Hãhã Hawke’s Bay Merlot 2018 $18 This new release is a super-smashable red that sings plum, plum and more plum! Warm and cuddly in the mouth, it coats the palate with cocoa and spice and slips down far too easily. Edged with pepper, the tannins are soft and woolly, yet add a hint of chew … Read More
Matahiwi Estate ME Wairarapa Rosé 2019
Matahiwi Estate ME Wairarapa Rosé 2019 $19.99 Ultra-pretty in the glass, like bright, sparkly watermelon and raspberry-coloured, and while you’re sidetracked looking at it, the perfume of wild redcurrant and strawberry will sneak up and seduce you. SO mouthfilling and satisfying – it’s a fruit fest of plum, guava, buckets of berries, juicy spices and … Read More
Ellero Pisa Terrace Central Otago Riesling 2015
Ellero Pisa Terrace Central Otago Riesling 2015 $25 Gleaned from the last letters of Californian’s-cum-Central Otagians, Roberta Manell Montero and John Montero, Ellero is a 16ha operation in the Pisa Terrace sub-region, an area famed for injecting intense minerality and character into every grape grown there. This riesling has soaked up all that and more. … Read More
Misty Cove Marlborough Rosé 2019
Misty Cove Marlborough Rosé 2019 $22.99 How pretty is this shiny, new, pinot noir-based rosé? It absolutely pops in the glass and it’s strongly scented with classic raspberry, cherry and strawberry notes and bursts forth all manner of rich, generous, gob-filling gorgeousness in the fruit department. Fresh, yet densely flavoured and full-bodied, it’s the complete … Read More
Te Awanga Estate Mister Hawke’s Bay Pinot Gris 2019
Te Awanga Estate Mister Hawke’s Bay Pinot Gris 2019 $21.99 A squeak of skin contact has given this gris a super-sexy rose-gold blush in the glass and aroma-wise it ticks all the boxes in terms of quince, baked pear, peachy notes and all sorts of fresh spices that also osmose across the palate. The acidity … Read More
Te Awanga Estate Mister Hawke’s Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2018
Te Awanga Estate Mister Hawke’s Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2018 $17.99 I was tasting this wine whilst looking at a recipe for Spinach, Pea & Parmesan Risotto and sauvignon blanc immediately springs to mind the second I see spinach and peas in any recipe. But you don’t want just any old sauvignon, oh no. You need … Read More
2019 HAWKE’S BAY A&P BAYLEYS WINE AWARDS LAUNCHED
MEDIA RELEASE Wednesday 26 June, 2019. A CELEBRATION LIKE NO OTHER – 2019 HAWKE’S BAY A&P BAYLEYS WINE AWARDS LAUNCHED With Hawke’s Bay winemakers still basking in the glow of one of the best harvests in living memory, the 2019 Hawke’s Bay A&P Bayleys Wine Awards is set to be the most jubilant celebration yet. … Read More
Matahiwi Estate Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2018
Matahiwi Estate Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2018 $18-$22 If I was giving out ribbons and bells for the most consistent, value-for-money-under-the-radar-chardonnay over the last 4 years the Matahiwi would be a veritable morris dancer of a sip. Shiny and new, with tropical fruit up the wazoo, expect an extra lash of peach, rockmelon, guava, grapefruit, toast … Read More
Tohu Whenua Awa Marlborough Pinot Blanc 2018
Tohu Whenua Awa Marlborough Pinot Blanc 2018 $29.99 Definitely an alternative for anyone who loves chardonnay, this pinot blanc (a clonal offshoot of pinot gris) shows beautiful white pepper, roast stonefruit, zesty acidity, toasty layers, crispness and great mid-palate richness. Textural complexity and it has that kind of mysterious, alluring, sexiness that keeps you sipping … Read More
Tohu Whenua Awa Marlborough Pinot Noir 2017
Tohu Whenua Awa Marlborough Pinot Noir 2017 $41.99 This wine is replacing the Rore Reserve Pinot Noir. The first half went into the market with the Rore Reserve label on it and it won the trophy for Wine of Provenance (the wine that’s the most reflective of its place, its terroir over time) at the … Read More