ON THE GRAPEVINE | Super stocking fillers to shake up this festive season

It's a Christmas tradition, and getting together and then adding some delicious food and some equally delicious drinks a must.

For those of you who may be bored of the same old Christmas time staples, here are some regional favourites that may shake things up this festive season.

It wasn't that long ago when the idea of going out of my way to purchase a sparking rose from an Australian producer was a long way from the top of my list.

Local sparkling superstars Printhie, however, have created something truly remarkable with this wine.

First of all, this a dry wine, just because its pink, please don't get ideas about it being sweet.

Incredible balance, fresh and a wonderful strawberry richness.

This winner of best sparkling wine in NSW is a local must to bring in the New Year.

Our neighbours to the north have for years produced some dramatic, rich, full-bodied reds.

Third generation family member Jacob Stein, however, now remarkably producers one of the country's most anticipated Rieslings each year.

Crisp, fresh and dry, with a wonderful amount of citrus on the palate, this is a world class wine.

Enjoy it as a starter for lunch, it works incredibly well with lighter dishes, salads and fish.

It used to be a staple across many Australian homes come Christmas times, but for many years struggled in popularity.

Now producers like Seppelt, Best's and Rochford have done tremendous work to lift the quality of this holiday treat.

Locally, wonderful shiraz centric producer, Montoro Wines, are producing a delightful sparkling shiraz.

This wine is a wonderful addition to Christmas pudding and provides a cooler alternative to warmer fortified styles for dessert.

In Bathurst this wonderful distillery has been producing amazing gins year in and year out.

What many also don't know is they produce an incredible spiced rum.

Ringwood and cinnamon myrtle power this delicious spirit and when it's added to say your Christmas rum balls or as digestive to wash down Christmas dinner it's truly remarkable.

This rum is perfectly enjoyable just over ice, so perhaps try straight as a sipping rum first before you decide to add a soft drink to it.

Pete Gerber, for those of you who have come across him, is incredibly passionate about brewing.

His passion always transfers into the incredible beers he launched into a very grateful beer drinking public over the past couple of years.

His Harvest Ale is incredibly remarkable however, brewed in as a mid-strength Australian style pale ale, it has incredible depth of flavour.

A lot of mid strength beers fall flat and have less flavour than a glass of water, however this beer is packing wonderful fruit flavours and is pleasant to drink for those of us looking to take it a little easier these holidays.

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