Hunter Valley Shiraz doesn't get more classical than this. The first thing you notice is the colour - it's bright purple, like boysenberry lipstick purple. But don't be fooled; this isn't a big wine, even though the slick, purple-fruited palate is a silken, ripe and plum-laden number. That's the charm here - it's a silky smooth, mid-weight red of black cherry appeal.

While the story of Hungerford Hill goes all the way back to 1967, when the Hungerford family first started planting vines in the Hunter Valley, it's the modern history of this winery that is the important bit. Now once again a family-owned business, and with a portfolio of famous old Hunter Valley vineyards and more wines from the cooler, wilder parts of NSW, Hungerford Hill is back (with a vengeance). You can blame Chief Winemaker Bryan 'BC' Currie for the newness. Bryan famously studied paleontology at university before becoming a winemaker, but there are no dinos here - instead, he produces a clever range that covers everything from the country's best Fiano, superb Tumbarumba Chardonnay & Pinot, a whole array of spicy Hilltops reds, and some of the best preservative-free reds in the Hunter.