Te Mata Estate Cape Crest Hawke’s Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2020 $34.90 One sip and you’ll see straight away how this wine has become an absolute aristocrat in sauvignon blanc circles. Gorgeously golden in the glass, it’s crafted from a blend of 85% sauvignon blanc, 9% semillon and 6% sauvignon gris which is gently fermented in … Read More
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Bald Hills Kirameki Central Otago Pinot Gris 2021
Bald Hills Kirameki Central Otago Pinot Gris 2021 $30 Every year the team at Bald Hills release a Kirameki – I get super excited, and it’s fast becoming one of my favourite Central Otago examples. Soothing to sip, yet it’s laced with energetic acidity and complex baking spice notes and the nashi and quince core … Read More
Greywacke Marlborough Wild Sauvignon 2019
Greywacke Marlborough Wild Sauvignon 2019 $36 Paired with Annabel Langbein’s Smoked Salmon & Egg Gratin in NZ Herald Canvas Sat Aug 20 2022. Crafted from fruit grown in Marlborough’s Southern Valleys in the Renwick, Rapaura and Woodbourne regions, this intensely delicious-yet-delicately stylish sauvignon is laced with marzipan, sugar snap peas, homemade lemonade and loads of … Read More
Bald Hills Last Light Central Otago Riesling 2020
Bald Hills Last Light Central Otago Riesling 2020 $30 Paired with Annabel Langbein’s Kedgeree in NZ Herald Canvas Aug 20 2022. If Pete Bartle ever makes a riesling that isn’t exceptionally balanced and beautiful, then stick a fork in me, ‘cos I’m done. Sourced from Bald Hills’ Bannockburn site, the single hectare of vines that … Read More
Valli Waitaki North Otago Pinot Noir 2020
Valli Waitaki North Otago Pinot Noir 2020 $85 Winemaker Jen Parr has crafted a complex and earthy pinot from fruit grown in one of the most challenging climates in the country. So the grapes that do make it through the extremes of the season are incredibly concentrated and create wines that roar with tamarillo, plum, … Read More
Valli Bendigo Vineyard Central Otago Pinot Noir 2020
Valli Bendigo Vineyard Central Otago Pinot Noir 2020 $75 With aromas that remind me of the lush, leafy, mossy scent of walking through native bush after it’s rained, this pinot is awash with forest floor earthiness, black tea, tamarillo and concentrated cherry characters. Bright, fleshy, energetic and stylishly crafted, it’s delicious in its youth and … Read More
Abbey Estate Bridge Pa Hawke’s Bay Viognier 2021
Abbey Estate Bridge Pa Hawke’s Bay Viognier 2021 $25 Back in 2002 when Feilding dairy farmer Warren Haworth reached 50, he decided to reward himself and his wife Jan with a new life in Hawke’s Bay making wine. A new life of backbreaking work, little reward and even less sleep. But today, with the help … Read More
Alpha Domus Beatrix Hawke’s Bay Sparkling Rosé NV
Alpha Domus Beatrix Hawke’s Bay Sparkling Rosé NV $21 I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. If you’re nuts about all things rose-gold, then this super-pretty sparkler will deliver you directly to the sanatorium and, because it’s fizzy, then it could completely send you sideways. Crafted (unusually) from merlot by winemaker Barry Riwai, … Read More
Valli Gibbston Vineyard Central Otago Pinot Noir 2020
Valli Gibbston Vineyard Central Otago Pinot Noir 2020 $75 Glossy and garnet-hued in the glass, it’s bursting with exotic florals, black guava, pepper and red apple notes, while on the palate, it’s energetic yet silky-textured, spice-saturated and and showing incredible grace and poise. It has a seamless structure, soothing, slippery, yet clinging to every cell … Read More
Richmond Plains Organic Nelson Sauvignon Blanc 2021
Richmond Plains Organic Nelson Sauvignon Blanc 2021 $22 I’m loving that this sauvignon is subtle and softly herbaceous on the nose (tomato leaf and basil anyone?) and gently zesty on the palate rather than punching you in the face with those boring, blousy-sweet passionfruit and lemonade layers that many commercial examples flout. I’m now also … Read More