Swift Wines Maraekakaho Gamay Blanc de Noir 2022 $36 Sourced from one of the oldest gamay vineyards in the country, Lucknow Vineyard in Maraekakaho, the fruit was lightly pressed immediately after harvest to glean the freshest juice, but the least amount of colour from the skins. Fermented at cool temperatures in stainless steel and left … Read More
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Trinity Hill Gimblett Gravels Tempranillo 2021
Trinity Hill Gimblett Gravels Tempranillo 2021 $39.99 Trinity Hill first bottled tempranillo back in 2002, from a single barrel, making just 25 dozen bottles. They were one of the first wineries in New Zealand to leap into tempranillo and since then they’ve become an absolute force for good. Especially when it’s from one of Hawke’s … Read More
Te Mata Estate Awatea Cabernets Merlot 2020
Te Mata Estate Awatea Cabernets Merlot 2020 $40 If I were in a hostage situation and the gunman said “Somebody better tell me what’s the greatest local Bordeaux-style red wine that I can buy for under fifty bucks, in the next five seconds or the granny gets it!” I would be hollering “Te Mata Awatea … Read More
Petane Wines Kōtare Block Hawke’s Bay Gamay 2022
Petane Wines Kōtare Block Hawke’s Bay Gamay 2022 $30 Grown at their Eskdale vineyard, this is the very first bottling of Gamay for Petane Wines. Handpicked and fermented with partial carbonic maceration (where whole berries are left in an oxygen-free environment to ferment inside their own skins) and then pressed into older, neutral French oak … Read More
Mills Reef Estate Hawke’s Bay Syrah 2020
Mills Reef Estate Hawke’s Bay Syrah 2020 $18 Great value syrah here, buckets of red fruit. redcurrant, red apple and plum layers on the nose and palate merge with soft tannins, hints of pepper and earthy spices on the palate. Juicy, easy and a superb introduction to Hawke’s Bay syrah. Mills Reef
Pinot Brothers Gold Label Martinborough Pinot Noir 2019
Pinot Brothers Gold Label Martinborough Pinot Noir 2019 $49 Ben Dugdale and his daughter Rose are the talent behind Pinot Brothers (or should that be Pinot Parent and Progeny? or Pinot Dad and Daughter?) Anyhoo, they’ve done an excellent job of capturing the classic Martinborough florals and cherry intensity on the nose and palate. Lifted … Read More
Mills Reef Reserve Gimblett Gravels Merlot Malbec 2021
Mills Reef Reserve Gimblett Gravels Merlot Malbec 2021 $25 One thing will become super-obvious when inhaling the scent of this Bordeaux blend from Hawke’s Bay’s famous Gimblett Gravels region. Meatiness. It’s rich, savoury and roaring with roasting pan juices on the nose. Combine that with dark blueberry, plum, pepper and bay leaf layers, black olive … Read More
Pask Gimblett Gravels CMMF 2019
Pask Gimblett Gravels CMMF 2019 $22 Holy berries Batman! Those Paskers really know how to blend. This absolutely champion combination of Cabernet Sauvignon 43.8% Malbec 18.8%, Merlot 16%, Cabernet Franc 6.8% is super-stylish, spice-dusted and saturated with ripe plums, leather and cocoa layers and a dusting of liquorice. 2019 was a sensational vintage for Hawke’s … Read More
Pask Gimblett Gravels Merlot 2019
Pask Gimblett Gravels Merlot 2019 $22 Wow! Prepare for an instant hit of tobacco, sweet cedar, cocoa-dusted plums and bouquet garni herbs which will sail up your nostrils and morph into fabulous flavours on the palate. Grown in one of the holy trinity of vintages (2019/2020/2021) it’s a stunningly ripe, spice-saturated merlot with a long … Read More
Rockburn The Chosen Hillside Central Otago Pinot Noir 2021
Rockburn The Chosen Hillside Central Otago Pinot Noir 2021 $99 Rockburn’s Parkburn Vineyard is nestled in the rain shadow of the Pisa Range, inside that vineyard is a very special, steep, easterly site known as the Hillside. Those are the grapes that’ve been carefully selected to feature in The Chosen. Perfumed with soft red currant, … Read More