Bald Hills Kirameki Central Otago Pinot Gris 2019 $30 Kirameki is a Japanese word for ‘sparkle’, ‘glint’, ‘glitter’ or ‘glow’ and thats how the good folk at Bald Hills describe the rocks that line the Northern tip of their pinot gris vineyard. This new vintage shimmers with soft quince and nashi notes, a lick of … Read More
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Valli Gibbston Vineyard Central Otago Pinot Gris 2019
Valli Gibbston Vineyard Central Otago Pinot Gris 2019 $30 Paired with Annabel Langbein’s Slow-Cooked Moroccan Pork NZ Herald Canvas Sat 26th June 2021 Named after winemaker Grant Taylor’s great grandfather Guiseppe Valli, this brand is responsible for some of my favourite New Zealand pinot noir’s, however I’m relatively new to his pinot gris. Having tasted … Read More
Leftfield Gisborne Albariño 2020
Leftfield Gisborne Albariño 2020 $18 Paired with Caramelised Onion, Goats Cheese and Walnut Tarts Dish Magazine Issue 98 French Who would have thought that a wine made from a Spanish grape grown in New Zealand would be the perfect partner for this classic French recipe. There’s something about the clean, crunchy apple, pear and lithe, … Read More
Mahi Marlborough Chardonnay 2019
Mahi Marlborough Chardonnay 2019 $29.90 Erupting with fresh peach, grapefruit and bucketloads of toasty textures, this is a masterclass in how to make ultra-sippable chardonnay that’ll wow the crowds. Fresh, perky, yet showing depth and substance, this cashew, apricot and brulee-boosted example is creamy, richly structured and darn dangerously easy to drink. Smooth and juicy. … Read More
Yealands Single Vineyard Marlborough PGR 2020
Yealands Single Vineyard Marlborough PGR 2020 $26 The nose is a tsunami of apricot, jasmine, ginger, nashi and lychee-laden loveliness and it all washes across the palate like a spring tide. This has always been one of my favourite blended whites because it has something for everyone, delicious balance and firm, generous textures on the … Read More
Mahi Boundary Farm Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2019
Mahi Boundary Farm Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2019 $35 Stacked solid with citrus and layers of lemongrass and bruised basil, this sauvignon also boasts a deep, almost creamy character in the mid-palate which gives it weight and woah-inducing goodness. The length of flavour is standout, like it literally does. not. stop. giving. Rich, beautifully balanced and … Read More
The Mahi ‘Alchemy’ Marlborough Chardonnay 2019
The Mahi ‘Alchemy’ Marlborough Chardonnay 2019 ($39.90 There are two versions of Alchemy. One’s the medieval practice of faffing with converting base metals into gold and the other is fiddling with finding a universal elixir. The Mahi ‘Alchemy’ Marlborough Chardonnay 2019 ($39.90), sourced from a small parcel in their ‘Badlands’ vineyard, has neither faff or … Read More
Carrick Central Otago Pinot Blanc 2019
Carrick Central Otago Pinot Blanc 2019 ($35) Pinot Blanc is a white mutation of pinot noir (hence ‘blanc’) and Carrick grow it on their tiny, certified organic ‘Cairnmuir’ block. It’s packed with white peach, flecked with fennel and licked with lemon, plus it’s multi-layered and magical to drink, with incredible texture with just the right … Read More
Yakutin Family Wines Matakana
From Kazakhstan with Love… Oleg Yakutin, owner of Yakutin Family Wines (a 1 hectare vineyard, marked by an ancient brick chimney on Matakana Road, Warkworth), is the first Kazakhstani winemaker in New Zealand. A corporate marketing career in a past life fed his love for fine food and wine, so when the time came for … Read More
Lime Rock Single Barrique Ferment Central Hawke’s Bay Grüner Veltliner 2017
Lime Rock Single Barrique Ferment Central Hawke’s Bay Grüner Veltliner 2017 $34 Four years on and this Grüner, grown in the deep, limestone soils of Central Hawke’s Bay, is developing beautifully. Softly nutty on the nose, slightly saline, hints of green olive and peach, crushed seashells, a lick of grain-spirit and fennel also sneaks through … Read More