Lyndal Taylor has led the beverage program at Brae since January 2022, and is the restaurant’s head sommelier. She joined the team with 20 years’ experience in hospitality, having earned her stripes in Melbourne, the Mornington Peninsula and London, and holds the WSET Level 4 Diploma. Brae’s wine list holds the maximum three-glass rating from Australia’s Wine List of the Year awards.
Here’s what’s drinking well according to Taylor.
When someone hands me a drinks list I usually order Champagne, unless there is a stand out local sparkling; something like Eastern Peak Brut Nature from the Victorian Pyrenees would be a very easy yes. I then dive in because I love to explore what other sommeliers find interesting and delicious and learn about producers and wines I haven’t had the opportunity to try yet. I love seeing how others construct their lists and the incredible thought and detail that goes into choosing the right beverages that make sense to the venue and enhance an experience.
The last three delicious Victorian things I drank were…
2021 Mount Mary chardonnay – enjoyed on a date night out at Noble Rot wine bar in Point Lonsdale; a cosy spot by the water with an incredible wine selection, honest and delicious food and warm and friendly hospitality. We treated ourselves with this iconic Yarra Valley estate’s chardonnay and what a treat. Concentrated, pure fruit, wonderful, pithy texture and bright refreshing acidity all in perfect harmony. We drank it with some snacks and a pork cutlet with sauce charcutière – divine.
2008 Castagna ‘La Chiave’ sangiovese – at Brae lately, we’ve been pairing this special wine with venison course (wild-shot fallow deer roasted on the bone, with eggplant, preserved plum and bitter chocolate). Castagna is a biodynamic Beechworth estate producing wines which encapsulate sense of place and vintage. I would happily take my time with this wine and maybe sit by a fire and contemplate life’s mysteries. It is drinking beautifully right now. The wine’s age adds complexity with layers of earthiness and warm, spice fragrance interlaced with cherry fruit and a gentle herbaceous lift. Soft, fine tannins and serious length. Just stunning.
2016 Heroes Shiraz – I tasted this wine at a Rhône varieties tasting group recently and boy did it stand up to some giants. James Thomas, a very humble, very talented man, crafts wines of purity, energy and soul from a dry-farmed vineyard in the Otways, just 10 minutes’ drive from Brae. Even with a marginal climate for ripening shiraz, the 2016 shows power, elegance and length. It’s still so alive and youthful. It’ll be fun to see how it evolves over another five to 10 years (if I had the self-control to keep it in the cellar). If you can get a visit in to Heroes cellar door, you won’t regret it; there’s a variety of wines to enjoy and lovely people who truly care about the land and their wines to chat with.
My favourite place to buy booze is Winespeake, Daylesford and now in Anglesea as well. The OG in Daylesford is a place you can settle in for some snacks and a glass or bottle (or two!) and watch the world go by. It is a beautiful store filled with personality and shelves and shelves of interesting wines from rare cult classics to rising stars, including a lot of love for local producers, and back vintages too. You can also pick up some cheese and charcuterie and take the party home. The service is always friendly and knowledgeable and the offering exceptional. They have just opened a second store a bit closer to home, in Anglesea; a slightly smaller space packed with goodies and places to sit and enjoy the sun outside or cosy up inside.
I’d love to see people brewing more sake! Sake is becoming more and more popular among diners and I think perhaps it’s because it pairs so well with food, and like wine, there is a lot of diversity and versatility within the category. Trailblazers Melbourne Sake produce approachable, well-balanced sakes using Australian-grown rice. Each new release is somehow more delicious than the last. They’ve set the bar high. How exciting to think one day there could be more expressions and styles being produced in Victoria.
My guilty pleasure at the bar is bourbon! It is completely nostalgic and makes me feel a little cheeky and begin to ponder mischief.
The best or most important change to the way people drink in Victoria in recent years has been drinking local. We notice many of our guests thoughtfully choosing to drink Victorian; maybe because they are sitting in a beautiful dining room overlooking a picturesque farm in the country and are filled with gratitude for Victoria. Our list has a strong focus on Victorian producers and we are very proud to present many Victorian beverages throughout our various beverage pairings too. We are spoilt for choice in this state boasting a multitude of nuanced regions and talented and curious makers who have the freedom to create. Whether it be wine, spirits, brews, sake; there is so much diversity, not to mention the incredible non-alcoholic beverages being produced. How lucky are we!
For me, the most inspiring person in the Victorian drinks world is Sierra Reed. Sierra is a Torquay-based winemaker, her and her husband, Evan Milne, are the custodians of a 40-year-old vineyard planted to semillon, riesling and gamay. Sierra also produces wines from sites across Australia, France and New Zealand. Sierra has this powerful energy and passion for all she does and is unapologetically true to herself and to her work. Her wines are made with intuition and care and always show personality and intention, just like her. She’s had plenty of life experience in a relatively short time and has the remarkable ability to adapt, evolve and enhance her skills (i.e. take on a vineyard and embrace viticulture) and take it all in her stride. I am inspired by her confidence and the way she listens to herself and follows her instincts. Her rieslings are my personal favourite wines in her eclectic range; various styles and expressions are made but all display beautiful freshness, mid-palate texture, most show a lick of residual sugar and electric acidity that is lightning! Awesome wines and so much fun with food.
Explore Lyndal Taylor’s wine list and make a reservation at Brae here.