Author: Yvonne
Duck Creek ‘The Messenger’ Merlot Malbec Cabernet Franc 2010
Duck Creek ‘The Messenger’ Merlot Malbec Cabernet Franc 2010 $85 Who says the Gimblett Gravels and Waiheke Island are the be all and end all of great kiwi Bordeaux-style reds? This is a stunning example from the Stillwater area just north of Auckland near the Whangaparoa Peninsula and it’s a muscular, multilayered wine with leathery, … Read More
Saint Clair Premium Marlborough Pinot Noir 2011
Saint Clair Premium Marlborough Pinot Noir 2011 $26 Incredibly rich, bright, vibrantly fruited with wild strawberry, cherry and exotic spices. It’s a sensational pinot for the price and boasts lovely complexity and luscious length of flavour. www.saintclair.co.nz
Ohau Gravels Sauvignon Blanc 2011
Ohau Gravels Sauvignon Blanc 2011 $23 Fresh, punchy and packed with passionfruit and lime – this is a little cracker from New Zealand’s newest wine region. I like the clean, rich, flavoursome mouthfeel, and I think it’ll drink nicely for the next couple of years. www.ohaugravels.co.nz
Renaissance Craftsman Chocolate Oatmeal Stout
Renaissance Craftsman Chocolate Oatmeal Stout 500ml $10 With a hefty addition of oatmeal and dark roasted cocoa nibs this has a thick, foamy, coffee-coloured head, aromas of espresso and smoky treacle. In the mouth it is smooth, silky and has an almost meaty richness and a long, persistent finish. www.renaissancebrewing.co.nz
Yalumba ‘The Reserve’ 2001
Yalumba ‘The Reserve’ 2001 $128 Impenetrable, squid ink colour, and for an 11 year old wine it’s still so incredibly fresh with sweet cocoa, christmas pudding spices, exotically rich and densely concentrated dark fruit flavours. A blend of Barossa-sourced Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz which is only made in exceptional vintages, it’s a wine that’s really … Read More
Neudorf Home Vineyard Moutere Pinot Noir 2010
Neudorf Home Vineyard Moutere Pinot Noir 2010 $79 Wow! Scented with exotic baking spices, cinnamon, black guava, cocoa, rhubarb, succulent tannins and beautifully balanced acidity and lush, sexy length of flavour. A little more time in the cellar and it’ll be a showstopper for sure. www.neudorf.co.nz
Balthazar Hawke’s Bay Merlot Cabernet Franc 2010
Balthazar Hawke’s Bay Merlot Cabernet Franc 2010 $25 Inky and glossy in the glass, it’s a deep, brooding, earthy wine which is stitched together with violet, dark berryfruit, pepper, smoke and hints of graphite. Succulent, solid tannins add to its chewy length of flavour and its potential to cellar nicely indeed.
Incognito Prestige Awatere Sauvignon Blanc 2011
Incognito Prestige Awatere Sauvignon Blanc 2011 $15 This is a definite new favourite for me – aromas of freshly chopped herbs, fennel, lime and pineapple lead to a juicy, flavoursome palate that’s tangy but not tart and has layers of concentrated citrus all the way through to the finish. An absolute steal and it’s available … Read More
Riverby Estate Marlborough Syrah 2011
Riverby Estate Marlborough Syrah 2011 $27 These syrah grapes have been in the ground for 20 years, making them some of the earliest planted in the Marlborough region. Boysenberry, black cherry and soft spices ooze through on the nose and it’s a very gentle, warming, comfortably textural wine with slippery-soft tannins. www.riverbyestate.com