Autumn 2020 Web

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New Zealand's favourite wine magazine

PINOT

NOIR

TASTED

AND

RATED.

HAWKE'S BAY

GIMBLETT GRAVELS

From Rough River Gravel

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WINE TASTING OPTIONS AND THE BEST WINE REGIONS TO VISIT

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Publisher's note

WineNZ

CONTRIBUTORS

Martin Gillion, Daniel Honan,

Anne-Marie Nansett, Louis Pierard,

John Saker, Charmaine Smith,

Vic Williams.

PHOTOGRAPHY

Richard Brimer

DESIGN

Spinc Media

PUBLISHERS

Colin Gestro

027 256 8014

colin@affinityads.com

Joan Gestro

joanlucy47@gmail.com

ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES

Jax Hancock

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jax.affinityads@gmail.com

WEBSITE

www.winenzmagazine.co.nz

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COVER PHOTO:

The stony soil of Gimblett Gravels.

Photo: Richard Brimer

EXPLORING

WINE

REGIONS AND

NEW LOOK

TASTINGS

As you may now be aware,

from issue 1, introducing our

‘new look’ we are indeed all

about New Zealand wine. For

sure there is a portion of what

is going on overseas, but its

more from New Zealanders

travelling and experiencing

what’s tasting well and the

regions!

Apologies; I received an

email from Hamden Estate;

given their Sauvignon Blanc

won second best in the

tastings in our last issue,

which was, unfortunately,

not stated, this was due to

our restructuring of tastings.

Please note that we will be

using the 100-point system,

from now on, which is fairly

similar to the global system

for tastings method. And may

I add; it is all in the capable

hands of Simon Nash, M.W.

This issue takes a look at

the Gimblett Gravels, a very

interesting region indeed. The

area gives a look of a flat, dry,

gravelly and somewhat boring

looking area, but it certainly

holds the secret to some of

the best wines. A region to put

on your bucket list as this area

has a rich history in viticulture,

a must region to visit in

Hawke’s Bay.

Happy tastings and

exploring.

Colin Gestro

Editor & Publisher

It is vintage time once

again, and many of us

are waiting patiently

to see what 2020

delivers.

Despite having

witnessed more that

forty years in the wine

industry in Hawke’s

Bay, I still find vintage

to be a marvellous and

exciting time.

Turning the clock back

three decades, 1989

was an exceptional

year and 1991 was

also very good. Plum

in the middle was an

excellent 1990. More

recently 2013 was a

great vintage.

It is only with the

passing of time that

the true quality of

these years shows

through.

There is much

excitement every year

inside and outside the

industry as to how

good each vintage

will be, but we can’t

be certain about the

quality while the wine

is still to be made.

How good will 2020

be? Time will tell.

Cheers,

Peter Robertson

BROOKFIELD

VINEYARDS

Phone 06 834 4615

www.brookfieldsvineyard.co.nz

Trade Enquiries

HANCOCKS

Phone 0800 699 463

4 WineNZ Magazine | Autumn 2020

TROPHY

2019 TROPHY

2019 TROPHY

2019 TROPHY

2019

CHAMPION CHARDONNAY

CHAMPION EXPORT WINE OF THE SHOW

CHAMPION COMMERCIAL WHITE/ROSE WINE

CHAMPION WINE OF THE SHOW

Hawke’s Bay Wine Awards 2019

Vintage 2018

For moments that deserve exceptional.

contents

8

WineNZ

Autumn 2020

8 COVER STORY

Gimblett Gravels steeped in

history And well worth a visit.

22 WINE & TIME

What is local and

overseas news

36 TASTING RESULTS

A totally blind look at

the best wines

52 4 BARRELS

A Central Otago

walkable wine trail.

60 FOOD & WINE

Vic Williams latest recipes.

52


contents

60

66 CENTRAL OTAGO

Rudi Bauer shows his

winemaking style

74

66

74 SICILIAN WINE

Meet Don Saro on the slopes

of Mt Etna volcano.

78 NEW RELEASES

Try some of these.

82 WINE FOR SALE

Business and property

on the market

78

82


7

Cover story | Hawke’s Bays Stony Success

IN THE

BEGINNING

THERE WAS…

NOTHING MUCH!

By Martin Gillion

Gimblett Gravels Hawke’s Bay’s

Stony Success

Images and

maps for

this feature

were kindly

supplied

by Gimblett

Gravels

Wingrowers

Association,

plus numerous

wineries,

winenz.com

and Richard

Brimmer

photographer.

There’s a common thread in any number of

folk tales and allegories that demonstrate

the rewards of seeing beyond outward

appearances and searching for hidden

values, however difficult or even repulsive

the search might be.

As the princess found out, kissing a frog can result

in a great career move!

And early times in the Gimblett Gravels bring

some of these themes to mind.

Not that pioneers of the area around Gimblett

Road (Gavin Yortt, Chris Pask and Alan Limmer)

could claim that deciding to invest in the area

around Gimblett Road; a barren stretch of land that

was deemed useless and certainly had no scenic

virtues, was as bad as cuddling up to toads or

other slimy members of the of the Anura order. But

it certainly took a lot of courage and determination

to plant their grape vines there; plantings that led to

the ultimate foundation of a world-class viticultural

area known today as the Gimblett Gravels Wine

Growing District.

Since its foundation in 2001 more than 26 wineries

have committed to abide by the rules of the trade

mark that not only defines the 800ha of stony river

gravels to which it applies, but also regulates many

aspects of its use.

But in 1996, when WineNZ Magazine was born,

there was no such thing as the Gimblett Gravels

Wine Growing District. But there were a few pioneers,

a very few, who had recognised the possible wine

growing potential of the stony riverbed exposed as

a result of a change in the course of the Ngaruroro

River in the disastrous flood of 1867.

Dr Alan Limmer, with

Gimblett Gravels in

the background, in

the early days of the

area's development.

8

WineNZ Magazine | Autumn 2020

Hawke’s Bays Stony Success | Cover story

It was a flood that bowled

bridges and flooded towns and

settlements (sound familiar?)

and one in which a severe slip

changed the course of the

river to its current path through

Fernhill.

It is these stony river flats

that are now the home of the

Gimblett Gravels Wine Growing

District; one of the world’s most

robustly defined viticultural

areas. It’s one that has world

recognition not only for the

quality of the wines it produces,

but also for the rigorous

delineation of its boundaries.

Few, if any, French AOC

designations are as carefully

and scientifically defined as

the GGWGD.

But in 1996 there was no

definition of the area, although

a number of wines with the

Gimblett Road nomenclature

had achieved acclaim and

had kickstarted what became

a cult like following. Wines from

Babich’s Irongate label sourced

from the Gimblett Road vineyard

of the same name, gained

considerable following.

Having discovered them was

one of the reasons I visited the

area in 1998.

At that time, besides a number

of initial plantings, the area

was dominated by a council

rubbish dump on the northern

boundary, a police and army

rifle range close to Mere Road,

a quarry company crushing the

stone for roading, also in Mere

Road and a stock car raceway

on the corner of SH50 and

Gimblett Road itself.

As I remarked at the time

it was hardly the picture of

a potential world renowned

viticultural area; no picturesque

chateaus, charming canal-site


9


villages or half-timbered houses.

In fact apart from a few vines,

the dump, the range, the quarry

and the raceway, there was very

little at all.

But a few intrepid viticulturists

had seen the possibilities of the

area and with considerable

courage led the way by planting

grape vines on the stony flats.

Chris Pask, a top dressing pilot,

had vines at Korokipo in Fernhill

but found it hard to fully ripen

Cabernet. Frequent flights over

Gimblett Road convinced him

that the stony river bed could

provide better conditions.

Unlike the high tech mapping

of the Ngaruroro soils which

came later, Chris comments that

they did their mapping by spade.

“Everywhere we dug holes. In

some cases, despite the fact

that silt had been deposited

on the river bends, underneath

was a deep, consistent layer of

stones. The heat and the lack of

natural nutrient was ideal; not

far different from the Rhone Valley

itself.”

And so it proved. He bought

land in the area in 1981, secured

options on further parcels

and planted Merlot, Cabernet,

Chardonnay and Cabernet

Franc. It was certainly a leap of

faith that was to the precursor

of a new development in New

Zealand wine.

He left the world of grape

growing contracting and began

making his own wines.

The first vintage from CJ Pask

was in 1985, with considerable

success, especially for the reds.

And yes, Chris did take up some

of those options for more land.

Also increasingly enamoured

of the gravel sites were

Gavin Yorrt and David Irving

who had planted on Gimblett

Road in 1980.

“We were the first vineyard

planted in Gimblett Road when

we settled on a privately owned

block at the far end,” says Gavin,

now proprietor of Squawking

Magpie wines. “At first we planted

some Riesling and even some

Sauvignon Blanc but quickly

saw the advantages for both

Chardonnay and the reds. We

contracted a portion of the

fruit to the Babich family who

marketed it under our Irongate

vineyard name.”

David Babich reflects that the

first Babich Irongate Chardonnay

won trophy at the NZ National

Wine Competition of 1985

and again in 1987. Its success

launched a string of gold medal

wines for both Chardonnay and

Bordeaux blend wines from the

site. The success of the wines

sparked increasing interest in an

area hitherto dismissed as waste

land of little importance.

Gavin points out that their

vineyard was eventually sold

but the Irongate brand was

retained by the Babich family

who attached it to the vineyard

they had acquired next door to

the original.

Now Gavin makes wine from

a vineyard just to the north of

The Gimblett

Gravels today – a

world acclaimed

viticultural area.

10



Chris Pask

the road junction itself. “We think

our current location is even

more successful and our Syrah

has featured prominently in just

about every Gimblett Gravels

Annual Selection.”

