Silver Wing Preservative Free Waipara Sauvignon Semillon 2018 $30 Crafted from a blend of 90% sauvignon blanc and 10% semillon from winemaker Andrew Fox’s Stephenson’s Block that’d been soaked overnight on its skins, this wine was fermented in a 675 litre ceramic egg and matured for 4 months on its yeast lees without batonnage (stirring … Read More
waipara
Circuit North Canterbury Chardonnay 2018
Circuit North Canterbury Chardonnay 2018 $24.99 Crafted by the team at Black Estate from organically grown fruit that’s been fermented using a starter culture from the vineyard itself, this is a creamy, brulee and butter-smothered wine, with peach and grapefruit notes underpinning the nutty smoothness. Theres a hint of wildness and funk to the fruit layers … Read More
Main Divide North Canterbury Sauvignon Blanc 2018
Main Divide North Canterbury Sauvignon Blanc 2018 $20.99 Get on your skateboard, segway or scooter and shimmy on over to the Main Divide North Canterbury Sauvignon Blanc 2018 ($20.99) to pour with any sort of pan-fried pesce perfection. Crisp, crunchy, packed with citrus and huge herbaceous notes, this wine is superb to sip with fresh fish. … Read More
House of Ball Waipara Pinot Noir 2014
House of Ball Waipara Pinot Noir 2014 $41 Crafted by the husband and wife team of Julian and Lynda Ball, just 200 bottles were made of this bright, spicy, classic North Canterbury pinot noir. Most of it is soaked up by their lucky B&B Guests, but if you contact them quick you could be in … Read More
House of Ball Romping Waipara Rosé 2017
House of Ball Romping Waipara Rosé 2017 $32 House of Ball is a vineyard and luxury B&B property owned by Julian and Lynda Ball on Mackenzies Road in North Canterbury. Lynda is the instigator of rosé because she was a fan of the style and wanted one of her own. Julian, good man, obliged and … Read More
House of Ball Waipara Grüner Veltliner 2016 $29
Whole bunch pressed, barrel fermented with wild yeasts, just 470 bottles were made of this Austrian white variety that also has no free sulphur and is unfined and unfiltered, so expect a teensy haze in the bottle when pouring. Funky and frisky, manuka honey and beeswax combine with summer wildflowers, lemon pith and all manner of … Read More
Yvonne Lorkin Canvas Column July 21 2018
Yvonne Lorkin Canvas Column July 21 2018 If the words ‘crazy whites’ conjures up Trumpy connotations, quickly rejig the phrase to ‘crazy good whites’ and you’ll calmly enter the world of this weeks’ wines… Obsidian Reserve Waiheke Island Viognier 2015 $48 I first sipped this wine while listening to the album Raising Sand, by Robert … Read More
Tiki Estate Waipara Pinot Gris 2016
Tiki Estate Waipara Pinot Gris 2016 $14.99 (2.5 stars) There’s a brisk burst of beeswax and manuka honey on the nose and palate indicating some botrytis infection in the wine, but that adds complexity to the wine. Dry and spicy, it boasts the ususal suspects of pear and quince, but fails to deliver generosity in the … Read More
Pegasus Bay Waipara Sauvignon Semillon 2015 $31 (4.5 stars)
This rare-for-here blend is now a North Canterbury icon, and it’s definitely one of those try-before-you-die styles. Crafted by Mat Donaldson from vines now 30+ yrs old, both the sauvignon blanc and the semillon parcels were fermented with wild yeasts and 15% of the sauvignon went into brand new French oak, while the semillon stayed … Read More
Greystone Waipara Barrel Fermented Sauvignon Blanc 2015 $22 (4.5stars)
100% of the sauvignon blanc juice was fermented in French oak before a smidge (10%) was put through a malolactic ferment to add a creamy, textural layer. After maturation in barrel for another months before being bottled back in December, you’d expect this sauvignon to be seriously toasty. However it’s remarkably herbaceous, floral and fresh, … Read More