Esk Valley Hawke’s Bay Pinot Gris 2005 $na I tasted this wine 16 years after harvest, in 2021 and I’ve got to say it was a revelation. With the acidity still pinging in this ultra-golden, teenage sensation, the spices are zooming along the vanilla, nutmeg and apple strudel spectrum and it’s developing some delicious, nutty … Read More
Hawke’s Bay
Maison Noire Hawke’s Bay Syrah 2019
Maison Noire Hawke’s Bay Syrah 2019 $25 Just 90 dozen bottles were produced of this wine. To give you an idea of scale, that’s less than two pallets. For the whole country. And overseas markets. So you snooze, you lose, I’m afraid. It’s a lush, complex, dried herb and spice-saturated style edged with baked berries, … Read More
Ant Mackenzie Wines Toño Hawke’s Bay Rosado 2020
Ant Mackenzie Wines Toño Hawke’s Bay Rosado 2020 $19.99 How saucy is the rose-gold hue of this rosado right? Blended from grapes grown in the Havelock North hills then fashioned into the bottle in a Spanish style by Ant Mackenzie, it’s a kneeslappingly dry, pink peppercorn and white strawberry-soaked thing that you should definitely have … Read More
Sacred Hill Riflemans Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2019
Sacred Hill Riflemans Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2019 $69.99 Sure you could spend seventy dollars on groceries, school fees or a 30minute neck and shoulder shiatsu – but will they deliver the same unparalleled taste-joy as sipping the new Riflemans with a large bowl of bacon and prawn spaghetti? Fat chance. Grilled grapefruit, roast nectarine and … Read More
Ash Ridge Premium Bridge Pa Triangle Malbec 2018
Ash Ridge Premium Bridge Pa Triangle Malbec 2018 $32 Black Doris, Omega and Damson plums are all fighting for space in this dark, glossy, thing of goodness. Malbec is the signature red of Argentina, yet it’s clearly made a happy home at Ash Ridge in the sunbaked soils of Hawke’s Bay’s Bridge Pa Triangle sub-region. … Read More
Crab Farm Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2019
Crab Farm Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2019 $23 Since 1987, the Jardine family have been growing grapes and making wine in their crab skeleton riddled site in Bay View in Napier. Those mineral rich soils are superb for chardonnay, and this new release carries buckets of ripe peach and honeydew melon skyward to the nose and … Read More
Crab Farm Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2018
Crab Farm Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2018 $23 Seriously golden in the glass, this chardonnay oozes scorched peach, roasted almonds, vanilla high notes and a soft edge of pineapple on the finish. There’s a lick of butterscotch and spice, refreshing acidity and a creamy, textural backbone. A hint of popcorn, apricot, soft pepper and nougat notes. … Read More
Maison Noire Home Block Hawke’s Bay Cabernet Franc 2019
Maison Noire Home Block Hawke’s Bay Cabernet Franc 2019 $28 Sourced from their tiny vineyard located high up on the Waimarama Road, this is a local take on a French favourite grape from the Loire Valley. This is Cabernet Franc crafted in a softer, more restrained style than most with fine-grained astringency in the mid-palate. … Read More
Maison Noire Single Vineyard Paki Paki Chardonnay 2020
Maison Noire Single Vineyard Paki Paki Chardonnay 2020 $28 Just 75 cases were produced of this uber-refreshing chardonnay which is grown in the deep, limestone-laden soils of Hawke’s Bay’s Paki Paki sub-region, just south of Hastings. With its lifted almond, peach and lemon aromatics and creamy, softly oaky mid-palate and saturation of citrus on the … Read More
Maison Noire Home Block Hawke’s Bay Chenin Blanc 2020
Maison Noire Home Block Hawke’s Bay Chenin Blanc 2020 $30 Crafted from fruit grown in a tiny coast-facing vineyard amongst the hills along the Waimarama Road, this chenin blanc has clean, creamy, almond and apple aromatics and a super-nice nougat and citrus custard character in the mid palate which I really really love. But the … Read More