At around the same time,

in Mere Road, just a stone’s

throw from the Gimblett Road

SH50 junction, Alan Limmer,

a doctorate of Earth Science

and Chemistry had also seen

the potential to make small

quantities of fine wine from

the stony terrain and established

Stonecroft

In 1983 he planted 4ha vines

on the more silty soils in Mere

Road making his first wines in

1987 and planted a further 3ha

in the more stony soils under the

shadow of Roys Hill.

While the ‘regular’ varieties that

suited the ‘Gravels’; Cabernet,

Merlot and Chardonnay were

present, he also included

Gewurztraminer and a

newcomer to the New Zealand

portfolio, Syrah.

It was this last choice that

was going to eventually change

the face of New Zealand red

wine making.

So by the mid to late 1990s

the success of wines from

the Gimblett Road area were

generally acknowledged.

While only a small proportion

of the area had been planted

already there were moves to

reclassify the zoning. Battle lines

were drawn between quarrying

interests, the council and a

consortium of winemakers.

The council were hard put to

understand the unique character

of the stony shingle beds that

would not even support basic

horticulture nor any form of

viable animal husbandry.

They found it even harder to

believe that land that you could

not give away was suddenly

unique and potentially valuable.

The proposition to grind it all up

for road gravel and concrete had

seemed eminently sensible!

But the Gimblett Road Society

that had formed to protect the

area for viticulture claimed that

the area was distinct and unique.

It was distinct they said because

it was restricted to the particular

soil types deposited on the old

river course.

Not content with the

generalisations that came from

the sort of spade evidenced

examinations that Chris Pask

remembers, the soils were

meticulously defined, analysed

and an accurate soil map was

produced. The area was defined

by science rather than tradition

or village names as was so often

the case in the old world.

That mapping lies at the heart

of today’s Gimblett Gravels

Wine Growing District and

was the lychpin for the move

spearheaded by Steve Smith

MW, viticulturist for Villa Maria

and Alan Limmer of Stonecroft,

to get the land reclassified and

protected as an area of special

viticultural significance.

The process ended in a court

dispute but It was a hard for

the council or the quarrying

company to negate such

empirical evidence. In 2001

the court ruled in favour of the

winemakers and they succeeded

in gaining protection for the

area from the ravages of stone

quarrying for road metal.

In the same year the Gimblett

Gravels Winegrowers Wine

Growing District was established

as a protected trade mark and

the rules for its use determined.

So What Makes the

‘Gravels’ So Special?

Strangely for a horticultural

venture, the appeal of the area

is that it does not grow things

very easily – at least not in the

manner we homestyle gardeners

hope the way our peas and

tomatoes will flourish.

Grapevines produce the best

fruit when they are stressed to the

max and the best way to achieve

this is to control the amount of

water and nutrients available

and to manage sunshine and

heat as much as possible. Excess

vigor is not what you want.


11


Vines growing in the stony soils.

The stony

character of

the Gimblett

Gravels soils.

“The advantage with the

‘Gravels’ is that this is all achieved

naturally,” winemaker Damian

Fischer of Trinity Hill tells me. “The

stony soils drain most of the

water away almost instantly. The

gravels are really deep, retain

little moisture and contain few

natural nutrients. We can control

both. As a result our crop levels

are naturally low.”

Gordon Russell, Chairperson

of the Association and long-time

winemaker for Esk Valley concurs.

“Because of natural

devigoration, yields in the

‘Gravels’ are quite low, perhaps

6-8tonnes per ha. That means

12


“...Highly refined, it is mouthfilling and sweet-fruited, with deep, notably youthful plum

and spice flavours, and a long, very smooth-flowing finish.”

MIchael Cooper - Buyers Guide 2020

RRRRR

MIchael Cooper

Buyers Guide 2020

RRRRR

Bob Campbell MW

The Real Review

www.millsreef.co.nz

RRRRR

Raymond Chan

Wine Review


Harvest time.. Babich Gimblett Gravels

that the wines need to be made

and sold in the higher price

brackets although that presents

some difficulties in a segment of

the

New Zealand market is not

growing.”

Nearly all the winemakers I

spoke to agreed with Chris Pask’s

early hunch that the ‘Gravels’

were warmer than most of the

other Hawke’s Bay sites and

most agreed that a margin of

2 degrees was probably about

right. “The large stones that form

the basis of the soil structure

absorb heat during the day to

release warmth at night,” said

Damien. “It reduces the diurnal

range and makes the vines work

a bit longer.”

Paul Mooney of Mission Estate

revels in the generally reliable

Autumn weather and the

boost given from the radiant

heat of the stones. “We came

into the ‘Gravels’ in 1997 and

our viticulturist was using GPS

technology to map vine health

and virus infections within the

whole area.

I can see from their

explanations that the conditions

are just what’s needed for the

Bordeaux varieties but perhaps

not what you’re looking for in

Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc?

Despite the soils being

described and mapped, the

District is not as uniform as you

might think, but certainly more

contiguous than any others that

come to mind. But where the

river ran there were shallows and

silty banks on the bends and

these all provide some variations

in the soils that ensure diversity

in the varieties grown and the

viticultural processes.

In a my visit of 1998 Gus

Lawson of Te Awa Farm guided

me through his vineyard tracking

the silty twists of the old river in

contrast to the bare rocks where

the river had moved swiftly. Even

then he

was selecting different varieties

for the different patches but as

he said at the time, the problem

was that the soils could vary quite

quickly even within a row of vines.

One of the super stars of the

original plantings were Babich’s

14


“Not just grown from a very special

parcel, but from a sacred site”

James Halliday

GIMBLETT GRAVELS, HAWKE’S BAY,

TRINITY HILL LTD, 2396 STATE HIGHWAY 50,

HASTINGS, NEW ZEALAND. WWW.TRINITYHILL.COM


A visitor’s guide to the Gimblett Gravels Wine Growing District

Irongate Chardonnays that

came from the these more silty

soil options and today these

seem to be the best for the

variety in contrast to the barren

stony landscape of vineyards

behind Trinity Hill’s cellar door

that are the powerhouse for their

Homage Syrah.

Gordon would like to see the

Bordeaux Cabernet dominant

blend love affair of the earlier

days of New Zealand wine

growing re-invigorated and for

the modern wines to get the

credit they deserve for the quality

they can provide.

“There’s no doubt that the

quality is there,” he comments.

“The 2008 comparative taste

off in London where a selection

16



of Gimblett Gravels wines from

2006 were blind tasted against

top flight Bordeaux from 2005

(a good year) stunned the

UK media. For not only did

international wine critics find it

difficult to tell which wine was

from was which country but the

top 6 included two of the Hawke’s

Bay Gimblett Gravels wines! The

four French wines placed 1 st ,

2 nd , 3 rd and 5 th averaged a cost

of £800 each! The ‘Gravels’ wines

averaged just £16!

And in a strategy that has

built on this experience in

order to get global recognition,

each year wines submitted by

winemakers for inclusion in the

Annual Vintage Selection are

assessed by Australian Andrew

Caillard MW. He selects his top

12 wines from the entries in a

blind tasting and then the wines

are sent to more than 50 critics

and wine influencers around the

globe for their appraisal. “It’s a

way of keeping our region to the

forefront of the world press.”

In a brave move Gordon says

that they distribute the collection

in all vintages, both the good

and not so good. “Critics worldwide

get to understand the real

nature of the District not just

the best wines from the best

vintages.”

But the District has not

remained static since its

inception in 2001.

The area under vines has

increased to 800ha and by all

accounts there are very few plots

still to be planted. Most of the

major players in the New Zealand

wine scene have interests in the

District and operators such as

Babich, Delegats, Villa Maria, and

more recently Craggy Range,

have the lion’s share of the

plantings. But with a membership

of nearly 30 wineries smaller and

medium sized producers played

a part. Medium sized producer

Trinity Hill stamped its mark on

the region when in 1998 it built a

stunning winery and tasting room

just a few hundred meters from

the ‘Road’ itself. Even some South

Island producers have taken sites.

In most cases the wines are

branded with the Gimblett

Gravels trade mark that requires

95% of the fruit to be sourced

from the area. But a few use the

‘Gravels’ fruit as the base of their

wines but blend fruit from other

Hawke’s Bay vineyards to perhaps

ease the cost and maybe add

some other aspects. These do not

fly the GGWGD flag.

Gordon says that there are

good relationships within the

area and these have helped with

replanting as well as co-operative


17


ventures that are to the benefit of

all. He comments quite proudly

that as a region they have

battled the leaf-roll virus that has

infected as much as 20% of the

vines. “Working collegially and

with the help of GPS tracking we

have got it down to around 2%”

It’s just 35 years since Gavin

Yortt, Chris Pask and Alan Limmer

planted vines on the stony flats

around Gimblett Road.

In the fable, all the princess

gained from kissing the frog was

a princedom and a castle or

two. The determination of these

pioneers to see the potential

in an ugly stony wasteland has

now turned it into a national

winemaking asset!

Better than a castle any day!

The values and craft of our pioneering French winemakers is alive and

well in our wines today. Carefully nurtured, pure and distinctive wines,

we honour our past and our land with each new vintage we craft.


The Bordeaux First Growth, Gimblett

Gravels London Shoot Out

In a daring move in

2006 Gimblett Gravels’

representative Rod Easthope

took 6 Gimblett Gravels

wines from the 2006 vintage

to London to get a panel of

international judges to match

them up against 6 top rated

Bordeaux wines from the 2005

vintage (by all accounts a good

one). All 12 were to be ranked

in a blind tasting and the top 6

selected.

Rod must have felt like a

provincial rugby team giving

the All Blacks a bit of a pre

match warm up, for the judges

consisted of 30 or so Masters of

Wine, somelliers and fine wine

buyers from around the country

and included such wine-critic

luminaries as Jancis Robinson

MW, Bordeaux expert Neal Martin,

Oz Clarke and Michael Schuster.

Definitely the A team you might

think and they would certainly

know their clarets!

