Posted: April 26, 2017
Still on sale, this South Auckland red is maturing very gracefully. Like a decent Bordeaux, it is savoury, with moderately rich plum, spice and nut flavours, developing good complexity.
Comments Off on Cliff Edge Awhitu Merlot Cabernet Franc 2009 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This lively wine is from young, estate-grown vines in ‘New Zealand’s most coastal vineyard’ at Seaview, in the lower Awatere Valley. Pink and smooth, it has fresh, red berry flavours to the fore, hints of spices and herbs, balanced acidity…
Comments Off on Yealands Estate Single Vineyard Marlborough Rosée Awatere Valley Rosé 2015 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
A drink-young style, this medium-bodied, vibrantly fruity wine has citrusy, slightly peachy and spicy flavours, showing good depth. (From Greystone.)
Comments Off on Thistle Ridge Waipara Pinot Gris 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Enjoyable young, this regional blend was mostly grown in the Cromwell Basin, with smaller parcels from Gibbston and Alexandra. Hand-harvested and matured in French oak barriques (15% new), it is ruby hued, with mouthfilling body, satisfying depth of plummy flavours,…
Comments Off on Supper Club Central Otago Pinot Noir 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This ruby hued red was grown at Rapaura and fermented with indigenous yeasts (hence the ‘Wild’ Valley). Mouthfilling and smooth, it has decent depth of fresh berry, plum and spice flavours, showing some savoury complexity. Best drinking mid-2016+.
Comments Off on Stoneleigh Wild Valley Marlborough Pinot Noir 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Enjoyable young, this is a vibrant, ‘fruit-driven’ style of red, grown in the Wairau Valley and seasoned with American oak. Still purple-flushed, it has fresh, berryish flavours to the fore, with hints of plums and spices, gentle tannins and a…
Comments Off on Saint Clair Vicar’s Choice Marlborough Merlot 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
A good, all-purpose white, full-bodied, fresh and rounded. Moderately priced, it has vibrant, peachy, slightly spicy flavours, well-balanced, smooth and dry.
Comments Off on Peter Yealands Marlborough Pinot Gris 2015 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Grown at Gladstone, this single-vineyard Wairarapa wine is fresh and citrusy, in a youthful, slightly sweet style with lively acidity and good flavour depth. Best drinking mid-2016+.
Comments Off on Paddy Borthwick New Zealand Riesling 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This easy-drinking wine is a blend of Marlborough and Hawke’s Bay fruit. Tank-fermented and lees-aged, it is fresh and medium-bodied, with citrusy, peachy, slightly spicy flavours, slightly sweet and crisp, and satisfying depth. Good for this summer.
Comments Off on Giesen New Zealand Pinot Gris 2015 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This fresh, crisp and lively bubbly was made from chardonnay, grown in the Wairau Valley, Marlborough. It’s a stimulating aperitif, not complex, but citrusy and slightly sweet, in a very attractive, refreshing style.
Comments Off on Giesen Classic Cuveé Pinot Noir 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Enjoyable young, this is a blend of Awatere Valley and Wairau Valley grapes. Ruby hued, it is mouthfilling, with cherry, plum, spice and herb flavours, showing a touch of complexity, and a smooth finish.
Comments Off on Dashwood Marlborough Pinot Noir 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Crisp and lively, this light wine (9 per cent alcohol) is gently sweet, with satisfying depth of tangy, citrusy flavours, showing a touch of bottle-aged complexity.
Comments Off on Brancott Estate Flight Waipara Riesling 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This tangy, medium-bodied wine is very fresh and lively, with melon/lime flavours showing very good poise and depth.
Comments Off on Toi Toi Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2015 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Grown near Cromwell and oak-aged for six months, this ruby hued, mouthfilling red has generous, ripe cherry and plum flavours. A moderately complex style with gentle acidity and a smooth finish, it’s a drink-now or cellaring proposition.
Comments Off on Toi Toi Clutha Central Otago Pinot Noir 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Fine value North Canterbury red, full-bodied, generous and smooth. Bright ruby, with good depth of cherry, plum, dried herb and spice flavours. Softly textured, with some complexity, it’s already enjoyable and should be at its best 2016+. (From Limestone Creek,…
Comments Off on Thistle Ridge Waipara Pinot Noir 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Offering good value, this is a blend of upper Awatere Valley (principally) and lower Wairau Valley fruit, mostly handled in tanks, but 30 per cent barrel-fermented. Mouthfilling, it has fresh, citrusy, peachy flavours to the fore, with savoury, slightly buttery…
Comments Off on Supper Club Marlborough Chardonnay 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Priced sharply, this is a mouthfilling, slightly creamy wine with considerable complexity. Still youthful, it has very good depth of peachy, citrusy, biscuity flavour and a finely balanced, smooth finish.
Comments Off on Stoneleigh Marlborough Chardonnay 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Still very youthful, this pale pink wine was made from hand-picked grapes, with some use of barrel fermentation. Medium-bodied, it has fresh, gentle strawberry, peach and spice flavours, showing a touch of complexity, and a crisp, dry finish.
