Wine with Meg + Mel

Send us Fan Mail Meg was meant to be on mic. She misread a message, didn’t show, and we made the only sensible choice: pour a glass and turn our producer Austin into today’s guest. The catch is he’s drinking warm Pinot Grigio in the morning, and we’re using that questionable “liquid courage” to test a bold claim. If you listen to a wine podcast long enough, can you pass a WSET Level 2 style quiz? We run through real WSET Level 2 multiple-choice questions and unpack the why behind the answers. Think vineyard fundamentals like the key latitude band for wine regions, what actually affects temperature in the vineyard, and whether “hand-picked” automatically equals quality. From there we step into winemaking mechanics, including the correct order for most red winemaking (crush, ferment, press), how red wine gets its colour through skin contact, and what old oak vats do once they stop adding oak flavour. Chardonnay lovers get plenty too: we talk barrel fermentation, lees stirring, and why botrytis and flor yeast belong in very different wine conversations. Then we zoom out to wine education itself, comparing WSET Level 2 and WSET Level 3, and asking an uncomfortable question about how much these exams reward essay skills over real trade experience. Meg even storms in mid-recording to react to the warm Pinot situation and help settle a final grape-variety stumper. If you’re studying WSET, building your wine vocabulary, or just want a funny, practical wine lesson you can use at the bottle shop and at the table, press play. Subscribe, share this with a wine mate, and leave us a review, what score do you think you’d get? Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail We catch up with our old mate Warwick Tiernan to unpack how a lifelong love of food, travel, and good chats at bottle shops turns into genuine wine confidence. We taste our way through a Victorian long lunch and focus on stories, regions, and smart buying rather than wine jargon for its own sake. Follow us on Warwicks long lunch and taste along! Wine 1: Redbank King Valley, Elevage Prosecco - https://www.redbankwines.com.au/products/elevage-prosecco Wine 2: Mitchel Harris, Sabre, 2019 - https://mhwine.com.au/products/cabernet-sauvignon-2021-copy-3 Wine 3: Scion, Viognier 2023 - https://www.scionwine.com.au/products/viognier-2023 Wine 4: Vignerons Schmoltzer & Brown, Nebbiolo 2025 - https://www.differentdrop.com/products/2025-vignerons-schmolzer-brown-village-nebbiolo?srsltid=AfmBOoqAqqNIhdzPIR2JP_RyaGl-WjQIAp3_BND7vGnGpzWLqWZmWHZ8 Wine 5: Tahbilk Cane-Cut Marsanne 2019 - https://www.tahbilk.com.au/2019-cane-cut-marsanne-500ml Let us know if you've tried these wines before and if you love them! We'll be back next week with the long awaited return of Mel in a new Wine News episode! Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail We follow the trail of wine and war across the 20th century and it gets stranger, darker, and more human than most wine trivia ever admits. We talk through why the French state treated wine as a cultural and strategic necessity in World War I, including the famous daily ration that grows over time. From there, we look at what war does to vineyards in practical terms: destroyed vines, shortages of copper and sulphur for sprays, labour gaps filled by women and children, and the early push for growers to band together to keep supply moving. It’s wine history, but it’s also logistics, morale, and survival. World War II shifts the lens to occupation and control. We unpack what happens when Champagne, Bordeaux, and Alsace sit under Nazi rule: chateaux commandeered, Champagne diverted, and producers quietly fighting back by hiding the good stock and sending decoy piquette instead. Along the way we connect the long shadow of wartime supply to later oversupply and subsidies, then bring it home to Australian wine culture, from fortified wine habits to irrigated soldier settlement regions and the Yarra Valley’s stop-start story. We even explain the surprisingly wartime origin story behind the Aussie word “plonk”, plus a teaser-worthy detour into modern wine fraud and the Rudy Kurniawan scandal. If you enjoy wine storytelling with real history underneath it, subscribe, share this with a wine mate, and leave us a review. What’s the most surprising wine fact you’ve heard lately? Let us know if you're keen to hear more Wine History and even Wine Fraud! Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail Wine people love a good crisis chat, but what happens when the story gets so grim that customers start believing wine itself is the problem? We’re tackling that head-on, with a glass in hand and a focus on what actually moves the Australian wine industry forward. We start with a bright spot: the Len Evans Tutorial scholars and why this intense, blind-tasting program is considered one of Australia’s most prestigious wine education pathways. From judging workshops to museum wines, it’s a reminder that training, consistency, and clear communication are still the backbone of great wine judging and great wine careers. Then we get into the big mood shift. We unpack the recent pushback against industry doom-scrolling, including Dan Sims’ argument for less wallowing and more customer focus, plus the reality that wine is facing global structural change, generational shifts, and fierce competition from other drinks. That opens the door to fresh thinking, like wine cocktails and new occasions that help people discover Australian wine without the snobbery. We also cover Coravin’s first aged wine clinic in Sydney, what it means to assess an old bottle through the cork, and the uncomfortable possibility of being told your treasured wine is corked. Add new directors on the Wine Australia board, plus how Australian wine shows are evolving beyond the old boys’ club into more diverse panels and stronger mentoring for new judges, and you’ve got a full snapshot of where wine is heading. To finish, we share the fun stuff: KFC’s wine bar pop-up in London and a stack of upcoming wine events worth planning around. If you enjoyed this Wine News catch-up, subscribe, share it with a wine mate, and leave us a review so more people can find the show. As we said on the ep write in! We love hearing from you. Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail Your DMs run the show this time, and the questions swing wildly between deeply practical wine advice and the kind of chaos you only get when you put three opinionated people in front of microphones. We start with the story so many of you asked for: Meg’s time in Chile, including what it’s like moving countries on a one-way ticket, learning Spanish in the cellar, and working outside the big-city wine scene. It turns into a bigger chat about wine careers, humility, and why “making a plan” isn’t the only way to build a life in wine. Then we get personal and answer how we met, why we clicked, and how Mine With Meg And Mel started during COVID as a no-BS wine education podcast for everyday drinkers. Austin jumps in with the behind-the-scenes origin story too, including how he went from listener to essential part of the team. After that, it’s rapid-fire wine nerd gold: does bottle size matter (half bottle vs magnum ageing), what reduction really is, and quick definitions that demystify Baumé and Brix. We also give travel wine tips for the Greek islands, Croatia and Montenegro with one simple rule that works almost everywhere: drink local and try the indigenous varieties. To finish, we get blunt about recycling, wine bottles and the container deposit scheme, then land on the crowd favourite: why sabrage looks so impressive when it’s done properly. Keep the questions coming! We are always checking all of our socials and we love to hear from you! Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail We build a fast, practical way to remember German Riesling by region, then test it with a blind Spätlese flight that forces us to use Mel's... interesting study technique. Along the way we unpack Prädikat ripeness levels, GG and VDP labelling, and the tasting cues that separate Mosel, Rheingau, Nahe and Rheinhessen. If you want to taste along with us check out the list below and message us your thoughts! Wine 1: Donnhoff Riesling Oberhauser Brucke Spatlese, 2023 - https://princewinestore.com.au/donnhoff-riesling-oberhauser-brucke-spatlese-2023.html Wine 2: Keller RR Riesling, 2024 - https://www.nicks.com.au/products/2024-keller-rr-riesling Wine 3: Markus Molitor Bernkasteler Badstuber Spatlese, 2023 - https://princewinestore.com.au/markus-molitor-bernkasteler-badstrube-spatlese-2023.html Wine 4: Georg Breuer Ber Rottland Riesling, 2020 - https://www.nicks.com.au/products/2020-georg-breuer-berg-rottland-riesling As we said, play along at home and write in! We'd love to hear you thoughts on Wine, Riesling, Germany's golden eagle and everything else! Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail The Australian vintage just shrank, but the story is not as simple as “less wine equals higher prices”. We unpack Wine Australia’s national vintage report, why production is down across regions, and what it suggests about oversupply, water constraints, and the long, messy shift from bulk wine to premium Australian wine. If you work in wine, run a cellar door, or simply care about what ends up in your glass, these numbers explain a lot about where the market is heading. Then we zoom in on Tasmania, where bad conditions around flowering and fruit set can trigger the “chicken and hen” effect, leaving uneven bunches and lower yields. The upside is the classic quality question: if fewer berries make it through, do the survivors become more concentrated and exciting? We talk through why vintage 2026 in Tasmania could be a sleeper hit, even if the business reality is tougher for producers who cannot just charge double. From there, it’s over to Europe’s heat. With veraison and ripening now happening under hotter, drier conditions, French PDOs are increasingly allowing irrigation to save crops, and the quality risks look familiar: high sugar, higher alcohol, and flavours and tannins that may not be fully ripe. Finally, we get practical about consumer trends in Australia. Gen Z and Millennials are drinking on premise and they are more willing to pay $18+ per glass, which changes how wineries should think about value, experience, and sales tactics. If this helped you see the wine industry more clearly, subscribe, share it with a wine mate, and leave us a review so more people can find the show. Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail A winemaker gets cut, a flagship winery gets prepped for sale, and suddenly we are not talking about tasting notes anymore. We dig into the Oakridge bombshell: David Bicknell, the winemaker many credit with changing the direction of Australian Chardonnay, is made redundant after decades shaping the Yarra Valley’s most influential single-vineyard wines. The language around it matters, the emotion is real, and the business logic is confronting. From there we zoom out into the Australian wine industry crisis and the structures that helped create it. We talk Endeavour Group, Dan Murphy’s, BWS, Woolworths, Coles, and the retail duopoly that has both selling power and buying power. We unpack “ghost brands”, why shelf space is everything, and how vertical integration can turn a product built on provenance and story into a price-led commodity. We also revisit the political side: ACCC scrutiny, Senate inquiry warnings, and how quickly important reform can disappear when the spotlight moves on. We do not pretend there is one simple fix, but we do land on practical actions for drinkers who want better wine and a healthier industry: check the back label, understand who is importing and controlling the brand, and buy direct from small producers when you can. If this conversation sparks a reaction, share it with a mate, subscribe for more, and leave us a review so more people can find it. Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail Get your clipboard, lab coat and pen at the ready as Meg and Mel NERD OUT on this episode about Gamay. We go deep on Gamay and Beaujolais, from Nouveau history to why carbonic maceration can taste like lollies even when the wine is dry. Along the way we test a budget French bottle against a pricier Cru and an Australian Gamay, then share practical hacks for dissolved CO2 and reduction. Wine 1: Mommessin, Les Papillons Gamay, https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_132844/mommessin-les-papillons-gamay Wine 2: Chateau du Moulin-a-Vant Gamay, 2020, https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_430458/ch-teau-du-moulin-vent-moulin-vent?isFromSearch=false&isPersonalised=false&pageName=category_page&spPageId=viewCategory_API_desktop&pageNumber=2 Wine 3: Golding, Adelaide Hills Gamay, 2024, https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_6008117/golding-adelaide-hills-gamay Keep an eye out for Copper Coins... Shake your wine if you think it's not quite right and tell us what you think! Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail A $25 McLaren Vale Shiraz wins Best Shiraz in the world, so we put Beresford to the test with side-by-side pours and zero patience for hype. We chase what makes the wines feel so seamless, from sub-region minerality in Blewitt Springs to oak choices, label alcohol quirks, and of course the incredible Wine making by Beresfords own Natalie Cleghorn. Beresford Estate Shiraz, 2024, $25:00: https://www.beresfordestate.com.au/products/classic-shiraz-750ml Beresford Estate Blewitt Springs Shiraz, 2023, $45.00: https://www.beresfordestate.com.au/products/estate-shiraz-750ml Beresford Estate Grand Reserve Shiraz, 2017, $120.00: https://www.beresfordestate.com.au/products/beresford-grand-reserve-shiraz-750ml Emblem 'Blewitt Springs' Pecorino, 2024, $25.00: https://www.beresfordestate.com.au/products/emblem-pecorino-750ml Emblem 'Old Vine' Grenache, 2025, $35:00: https://www.beresfordestate.com.au/products/emblem-grenache-750ml Taste the wines for yourself and let us know your thoughts! DM us on Instagram, we're always keen to chat! Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail We stack up the week’s wine news with a mix of hard numbers and genuine bright spots, from rock-bottom bulk prices to a more diverse global awards landscape. We also get real about mental health in the Australian wine industry and why connection, provenance and ethics still matter when times are tough. • Australian bulk Shiraz and Cabernet sitting at extreme low values • what bulk wine is for and why shipping in bulk can be cheaper and more sustainable • how oversupply and the post-China hangover keep pressure on growers • Decanter World Wine Awards results as a snapshot of quality and global change • emerging regions gaining recognition including England, China, Serbia and Uruguay • a Sydney high school site hosting CSIRO disease-resistant grapevine trials • powdery mildew and downy mildew pressure in warm, wet climates • crossbreeding versus GMO and how the wine industry thinks about it • mental health pressures from isolation, long hours, uncertainty and access to alcohol • practical support ideas like community breakfasts, viticulture groups and Rootlings • a Halliday column on provenance, ethics and finding hope in wine Yeah, go read it. It’s called It Might Take A Graveyard to Show It, but there’s Life in Wine Yet. Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail We test a bold theory about Langhe Nebbiolo by blind tasting four bottles across wildly different price points. The surprise isn’t just which wine wins, but how often this Piedmont red delivers that savoury, cherry-driven “drink well, don’t think” comfort. Play along at home and check out the wine below! Wine 1: Rivetto Langhe Nebbiolo - https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_68716/rivetto-langhe-nebbiolo?srsltid=AfmBOorN2gz9HPOrsMgQaplLjdGVWDw5Hg1GHUA3rXc3HtC75ynPQWEv Wine 2: Fontanafredda Langhe Nebbiolo - https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_318128/fontanafredda-langhe-nebbiolo?srsltid=AfmBOoq_GuKJvUwf_HHILn5obBBbiQ6_nDtlydEgf4f0oRZBx01s-CK- Wine 3: Massolino Langhe Nebbiolo - https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_275885?store=1026&gclsrc=aw.ds&e_cid=ps:ds:GOOGLE:A212+-+Standard+Shopping+-+PLA+-+All+Products:All+Products:ds_keywords%3Dds_kw:PRODUCT_GROUP&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21000445336&gbraid=0AAAAADidTxD23Pb7HRued-uaMRy3M-_sF&gclid=CjwKCAjwgO7RBhBKEiwAZNP85iE-n9RQjNKEcA8qviMXDoCATML4it1_nAkin4GZikeyKT2JfvRLVRoC29oQAvD_BwE Wine 4: BelColle Langhe Nebbiolo - https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_260173?store=1038&gclsrc=aw.ds&e_cid=ps:ds:GOOGLE:A212+-+Standard+Shopping+-+PLA+-+All+Products:All+Products:ds_keywords%3Dds_kw:PRODUCT_GROUP&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21000445336&gbraid=0AAAAADidTxD23Pb7HRued-uaMRy3M-_sF&gclid=CjwKCAjwgO7RBhBKEiwAZNP85lIpyq0GjjnRGVg7p9LHX5W_N9S0vftvvzHsQP_mpcfBWgvMi8U0ZxoClbkQAvD_BwE If you want don't want to know the winner DON'T read on OUR FAVE WINNER: Wine 4 BelColle Langhe Nebbiolo! Let us know your thoughts here or on Instagram Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail We taste Pinot Gris versus Pinot Grigio blind and find the difference is real when we focus on structure instead of label hype. We also share the tricks we use to call style, origin and quality, including why bitterness and balance matter more than fancy tasting words. Get your notebook out and play along at home! Wine 1: Pizzini King Valley Pinot Grigio 2025 - https://www.pizzini.com.au/products/pizzini-pinot-grigio-2025?srsltid=AfmBOorLRzoyyHl-VgV1ETi8MjSfuZDxzcTsvKQavTw3xW-sQvF-0qrl Wine 2: Roaring Meg Mt Difficulty Pinot Gris - https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_705149?srsltid=AfmBOor7jOD3GiHLJPMuJRQ_aS0PshOby0oFT8mDNKZ2BUZaxX17Eo_l Wine 3: Dopff Au Moulin Pinot Gris - https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_328945/dopff-au-moulin-pinot-gris?srsltid=AfmBOooLTm0fl232vVUcHpcuf5jR6YodT09qG7HGi081Z9onjImHGPcF Wine 4: Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio - https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_907682/santa-margherita-pinot-grigio?srsltid=AfmBOor6s6UvGVVbXIllTqm8CTraexRDz_O8tYFdASJrnA3CYGsY_kYg Message us your thoughts on this intriguing grape variety! Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail Sweet red wine keeps flying off shelves, so we taste what people actually buy and try to work out what’s driving the demand. We get blunt about confected flavours, then land on a more useful answer: sweetness, spritz, and lower alcohol can make real sense with spicy food and for beginners. Buckle Up and if you want to play along... don't. If you're a sucker for pain, wines below. https://www.yellowtailwine.com/en-au/product/shiraz/ https://brownfamilywines.com.au/products/brown-brothers-dolcetto-and-syrah https://brownfamilywines.com.au/products/brown-brothers-cienna https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_6062659?store=3252&gclsrc=aw.ds&e_cid=ps:ds:GOOGLE:PMAX+-+Wine+-+Red+Wine::ds_keywords%3Dds_kw:&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23473283649&gbraid=0AAAAADidTxAL6mw1uqqsYfCYJAoeF6ga1&gclid=CjwKCAjw857RBhAgEiwAI-1yKMC1_PB1eVm01u0ZT7GhHsii4t9QaNhsyZ-JV9wbzgOVsQNRKcNu5hoCuhoQAvD_BwE For the love of god. Don't do this. Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail We jump from rare Grenache by the glass to the bleak reality of industry restructuring, and ask what keeps wine alive when the money and the politics turn cold. Along the way, we dig into Endeavour’s winery sell-off, a federal budget that leaves wine behind, and the real vineyard trade-offs behind water use and dry farming. It's not all doom and gloom as Producer Austin spent the week discovering what "wellies" are and we thank Handpicked for bringing a bit of wine romance back into our lives. Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail We sit down with Brendan Carter from Unico Zelo and Bottle Shock to unpack why the Riverland became synonymous with bulk wine and why that mindset blocks real solutions for growers. We chase the economics, the history, and the human cost, then land on a practical way to rebuild demand by putting place, old vines, and story back at the centre. If you have old vines, give us a call. If you know of old vines, give us a call. If you see Riverland on a label, buy it. Watch the whole video here! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faIlImCDDs0 If you want to get in contact with Brendan Carter please email him below! brendan@unicozelo.com.au https://bottleshock.tv/ Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail We test how much fried chicken changes what we taste in wine. We taste Fried Chicken (known for its 11 Secret Herbs & Spices) with four different wines and land on a big big winner! And the Winner is.... CHENIN BLANC! https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_141243/boschendal-sommelier-selection-chenin-blanc?srsltid=AfmBOop4UKEn_vykFkkL9mg2IAoCboTZeH5nP3XG1TrnCFSP8-kVi8EA I just really want to know if we have any listeners that are actually going to have KFC and and go to the effort of going and buying a $25 Chenin, but our listeners have done weirder... And keep your Unpopular Wine Opinions coming! Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail We put our reputations on the line with a rapid-fire round of unpopular wine opinions, then dare you to come for us in the comments. From cheese pairing myths to rosé shade, Sauvignon Blanc redemption, “fault” versus flavour, and biodynamic root days, we argue like we mean it and back ourselves to the end. Good news I found the Wine I mentioned at the start of the ep! - Austin 2021 Sutton Grange Estate Syrah: https://suttongrange.com.au/products/2021-sutton-grange-estate-syrah?srsltid=AfmBOorfxd73uu1ksDasUtAxw1aqn-QHKOPk-yntqNepG-tjQl8TG6fv&variant=44794915586215 Tell us in every way that we are wrong. If you agree or disagree, we want to hear from you. Instagram is the best place. Not a DM, don’t do it as a DM because I’m bad at answering DMs. Let us know your unpopular wine opinions. Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail Beechworth may be Australia’s smallest GI, but we taste why it’s become one of the most talked about premium wine regions in Australia. We dig into the price reality, the Beechworth Chardonnay obsession, and what makes the whites and reds feel so textured yet fresh. Schatz Sylvaner 2023 - https://www.vsandb.com.au/shop2/2023-schatz-sylvaner Willem Kurt Beechworth Chardonnay 2024 - https://www.willemkurtwines.com.au/wine/2024-chardonnay Fighting Gully Road Sangiovese 2024 - https://fightinggullyroadwines.com.au/shop/2024-Sangiovese-Beechworth-p720528942 Unfortunately the Shiraz is no longer available but check out Castagna's catalog! - https://castagna.com.au/order-wine/ Follow us on social media, make sure you’re actually following, and hit the follow button on Spotify or Apple! Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel

Send us Fan Mail “Prosecco” is one word, but it carries a whole fight about history, labelling, and who gets to own a name. We unpack the newly completed EU trade deal that lets Australian producers keep using Prosecco in Australia, while forcing a phase-out for exports over the next 10 years. If you’ve ever wondered why Champagne is protected, why Glera exists, or how a rebrand can ripple through shelves and sales, we lay it out in plain language and ask the hard question: is this a loss, or a chance for Australian sparkling wine to stand on its own? Then we pivot from trade policy to pure excess with the latest record for the most expensive bottle of wine ever sold: a 1945 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti that went for around $1.5 million AUD. We talk about what that money is really buying, whether a bottle like that should ever be opened, and why rarity drives the fine wine collecting market in ways that have nothing to do with a simple “is it tasty?” test. From there it gets practical: cellar door tastings, bus groups, and the new normal of seated experiences and tasting fees. Are wineries making wine tourism better, or accidentally training visitors to buy less after paying for the tour? We also take on the “move over Chardonnay” narrative and debate alternative grape varieties, with Aligoté becoming the lightning rod for a bigger question about consumer demand versus insider boredom. If you enjoy smart wine chat with strong opinions, subscribe, share this with your wine group, and leave a review. Then jump into our socials and tell us: what would you rename Australian Prosecco, and are buses good or bad for wineries? Follow us on instagram @winewithmegandmel and TikTok! @winewithmegmel