At the time Rod admitted

he was being a bit audacious

bringing the ‘Gravels’ wines

to the historic centre of claret

consumption. “But we’re

confident in the quality of what

we make,” he said at the time.

“We are young and curious and

need to know where we stand.”

At the end of the tasting

held at New Zealand House in

London’s Haymarket he certainly

knew where the wines stood and

those assembled were stunned

by the result.

For while only two of the

Gimblett Gravels wines were

selected in the top 6 (beating

a 2005 Chateau Haut-Brion into

4th place) several of the judges,

Jancis Robinson included,

commented that they had

difficulty in telling which wines

came from which country!

The pro vincial team had scored

more than a few tries!


Even more startling were the

relative price comparisons.

The French wines in the top 6

averaged £800 apiece! The two

‘Gravels’ wines were priced at

£15 and £17 respectively.

THE RESULTS:

#1 Château Lafite- Rothschild

2005, Pauillac - £975

#2 Château Mouton-Rothschild

2005, Pauillac -£675

#3 Château Angélus 2005,

St-Emillion -£295

#4 Sacred Hill Helmsman 2006,

Gimblett Gravels - £17

#5 Château Haut-Brion 2005,

Pessac-Leognan -£470

#6 Newton Forrest Cornerstone

2006, Gimblett Gravels, £15

It was certainly a result that

highlighted the potential quality

of the Gimblett Gravels District

and it’s something still talked

about in Hawke’s Bay as well as

in the fine wine circles of London.

Award-Winning

D E C L A R A T I O N

OUR RANGE PRODUCED IN EXCEPTIONAL

VINTAGES FROM THE FINEST PARCELS

IN OUR GIMBLETT GRAVELS VINEYARD,

AND DECLARED OUR VERY BEST.

W W W . P A S K . C O . N Z


Villa Maria's

Place in the

Gimblett Gravels

Despite the fact

that Villa Maria

is the country’s

largest and oldest

privately owned

wine producer, it

was not involved in the Gimblett

Gravels until 1992 when it bought

the Ngakirikiri vineyard on SH50

and made wine from it in 1995.

Further expansion in 1996 saw

vines planted in their Keltern and

Twyford sites.

Chief winemaker, Nick Picone,

tells me Villa Maria now owns

around 250ha of Gimblett

Gravels land making it one of the

biggest participants.

Villa Maria’s contribution goes

back to those early days when

Villa’s chief viticulturist Steve Smith

MW was in charge of overseeing

their ‘Gravels’ vineyards.

In concert with Alan Limmer

of Stonecroft, viticulturist Jim

Hamilton and John Buck of

Te Mata, Steve’s experience in

viticultural research enabled the

Gimblett Gravels Association

to take the council and the

quarrying company to court to

get the unique district legally

recognised.

The fight was bitter but the

result means that the District

is not only protected, but also

clearly defined.

Over the years Villa Maria has

created some of the country’s

most prestigious wines from their

‘Gravels’ sites culminating in

‘Ngakirikiri The Gravels’ 2013.

Launched to universal acclaim

it confirms the quality that the

‘District’ can produce and marks

the resurgence of Cabernet as a

dominant force in area. At $160

it is one of the country’s most

expensive wines, but compared

to high-end Bordeaux prices

there’s little to complain about.

Villa Maria have made

considerable changes to their

operations in Hawke’s Bay now

centred in the Gimnlett gravels

District.

20



Are the Gimblett

Gravels an appellation

by another name?

The Vidal winery and restaurant in Hastings

has been closed, Gus Lawson’s Te Awa Farm

purchased and renamed as the Te Awa

Collection and a winery capable of servicing

all four brands (Villa Maria, Esk Valley, Vidal

and Te Awa) built on site. The cellar door and

restaurant offer tastings and food matched

wines across the whole range.

Nick tells me that in the new winery each of

the brands is kept separate. Each winemaker

operates separately with access to shared

facilities and labour. Herding cats springs to my

mind but Nick says it is working well. “However it

needs careful prioritising.”

Gordon Russell for Esk Valley says that care

had been taken in the new winery to retain

the individuality of each brand. “For years I’ve

treasured the old concrete fermenters at the

Esk Valley winery that harks back to the 1940s;

they were a definite contributor to the Esk

style. The company has recognised this and

imported equivalent concrete fermenters to

keep me happy and retain the character of

Esk wines.”

Wine profile

Esk VallEy CabErnEt, MErlot,

MalbEC 2016

Winemaker Gordon Russell says that

this wine was a game changer.

“The Esk Winemakers Reserve

Blend is one of New Zealand’s

most respected wines, and until

the 2016 vintage has always

been Merlot dominant. But

over the years, perhaps with

global warming, the heat has

risen enough to let Cabernet

Sauvignon take control. This is the

first vintage of the switch in the

blend but the 2017 to be released

shortly follows suit. It took some

agonising to make the change!”

The fruit was sourced from some

of the earliest ‘Gravels’ plantings

and tasting notes comment on

the cherry fruitcake and spice

notes.

$70

Not really – perhaps they’re something a little

better!

In France all wine is classified under an

Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC). It

determines the origin of the fruit – maybe the

environs of a small village or perhaps a whole

geographical region - but also determines

viticultural practices such as harvest dates, yields

and vinification methods and even what varieties

are allowed!

No planting of Tempranillo in Bordeaux!

The rules are complicated, confusing but

binding and legally enforced; not really a good

basis for innovation and development?

But over the years it has ensured some measure

of consistency and quality control so long as you

are familiar with the AOC concerned.

The actual determination of the boundaries

of an AOC is often not clear and while many

maintain that soil types are relevant- but rarely

scientifically measured - some definitions rely on

vague determinations of ‘terroir’.

New Zealand has nothing similar, although since

the passing of law in 2016 we have moved to

protect wider geographical designations. A wine

labelled Marlborough must come from established

boundaries but in most cases they are really just

the old provincial limits and have no direct relation

to wine production.

Where the Gimblett Gravels is unique is that it

is determined solely on soil type and those limits

have been scientifically measured and mapped. It

is a trade mark that is enforceable but one whose

rules that play no part in the actual production of

wines. Players can plant and make their wines in

any way they wish, providing they obey the overall

legal requirements of the industry and stay within

the 95% ‘Gravels’ fruit requirements if the wine

carries the branding.

So if you want to plant Muller Thurgau in your

‘Gravels’ vineyard you can go ahead, and good

luck with it. But with the freedom that the system

allows there are already tentative plantings of

Arneis and Alborino and Esk Valley have been

making Vedelho from ‘Gravels’ fruit for some time.

Try that in Bordeaux and wait for the arrival of

the AOC shock troops!


21

Wine & Time

Wine & Time

Marlborough makes waves with world first

A family-owned New Zealand

winery made headlines with

the world’s first alcohol-removed

Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.

Industry power-house Giesen has

announced Giesen 0% - their first

foray into the no-alcohol category.

Nikolai St George, Giesen’s awardwinning

Chief Winemaker, says

the idea was born during a

fitness challenge. “We had a Fit 24

challenge at work that involved

changing your lifestyle; no

alcohol for a month, decreased

sugar and increased exercise, less

device time.”

“The less alcohol part was quite

hard for me. I still need to have

something in my hand and not

feel like I’m missing out,” he said.

So why not wine? International

alcohol-removed offerings existed,

but there was nothing that had

a dry finish that exemplified

the crisp, fresh flavours of

Marlborough.

Already receiving accolades for

his lighter-in-alcohol Sauvignon

Blanc, St George started by

making a full-strength wine

before using innovative spinning

cone technology to remove the

alcohol.

“You put a finished wine through

this spinning cone and it passes

through and then takes out

the alcohol and the aroma," St

George said. This form of vacuum

distillation is often used in

perfume-making and is known for

its gentle treatment of the wine.

Once the alcohol is removed,

the aroma is added back in. This

allows for the distinctive citrus

nose on Giesen’s finished product.

“It was really important to us

to make something varietally

expressive,” said St George.

"There's a lot of citrus flavours with

blackcurrant and passionfruit

notes. It doesn't have the same

full-bodied texture, but it still has a

really wine-like quality."

And critics are agreeing. With

Master of Wine, Bob Campbell,

labelling the first vintage “a giant

leap forward in 0% Sauvignon

Blanc”, and positive responses

from wine writers and customers

alike, Giesen are preparing for

another bottling before harvest.

“This first batch wasn’t big at all,

it’s under 1000 cases,” says St

George. “It was a big thing for us

to take the plunge so it's amazing

to see such a positive response.”

Removing alcohol also revealed

another health benefit. The

alcohol-removed wine boasts

only 10.6 calories per 125ml

serving - 85% fewer than a fullstrength

glass of wine, and up

to 55% fewer grams of sugar per

serving than other dealcoholised

wine options.

With a growing market of healthconscious

consumers, this was

an important factor in deciding

the final blend. In 2019 a report

by the British food and drinks

consultancy Zenith predicted

Nicolai St George.

Chief Winemaker,

Giesen Group.

global sale of zero alcohol drinks

to grow by 10 percent each year

over the next five years.

Giesen 0% - Marlborough

Sauvignon Blanc is available

online now and will hit retail

shelves in New Zealand from

March 2020, before being

launched internationally later in

the year.

Check us out here:

https://bit.ly/2ProO4C.


Wine & time

Aussie smoke

taint - seeing

through the

haze

The effects of smoke are dictated

by the age of the smoke, the

proximity to the fire, the duration

of smoke exposure, geography,

weather conditions and how

close the grapes are to ripening.

When grapes are exposed to

fresh smoke certain flavour

compounds are absorbed by

the skin of the grape and are

sequestered there – very little

actually gets into the flesh of the

berries.

Source: Wine Australia.

Australians are having to deal with the aftermath of the summer’s bushfires.

