Giving plonk the boot
Our mates at Wine Business Magazine (yes, InSider likes a drop or six) reported recently that the Riverland has reached a milestone. InSider will let WBM tell this one:
The indefatigable Ash Ratcliff from Ricca Terra says on Facebook that he is going to be releasing a super-premium red wine from the Riverland called UNA VITA – for $100 a bottle.
We’ve got one thing to say to you, Ash – it had better be good for two pineapples. Especially when I can buy 25 bottles of Hidden Gem Semillon Sauvignon Blanc and a packet of Twisties for the same price.
“To my understanding,” says Ash, “this is the first Riverland wine to demand such a price.”
Let’s not forget that Berri Co-Op Winery & Distillery won the 1973 Jimmy Watson with the Dry Red Claret/Burgundy (Cabernet Shiraz) 1972. It was made by Brian Barry OAM. Brian shared his last bottle with Philip White in 2010.
So, 50 years since the Riverland won our most famous trophy. The Riverland should really make a song and dance about that milestone. Deserves a statue, a plaque on a park bench or a news in brief in The Murray Pioneer.
InSider did one better and brought the news to you, our dear (most likely thinking about a wine at Friday knockoff) reader. If you are hunting for some Ricca Terra and don’t fancy the drive, the Riverland winery has a pop up cellar door in the Myer Centre… the best use of space since Dazzeland.
Cover model
Speaking of the Myer Centre, this weekend you can place your face on the cover of InSider’s favourite street press CityMag by simply heading to the shopping mall and seeking out our photo booth. It’ll take your snap and spit out a wonderful cover for you. It’s all part of the ADL Fashion Festival, so dress appropriately and slay.
Life’s a beach
Leon Bignell MP has been in Mexico in an official capacity to watch Beach Volleyball… in a bull ring. Adelaide is hosting the World Beach Volleyball Championships in November 2025. So, the former sports minister was there to get some tips… hopefully not at the pointy end of a matador.
He did report to be a bit salty at having to hand our bronze medals to the Americans… who beat the Aussies.
Stuff you should know…
South Carolina hot pepper expert Ed Currie has broken his own world record with a pepper that’s three times hotter.
Pepper X was named the hottest pepper in the world by the Guinness Book of World Records, beating his Carolina Reaper in Currie’s hunt to perfect a pepper that he says, provides “immediate, brutal heat.”
Currie said when he first tried Pepper X, it did more than warm his heart.
“I was feeling the heat for three-and-a-half hours. Then the cramps came,” he told AAP as one of only five people so far to eat an entire Pepper X.
“Those cramps are horrible. I was laid out flat on a marble wall for approximately an hour in the rain, groaning in pain.”
Heat in peppers is measured in Scoville Heat Units. Zero is bland, and a regular jalapeno pepper registers about 5000 units. A habanero, the record-holder about 25 years ago, typically tops 100,000. The Guinness Book of World Records lists the Carolina Reaper at 1.64 million units.
Pepper X’s record is an average of 2.69 million units. By comparison, pepper spray commonly holstered by police is around 1.6 million units. Bear spray advertises at 2.2 million units.
