Tiki Estate Waipara Chardonnay 2019 $19.99 Just bottled a couple of weeks ago, this snappy-fresh chardonnay is unfurling its true flavours of white nectarine, a flick of pineapple, white pepper, lemon, smashed almonds and a click of custard on the finish. There’s an attractive seam of creaminess and yet the acidity is ultra-fresh. Nice chardonnay … Read More
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Zephyr MKI Marlborough Rosé 2020
Zephyr MKI Marlborough Rosé 2020 $33.99 Hop on the Google machine, type in ‘morganite’, and that, my friend is the colour-twin of this shiny-new, eye-poppingly pretty, certified organic rosé. Crafted by Ben Glover, from pinot noir fruit grown on their Dillons Point property in Marlborough, it’s a deliciously dry, mineral-powered spice-fest of a rosé that … Read More
Hunting Lodge Tennessee Red Hawke’s Bay Merlot Malbec 2019
Hunting Lodge Project X Tennessee Red Hawke’s Bay Merlot Malbec 2019 $36 Well yippee ki yay, if it isn’t the deepest, darkest, inkiest red to hit my stirrups in ages. The Project X is big, bold and muscular in all the right places, supersized into the realms of smoke and vanilla from being aged in … Read More
Zephyr MKIII Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2019
Zephyr MKIII Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2019 $33 If you’re expecting a simple splash of bog-standard, sweet passionfruit, peach and par-for-the-course capsicum, then you’ve cruised into the wrong cul-de-sac, my friend. This wine is yellow diamond-bright and scented with oodles of lemongrassy intensity, layers of lemon and lime, buckets of basil and mountains of minerally, quartzy … Read More
Black Estate North Canterbury Treble Rosé 2020
Black Estate North Canterbury Treble Rosé 2020 $32 It’s called the ‘Treble’ because to craft this wine, the team at Black Estate have blended five varieties of grapes (pinot noir, riesling, chenin blanc, cabernet franc and chardonnay) harvested from their three, certified organic vineyards together. Wild fermented with cultures kick-started in the vineyard itself, this … Read More
Kalleske Parallax Barossa Valley Grenache 2018
Kalleske Parallax Barossa Valley Grenache 2018 $39 approx I’m told that Kalleske (who are certified organic and biodynamic) pick the fruit for the Parallax around 2 to 3 weeks earlier than they normally would for fruit for their other wines. They then ferment the juice on its stalks and give it a brief maturation in … Read More
Chard Farrm Mata-Au Central Otago Pinot Noir 2018
Chard Farm Mata-Au Central Otago Pinot Noir 2018 $47 Whenever the Chard Farm family release a ‘Mata-Au’ (pronounced martar-oh) I do a little dance because it’s a floral, flavour-packed, rhubarb-infused sip with buckets of spice, exotic textures and yet has a silky, subtle mouthfeel. Crafted from fruit grown in Chard Farm’s vineyards in Parkburn and … Read More
MKIV Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2018
MKIV Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2018 $23 (tbc) This export-only sauvignon is the little brother to the much bolder and much brasher MKIII. It’s like a lovely second child, a more quirky, worldlier, row-my-own-boat little brother. Worldlier in that it decided to ditch New Zealand and sail to the UK where it’s used its charming fennel, … Read More
144 Islands Northland Chardonnay 2018
144 Islands Northland Chardonnay 2018 $28 Northland has a knack for turning out chardonnay with richness and tantalising creamy textures, and under the watchful eye of Jake Dromgool, one of New Zealand’s star young viticulturists (he’s been on TV and everything!), it takes on extra personality. The roast peach and mango are edged with grapefruity … Read More
Drummond Farm Back Block Martinborough Pinot Noir 2017
Drummond Farm Back Block Martinborough Pinot Noir 2017 $29 Bricky-red in the glass, this 3yo pinot noir is cantering along nicely. Showing layers of savoury spices, freshly-turned earth, smoked rhubarb, wild strawberries, redcurrant and there’s even a slight creamy complexity underlying the spices. Unfined, unfiltered and crafted with minimal sulphur additions, it’s a rumpty, robust … Read More