Wine businesses in Victoria’s bushfire-hit region are hard at work

countering the impact of wildfires that had residents and businesses

on edge over the summer. At King Valley’s La Cantina vineyard, third

generation winemaker, Rueben Corsini, is pushing ahead with this

year’s picking despite losing two weeks of trade and concern bushfire

smoke had damaged this year’s crop.

Source: Herald Sun

Info & Tickets:

Stars

&

Sparkles

Champagne & USA Wine Showcase

Sunday 3rd May, 2020

Generator @GridAKL 12 Madden St

For the first time in NZ, the finest Champagnes

from the most revered villages in France are on

show alongside the most wonderful wines from

the west coast of the mighty USA.

Featuring tantalizing drops from illustrious producers such as Champagne

Billecart-Salmon, Ace of Spades, Opus One, Bogle, Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars

and many more, this inaugural event is one you don’t want to miss.

Proudly brought to you by

Wine & Time

Hawke’s Bay wins big at the

New Zealand Wine Awards

A

Hawke’s Bay

Syrah has won

the New Zealand

Wine of the Year

Champion 2019

trophy, while a

Hawke’s Bay winery has taken

out the inaugural New Zealand

Cellar Door of the Year Award.

Trophies were announced at the

New Zealand Wine Awards held

in Blenheim recently.

The Villa Maria Cellar Selection

Syrah Hawke’s Bay 2018 won the

New Zealand Wine of the Year

Champion trophy presented

by O-I New Zealand, as well as

taking out the winejobsonline.

com Champion Syrah trophy.

Villa Maria also scooped up the

Champion Wine of Provenance

2019 trophy with their Reserve

Gimblett Gravels Syrah, Hawke’s

Bay 2006/2013/2018.

Chair of Judges Warren Gibson

described the winning wine as,

“Immediately appealing and

seductive on the nose. Delicious

and savoury on the palate.

Exceptionally well crafted.”


Wine & Time

Church

Road Winery

(above and

below) was

judged

Cellar Door of

the Year.

Further spotlight shone on the Hawke’s Bay

region as local winery Church Road scooped

up the inaugural New Zealand Cellar Door of

the Year Award. The award was developed to

recognise the outstanding visitor experiences

that our wineries’ cellar doors offer both

international and domestic visitors, with 32

submissions received across eight regions.

Church Road Winery was awarded the trophy as

their cellar door celebrated wine in the past and

present with an eye on the future, with a wide

range of different, immersive and interactive

experiences available for visitors.

The refreshed New Zealand Wine of the Year

competition aims to celebrate the entire New

Zealand wine industry with a particular lean

towards vineyard excellence and regionality.

“The increasing relevance of organic grapegrowing

and a move towards a single vineyard

focus in our industry has been rewarded in this

format,” said Gibson.

The evening, emceed by Jesse Mulligan and

Kanoa Lloyd, recognised the New Zealand Wine

of the Year winners, as well as other industry

achievements including Young Viticulturist of

the Year, Young Winemaker of the Year and the

New Zealand Winegrowers Fellows for 2019;

Steve Green, Bob Campbell MW, and Annie and

James Millton.

Eight New Zealand Wine of the Year trophies

were announced on the evening; also including

Champion Single Vineyard White Wine, and

Hillebrand New Zealand Champion Single

Vineyard Red Wine. This year's competition saw

over 1,200 wines entered.


25

Wine & Time

Nine of

the best

Sauvignon

Blancs of

2019

By Wine Enthusiast

Sauvignon Blanc is one of the

world’s most popular white

wines. Made from greenskinned

grapes, two of the

wine’s trademark characteristics

are crisp acidity and intense

aromatics. It can also be grown

in a range of climates from

France to New Zealand to

California, where it sometimes

goes by the name Fumé Blanc.

While Sauvignon Blanc was

most likely created in Bordeaux,

it is the variety in two of the most

famous wines from France’s Loire

Valley, Sancerre and Pouilly-

Fumé. The cooler climate of the

Loire helps create compounds

called pyrazines, which

contribute to grassy, herbal or

green bell-pepper flavors in the

wine. The grape still does have

a strong showing in Bordeaux,

however, where it is typically

blended with Sémillon for the

region’s dry and sweet wines,

specifically within Graves and

Sauternais.

More than 1,000 Sauvignon

Blancs or Sauvignon Blancbased

blends were tasted by

our reviewers in 2019, so there’s

plenty out there to consider.

Instead, we turned to our annual

top lists to compile a hit list of

nine Sauvies to buy now. While

the highest-rated bottle may be

from a surprising region, beloved

Sancerre and New Zealand

Savvy Bs still have a strong

presence.

Wohlmuth 2017 Ried

Hochsteinriegl Sauvignon

Blanc (Südsteiermark); $45,

95 points.

Subtle elderflower, fern and grass

on the nose attain an incredibly

rounded richness on the palate.

The green tartness is plumped

out with Mirabelle plum ripeness

and buffered by a rich, creamy

texture while a sparky streak of

lemon zest keeps everything

focused. Texture, fruit and

freshness combine in a most

winning fashion. Drink 2020–

2030. VOS Selections. Cellar

Selection. - Anne Krebiehl, MW


Domaine Fouassier 2017 Le

Clos De Bannon (Sancerre);

$50, 93 points.

Biodynamically grown grapes

from a small walled vineyard

produce this beautifully

balanced wine. Its clean lines

and crisp acidity contrast with

hints of tropical fruit and are all

part of a wine that has a strong

future. The wine’s structure and

flinty texture should soften over

the years. Drink from 2021. Opici

Wines. Cellar Selection. - Roger

Voss

Margerum 2018 Sybarite

Sauvignon Blanc (Happy

Canyon of Santa Barbara);

$21, 92 points.

Crisp pear flesh, lemon rind and

white-flowers show on the nose

of this always zesty, refreshing

bottling by Doug Margerum.

There’s a stony grip to the sip,

where citrus and Asian pear

flavours compete for attention

against the tremendously chalky

texture.

- Matt Kettmann

Domaine Anthony & David

Girard 2018 Les Montes

Damnés (Sancerre); $23, 91

points.

A light touch of spice from

partial wood fermentation has

added to the richness of this

wine. That is balanced against

the steely edge of acidity and

minerality. This wine is almost

ready but will be better from

early 2020. Weygandt-Metzler.

- R.V.

Nobilo 2018 Icon

Sauvignon Blanc

(Marlborough); $20, 91

points.

Despite a tough vintage, this

wine is showing all of the

hallmarks of classic Marlborough

Sauvignon. Aromas and flavours

of snow peas, tropical and citrus

fruits and touches of salty oyster

shell are ensconced in a creamy

texture and deftly balanced

by citrusy acidity. Constellation

Brands, Inc. - Christina Pickard

Hay Maker 2018 Sauvignon

Blanc (Marlborough); $12,

89 points. This is an attractive,

perfumed Sauvignon with

heaps of lime popsicle, peach

blossoms and dried green

herbs. The palate is both chalky

and slippery in texture, nicely

balanced by crunchy acidity,

bright fruit and dried herbs.

Acolade Wines. Best buy - C.P.

Discover Kinross, a stunning boutique

vineyard hotel, bistro and wine cellar

set deep in the heart of Gibbston,

New Zealand’s spectacular

‘Valley of the Vines.

Only 10 minutes from Arrowtown,

Kinross is the ideal base for wine

lovers to explore Central Otago, ski, or

simply relax in our guest hot tub,

drinking in the view of the stunning

Pisa range. With 14 delightful

cottages, cellar door, wine garden,

bistro and cycle hire on site, we offer

couples, families and good friends a

truly idyllic summer holiday.

Kinross have launched an impressive

wine club offering wine collections

and special vintages from the area’s

leading wine makers including Coal

Pit, Domaine Thomson, Hawkshead,

Valli and Wild Irishman along with our

new wine label, Kinross.

Visit kinross.nz to explore

our world of wine.

FINALIST, NZ CELLAR DOOR OF THE YEAR 2019

Wine & Time

RAISE A GLASS TO

YOUR HEALTH

By Alexis Korman

Continue to raise that glass

(in moderation, of course)

if you want to maximize the

health benefits of wine. Recent

studies claim a variety of

benefits can be linked to low or

moderate alcohol consumption,

approximately two drinks or less

per day. Here are the top five

takeaways.

Low levels of alcohol can decrease

inflammation and help the brain clear

away toxins

Published in the February 2018 issue of the

journal Scientific Reports, a study conducted

by the University of Rochester Medical

Center demonstrated that mice exposed to low

levels of alcohol showed less inflammation in the

brain and a more efficient glymphatic system,

which serves as the brain’s waste clearance system.

The research may be promising for scientists that

study age-related ailments like Alzheimer’s and

dementia.

“Consumption of alcohol has a ‘J’ shape

curve on health,” says Dr. Maiken Nedergaard of

the University of Rochester Medical Center and

lead author of the study. “Small consumption is

beneficial when looking at large populations,

whereas high is not.”

Antioxidant compounds found in

red wine are advancing heart disease

treatments

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in

the US, but hope may be found in your favourite

Pinot. Or more specifically, in two antioxidant

compounds prevalent in red wine: resveratrol and

quercetin.

“My colleagues and I have developed a stent,

or a small mesh tube that supports a blood

vessel, which releases red wine antioxidants slowly

over time to promote healing and to prevent

future blood clotting and inflammation,” says Dr.

Tammy Dugas, a professor in the Department of

Comparative Biomedical Sciences at Louisiana

State University.


Wine & Time

She and other researchers are also developing

a balloon, which a surgeon can insert and inflate

in a blocked or narrow artery to widen it and allow

blood to flow through to the heart, coated with

these compounds to treat peripheral artery disease,

which can limit blood flow to major organs.

Moderate drinking may lead to a

longer life

Don’t discourage grandma from reaching for

the vino. Research presented at the American

Association for the Advancement of

Science’s annual meeting in February 2018 found

that moderate drinking could be linked to longer

life.

