Obsidian Waiheke Island Pinot Gris 2019

March 17, 2020By Yvonne

Obsidian Waiheke Island Pinot Gris 2019 $30 Hands up if you’ve been hunting high and low for a pinot gris that’s both lusciously sweetish up front, yet finishes deliciously dry and long.  The team at Obsidian have cracked it well and truly.  With nashi pear niceness, lemonade apple and baked quince characters which merge into … Read More

Mills Reef Elspeth Gimblett Gravels Cabernet Sauvignon 2016

March 16, 2020By Yvonne

Mills Reef Elspeth Gimblett Gravels Cabernet Sauvignon 2016 $49.95 Named in honour and memory of Elspeth Preston, grandmother of Mills Reef’s winemaker/owner Tim Preston, and only created in years when Tim and his team feel the fruit is superlative, when the fruit cannot be faulted, and when the positive chi flows through from the East … Read More

Mills Reef Reserve Gimblett Gravels Cabernet Merlot 2018

March 15, 2020By Yvonne

Mills Reef Reserve Gimblett Gravels Cabernet Merlot 2018 $24.95 Right from the very first sip you’ll understand how this wine scooped a gold medal at the 2019 NZ Wine of the Year Awards and why it’s been the darling of wine critics around the traps.  68% cabernet sauvignon was blended with 32% merlot, fermented and … Read More

Pegasus Bay Waipara Valley Chardonnay 2018

March 12, 2020By Yvonne

Pegasus Bay Waipara Valley Chardonnay 2018 $44 The vines that pump out the fruit from which this chardonnay is crafted are over 30 years old.  Now that might not seem that old, but if you think about New Zealand’s modern wine industry really only kicking off in the late 1980’s, and even then, the nation … Read More

Pegasus Bay Waipara Valley Merlot Cabernet 2018

March 8, 2020By Yvonne

Pegasus Bay Waipara Valley Merlot Cabernet 2018 $33 Boasting more berries than a jam session at Strawberry Shortcake’s house, this feisty, fleshy blend of merlot and cabernet sauvignon shows that the southern climes can indeed shine so far as the big reds are concerned.  Showing signature plum, pepper and cocoa characters of merlot, alongside bay … Read More

Thirty One Rows Northbank Marlborough Rosé 2019

March 8, 2020By Yvonne

Thirty One Rows Northbank Marlborough Rosé 2019 $24.99 Finding a 14% pinot noir rosé that still maintains finesse and delicacy is a rare thing, but this wine has cracked it.  Using organically grown fruit from the emerging, Northbank subregion of Marlborough (where he’s also building a family home on the rock formations depicted on the … Read More

Pask Gimblett Gravels Chardonnay 2018

March 8, 2020By Yvonne

Pask Gimblett Gravels Chardonnay 2018 $22 This is my go-to wine when I need something snazzy to pair with dishes featuring brussels sprouts.  Yep.  Brussels sprouts.  I don’t know how it works; it just does.  There must be some science, but like Trump fans I’ll choose to ignore it.  Instead I’ll opt to be fully … Read More

Putangi Central Otago Pinot Noir 2019

March 8, 2020By Yvonne

Putangi Central Otago Pinot Noir 2019 $31 This new range of wines created by Greg Hay and his team at Wet Jacket Wines, is named after the trusty rowboat used by pioneer conservationist, Richard Henry, who in 1894 began ferrying as many of our endangered birds as he could find, from parts of Dusky Sound, … Read More

Smith & Sheth Cru Wairau Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2019

March 8, 2020By Yvonne

Smith & Sheth Cru Wairau Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2019 $28 Each of the vertical panels on the label represents the exact genome sequence of the DNA of the grape varieties that Smith & Sheth grow.  With lemongrassy layers stitched together with powerful passionfruit lime, basil and nectarine notes, it’s incredibly juicy to drink, generously proportioned, … Read More

Putangi Central Otago Pinot Gris 2019

March 8, 2020By Yvonne

Putangi Central Otago Pinot Gris 2019 $24 Putangi was the name of the dingy that pioneering conservationist Richard Henry used in 1894 to ferry endangered birds to the safety of Resolution Island in Dusky Sound.  Saving the kiwi, the kakapo and hundreds of our rarest birds, he was truly ahead of his time, and the … Read More