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SLEEVE NOTES

One Eighty Wines: Four local lads, studying law and commerce, decided to execute a daring ‘180’ and plunged into the wild world of winemaking. They gathered experience working for wineries across South Australia, interstate and overseas, before releasing their first wines (including a Fume Blanc, a Shiraz and a Chardonnay) in 2022.

Queen: Four not-so-local lads charted their own ‘180’ when Freddie Mercury and Roger Taylor left behind a market stall they ran in Kensington Market and Brian May decided not to use his degree in Physics and Infrared Astronomy. By 1975, Queen had released A Night At The Opera, then the most expensive album ever made, complete with an epoch-defining number called ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’. Track #4, ‘You’re My Best Friend’, by contrast, was an unassuming homage by bassist John Deacon to his wife.

TASTING NOTES

Adelaide Hills Gamay: Honestly, I wasn’t anticipating a lot from this Gamay. I don’t know why. Perhaps it was due to the late hour and a 15-hour workday. As I took that first sip, it was everything a Gamay should be – crisp and clean with punnets of vibrant red cherry. It not only proved fruity, it was approachable, easy and moreish. While lacking complexities, it did what was expected of it, and it did it very well. It didn’t ask me to think about it – it asked me to relax and enjoy it.

‘You’re my Best Friend’: The moment the song begins, you’re instantly drawn in by its distinctive, barking bass. Thereafter the song doesn’t aim for intricate layers or an awe-inspiring eight-minute epic invoking opera; Instead, it follows a straightforward verse-chorus-solo formula, clocking in at a concise 2.50. It’s a pleasant little ditty. It leaves you feeling, for want of a better word, happy.

IN CONCLUSION

Both Queen and One Eighty Wines broke from their everyday normal, smartly turning around to face new challenges in life. But the Gamay and the track pair sweetly for a different reason: it feels like both parties said, “You know what? We could do something fucking astonishing, but sometimes our audience just wants something that will make them feel to feel happy.” Neither the wine nor ‘You’re My Best Friend’ are mind-blowing experiences, but they’re not meant to be. They’re enjoyable, simple, well-executed – and just a tad fruity.