asian food: Delicious wines for all seasons 15 August 2006 By CHARLES GILL My recent wine encounters have included fresh-faced whites, rich, generous reds and a luscious liqueur tokay – wines for all seasons, in fact. Warming winter reds have been in great demand recently, and what better than a powerful, full-bore – and high alcohol – shiraz to combat wintry winds and chills. Tatachilla 2004 Keystone Shiraz Viognier (about $21) is a classic Australian battleship red from the heart of McLaren Vale that would warm the cockles of anyone's heart. This is modelled on the hauntingly beautiful Cote Rotie wines of the northern Rhone, where French vintners found that a spicy syrah (a.k.a. shiraz) was elevated into something special with a splash of the aromatic white variety, viognier. This is a big, concentrated wine with plenty of alcohol, dark, brambly fruit and hints of liquorice. In the last couple of years I have been captivated by the style and swagger of our Hawke's Bay syrah, which is a world away from the style of Oz shiraz. Our syrah is not sweet and over-ripe, but floral and spicy, with silky tannins and a dry but soft finish. Which brings me to New Zealand's best value syrah – Red Rock Gimblett Gravels The Underarm Syrah 2004 (about $21). Cheekily named to remind our Tasman neighbours of an infamous cricket match in the 1980s, and so that our super syrahs might enable us to extract a measure of revenge in due course, this is a plump, rich red with oodles of spice and dark berry fruit. When Kiwis eat at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, it should be their wine of choice. If you're still not a believer in our scintillating syrah, a total conversion is guaranteed after a glass of Vidal Soler Syrah 2004 (about $42). Champion syrah and champion wine overall at the 2006 Royal Easter Show, this is a fabulously fragrant, concentrated and voluptuous red that most people adored at a recent tasting in town. With fresh spring scents just around the corner, why not open an aromatic and zesty Marlborough savvy and pretend that spring has already sprung? Mt Riley 2005 Sauvignon Blanc was a crowd favourite at a recent tasting, and I also enjoyed its frisky citrus and passionfruit flavours. If you must drink white wine on a dark, wintry day, the Trinity Hill Gimblett Gravels Viognier (about $29) is an expensive but appropriate choice. This is a sensuous wine with the richness of chardonnay and the subtle spices of pinot gris or gewurztraminer. Enjoy with a traditional roast pork, or perhaps with Asian food. "Alas, I am dying beyond my means," cried Oscar Wilde as he sipped champagne on his deathbed, but New Zealand's most reliable, quality bubbly is thankfully within reach of most of us. Morton Premium Brut Methode Traditionelle ($18-20) is fashioned by the fizz-master Evan Ward, and a flute or two should not be just a Christmas treat. I invariably enjoy its fresh, yeasty flavour and creamy texture – an elegant alternative to the real thing. As for when to drink bubbly, I agree with a Mr Churchill, who said, "There are only two occasions when I drink champagne, and these are: when I have game for dinner, and when I haven't." Australia's gift to the wine world is not shiraz but the unique Liqueur Tokay and Muscats that are the glory of north-east Victoria. Fortified and aged in old oak barrels for decades, they emerge as dark, sticky elixirs of strange beauty. Morris Liqueur Tokay NV ($22 for 500ml) is a malty, raisined dessert wine that is perfect with mince pies or Christmas pudding, so why can't Santa come early this year?