Comments Off on Spy Valley Pinot Noir Marlborough Rosé 2015 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This estate-grown wine was hand-harvested at Kina and matured for 11 months in French oak barriques (25% new). Bright ruby, it has good depth of cherry, plum, spice and dried herb flavours, with savoury notes adding complexity, and a moderately…
Comments Off on Renato Nelson Pinot Noir 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This rare wine (70 cases) was estate-grown in the Wairarapa and made by Paddy Borthwick, an ‘intuitive, impulsive’, right-handed vigneron. Showing light, slightly developed colour, it is fairly similar to its Left Hand stablemate (above), but slightly more herbal, in…
Comments Off on Paddy Borthwick Right Hand New Zealand Pinot Noir 2011 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Enjoyable young, this is a light ruby red, with moderately concentrated, ripe cherry, plum and spice flavours, a hint of dried herbs, some savoury complexity, and a well-rounded finish.
Comments Off on Mt Beautiful North Canterbury Pinot Noir 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This youthful, medium-bodied wine is citrusy, slightly biscuity and buttery, in a cool-climate style with fresh acidity and a creamy texture. Best drinking mid-2016+.
Comments Off on Mt Beautiful North Canterbury Chardonnay 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This mature, light orange blend of chardonnay (44 per cent), pinot noir (43 per cent), pinot meunier (8 per cent) and cabernet franc (5 per cent) was grown in Hawke’s Bay. Crisp and lively, it has peach, strawberry and spice…
Comments Off on Leveret IQ Rosé NV Methode Traditionnelle NV / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Medium-bodied style with pear, lemon and spice flavours and a touch of complexity from fermentation in tanks and oak puncheons. Elegant, hand-picked style, currently quite youthful and restrained; open 2016+.
Comments Off on Greystone Waipara Valley Pinot Gris 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Still unfolding, this deep ruby, mouthfilling red has very good depth of ripe plum and spice flavours, showing some nutty complexity, and finely balanced tannins. Worth cellaring.
Comments Off on Goldwater Wairau Valley Marlborough Pinot Noir 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Aromatic, fresh and lively, this youthful, light-bodied wine was hand-picked at 19.8 brix and made in an off-dry style (7.3 grams/litre residual sugar). Racy, with very good depth of lemon/lime flavours and a slightly minerally thread, it’s well worth cellaring;…
Comments Off on Craggy Range Te Muna Road Vineyard Martinborough Riesling 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This sharply priced red is ruby-hued, fresh and finely textured, with cherry/plum flavours, showing good delicacy and harmony. Skilfully crafted, with a touch of complexity, it’s already drinking well.
Comments Off on Black Cottage Marlborough Pinot Noir 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This floral, supple red was grown at three sites in the Awatere Valley and matured for nine months in French oak barriques (30% new). Light ruby, it is an elegant style with moderately concentrated berry, plum, spice and dried herb…
Comments Off on Awatere River by Louis Vavasour Marlborough Pinot Noir 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This powerful red is full-coloured and sweet-fruited, with strong, plummy, spicy flavours and finely balanced tannins. Full-bodied and concentrated, it’s well worth cellaring.
Comments Off on Vavasour Marlborough Pinot Noir 2013 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Drinking well now, this blend of Awatere Valley and Wairau Valley grapes was partly barrel-fermented. Mouthfilling and smooth, it has generous, ripely herbaceous flavours, with a hint of green capsicums, a very subtle oak influence, lees-aging notes adding complexity and…
Comments Off on Toi Toi Reserve Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Highly aromatic, with lots of youthful impact, this Wairau Valley wine is vivacious, with good body and fresh, crisp melon/lime flavours, showing excellent intensity and harmony.
Comments Off on Tiki Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2015 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This tangy, vivacious wine was grown in the Southern Valleys and aged on its yeast lees. A crisp, medium-bodied style, it is tightly structured, with ripe melon/lime flavours, hints of capsicums and gooseberries, and excellent purity and length.
Comments Off on Ten Sisters Single Vineyard Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Showing lots of personality, this great-value wine was ‘wild fermented by the micro-flora that occur naturally in the Rapaura environment’. The bouquet is punchy, with some complexity; the palate mouthfilling, very fresh and vibrant, with incisive, ripe, tropical fruit flavours,…
Comments Off on Stoneleigh Wild Valley Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2015 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This deep ruby, sturdy, savoury wine is named after the Rapaura series of soils, rather than the district in the Wairau Valley. A single-vineyard red, it is full-bodied, with ripe plum and spice flavours, revealing good complexity, and a moderately…
Comments Off on Stoneleigh Rapaura Series Marlborough Pinot Noir 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
From the north side of the Wairau Valley, this is a classic Rapaura style, with ripe, tropical fruit aromas and flavours. Crisp and punchy, with good freshness, vigour and intensity, it should be in top form this summer.
