)

06/12/2023

Jug of red sangria with orange slices beside a bottle of red wine

Cheap, dry and fruity beats expensive every time. The red and white grapes that make good sangria, the ones to avoid, a jug recipe and how strong a glass really is.

Best Wine for Mulled Wine: 9 Reds That Work (and What to Avoid)

03/12/2023

A steaming glass mug of mulled wine with an orange slice and cinnamon stick, spices scattered on a dark wooden table

The best wine for mulled wine is cheap, fruity and low in tannin. Nine reds that work, the ones to avoid, a stock-checked bottle, our basic recipe with three twists and the standard-drinks maths.

Best Wine With Pizza: What to Pour for Every Topping

30/11/2023

Neapolitan margherita pizza on a board beside a glass of red wine

Salt, acid, fat and char all fight your wine at once. Here is what to pour for margherita, pepperoni, mushroom and white pizza, and what to leave shut.

Beginners Wine Guide – Understanding the Basics

22/11/2023

Wine has a lot of words, most of them French, and most of them invented to make you feel like ...

What Are Tannins in Wine? The Dry, Grippy Bit Explained

22/11/2023

A glass of deep red wine beside dried grape skins and seeds on a dark bench

Tannin is the dry, grippy feeling a red wine leaves behind, and it is a texture rather than a taste. Here is where it comes from and how to soften it.