Montana Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough, New Zealand) 2000: This has an obvious gooseberry and grass nose, and it is clear before I taste this that this is a classic New Zealand Sauvignon. On the palate it has good balance, with fresh acidity supporting a layer of clean, zippy white fruit. I think as Sauvignon Blanc goes this is pretty good, and this was quite a popular wine on the night. No surprises when the identity was revealed. 16/20

Cosme Palacio y Hermanos Blanco (Rioja, Spain) 1998: A curious nose here, with notes of toffee, wet wool, some lemon sherbet fruit and a light application of oak. Quite a soft and rounded palate on entry, with some oily fruit and more hints of toffee. Plenty of spice on the finish - perhaps from oak maturation? An Old World style, although I'm afraid I didn't improve on this guess, although really all the clues were there. I quite liked this wine, which was a little more serious than the 'fun' Sauvignon just tasted. 16.5/20

Somerset Hill Unwooded Chardonnay (Great Southern, Western Australia) 2000: A very fresh nose, with a zippy and sherbetty lift. Also some notes of quince marmalade and toast. This is intriguing. Quite a delicious palate, with those superbly fresh toast and quince flavours building from a fresh entry to a creamy, honeyed hedonistic texture at the endpalate. The wine must be savoured on the palate to find this, though. There are some notes of spice and pepper cutting through on the finish, and it even has some length. Despite all this, it remains quite dry. What a delicious wine. This one came from a friend of mine who works for Oddbins, who had sampled it at a staff tasting the previous night. I was shocked when the identity of the wine was revealed. Certainly not a typical Aussie Chardonnay. 17/20

Deakin Estate Merlot (Victoria, Australia) 2000: A very spicy nose here, with Christmas cake spice and vanilla oak. Absolutely loaded with ripe brambly fruit on the palate, with a soft, fat, round texture, but with some sharp acidity - suggesting acidification perhaps. There are more spicy Christmas cake notes, with a streak of chocolate. Remains dry. This seems like a fairly typical example of Australian Merlot. To be critical, it all seems a little overdone and like many of these wines, somewhat formulaic. 13.5/20

Rosemount Diamond Label Shiraz (South Australia) 2000: This has dense aromas of chewy fruit with a sprinkle of black pepper. Fairly clean on the palate, quite full bodied, and packed with fruit. Unfortunately it has a background note of sweet molasses that I always seem to find in this wine, and which I don't care for. Nevertheless plenty of chewy fruit, and this wine proves popular with a couple of tasters on the night. 13.5/20

Château de Beaucastel Coudoulet Côtes du Rhône 1997: There are some fresh aromas here, of charred wood, rubber and sweet black fruit. More lovely fresh black fruit on the palate, with a good although somewhat prominent tannic structure. Fresh acidity. This is a stylish Rhône wine which has development potential. 16.5/20

Alamos Bonarda (Mendoza, Argentina) 1998: This is an intense wine, full of dark, chewy blackberry fruit on the nose. The palate is round, fat, oily almost, and full of creamy sweet fruit. Piles of fruit and extract, and very low acidity. This wine seems a bit over the top to me, but I can see its appeal to some. I guess either Zinfandel or overdone Shiraz, as does everyone else. 14/20

Penfolds Bin 28 Shiraz Cabernet (South Australia) 1997: Lots of youthful, minty black fruit here. Smooth and richly fruited on the palate, with a healthy tannic structure. There seems to be good balancing acidity, and a meaty note to the fruit. Good balance with plenty of ripe fruit makes this wine a popular choice on the night. No guess for this or the next wine, because I provided them. 16.5/20

Penfolds Bin 128 Shiraz (Coonawarra, South Australia) 1996: This wine has some meaty, chewy black fruit, with just a touch of a minty edge to the fruit. Some spice and tobacco complexity, but these notes are really subtle. The palate is softer and more meaty than the Bin 28, with some sweet fruit. There are tannins but these are integrating well. A maturing wine, although still with a suggestion of power. 16.5/20