Cloudy Bay Marlborough Pinot Noir 2013

12 July 2015By Yvonne

Cloudy Bay Marlborough Pinot Noir 2013 $47 ★★★★ The clay-based, alluvial gravels of Marlborough’s southern valleys provide the fuel for the vines charged with producing this powerhouse pinot. It bursts with black cherry, plum, black tea and smoky spices on the nose, followed by a saucy, fruit-soaked palate and a long, lingering finish. It’s youthful, … Read More

Old North Road Pinot Noir 2013

12 June 2015By Yvonne

Old North Road Pinot Noir 2013 $8.99 ★★½ It’s a local brand, from out West Auckland way, but the label doesn’t say where exactly in NZ the fruit has come from, so it’s anyone’s guess.   On first sniff there are some baked berry aromas edged with leafy, herbal notes and a whiff of something spicy.  … Read More

Whitecliff Pinot Noir 2014

12 June 2015By Yvonne

Whitecliff Pinot Noir 2014 $8.99 ★★½ A local supermarket budget brand that’s been around for aeons, the Whitecliff pinot is actually an Australian wine.  But that’s ok because let’s face it, you’re seriously up against it to make pinot noir in this country for that sort of price.  It has some sweet, spicy notes on … Read More

Folding Hill Ballasalla Central Otago Pinot Noir 2013

12 June 2015By Yvonne

Folding Hill Ballasalla Central Otago Pinot Noir 2013 $35 ★★★★ ‘Ballasalla’ is the name of the village on the Isle of Man where owner Tim Kerruish grew up.  It’s appropriate, as the wine has a ‘homely’ feel to it, immediately comforting and approachable.  Attractive red rose, red cherry, tea, black guava and bouquet garni herbs … Read More

Burn Cottage Central Otago Pinot Noir 2013

12 June 2015By Yvonne

Burn Cottage Central Otago Pinot Noir 2013 $60 ★★★★½ True to their biodynamic philosophies, Ted Lemon and Clair Mulholland conduct all their winemaking work in accordance with lunar and celestial rhythms.  They use naturally-occurring, wild yeasts, minimize their sulphur use and avoid using additives or filters.  If you want a definition of complexity, this pinot … Read More

Craggy Range Aroha Te Muna Road Pinot Noir 2013

12 May 2015By Yvonne

Craggy Range Aroha Te Muna Road Pinot Noir 2013 $99.95 ★★★★★ Highly floral aromatics, with rosehip and black tea, plum, rhubarb and a smorgasbord of red fruits burst through on the nose and make way to pillowy, cherry-bramble and spice-forward flavours. There’s a hint of cassia bark, pomegranate, white pepper and smoke followed by leafy, … Read More

Tatty Bogler Central Otago Pinot Noir 2013

25 February 2015By Yvonne

Tatty Bogler Central Otago Pinot Noir 2013 $35 ★★★★ It might be named after a scruffy, Scottish scarecrow, but this pinot is pure class. Fresh, clean and showing nice lines of red fruits, cocoa and spice on the nose, the palate is followed by a juicy, long finish. Very nice indeed, and destined for more … Read More

Decades of Dogs…

22 November 2014By Yvonne

Last week I wrote about everything being better in two’s and how fun it is to taste two different vintages of the same wine side by side to pick out the differences. Well if the team at Dog Point in Marlborough didn’t just decide to dial that idea up by 500% and open up ten … Read More

Go Go Greystone!

25 June 2014By Yvonne

If you thought great New Zealand pinot noir only poured out of Central Otago, then here’s a nugget of knowledge for you.  Waipara is fast becoming where it’s at.  Well, this week it was anyway, with the announcement that the Greystone ‘Brothers Reserve’ 2012 ($69) scooped the prestigious International Pinot Noir Trophy at the Decanter … Read More

Pinot Favours the Brave…

30 January 2013By Yvonne

I’m writing this column from the comfort of a cloth-covered trestle table upstairs in the Wellington Town Hall in what has been dubbed the “Media Centre”.  I’ve worked in loads of “media centres” around the traps in the past but this would take the cake for no-frills.  Although at least here there’s one of those … Read More