PEGASUS BAY BEL CANTO NORTH CANTERBURY DRY RIESLING 2020 $40 Grown on the Glasnevin gravels in the lee of the Teviotdale Range, Pegasus Bay’s riesling vines are 30+ yrs old now and each year they strap in to help the Donaldson family create one of New Zealand’s most age-worthy wines. Named after matriarch Christine Donaldson … Read More
waipara
Ataahua Waipara Gewürztraminer 2019
Ataahua Waipara Gewürztraminer 2019 $26 Gewürztramaniacs heed my call! This wine smells like opening the mirror of my grandmother’s bathroom cabinet and catching a waft of that deliciously comforting combo of lavender talc, cold cream, citrus blossom, and peachy, musky face powder. Taste-wise, the texture is lighter, and the mouthfeel is rich yet nicely dry. … Read More
Ataahua Waipara Riesling 2020
Ataahua Waipara Riesling 2020 $25 Man oh man have we seen some romper-ripping riesling recently. If you’re under 40 you may need an older gal to explain what rompers were. Or Google them. Just bear in mind you won’t be able to unsee it. Good thing this honeysuckle and citrus-centric stunner from Canterbury is perfect … Read More
Tiki Wine Maui Waipara Pinot Noir 2019
Tiki Wine Maui Waipara Pinot Noir 2019 $18 Bright as a button and bursting with berries, cherries and all things ‘erries’. Quite how the folk at Tiki Wines are able to make this lithe, luscious, flavour-stacked Maui pinot noir for next to nix is beyond me. Like why dogs do clockwise circles before they curl … Read More
Mischief with Wine Waipara Riesling 2021
Mischief with Wine Waipara Riesling 2021 $22 Beware! Sniffing this wine will send you back to that old 1980s tv ad for Fruju iceblocks where the beautiful, tanned people in bikinis all leap off a yacht and splash into the sea screaming “Ooh Aahh!” It’s awash with grapefruit, apple and punchy, citrus-centric freshness. And while … Read More
Greystone Erin’s Reserve Waipara Valley Chardonnay 2019
Greystone Erin’s Reserve Waipara Valley Chardonnay 2019 $120 The 2018 vintage of this wine absolutely sent me sideways with joy (see here) so I was understandably fizzing to taste the new release and also nervous as heck to see if stylistically it kept to its direction or if it was a different beast. What is … Read More
Black Estate Damsteep North Canterbury Pinot Noir 2019
Black Estate Damsteep North Canterbury Pinot Noir 2019 $52 Floral floral floral! Crafted from fruit grown in the organic, biodynamically-managed Damsteep vineyard which was established back in 1999 on a patch of sandstone and limestone loveliness in North Canterbury. Winemaker Nicholas Brown opts to kickstart the ferment using the yeasts present in the vineyard canopy … Read More
Pegasus Bay Waipara Valley Pinot Noir 2018
Pegasus Bay Waipara Valley Pinot Noir 2018 $52 So exotic and saucy on the nose, it could be the liquid equivalent of a Megan Thee Stallion, Cardi B & Nicki Minaj co-ferment (Google them, you’ll understand) Perfumed with rain on moss, old tree trunks, sweet black tea and wild cherry – and the flavours on … Read More
Pegasus Bay Waipara Valley Gewürztraminer 2019
Pegasus Bay Waipara Valley Gewürztraminer 2019 $30 Smell that beeswax character? That’s coming directly from the high proportion of botrytis-infected fruit (the ‘noble’ rot) which adds sweetness and texture to the already ripe, lychee and ginger-soaked sensations present in the gewürztraminer grapes. Slick, smooth, slippery acidity and luscious length of flavour make this a classic. … Read More
Greystone Organic Waipara Valley Chardonnay 2019
Greystone Organic Waipara Valley Chardonnay 2019 $42 This is the real deal if you’re a fan of coconut, roast pineapple, vanilla and peachy vavoom, then this is your plucky, plush poison. Certified organic and crafted by the ultra-talented Dom Maxwell, this peaches and cream-fest of a chardonnay is juicy, layered with soft almond and nougat … Read More