Volcanic Wine Awards | The Jancis Robinson Story

Writing under the influence

Monday 4 January 2021
Dalwood Estate, Hunter Valley, New South Wales

The background to Max's hugely original new book about Australian grog. See Tam's enthusiastic review of Intoxicating.

Connections was a ground-breaking television documentary series in the late 1970s that explored the web of interrelated historical events and technological breakthroughs that – often by chance – helped to create the modern world.

As a kid, watching TV in London, I was glued to the show. It was mind-expanding to watch presenter, science historian James Burke, trace a line in one episode from the Dukes of Burgundy and their soldiers, through the invention of food preservation to maintain Napoleon’s armies, to...

Become a member to continue reading
Member
$135
/year
Save over 15% annually
Ideal for wine enthusiasts
  • Access 287,397 wine reviews & 15,847 articles
  • Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
Inner Circle
$249
/year
 
Ideal for collectors
  • Access 287,397 wine reviews & 15,847 articles
  • Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
  • Early access to the latest wine reviews & articles, 48 hours in advance
Professional
$299
/year
For individual wine professionals
  • Access 287,397 wine reviews & 15,847 articles
  • Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
  • Early access to the latest wine reviews & articles, 48 hours in advance
  • Commercial use of up to 25 wine reviews & scores for marketing
Business
$399
/year
For companies in the wine trade
  • Access 287,397 wine reviews & 15,847 articles
  • Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
  • Early access to the latest wine reviews & articles, 48 hours in advance
  • Commercial use of up to 250 wine reviews & scores for marketing
Pay with
Visa logo Mastercard logo American Express logo Logo for more payment options
Join our newsletter

Get the latest from Jancis and her team of leading wine experts.

By subscribing you agree with our Privacy Policy and provide consent to receive updates from our company.

More Max on Oz

Project 5255 vintage 2022 winemakers
Max on Oz In South Australia, giving away grapes turns out to make good business sense. Above, winemakers involved in Project 5255, vintage...
Australia 2023 total crush by grape colour
Max on Oz This column marks ten years of Max Allen’s contributions to JancisRobinson.com. His first regular article, on Australia’s next generation of...
The Goulburn River spilled over its banks, flooding the vineyards at Tahbilk.
Max on Oz Floods and drought collide in eastern Australia. The last time the cellars flooded at Mitchelton was 1974, just after the...
Screwcaps
Max on Oz Do screwcaps preserve wines during a glorious evolution, or stunt their development? In 1977, when Clare Valley winemaker Andrew Mitchell...

More from JancisRobinson.com

flowering Pinot Meunier vine
Tasting articles Once a bit player, Pinot Meunier is increasingly taking a starring role in English wines. Above, a Pinot Meunier vine...
2brouettes in Richbourg,Vosne-Romanee
Free for all Information about UK merchants offering 2024 burgundy en primeur. Above, a pair of ‘brouettes’ for burning prunings, seen in the...
Opus prep at 67
Tasting articles Quite a vertical! In London in November 2025, presented by Opus’s long-standing winemaker. Opus One is the wine world’s seminal...
Doug Tunnell, owner of Brick House Vineyard credit Cheryl Juetten
Tasting articles Save water, drink these wines from the Deep Roots Coalition, a group of wineries who eschew irrigation. Among them is...
Rippon vineyard
Tasting articles Twenty-two reasons not to do Dry January. Among them, a Pinot Noir produced by Rippon, from their vineyards on the...
Las Teresas with hams
Nick on restaurants Head to the far south of Spain for atmospheric and inexpensive hospitality. Above, the Bar Las Teresas in the old...
cacao in the wild
Free for all De-alcoholised wine is a poor substitute for the real thing. But there are one or two palatable alternatives. A version...
Sunny garden at Blue Farm
Don't quote me Jet lag, a bad cold, but somehow an awful lot of good wine was enjoyed. This diary is a double...
Wine inspiration delivered directly to your inbox, weekly
Our weekly newsletter is free for all
By subscribing you're confirming that you agree with our Terms and Conditions.