Comments Off on Stoneleigh Latitude Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2015 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Currently slightly oaky, this youthful Ure Valley wine was hand-picked and fermented and lees-aged for 10 months in French oak barriques (25% new). It is mouthfilling, with fresh, citrusy, peachy, toasty flavours, strong, vibrant and well-rounded. Open mid-2016+.
Comments Off on Saint Clair Pioneer Block 4 Sawcut Marlborough Chardonnay 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Still unfolding, this partly hand-harvested wine was fermented and lees-aged for 10 months in American oak barrels (50% new) and given a full, softening malolactic fermentation. Full-bodied, it has rich, peachy, citrusy flavours, seasoned with sweet oak, and a well-rounded…
Comments Off on Saint Clair Omaka Reserve Marlborough Chardonnay 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Made in a full-bodied, dry style (4.5 grams/litre residual sugar), this single-vineyard, Brancott Valley wine was tank-fermented and lees-aged. It is mouthfilling, with fresh, youthful pear, lychee and spice flavours, showing very good vigour and depth. It’s still unfolding; open…
Comments Off on Saint Clair Godfrey’s Creek Reserve Marlborough Pinot Gris 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Already drinking well, this amber hued, single-vineyard dessert wine was hand-picked and handled entirely in tanks. A strongly botrytised style, it is sweet but not super-sweet (97 grams/litre residual sugar), with a nectareous bouquet, good acid spine and rich apricot…
Comments Off on Saint Clair Godfrey’s Creek Reserve Noble (375 ml) Marlborough Pinot Gris 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Light gold, with a spicy, honeyed bouquet, this is a single-vineyard wine, hand-picked in the Wairau Valley. Delicious young, it is medium to full-bodied, in a vividly varietal style with abundant sweetness (161 grams/litre residual sugar), gentle acidity and peachy,…
Comments Off on Saint Clair Godfrey’s Creek Reserve Marlborough Gewurztraminer (375ml) 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This sturdy, full-flavoured wine was estate-grown at Kina, hand-picked and barrel-fermented. Pale straw, it is mouthfilling, with peachy, slightly biscuity flavours, showing very good depth and complexity, a hint of butterscotch, fresh acidity and some potential. Best drinking mid-2016+.
Comments Off on Renato Nelson Chardonnay 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This punchy, intensely varietal wine is a blend of Awatere Valley (70%) and Wairau Valley (30%) grapes. Crisp, tightly structured and slightly minerally, it has fresh, strong melon and green capsicum flavours, with the incisive, nettley notes typical of the…
Comments Off on Peter Yealands Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2015 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This mouthfilling, generous and supple red was estate-grown in the Wairarapa. Full, bright ruby, it has strong, plummy, slightly herbal and nutty flavours, showing good complexity, and gentle tannins. Already enjoyable, it’s a drink-now or cellaring proposition.
Comments Off on Paddy Borthwick New Zealand Pinot Noir 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
From Gladstone, in the Wairarapa, this mouthfilling wine is peachy and dry, with generous stonefruit flavours, woven with fresh acidity, slightly buttery notes and excellent body, texture and harmony. Drink now or cellar.
Comments Off on Paddy Borthwick New Zealand Pinot Gris 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Estate-grown in the Wairarapa, this rare wine (70 cases) gave left-handed winemaker Braden Crosby the chance to express his ‘logical, precise’ approach. Bright, light ruby, it is a ‘feminine’ style, with plum, cherry, spice and nut flavours, showing good complexity…
Comments Off on Paddy Borthwick Left Hand New Zealand Pinot Noir 2011 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This fragrant, fleshy wine is powerful (14.5% alcohol) and creamy-textured, in an Alsace style with a sliver of sweetness, balanced acidity, and strong stonefruit and spice flavours. Drink now onwards.
Comments Off on Mt Beautiful North Canterbury Pinot Gris 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Scented, mouthfilling and crisp, this single-vineyard, Cromwell Basin wine was fermented in a 50/50 split of tanks and seasoned French barrels, and bottled unfined and unfiltered. Made in an off-dry style, it is fresh and youthful, with tightly structured peach,…
Comments Off on Maori Point Central Otago Pinot Gris 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
This high-flavoured wine was hand-picked, fermented with indigenous yeasts and barrel-aged for a year. Pale yellow, it is mouthfilling, with ripe, peachy, mealy flavours, hints of toast and butterscotch, and impressive complexity, harmony and length. Drink now or cellar.
Comments Off on Kalex Waipara Valley Chardonnay 2013 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Instantly appealing, this light (9.5 per cent alcohol), gently sweet style was grown at Bendigo, in the Cromwell Basin. Tangy, ripe, peachy and slightly spicy, it has good concentration and harmony, in a very expressive style, enjoyable young.
Comments Off on Kalex Central Otago Riesling 2014 / 0 View / April 26, 2017
Posted: April 26, 2017
Delicious from the start, this bright pink, attractively scented wine was made from pinot noir. Full of vibrant, berryish flavour, with hints of plums and watermelon and a hint of sweetness, it’s fresh, finely balanced and packed with youthful charm.
Comments Off on Invivo Sophie’s Marlborough Rosé 2015 / 0 View / April 26, 2017