The 90+ study, based at the University of

California-Irvine’s Institute for Memory Impairments

and Neurological Disorders, is a long-term

examination of the health of individuals aged 90

and beyond. According to research, which includes

a 2007 paper published by Drs. Annlia Paganini-

Hill, Claudia Kawas and María M. Corrada, data

suggests that consumption of approximately

two glasses of alcohol a day was linked to a

15% reduction in the risk of early death.

Red wine lovers may enjoy a slight

decrease in prostate cancer risk

Prostate cancer is the most diagnosed cancer in

American men, but moderate consumption of red

wine may be related to a 12% decrease in the risk

to develop the disease.

In late 2017, a multinational research

team conducted a meta-analysis of 83 previously

published articles and 17 studies that met specific

criteria for the project. The results, published in an

April 2018 issue of Clinical Epidemiology, found that

not all wine is created equal: White wine drinkers

faced a slight increase in prostate cancer risk.

There may be

health benefits

linked to

consuming wine

– but it is almost

always if taken in

small quantities.

Drinking wine may improve oral health

Does a gargle of Garganega count as proper

dental hygiene? Not yet, though a study that

appeared in the Journal of Agricultural and Food

Chemistry in February 2018 implies a link between

oral health and wine.

Spanish researchers found that antioxidants

present in red wine prevented plaque-causing

bacteria to adhere to gum tissue. That result was

enhanced when the antioxidants were combined

with the oral probiotic Streptococcus dentisani.

However, the benefits aren’t tied to wine alone.

The polyphenols identified (caffeic and p-coumaric

acid), are also present in other foods like coffee

and plums, respectively. Sadly, to enjoy a bottle of

red doesn’t equal a healthy mouth. Researchers

say that the chemicals analyzed in the study were

far higher in concentration than those present in

wine.


29

Wine & Time

It's

wine,

but not

as we

know it

It's a story as old as the wine

biz: Young next-generation

member of a winemaking

family has supposedly greater

aspirations than running the

family business, leaves town

and makes a different life but

eventually becomes disaffected

and returns to the farm after his

starship is badly damaged, his

android friend Data is killed and

the planet Romulus is destroyed

by a supernova. That's how it

went for one Jean-Luc Picard,

native of France, Earth, captain

of the U.S.S. Enterprise, and longlived-but-dubiously-prosperous

vigneron protagonist of the

upcoming Star Trek: Picard. In the

teaser released recently, we see

the vines and wines of Château

Picard where the Starfleet

ace seems to have retired in

disillusionment. And this week

brings news that fans down here

in the 21st century will be able to

drink bona fide Château Picard

wine from the real-life Château

Picard.

According to Spencer Brewer,

COO of Wines that Rock, which

facilitated the project, Star

Trek producers had been trying

for years to make a Château

Picard wine. The problem

and solution turned out to

be the same: There already is

a Château Picard, in Bordeaux's

St.-Estèphe region, with its own

centuries-old reputation. Earlier

this year, Wines that Rock and

Jean-Luc Picard. Left, bottles of Special Reserve United

Federation of Planets Zinfandel and Château Picard's Star

Trek cuvée .


Wine & Time

Mähler-Besse, the company that

owns the cru Bourgeois estate,

finally got the ball rolling together.

As they pored over what labels

for a Star Trek cuvée might look

like, CBS reported a new Star

Trek series was about to be shot,

prominently featuring bottles of

Picard's wine. Now, after a few

months of wrangling with the

various agencies that regulate

intraplanetary alcohol trade on

Earth, the Château Picard bottles

with the Captain Picard labels

are available to buy, along with a

Special Reserve United Federation

of Planets Zinfandel.

"We released the collector's

set [of both bottles] and all

1,700 sold out in 12 hours,"

Brewer told Unfiltered from a Star

Trek convention in Las Vegas.

"The reaction [from fans]

is instant: 'Wow, you've got to

be kidding me, that really is

the Château Picard from the

Château Picard in Bordeaux?'"

Indeed it is: the same 85/15

Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot 2016

Château Picard bottled under

the château's normal label,

though the Jean-Luc label bears

the vintage 2386. "It is quite fun to

work on such a project, since this

is not necessarily what we are

used to in the industry," Mähler-

Besse rep Patrick De Abreu told

Unfiltered.

For making the Zin, Brewer also

had a vision: "If you're going to

go to a Federation dinner or a

representative meeting of all the

planets 200 years in the future,

what would people be proud

of to serve on the table?" he

explained, ultimately deciding

it would be a three-vineyard Dry

Creek Valley old-vine blend. The

bottle, a tapered cuboid that

stands two inches taller than its

Bordeaux counterpart, had to

be filled and corked by hand,

as 21st-century technology has

not produced a bottling line

advanced enough to process

it. That wine hasn't gotten any

screen time—yet. Picard is still

filming, and, Brewer told us, the

series prop director has a few

bottles to use on set. As the

good captain himself once said,

things are only impossible until

they are not.

BOTTLE

FERMENTED

SAUVIGNON BLANC

Offshoot Sauvignon Blanc is different from

the rest, this Pet Nat (petillant naturel) was

bottled whilst still fermenting to create a

naturally carbonated sparkling wine.

Techniques can be compared to a

Coopers Beer or an apple cider. The wine

is naturally cloudy, with sediment, which is

a result of natural fermentation

in bottle.

It contains minimal sulphites and is

perfect served on a warm spring or

summer afternoon.

REVIEWS

90 Points,

James Suckling

94 Points.

Cameron Douglas MS

91 Points.

Jamie Goode


31

Wine & time

Erica and Kim Crawford.

Kiwi wine recognized

in Wine Spectator

Top 100

Once again Kiwis punch above their weight. This

time New Zealand winery Loveblock has earned

another place on the prestigious Wine Spectator

Top 100 List for 2019, ranking 46th of 100 for its

Pinot Noir Central Otago 2018.

US publication Wine Spectator publishes the

roundup of the most exciting and exemplary

wines from across the globe annually; blind tasting

a pool of more than 15,000 wines and rating them

on value, quality and ‘X-factor’ to determine the

Top 100.

Loveblock’s Pinot Noir Central Otago 2018

impressed the judges with its aromatic notes

of ripe black cherry and hints of mushroom;

complemented by fleshy black plum, layers of

apricot and sweet berries, and notes of violet,

anise seed and toasted cumin on the palate.

The wine received 93 of a possible 100 points,

classified as ‘outstanding; a wine of superior

character and style’.

Erica Crawford, Loveblock founder, is delighted

with the Pinot Noir’s inclusion on the esteemed list.

“We’re so excited to see our Central Otago Pinot

Noir continuing to garner global recognition and

represent New Zealand wines on an international

stage.”

Founded by Erica alongside partner Kim

Crawford, Loveblock began as a result of Erica’s

passion for organic farming. Their grapes are

produced through low intervention farming,

allowing the wines to show their true terroir.

The vegan friendly Pinot Noir Central Otago

is no exception; and is sustainably grown

using Loveblock’s signature ethical farming

techniques.

“Sustainability is at the heart of Loveblock’s

wine and brand, and in our view, organic and

sustainable winegrowing is the way of the

future. We couldn’t be more pleased that Wine

Spectator is celebrating wines made using these

techniques.”

Erica and Kim have implemented tried and

tested methods such as composting to promote

biodiversity and soil health, while making use of

modern winemaking technology and equipment

to ensure the vineyards are as carbon efficient as

possible.

“Since 2011, we have been striving to make

beautiful wines while looking after the land we

grow on, and are so proud to have a history

of embracing and leading the charge when it

comes to innovative and sustainable winemaking,”

says Crawford.

“As consumers become more concerned

with the provenance of what they eat and drink,

we have responded in kind to deliver wine of

the highest standard, with a process that’s both

forward-thinking and kind to the earth.”

Loveblock Pinot Noir Central Otago 2018 is one

of just two New Zealand wines included in this

year’s list, with a Mt Beautiful Sauvignon Blanc from

North Canterbury placing 60th. Loveblock’s Pinot

Noir Central Otago 2015 earned 42nd place in the

Top 100 List for 2018.

An annual highlight since 1988, the Top 100 list

is a synopsis of the past year in wine and a guide

to wineries to watch in the future—a reflection of

the producers and wines that Wine Spectator’s

editors are most excited about. The publication

carries a strong influencer in key markets such as

the United States, Canada and Asia.

What the fuss

is all zbout –

the Loveblock

pinot noir from

Central Otago.


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Wine & Time

How to Understand

(Almost) Everything

on a Wine Label

By Marshall Tilden III

Fear not. There are some

basic formulas that can help

you understand the rather

confusing and sometimes

smug words on wine labels.

How to Read a

Wine Label

The first thing to determine is if the wine is from

the Old World (Europe, the Mediterranean, parts

of Western Asia) or New World (any other wineproducing

region). While all labels will include basic

facts like region, producer, alcohol by volume (abv)

and vintage (unless nonvintage), there are some

notable distinctions.

New World Wine Labels

With wines from the US, South America, Oceania

and most other non-European countries, the grape

variety almost always appears on the label.

Originally, New World wine labels focused

less on where the grapes were grown because

they were basically all unknown wine regions.

Rather, they highlighted grapes to link the

wines to iconic European regions. A Cabernet

Sauvignon or Merlot could be associated

with Bordeaux, while a Chardonnay could be

compared to Burgundy.

This also occurred because, unlike their Old-World

counterparts, the style of the wine focused more on

the grape’s expression than the region, though this

has certainly changed over time. Now, many non-

European regions are home to some of the finest

vineyards in the world.

New World wine labels tend to be fairly

straightforward. More often than not, they provide

the grapes, region, subregion and even a

description of the wine’s aromas and flavors, usually

on the back.

