CLARE VALLEY, Australia—Of all the wine sagas that I’ve followed over the decades—the rise of California; the decline of everyday Bordeaux; the stunning renaissance of Italy; the revitalization of Spain; the wholly new appearance of Oregon and Washington—none quite equals the roller-coaster ride of Australia.
In the space of little more than a decade, Australian wine went from a strictly local item fighting for shelf space and cultural legitimacy in a beer-besotted country to a worldwide phenomenon that single-handedly knocked France off the (low-priced) shelves in Great Britain and was fast encroaching on comparably low-priced wines in the United States. Like some alien invader, Australian wine was a commercial juggernaut that seemingly came out of nowhere.
Then, about five years ago give or take, the juggernaut ground to a halt. All of a sudden, it seemed that nobody wanted Australian wines anymore—or publicly admitted to it, anyway. Producer after producer here in Australia told me point-blank during my three-week-long trip last month that they had no market in the United States. I heard time and again that their importers either cut orders severely or left off importing their wines altogether.
Every wine industry has its missteps. It happened in Burgundy in the 1970s with excessive yields creating dilute, almost anorectic wines; in California in the 1980s with flavorless “food wines;” and in Oregon with a self-proclaimed pair of supposedly great vintages (1986 and ’87) that set the region back in public esteem and credibility for nearly a decade. The list could easily continue with, for example, Austria’s disastrous scandal in 1985 involving wines spiked with diethylene glycol.
In all of these cases, what emerged from the ashes was a vastly improved wine culture in each locale. Burgundy has never made better red wines, in my opinion, than it does today. (White Burgundies are more problematic as the yields for Chardonnay are still way too high for consistent greatness, to say nothing of the nagging, aggravated and still-unsolved problem of premature oxidation in white Burgundies.)
Austria radically reformed itself after the wake-up call of the scandal, and its wines have never been purer, finer or more profound. California has gone from strength to strength, from an explosion of ever-better Pinot Noirs and Syrahs to the still-evolving maturation of largely new (and often cooler) wine zones along the Central and Sonoma coasts. Oregon, for its part, is now creating the best Pinot Noirs it has ever made.
But what of Australia? Right now, Australian wine suffers a nearly worldwide lack of esteem. Where only just a few years ago seemingly everyone was oohing-and-aahing over the new Australian wine baby, today there’s a collective shrug. It’s just another baby—and maybe it really wasn’t all that cute anyway.
Australia’s fall from grace had a velocity I’ve never before seen. I can’t think of another wine country that, Icarus-like, flew so high and fell so far in so short a time.
“If you’re thinking, ‘Great, just what we need: more syrupy, over-alcoholic Barossa-style Shiraz,’ think again.”
Now, the question is: Where to go from here? In both value and quantity the plunge continues. According to Impact, a trade publication of M. Shanken Communications, “Exports of Australian wine have fallen in value for the third consecutive year, experiencing a 9 percent drop … for the 12 months through December 2010.”
And what is sent abroad is increasingly exported in bulk form, as a cheap commodity item. Higher-value bottled wine exports continue to decline: exports of bottled wines to Australia’s two most important markets—Great Britain and United States—fell in volume by, respectively, 28 percent and 4 percent, according to Impact.
While other wine zones may have more breathing room thanks to, say, a larger local audience, which is the key advantage of American wine producers, many other nations are nowhere near as fortunate. (New Zealand, for example, exports fully 71 percent of its entire wine production.)
Many wine zones are faced with becoming “mini-Australias” as worldwide wine competition increases, exchange rates become unfavorable (Australia; New Zealand; Europe), local production levels become insupportably large (Italy, Spain, California) or lopsided in variety (New Zealand with Sauvignon Blanc; Oregon with Pinot Noir) or the luster simply wears off (Napa Valley; Brunello di Montalcino).
Mind you, none of this is inevitable. But the nature of the world today makes Australia’s astoundingly rapid fall a cautionary tale. Simply put, things happen faster and more dramatically now. The reasons may differ—Japan’s appetite for luxury products may contract because of a new mindset from the earthquake—but markets indisputably now react more severely than, say, 10 years ago.
This is why I went to visit Australia’s Clare Valley. Such a statement may seem a non sequitur, but I assure you it’s not. I went to Clare Valley to see the future—and the redemption—of Australian fine wine.
About 90 miles north of Adelaide, Clare Valley is a narrow strip of farmland—really several lateral ribbons of hillsides—that’s one of the oldest winegrowing areas in Australia, dating to the 1840s. With just 2,500 acres of vines, it’s overshadowed by its much larger and equally old neighbor, Barossa Valley. Yet the two zones, despite their proximity (the two districts are 60 miles apart), create distinctly different wines—and have utterly different mentalities.
Where Barossa has long been the titular headquarters of some of Australia’s biggest wine companies—and consequently has suffered disproportionately from their bulk-processing mindset—Clare Valley is far more artisanal. Vineyards typically are small: 200 acres of vines would be considered a big holding.
What’s more, Clare retains a distinction that’s remarkable anywhere in the world: It creates stunningly fine dry Riesling alongside equally superb Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon. And if you’re thinking, “Great, just what we need: more syrupy, over-alcoholic Barossa-style Shiraz,” think again. Clare Valley reds are typically sleek and cool-climate in their restraint. Sure, the reds can be amped-up, and a few are. But most are not.
Clare Valley has what all wine lovers should want: artisanal, handcrafted winemaking values allied to a focus on just a few varieties that perform magnificently. And oh yes, the prices are proper. They’re not Australia’s cheapest wines, nor should they be. But you won’t be paying for hype and hoopla either.
For producers everywhere (and we onlookers as well), what Clare Valley represents is what the future will reward: no critter labels, no winemaking trickery; no cheap and cheery and no excess.
If Clare Valley had monks, we’d call it Burgundian—which is what it is, at least in its agricultural modesty. It epitomizes the cure for what ails Australia.

