Wine Blast with Susie and Peter

Ridge is an iconic wine producer - not just in its homeland California, but in global terms too.

But how and why did it attain this status in just 70 years? Is it really true their policy has been never to hire a trained winemaker? What is this 'pre-industrial winemaking' they champion? How have they managed to successfully buck the trend for opulence in California Cabernet? Which of their wines (whisper it) don't we ...

Wine. In a can. A hellish reality of tinny plonk? Or a convenient, eco-friendly, fun new format that's the future for wine? 

This is fun one, because our adventure starts with comedy legend (and proud French snob) Marcel Lucont. We're not only treated to an epic live rendition of his scabrous poem 'Wine in a Can' (compulsory listening for any wine lover) but also his delicious musings on wine and life more genera...

Appellations are wine regions with rules, normally associated with Europe. So how come an enviably free-wheeling, super successful region like New Zealand's Marlborough has felt the need to develop Appellation Marlborough Wine?

We put this question and more to Ben Glover, renowned winemaker and proud Appellation Marlborough Wine (AMW) member. He talks about, 'ripping the beige quilt off Marlborough' and his distaste f...

Wine and other booze are under attack like seldom before, from many sides: moralists, the media, health authorities citing dubious studies... So it's high time we reminded ourselves why wine is important, the many values and benefits it has, and what we can all do to challenge these pernicious narratives.

Don't worry. This isn't some dry treatise or frothy-mouthed rant. We are privileged to have acclaimed authority Ka...

Western Australia's Margaret River is renowned as one of the world's foremost fine wine hotspots. But it only got started in 1967, so how has it built that reputation so fast? What makes this place unique? Why is it called, 'wine utopia' as well as, 'the best hangover cure known to man'?!

Join us as we go behind the scenes with a star-studded list of Margaret River wine royalty, from Cape Mentelle to Cl...

What the hell...where the hell...is the Great Southern?! That's what most people say. Which is why Peter got on a plane and braved fires, snakes and Vegemite to bring you this story of what is arguably Western Australia's best kept secret.

Remote? Undoubtedly. Rural? Positively. Hugely exciting for the elegant, refined, often under-valued Riesling, Chardonnay, Cabernet, Shiraz...even Grenache and Mourvedre?! You ...

Why does wine taste the way it does? Why does Cabernet smell like blackcurrant? Or Syrah like pepper? Or Beaujolais like...bananas?!

In this intriguing show our genial, white-coated guide is wine chemist and sensory scientist Gus Zhu, the first Chinese Master of Wine. As he says, 'Behind every glass of wine, there is science.'

In terms of chemistry, wine is one of the most complex solutions on the planet...

Is it a white? Is it a red?! Is it a rosé??!!

Or is our WINE OF THE YEAR none (or all) of the above...because it is, quite simply, pure gold?

Welcome to our Wines of the Year show, an annual favourite where we look back over the past year, not always entirely seriously, and raise many a glass in the process.

We recap on key news, play Guess the Missing Word in the Wine Headline, share listener input...and...

There's a revolution going on in the vineyards. It's coming to a glass near you soon. And it could change the world of wine forever.

We're talking super vines. Bionic vines. PIWIs. Resistant vines. Hybrids. TEA vines - the new generation, 'assisted evolution' kit. Whatever you want to call them - there's a new breed of grape vines spreading fast all over the wine world, from Champagne to Piedm...

This show's got everything. It's got deliciously unexpected wine discoveries. It's got live music. It's even got a donkey. You can't ask for more than that.

As for how that all comes together...well, you'll just have to listen, won't you?!

This episode's all about Portugal's white wines, the best of which are astonishingly good and different and worthwhile (and, relati...

Ladybug poo. Cheesy feet. Mould. Boiled eggs. Cabbage. Drains. Vomit. Nail varnish remover. Dead mouse...

Yes, you can find all these noxious aromas in a glass of wine. They are very real - and in this episode we put our bodies on the line as we blind taste through all these horrors and more, to answer the big questions and ensure you know your stuff. (Because life is too short for faulty wine.)

So what are the ma...

China has the world's third biggest vineyard and a long history with fermentation and booze. So what's Chinese wine like? Why do we not see more of it outside China? And why are some people predicting big things for Chinese wine in the future?

Answers to all this and more flow thick and fast in this intriguing episode, the result of Susie's recent wine trip to China during which she sat down to record with e...

Consider this our call to arms for wine. Where we grapple heroically with the thorny issue of wine and health, calling out misinformation and over-reach, and learn that the truth is always complex, potentially positive - but often mis-represented. This makes us angry and frustrated. And you should feel the same too.

You may also feel confused or jaded by this topic. Understandably so. But join us and we will hopefully clea...

A hop, skip and jump away from Sydney, the Hunter Valley is renowned as the birthplace of Australian wine. And yet this is far from ideal wine territory: hot, sticky, often stormy. So how did this tiny wine region come to play such an outsize role in Ozzie wine’s history and evolution?

Join us to find out why as we chew the cud with Hunter legend Bruce Tyrrell (sample quote: ‘I’m the luckiest man in the wine industry’) and...

It's a biggie. Our Chile Wines of the Year 2024 - a celebration and exploration of this slender South American nation's wines. And what's coming up may surprise you. So if you think you know Chilean wine - be prepared to think again.

We discuss vineyards planted before the French revolution, sensational value Pinot Noir (the holy grail!), flor-aged Semillon, a Pinot Gris inspired by the great orange wines of...

Climate change is a worry. We get it. But how to do something positive about it, especially as a wine lover? After all, it's not easy knowing which wines to buy to support producers doing the right thing...

Which is where the IWCA comes in handy - International Wineries for Climate Action. This is a bunch of conscientious wine producers who have signed up to stringent, science-based carbon emission audits and committe...

It's popular, it's pleasurable - and it's much misunderstood. Rosé is having a moment and yet the myths remain pervasive.

That's our cue to ride to the rescue, busting a host of rosé myths as we go, shooting down cardinal sins from the hip, and urging a radical re-think of rosé all round.

We hear from rosé experts Elizabeth Gabay MW and Ben Berhneim as well as fifth-generation producer Carolin...

Wine can seem tremendously unimportant at a time of war. At what is a torrid time in the Middle East, we wanted to check in with three winemakers - from Palestine, Israel and Lebanon - and ask: can wine really be a source of positivity during troubled times?

What we hear in this episode may surprise you. It's a departure from our regular format - a bonus extended edition - because we wanted to give proper airtime to t...

Wine brings pleasure. But for some it can also prove painful. Red wine is particularly problematic for a proportion of the population, with just a few mouthfuls bringing on swift and excruciating headaches.

Now scientists think they may finally be on to why. In lab experiments, they've identified a compound in red wine that impedes the breakdown of alcohol by the liver and causes a build-up of toxic acetaldehyde in th...