However, there are certainly exceptions to this

rule. Take one of the most popular wines in the U.S.

right now, The Prisoner. That name is literally all you’ll

find on the front label, while the back label states

simply that it’s a “red wine” from Napa Valley. These

wines, like some Old-World counterparts, count on

the prestige of their name communicating all a

wine connoisseur needs to know.

The Prisoner wine relies on the prestige of the name

communicating all a wine connoisseur needs to know.

Certain New World wines may also be deemed

a Rhône-style red blend or a super Tuscanstyle

wine. Again, you have to know the grapes

used in the historic European regions to understand

what’s in the bottle. Typically, Rhône-style red

blends from California are a combination of Syrah,

Grenache and Mourvèdre, the ther grapes

permitted in France’s Rhône Valley.

Keep in mind that with New World labels, terms

like “Reserve,” “Special” and “Selection” don’t have

any regulatory minimums in terms of aging or

vineyard location. They are basically marketing

terms meant to imply a higher-quality bottling, but

they can be slapped on any label and offer no

guarantee.

The only term that really has legal meaning in

the U.S. is “Meritage,” the combination of “merit”

and “heritage.” A number of California winemakers

banded together in the late 1980s to form the

Meritage Association (now Meritage Alliance)

and created this classification for Bordeaux-style

blends produced by member wineries, intended

as a designation of quality. These wines must be a

blend of two or more of the red Bordeaux varieties:

Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec,

Merlot, Petit Verdot and the rarer St. Macaire, Gros

Verdot and Carmenère. They can’t have more

than 90% of any single variety. For white Meritage,

the blend must include at least two of the three

Bordeaux white grapes: Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon

and Muscadelle.

There’s a lot to learn from wine labels—so long as

you know where to look. Keep these tricks in mind

and you’ll be headed in the right direction.

First published by Wine Spectator.


NEW

UPDATED

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FOR 2020

Alena Kamper | Current Studen

Viticulture & Wine Science

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The degree provides a strong science

foundation with practical application and

industry interaction in all three years. There

is an in-depth focus on growing grapes

and making wine, as well as the essential

skills required once working in industry

related to people management and

wine marketing.

The latest research, industry technology

and important issues related to

sustainability are key topics.

You will get an opportunity to make your

own wine, work in a vineyard, complete a

harvest internship, develop a wine palate

and gain practical skills like tractor driving,

first aid and forklift license within the

degree structure.

With EIT’s flexible study approach you can

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There’s never been a better time or place

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eit.ac.nz | 0800 22 55 348 |

Tastings | Tasting Intro

Why

We

TasTe

Blind

At Wine NZ Magazine, this

simple truth stands as

the foundation of our

wine ratings. We believe

that evaluating wines

blind ensures that our

tasters remain impartial and that our

reviews are unbiased, with all wines

presented on a level playing field.

You may be surprised to learn

that not all wine writers share this

approach. Some critics review wines

non-blind, and even alongside the

winemakers and at the wineries.

They argue that honesty and

independence can overcome the

expectations that are inevitably

triggered by knowing the identity of a

wine, its reputation and its price. We

respectfully disagree.

Avoiding bias simply put, in a

blind tasting the taster is deprived

of information that may bias his

or her judgment of the wine in the

glass. Now, you may think that a

conscientious taster should be able

to ignore the influence of extraneous


Tasting Intro | Tastings

factors. But research has shown

that it’s not so easy. We are

all very prone to a cognitive

error called “confirmation

bias,” which plays a large, but

largely unacknowledged, role in

everyday judgment.

A tasting with or without

labels does not produce the

same representations. A real

organoleptic appreciation of a

wine should be carried out in

the absence of all imaginary

reference. These kinds of

experiments have been carried

out many times, in many settings,

but always with the same

results: “Imaginary references”—

especially producer names

and price tags—significantly

influence sensory evaluations.

The only way for a scrupulous

critic to guarantee unbiased

judgments is to review wines in

blind tastings.

This is why Wine NZ Magazine

employs a “singleblind”

methodology. Our tasters know

general aspects of the wine that

provide context, which include

vintage, appellation and grape

variety where appropriate, but

never the name of the producer

or the wine’s price. The goal

is to arrive at the appropriate

balance: enough information

to contextualize the wine, but

not so much information that

“imaginary references” begin to

distort judgment.

Blind tasting is difficult,

imprecise and humbling.

Evaluating a wine is not like

weighing an object on a

scale. The tasting note that

accompanies each of our

reviews describes the individual

wine and attempts to put it in

context. The score our tasters

assign, based on our 100-point

scale, is a summary of their

judgment about the wine’s

quality. Wine NZ Magazine

makes every effort to ensure

that our tasters have the skill

and experience to make good

judgments on the wines they

review. Then we make certain

that those reviews take place

under tasting conditions that

eliminate bias and ensure

fairness. We believe that this

combination of expertise

and methodology results in

wine reviews that are not only

independent but also, and most

importantly, reliable. Above all,

we hope the information and

judgment we share with our

readers can help you deepen

your understanding and

appreciation of wine, and

develop an authentic taste of

your own.

95 - 100

Classic: A

great wine.

90 - 94

Outstanding:

A wine of superior

character and

style.

85 - 89

Very Good. A

wine of special

qualities.

80 - 84

A good wine.

Solid and well

made.


37

Tastings | Pinot Gris

Pinot

Gris -

Yes, it’s growing

in popularity.

The latest National

statistics show 23,000

tonnes of Pinot Gris

grapes were harvested

last year, which is 6% of

the total New Zealand

wine production, an increase

from 3% in 2004. Plantings

continue to grow!

So, why would a winery

plant Pinot Gris when more

characterful wines, like

Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc

and Gewürztraminer, seem to

appeal more to New Zealand

wine tasters and drinkers? Pinot

Gris wines usually have a little

residual sugar left in, to enhance

flavour. Pinot Gris is the bestknown

mutant grape variety of

Pinot Noir, which mutates easily

to other lesser known varieties

such as Pinot Blanc and a

number of clonal varieties. This

is known as Pinot Grigio in Italy,

where it is usually vinified to be

bone dry, but, the best examples

come from France, from the

region of Alsace.

New Zealand’s varietal Pinot Gris

plantings focus on Marlborough

(the biggest region, by far.)

followed by Hawkes Bay. But

it is said that the South Island

plantings produce tighter

wines, with great structure

and persistence. Nevertheless,

flavours are purer from Central

Otago.

Food matching: The gentle

acidity and marked fruitiness

of a well-balanced Pinot Gris

is a perfect complement to

roast pork with a stewed pear

sauce, creamy pasta, poultry or

seafood. Look for apple, pear,

honeysuckle, spice and bread

flavours.

Pinot Gris not only lives on,

its popularity is on an everincreasing

upward curve. So,

give it a go soon and try one of

our tasters’ Pinot Gris in this issue

of WinenZ magazine soon.


Pinot Gris | Tastings

Pinot Gris

SILENI ESTATE CELLAR SELECTION

HAWKES BAY 2019

Simon Nash: Light pale, some spritz youthful, light, fresh.

Ripe, soft, quite fleshy. Sound.

Matt Kirby: Spiced pear, olive apple, and balanced palate

between fruit sweetness and acidity.

Barry Riwai: Pear full bodied. Ripe good texture, some

warmth on the palate, has drive.

Points: 90

$19.99

$16

STABLES NGATARAWA RESERVE

HAWKES BAY 2019

Simon Nash: Deep yellow gold heavier nose, some

custard tart, ripe quite soft, fleshy style, sound.

Matt Kirby: Inviting aromatics. Fig and spices with good

depth. A very textural wine, good depth. Very good.

Barry Riwai: Attractive straw hue. Dry with structural

phenolic element. Long pithy finish gives tension.

Points: 95

MISSION ESTATE

MARLBOROUGH 2019

Simon Nash: Mid colour, some depth, quite weighty, hint

of custard, Good weight, body quite serious, balanced,

ripe fruit quite long.

Matt Kirby: Spiced pear, Clove apple, and talcum.

Aromatic, even and balanced palate between fruit

wetness and acidity.

Barry Riwai: Pear, full bodied, ripe, good texture, Some

warmth on the palate. Has drive with seductive perfume.

Points: 84

$16

$21.99

ARA SINGLE ESTATE

MARLBOROUGH 2019

Simon Nash: Pale bright with lemon/lime hints. Sherbet

citrus. Relatively simple, light. Solid finish.

Intense apricot aromas. Palate has similar interesting

intensity with soft acidity and sweetness.

Barry Riwai: Honey suckle, orange blossom, off dry medium

carry.

Points: 84

STABLES NGATARAWA PREMIUM BLEND

HAWKES BAY 2019

Simon Nash: Full colour, quite bright. fresh young,

quite fruity, citrus, opening up, good weight, ripe, nice

expression and balance, good finish.

Matt Kirby: An opulent style, Baking spices and ripe pear.

Full, ripe palate with some sweetness and persistent

length.

Barry Riwai: Golden peach yellow apple. Medium length.

Medium, appley sweetness.

Points: 88

$11

$18

MILLS REEF ESTATE

HAWKES BAY 2019

Simon Nash: Full bright yellow colour, Shy nose quite

neutral, ditto palate, soft pallet, soft, balanced, lacking

character, sound.

Matt Kirby: Lifted pear and apple aromatics with some

fennel textural, while that is soft and even. Well made.

Barry Riwai: Pear, subtle floral perfume, riper style off dry

with pleasing warmth on the finish. Has fruit weight and

good carry and roundness. Finish builds.

Points: 94


39

Tastings | Pinot Gris

Matahiwi EstatE

Wairarapa Masterton 2019

simon Nash: slightly orangeate hue. grey tinted, hot

slightly, varnishy nose.

Matt Kirby: tinned pear and apple with some tropical

almost passionfruit spritely habits gives freshness.

Barry riwai: rose gold hue, peachy with a hint of berry

fruit. Medium weight and finish.

