Domain Road Defiance Central Otago Chardonnay 2020 ($32) Slow down, find a spot, indicate and do your best parallel park because you’re going to want to have all your wheels pointing forward to take on this absolute stunner of a chardonnay. Intense grapefruit, roast peach, pineapple and caramelised, toasty oak notes roar out of the … Read More
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Seresin Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2021
Seresin Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2021 $25 If jalapeños are your jam then this certified organic, biodynamically-crafted sauvignon blanc is going to seriously spin your wheels. Grown in Seresin’s Raupo Creek vineyard, fermented using naturally occurring, wild yeasts and matured in a mixture of old oak vessels before being blended with a 9% splash of semillon … Read More
Forrest Marlborough Riesling 2020
Forrest Marlborough Riesling 2020 $25 If you like your riesling to assail your olfactories with apple, lime zest and a lick of magical minerality, you’ve done a perfect parallel park my friend. Punchy acidity, pure pipfruit and crunchy citrus and the unmistakable rain-on-hot-asphalt punch of petrichor, make this an ultra-refreshing sip. It has excellent length … Read More
Honest Horse Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2021
Honest Horse Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2021 $40 (for two bottles) Craig and Tamara Plunkett are the faces behind Plunkett Estate. They might be a new wine enterprise in the Spring Creek subregion of Marlborough, but their family farm has a long history of being very horsey, hence the name. I often find Spring Creek sauvignon … Read More
Maori Point Central Otago Riesling 2020
Maori Point Central Otago Riesling 2020 $30 Showing crisp apple, lime blossom, lemon zest and impressive minerality alongside a squeak of natural sweetness, this riesling is a crisp, crunchy-fresh style that will freshen up even the most jaded of tastebuds. At 11.9% alcohol and 17g/l of residual sugar creates a mouthwatering palate structure and a … Read More
Akarua de Bettencor Single Vineyard Central Otago Sauvignon Blanc 2020
Akarua de Bettencor Single Vineyard Central Otago Sauvignon Blanc 2020 $40 This certified organic sauvignon blanc is grown in the de Bettencor vineyard, which sits between the base of the Pisa Range and Lake Dunstan in the Pisa sub-region. Named after Boaventura de Bettencor, a Portuguese explorer in the late 1800’s who made his way … Read More
Le Grá Wairarapa Sauvignon Blanc 2019
Le Grá Wairarapa Sauvignon Blanc 2019 $27 Re-tasted May 2023 and drinking beautifully- plush, tropical, deliciously complex. Much better after some time in bottle. Very yummy indeed. Sauvignon blanc from the Wairarapa is its own beast, floral, feisty and fanging with tree and citrus fruits. This Le Grá boasts fresh green apple, lemongrass and a … Read More
Zorzal Terroir Único Tupungato Mendoza Chardonnay 2021
Zorzal Terroir Único Tupungato Mendoza Chardonnay 2021 $21 Boasting more funk than James Brown, if you’re looking for smoky, mineral-driven chardonnay then you’ve come to the right cul de sac my friend. Crafted from fruit sourced from Argentina’s Gualtallary region in Mendoza, this wine has dried herb and toasty notes ahead of the usual tropical … Read More
Petane Tracks Block Hawke’s Bay Viognier 2021
Petane Tracks Block Hawke’s Bay Viognier 2021 $30 If you prefer your viognier with less of the oily texture and apricot overload, then chances are this style is for you. Dry and mineral-focused, it has a dash of white pepper and soft peach on the palate. Lighter-styled than its predecessors, it’s on the leaner end … Read More
Allan Scott Steytler Stellenbosch + Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2021
Allan Scott Steytler Stellenbosch + Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2021 $16.99 A first for me, tasting a New Zealand-South Africa collab sauvignon, and it’s really really interesting. Both the Scott family in Marlborough and the Steytler family in Stellenbosch machine-harvested a parcel of sauvignon blanc at night and processed the juice into wine. Both wineries then … Read More