Rock Ferry 3rd Rock Marlborough Chardonnay 2015 $32 If your tastes in chardonnay lean along the nutty, buttered crumpet and biscuity end of the spectrum, then you’ll be loving this nougat-infused number. It’s stitched together with some solid citrus, so freshness is definitely the underlying factor here – however there’s a lovely complexing, caramelised note … Read More
Sacred Hill Wine Thief Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2016
Sacred Hill Wine Thief Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2016 $29 I’m tasting this wine right as white flesh nectarines begin appearing in heaping quanitites on roadside fruit stalls around where I live, (Hastings, in case you were wondering) and this wine reminds me so much of their scent and the juicy intensity of biting into one. … Read More
Scout South Island Pinot x Pinot 2018
Scout South Island Pinot x Pinot 2018 $32 Greg and Sarah Lane are the team behind Scout, a trans-tasman brand turning out Adelaide Hills chardonnay and reds from the South Island of New Zealand. This little monster is a blend of 75% whole bunch Marlborough Pinot with 25% skin fermented Nelson Pinot Gris. Yep. I … Read More
Saorsa Hawke’s Bay Syrah 2016
Saorsa Hawke’s Bay Syrah 2016 $30 The name Saorsa is a Scottish Gaelic word that not only means but also represents a radical sense of freedom, liberty and salvation according to owner Alex Hendry. Crafting just viognier and syrah, his 2016 vintage of syrah is very soft, very earthy, very smooth and lightly structured. Savoury layers and hints of dried … Read More
Sacred Hill Riflemans Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2016
Sacred Hill Riflemans Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2016 $65 Riflemans should be, in my opinion, given national treasure status for its services to chardonnay appreciation in this country. Created in years when the fruit from this heritage-status vineyard in the upper reaches of the Dartmoor Valley, is deemed nothing less than exceptional, this wine is an exercise … Read More
Amisfield Central Otago Fumé Blanc 2016
Amisfield Central Otago Fumé Blanc 2016 $45 When people say ‘fumé blanc is sauvignon for chardonnay lovers’, they’re absolutely right. Winemaker Dr Stephanie Lambert and her team have taken what must have been rather snappy sauvignon blanc fruit and opted to ferment it using wild yeasts, in large French oak barrels. This in turn has given … Read More
Domain Road Central Otago Pinot Noir Rosé 2018
Domain Road Central Otago Pinot Noir Rosé 2018 $26 Produced by Graeme and Gillian Crosbie from fruit sourced from their Defiance and Domain Road vineyards, this gorgeous thing is scented with creaming soda, raspberry, sweet cherry and watermelonny wonder. It’s a more substantial rose than most, super-concentrated yet taut, robust and spicy, with waves of … Read More
Judge Rock Central Otago Pinot Noir Rosé 2018
Judge Rock Central Otago Pinot Noir Rosé 2018 $25 Back in 1998 Paul Jacobson was an engineer and his wife Angela managed multiple local kindergartens, plus they were raising three young, Central Otago sons and life was hectic. So that’s why they also become grape growers and winemakers – clearly suckers for punishment! Today their … Read More
Pick & Shovel Central Otago Pinot Gris 2018
Pick & Shovel Central Otago Pinot Gris 2018 $19.99 Created by the good folk at Dry Gully Vineyard in the summer heat-trap of Alexandra, this pinot gris will appeal to anyone walking on the dry side of the street. Sure you have hints of the usual suspects of pear and quince, yet there’s also a … Read More
Churton Marlborough Petit Manseng 2016
Churton Marlborough Petit Manseng 2016 $49 Incredibly rare in New Zealand, Petit Manseng is grown primarily in Jurancon, in the Southwest of France, however the Weaver family are now growing teensy, tiny amounts in their biodynamic vineyard at Churton, in Marlborough’s Waihopai Valley. It produces an intensely delicious, greengage plum and toffee-topped wine which bursts … Read More