Points: 81

$22.99

$27

doMaiN Road dEFiaNcE

Central otaGo BannoCHBurn 2019

simon Nash: Pale bright light lemon. light almost

smokey initially light, varietal character.

Matt Kirby: lychee and pear aromas that look very fresh.

Medium and acidity gives the palate focus and length.

Barry riwai: pale colour, cooler lemon aromas. the palate

shows the cooler nature, acidity, fine structure but also soft

roundness to the mid palate.

Points: 87

Pask iNstiNct suN kissEd

HaWKes Bay, GiMBlett Gravels 2019

simon Nash: Nice clean bright yellow gold. quite

weighty, hint of oak. solid mid palate, fruit, hint of oak.

Ripe, nice style.

Matt Kirby: softer aromatics held back by some reductive

notes. Generous palate with great balance and

drinkability.

Barry riwai: leesy complexity to the nose, initially closed

but good depth to the palate, layered. Fine structure dry

without heat.

Points: 89

$17

$21.99

silENi EstatE, gRaNd REsERvE PRiEstEss

HaWKes Bay 2018

simon Nash: Full yellow, bright. Quite ripe custard, some

good grip on the palate. oak phenolic grip. Bit drying

with finish. interesting.

Matt Kirby: Complex, apple and white florals. a really

textural wine. possible barrel, well made.

Barry riwai: yeasty, toasty nose. stone fruits, caramel,

baked peach flavour, marry well with toffeed flavours.

Points: 86

BaBich MaRlBoRough

MarlBorouGH 2019

simon Nash: Full yellow bright, soft not especially fruit

driven. Fresh on the nose. Better on the palate. solid.

Matt Kirby: super interesting stone fruit. and floral aromas.

a deeper colour with some developed notes. Works so

well.

Barry riwai: pear, white fleshed peach. some warmth.

Fruity.

Points: 86

$19.95

$19.95

awatERE RivER

MarlBorouGH. 2018

simon Nash: Yellow gold bright. Nice lifted fruit, clean

fresh relatively simple style.

Matt Kirby: Concentrated lychee and ginger palate. is full

and ripe with soft acidity and great light.

Barry riwai: Cooler zesty lime and cucumber. Griggio

style, bright and fresh. touch of lychee, good interesting

wine.

Points: 90


Pinot Gris | Tastings

Waimea

NelsoN 2018

Simon Nash: mid yellow, quite bright and fresh, some

aromatics floral/chlorophyll, solid mid palate.

Matt Kirby: Distinctive array of quince and clove. Well

furred palate, framed by solid acidity.

Barry Riwai: lemmon zest lemonade flavours but tending

to drop away early.

Points: 83

$17.99

$24.95

BaBich Family eState oRgaNic WiNe

MaRlBoRough WaiRau ValleY 2017

Simon Nash: Full yellow, bright. Some development,

complex. Bready, almost wet wool. chenin developed

fruit on palate. easy in style, vinous, complex. long finish.

Matt Kirby: some obvious development showing more.

sandalwood and vanilla, well structured. Very cool style.

Barry Riwai: toastiness, straw and Meyer lemon zest.

Candied peel flavour. hint of pecorino and lanolin.

Points: 93

Rock FeRRy 3 Rd Rock

MaRlBoRough 2018

Simon Nash: Full yellow, quite weighty looking.

Smoky, quite complex aromatics, mouth filling, nicely

balanced, oak intense. quite complex and interesting

long finish.

Matt Kirby: spicy brioche with vanilla, slight reduction that

works. Floral and full with a good depth of flavour.

Barry Riwai: Yeasty complexity, stonefruit stewed apple

toffee apple flavours. Ready now. Pleasant.

Points: 87

$27

$33

Rock FeRRy tRig hill ViNeyaRd

CeNtRal otago 2016

Simon Nash: mid yellow, bright. euro style. Slightly

sweet, boiled fruit.

Matt Kirby: tropical mango and lychee aromas. shows a

depth and richness.

Barry Riwai: unusual camphor note that gives a strong

bitter taste and feel. Well made

Points: 80

Wild eaRth WiNeS

CeNtRal otago 2018

Simon Nash: Pale bright young looking. Sound fresh.

Some boiled fruit characters, soft quite ripe, varietal

definition. Sound.

Matt Kirby: Complex, earthy and fresh apple. Well balance

earthy and sweetness gives persistence.

Barry Riwai: Pink grapefruit. smokers lollies, with some

reduction that clips the palate.

Point: 82

$30

$25

millS ReeF ReSeRVe

haWKes BaY 2019

Simon Nash: Full yellow, quite weighty looking, ripe soft,

quite fleshy nose, round soft juicy, well balanced. good

finish.

Matt Kirby: super concentrated and bold aromas of

apricot and quince. Well-structured palate that has some

warmth and resistance.

Barry Riwai: Nectarine, round full palate, dry low acid style,

slightly spirity finish but plenty of fruit flavour.

Points: 85


41

Tastings | Pinot Noir

Pinot

noir -

Varying

regional styles!

$59.99

giesen riDge bloCk single VineyarD

MARLBOROuGH. 2014

simon nash: Dark rouge. light tints, some spice and

toast. soft round quite fleshy, good savoury grip. nice

balanced fruit.

Matt Kirby: Big and rich and ageing really well. Nice

cherry and thyme. Still good balance.

Barry Riwai: A touch pasty, gentle fruit flavours are still

there, velvety tannin.

Points: 85

New Zealand Pinot

Noir is seeing

impressive growth

in export sales.

Climate is a

major factor in

defining regional styles, therefore

one needs to try wine from each

region!

Marlborough heads the

country for volume, almost

double of the next largest;

Central Otago followed, fairly

equally, by Wairarapa, Canterbury

and Hawke’s Bay. Followed by

sub-regions, within these main

regions. Take Central Otago, as an

example, Pinot Noir is flourishing

in Central Otago, with a variety of

stunning expressions being crafted

in these numerous sub-regions.

All of the main winegrowing subregions

lie within close reach, with

the distinctive mountainous terrain

providing each with a unique

climate, aspect and altitude.

CenTral oTago is a tourism

stronghold, captivating visitors

with a wide range of excellent

Cellardoor facilities and winetourism

activities. Soaring snowcapped

mountains, glistening

rivers nestled deep within ravines

(gold rush territory) draw visitors

from far and wide.

CroMwell/lowburn/Pisa –

(4 Barrels, Lake Dunstan feature in

this magazine.)

This area is located on the

eastern side of Lake Dunstan

starting north from the township of

Cromwell. The majority of plantings

are situated on the lower terraces

and valley floor, running parallel to

the snow-capped Pisa Mountain

Range producing seductive wines.

One can read more in this issue.

FooD MaTChing. Pinot Noir, with

its supple richness, complements

a range of savoury dishes. Game;

Duck, Venison or Turkey, New

Zealand Salmon, Meat dishes of

Pork, Lamb.


Pinot Noir | Tastings

Pinot Noir

SILENI ESTATES CELLAR SELECTION

NELSON 2019

Simon Nash: Pale delicate Ruby hue. Quite toasty,

warm ripe fruit. Soft fleshy, quite delicate, but soft fruit.

Matt Kirby: Red fruits, strawberry, raspberry, full plate, with

medium, plus acidity and length

Barry Riwai: Cherry stone, touch of olive tapenade. Full of

concentrated palate with game and black truffle.

Points: 88

$19.99

$29

STABLES NGATARAWA

HAWKES BAY 2019

Simon Nash: Pale rouge colour. Light berry, quite juicy

raspberry, solid up front, juicy fruit. Quite simple/sweet.

Matt Kirby: Ripe expression of strawberry, complex very

mid palate with soft acidity.

Barry Riwai: Raspberry, a lighter style with interesting

nuttiness and warmth.

Points: 83

AKARUA RUA CENTRAL OTAGO

CROMWELL BASIN 2019

Simon Nash: Quite deep rouge colour. Nice Berry,

strawberry nose. Attractive chocolatey/berry, nice

fleshy, nice, good style.

Matt Kirby: Good savoury interest, solid fruit with spicy

undertones and forest floor notes. Good acidity.

Barry Riwai: Tayberry/raspberry note. Richer wine, round

and ripe, some boiled sweet notes.

Points: 91

$25

$29.99

AWATERE RIVER

MARLBOROUGH 2018

Simon Nash: Very pale almost translucent. Some berry

notes. Light quite delicate fruits, solid finish.

Matt Kirby: Some oak notes with red fruits and violets.

Some appealing aromas. Medium acidity and impressive

persistence, with a lighter franc.

Barry Riwai: Game thyme and roasting pan juices.

Absolutely packed with layers of flavour, Oak there but in

support. Wonderful freshness.

Points: 93

SEIFRIED FAMILY WINE MAKERS

NELSON 2019

Simon Nash: Dark full red colour. Quite chunky, grippy.

Solid mid palate.

Matt Kirby: High toned, concentrated of dark fruits, Rich

and complex with firm acidity.

Barry Riwai: Darker colour, chare and flinty complexity.

Seductive meaty nose. Red fleshed plum with good

tannins.

Point: 89

$18

$29

MISSION RESERVE

MARLBOROUGH 2018

Simon Nash: Good colour, though pale edge. Nice

strawberry with chocolate milk characters. Round quite

fleshy characters. Ripe, lively finish.

Matt Kirby: Darker rich style of loganberry and cedar. A

very soft palate that shows some development.

Barry Riwai: Strawberry ripe, oaky.

Points: 83


43


StableS Ngatarawa reServe

Hawkes Bay 2018

Simon Nash: Quite full colour. Savoury, quite grippy.

Solid, riper, fleshy mid palate fruit, limited length.

Matt kirby: Rhubarb and cherry, soft palate that has fine

tannin. Palate has impressive length.

Barry Riwai: wild strawberry with a little cranberry sauce on

the side. soft acidity and velvety tannin.

