Eliminate the "hit & miss"
& Discover Wine like never before

THE TUNGSTEN CLUB

OUR PROMISE

The Tungsten Club was established in 2006 by Winemaker and Pharmacist, Craig Frawley, quite simply because no other wine club in Australia delivered a properly tailored approach.

Our Promise is simple. As a member:

1. You will love EVERY wine that we ever recommend to you - thanks to our Palate Profile™ process (see below);

2. Each wine will continue to deliver over time, thanks to our 3-Day Wine Test (see below);

3. We will expand your knowledge about wine - to make you the wine guru; and

4. You will NEVER pay more - Guaranteed.

3 DAY WINE TEST

“The 30 Second Swill is Just Not Enough.”

The process of swilling wine around the mouth for 30 seconds in isolation to rate a wine, is one of the great untruths of the wine industry. Let me explain. At any major wine show in Australia, there is always a 2 tier process to judging a wine. Firstly, in any particular class of wine style, wine judges will trawl through literally hundreds of wines using a quick ‘30 second swill’. Those wines are initially rated using a 20 point system. But then, the next day, any wine receiving a Silver medal rating or higher (17 points out of 20 or more), is then re-judged more closely to determine if indeed the initial rating is accurate but to carefully confer gold medal or trophy status on the best wine(s). This is a great strength of the wine show process. The point here is that to truly determine (i) the quality of a wine but also (ii) gain an idea of its cellaring potential, you cannot simply observe a wine for 30 seconds. To accurately assess its suitability for cellaring takes repeated observation over days. At Tungsten, we use a 3 Day Wine Test, which has 2 parts:

STEP 1

Firstly, like in the wine shows, we exclude the wines which will not make the quality cut we are looking for (i.e Gold Medal standard or higher). Since our formation in 2005, we have regularly held selection tastings and rejected every wine on the table.

STEP 2

Then, we watch the wines which pass the original review and monitor them regularly for 3 days after opening - this uncontrolled oxidation in the glass mimicking the controlled oxidation (aging) which will occur in the bottle over decades. This process is absolutely vital to ensure (a) that our initial qualitative assessment is correct and (b) to ensure that what tastes great today will continue to develop and provide enjoyment for years to come. Quite often, wines will fall over after a day, however Tungsten quality wines will keep singing for 2-3 days after opening as a sign of their structure, quality and potential.

WHY YOU NEED TUNGSTEN TO FIND THE WINES RIGHT FOR YOU

Aggregation of the retail liquor channel in Australia means that 2500 plus local wine producers (who generate around two billion litres of wine per annum) clamour for space in just two large retail chains responsible for $7 of every $10 spent on liquor in this country.
Of the 2,400 plus local wine producers, the 20 largest account for 90% of national production volume and hence occupy well over 90% of retail space. Supply chain dynamics dictates that volume resellers must align with volume producers. This means that the most dynamic, uniquely focused and desirable wine can never secure retail exposure, because quite simply, they don't make enough.
Like the hardness of Tungsten metal, the Tungsten Club was originally developed by Craig Frawley and a small panel of wine industry experts to source the wines which don't make it to retail and are hard to find. That is how the Tungsten Club began.

THE PALATE PROFILE™

“You'll notice that we don’t sell wine on this website. Why would I want to sell you a wine you might not like, just because I liked it?"

"Every palate is different. Have you ever noticed that some people love certain varieties and some people don’t. This explains why you can taste a wine rated 95/100 by one wine writer, and yet dislike it. The chemical interaction of thousands of wine compounds with the chemical receptors in your mouth vary infinitely with every person".

At Tungsten, we will teach you that ‘wine ratings’ are a subjective assessment of wine quality and not an absolute one. More importantly, recommending a wine to you without firstly understanding your palate (via a profile process) is like shooting in the dark. According to Craig, ".. retailers or internet re-sellers who use this ‘blanket approach’ are simply demonstrating their desire to ‘get a sale first’ and to create a journey of discovery with you second".

TO START YOUR JOURNEY WITH TUNGSTEN, REVIEW SOME OF OUR EDUCATION VIDEOS BELOW :)

VIDEO 1

UNDERSTANDING WINE RATINGS

VIDEO 2

HOW TO TASTE WINE

VIDEO 3

UNDERSTANDING WINE STRUCTURE

VIDEO 4

AGING WINE

VIDEO 5

DECANTING

TESTIMONIALS - LOTS OF HAPPY MEMBERS :)

MR GEOFF GAY

"I was sharing a bottle of Munari Shiraz with a colleague who, after enquiring to the name of the winery, simply said in reply, 'It's fantastic – I've never heard of it' and to me, that's the whole point."

DR PHIL HAND

"Really fine wine that is hard to get that I would not otherwise have seen or tried. Keep going…"

MR DAVID MCCONVILLE

"After tasting two particular reds with my father and brother, they await future tastings with the anticipation of a child on Christmas Eve!"

DR DAVID MARRIOTT

"As Tungsten Members, we are constantly being introduced to a delightful selection of superb wines. Every one has been a winner, all have been good value, and some have been truly exceptional."

MR SAUL ESLAKE

"An eclectic range of interesting wines that I would not have obtained elsewhere…and certainly not at these prices."

MR BRETT GALLAGHER

"They say you should drink less and better but as a member of The Tungsten Club, I’m definitely drinking better. I have discovered vineyards and wines I would never have known about so ‘CHEERS’ to the tasting and selection team and may they keep it up".

MR ROB TURNER

“Previously, the wines I chose to drink were from a very narrow range as I had established what could only be considered “safe” choices. With The Tungsten, each wine has been exceptional and different allowing you to build your wine knowledge and of course your enjoyment in consuming.”

MRS VIVIEN HUDSON

“I am always interested and excited to see what arrives next.”