Source: http://www.winespectator.com/webfeature/show/id/44728

Best place to unwind in Angeles City Pampanga Philippines is to wine and dine at Yats Restaurant

Top Fine dining in Manila Philippines, Wine and Dine at Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar, Wine Spectator Best of Excellence Award for top 600 Best Restaurant Wine List in the World, private rooms, vegetarian menus and healthy cuisine available also

Residents of Manila travel out of town for a short getaway up north visit Angeles city, Clark, Pampanga, Philippines to wine and dine and enjoy a special dinner at the best restaurant in the country. Even people from Subic and Cebu travel to Clark to enjoy a special evening and some great food and rare vintage wine at this fine dining restaurant.

Recent opinion survey of frequent travelers heading north towards Subic and Clark Pampanga revealed that the number one most frequently visited fine dining restaurant in Pampanga is Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar located in Clark Philippines.

More and more foodies, critics, connoisseurs, frequent diners and wine lovers from Manila travel out of town north to Clark Pampanga, looking for restaurant that serves the best food in Pampanga, choose to wine and dine in famous fine dining Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar. Most visitors enjoy the fine vintage wines from the cellars of this fine dining restaurant. Some purchase a few to bring back home to Manila.

Many frequent diners from Manila, Angeles City, Subic and other major cities in Asia travel to North Luzon Pampanga Clark Freeport to enjoy good food in a romantic fine dining restaurant. On their list of requirements is a good wine list that not only offers a wide selection of wines from different countries but also older vintages that can be enjoyed now and not ten years later. Classic fine dining is the experience that guests of Clark Philippines’ Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar offers to their guests. Although this is an upscale fine dining establishment, families find the restaurant to be very children friendly.

Private dinners can be accommodated in this famous restaurant located in Mimosa, at the heart of Pampanga Clark Freeport. Private rooms suitable for 4 to 24 can be reserved in advance for company and personal functions and events. This fine dining restaurant is a very popular venue for small wedding receptions, social events, company board meetings and annual parties. Many travel all the way from Manila to hold their group dinners and private parties in this famous restaurant in Clark Pampanga.

Philippines Pampanga Clark Freeport is well known for its safety and security, boasting the lowest crime rates in the country. The absence of traffic and pollution also helps to position Clark Pampanga at the top of tourists’ list of destinations for vacation and get-away from Manila with families and friends.

Wine lover’s choice – Yats Restaurant and Wine Bar – for the most impressive and practical wine list in the Philippines, over 2700 selections, enough to satisfy the most fastidious connoisseurs. Wine lovers and gourmand foodies from Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Korea and Malaysia dine at Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar when they visit Philippines and bring home some rare vintage wines too back home from Clark Pampanga.

An excellent wine list is not just about 1st growth and cult Cabernet but a seemingly unending selection of affordable aged vintage wines that are not available anywhere else, not even in the best wine shops around town. Yats Restaurant which is located in Clark Pampanga has just that.

Fine dining Yats Restaurant and Wine Bar is frequently used for private meetings, corporate events and social functions. Located in Mimosa Leisure Estate at the heart of Clark Freeport Zone, this top rated resto bar is a highly recommended meeting destination in Pampanga, Philippines.

For comments, inquiries and reservations click on Click here for inquiry and reservations

Restaurant@Yats-International.com

(045) 599-5600
0922-870-5178
0917-520-4401

Ask for Pedro and Rechel

www. YatsRestaurant.com

Getting to this fine dining restaurant of Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone Pampanga Philippines
How to get to this fine-dining restaurant in Clark Pampanga? Once you get to Clark Freeport, go straight until you hit Mimosa. After you enter Mimosa, stay on the left on Mimosa Drive, go past the Holiday Inn and Yats Restaurant (green top, independent 1-storey structure) is on your left. Just past the Yats Restaurant is the London Pub.

Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar
Mimosa Drive past Holiday Inn, Mimosa Leisure Estate,
Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga, Philippines 2023

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3003C East Tower, Phil Stock Exchange Center,
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For any assistance in planning and organizing a wedding ceremony, indoor or outdoor garden reception or to find other wedding service providers, Click here to contact us click here

For assistance in hotel and resort bookings in Clark, Pampanga, Philippines, log on to
http://www.HotelClarkPhilippines.com

To buy wine in Manila, Pampanga, Angeles City, Clark or Subic please log on to http://www. ClarkWineCenter.com

To inquire with the highly recommended beach resort hotel in Clark Pampanga visit http://www.ClearwaterPhililippines.com

For more information about Clark, Pampanga, Philippines log on to
http://www.ClarkPhilippines.com