Points: 86

$16

$46.99

MataHiwi Holly SoutH SerieS

waiRaRaPa MasteRton 2018

Simon Nash: Mid rouge colour. Quite nice toasty

strawberry. lighter style, sound through the palate,

nicely finished.

Matt kirby: cola and dried thyme, a rare elegant style

done really well. amazing length.

Barry Riwai: cherry, thyme and strawberry. straight forward

with fruit. Medium tannin with carry on palate.

Points: 94

akarua PiNot Noir CeNtral otago

BannockBuRn 2018

Simon Nash: Nice dark quite vinous looking. toasty,

attractive, hunky, grippy and powerful. Ditto palate. Has

grip power, intensity, berry concentrate.

Matt kirby: High tuned cherry and cinnamon. a cola, berry

edge that leads into a well-balanced palate.

Barry Riwai: Dark colour, meaty plums, very ripe, full style,

with a touch of character.

Points: 96

$45

$23

JaCkSoN eState HoMeSteaD

MarlborougH

soutHeRn waiHoPai VaLLey 2018

Simon Nash: Pale rouge, soft character. toasty

character. Ditto. Soft quite fleshy fruit, dry, bit grippy.

Matt kirby: complex and dense. some dark aromatic, a

core of red fruits. Good structure and a complete feel.

Barry Riwai: Lifted nose, cherry. tannins are a bit drying.

Points: 87

MataHiwi Holly eState

waiRaRaPa MasteRton 2018

Simon Nash: Quite pale, bright. Some toasty spicy and

cranberry note. bit dilute, quite good grip nice berry

backdrop.

Matt kirby: turative leaf and red fruit aromas, some leather

and clove. Lovely tannin.

Barry Riwai: Fragrant raspberry, cherry with black olive.

savoury wine, thyme undercurrent that gives freshness.

sweet oak sweet spice to finish.

Points: 87

$39.99

$24.95

babiCH MarlborougH

MaRLBoRouGH 2018

Simon Nash: Pale rouge, looks very light. toasty, spicy,

strawberry, light weight.

Matt kirby: Light. expression of red fruits. a freshness to the

palate that shows solid drinkability.

Barry Riwai: Rosehip, cherry and game. Good structure

with true tannin and layered flavours.

Points: 84



WilD eaRth WineS

central otago 2018

Simon nash: good colour, vinous red. nice intense

berry. good weight of fruit. Soft entry but good depth,

fleshy finish.

Matt kirby: ripe and brooding. Dark cherry, plain and

spicy, solid tannin and a tone of complexity.

Barry riwai: Darker colour, cranberry, mulberry with

sweet vanilla spice. Strawberry jam and early character

dominate the palate. the nose is much lighter.

Points: 95

$40

$65

mt. DiffiCulty ghoSt toWn VineyaRD

Pinot noir 2017 central otago BenDigo

Simon nash: nice dark colour, mushroom character,

dry savoury, sound Pinot style. Weighty.

Matt kirby: Spiced cherry, compote, really classy aromatics

with a broody line of concentration with great length.

Barry riwai: craisins, clove and molasses, Dried fig and

cherry, full and spirity.

Points: 88

Domain RoaD Pinot noiR CentRal otago

BannockBurn 2018

Simon nash: nice colour, quite deep and full bodied.

attractive Victoria plum, soft good grip, quite weighty,

nice balance, ripe, fleshy, quite good notes and well

balanced.

Matt kirby: Solid dark riper fruit. Some leather and cassis.

acidity is medium and holds the balance of the opulent

fruit.

Barry riwai: Sweet spice, red plum, black cherry. Dark

brooding, savoury tones carry through the palate. Black

olive with structural tannins.

Points: 88

$40

$45

amiSfielD

central otago PiSa 2017

Simon nash: intense, dark, weighty looking, soft,

savoury, mushroom, dry, chunky, savoury.

Matt kirby: ripe full thyme. Plush palate with a dark cling

of tannin.

Barry riwai: Spice, black cherry, on the palate there is a

more savoury spice, cinnamon and a hint of rosehip jam.

Fuller style but with layered complexity.

Points: 93

mt. DiffiCulty PiPe Clay teRRaCe VineyaRD

central otago BannockBurn

Simon nash: good colour, vinous dark nice chunky

pinot earthy. good weight, quite mushroomy.

Matt kirby: Dark and broody, dark cherry and plum. Big

palate with interesting acidity and concentrated cacao.

Barry riwai: red fruit berry character. a little dryish. good

weight.

Points: 88

$110

$80

amiSfielD BReakneCk ReSeRVe

central otago PiSa 2017

Simon nash: Dark vinous looking. nice cherry

character, good weight, cherry, dry savoury character,

serious, good finish.

Matt kirby: richly expressed with some forest floor. Weighty,

some warmth to the palate.

Barry riwai: lifted nose, Fresh polish, berry and beeswax.

lifted character runs through the palate. Mocha finish.

Points: 88


45


Pegasus Bay

North CaNterbury 2017

simon Nash: Very dark, smokey, mineral, wet stone, olive

notes, tapenade, dry.

Matt Kirby: 5 spices from white brioche. Clove and

cinnamon. rich with a tannic cone.

barry riwai: thyme, roasted meats, nutty oak. Gripping

tannins. Very full, ripe wine.

Points: 83

$52

BaBich Family estate OrgaNic WiNe

MarlborouGh Wairau Valley 2017

simon Nash: Pale, bright, quite light. greengage, dry

and savoury.

Matt Kirby: Vinous aromatics, mushroom and thyme. Soft

palate with resistance.

barry riwai: Savoury, Kalamata olive. Wild strawberry and

game. Very attractive nose, good length on the palate.

Showing some toffee notes, but very typical.

Points: 87

$39.95

$110

mt. DiFFiculty lONg gully ViNeyarD

CeNtral otaGo baNNoCKburN 2016

simon Nash: Nice vinous look. soft, quite dark, jammy,

long nose. soft, quite fleshy. solid grip mid palate.

sound finish.

Matt Kirby: Spice and clove lifted, slightly mature

aromatics. Strong acidity driving a structured palate.

barry riwai: Prune, date and cherry flavours. oak and little

cola berry flavour. Dry tannins.

Points: 84

$120

amisFielD rKV reserVe

CeNtral otaGo PiSa 2016

simon Nash: dark rouge look. Quite sour cherry. Dry,

savoury. Quite sour cherry, hard finish.

Matt Kirby: Warm and inviting aromas of Doris plum and

cider. the palate has warmth and generosity.

barry riwai: red fruits, plum and raspberry, cedar flavours

and toffee flavours support the red fruits on the palate.

Points: 85

mt. DiFFiculty maNsONs Farm ViNeyarD

CeNtral otaGo baNNoCKburN 2016

simon Nash: mid colour, dark rouge. soft, dark, berry

jam, juicy, soft, quite close finish, though sound grip.

Matt Kirby: Violets, some lavender, oak leading into an

acid driven full palate. Subtle maturity.

barry riwai: Clove, spices, plum, almost a leather aroma.

lifted red fruits. Gentle mid palate. Soft acidity.

Points: 86

$110

$100

Pegasus Bay Prima DONa


simon Nash: Dark vinous colour. Dry quite mineral.

sweet/soft entry.

Matt Kirby: oak and spice and clove, cola, berry on

palate. Some mulberry, slight spritz.

barry riwai: reductive.

Points: 80



Main DiviDe


Simon nash: nice dark, vinous colour, quite nice

mushroom, savoury nose. Sound mid palate. Solid fruit.

Matt Kirby: thyme and sage. beautiful aromatic lift of

cherry, gives full palate good intensity.

barry riwai: Sweet vanillin, bay leaf, some mustiness, dry

tannin. red fruit, cherry tannins.

Points: 86

$24.99

$39.99

gieSen oRganic

Marlborough 2015

Simon nash: Dark colour. some nice development.

Sound good berry note, Well balanced, dry, good grip,

length good development in the glass. nice finish.

Matt Kirby: Cedar, mulberry and rhubarb. Some

development that is in a nice place.

barry riwai: lifted, berry fruits, mulberry, sweet vanillin, oak

derived tannin.

Points: 86

Rock FeRRy 3 RD Rock

CeNtral otago 2016

Simon nash: nice dark, good development in the glass,

dry, mushroom, savoury, tomato nose, ripe fruit, quite

round, complex, sound.

Matt Kirby: rich and full, nice 5 spice, ready with red fruits.

Soft and even palate with good balance.

barry riwai: Fruit forward nose cherry and sweet rose.

Strawberry and jam notes on the palate with front bitter

chocolate, tannic structure.

Points: 92

JackSon eState vintage WiDoW

MaRlboRough

SoutherN Waihopai Valley 2016

$45

Simon nash: Semi pale bright but translucent.

Strawberry and custard nose. Soft entry, round fruit

tannins, soft well balanced.

Matt Kirby: Some development, leather notes, a maturing

feel of tamarillo and cola. even soft palate.

barry riwai: Soft vanilla and stewed plum. Some cranberry

and rhubarb. Flesh out the plum on the palate. Still

pinoteque and delicate.

Points: 86

$45

$65

Rock FeRRy tRig hill vineyaRD

CeNtral otago 2015

Simon nash: Mid red colour, some development in the

glass. Soft berry, brambly characters. Savoury, ripe, well

developed. Quite fleshy toned. good finish.

Matt Kirby: ripe aromas of porcini mushroom and cola

berry. the palate has a freshness with good acidity.

barry riwai: olive and prune, showing its age. the softened

texture is enjoyable.

Points: 88

$59.99

gieSen clayvin Single vineyaRD

Marlborough 2014

Simon nash: nice development, some lightness at the

rim. Solid, berry, strawberry pie pastry. good fruit. lifted

style. Quite chunky berry. good finish.

Matt Kirby: Cherry and rhubarb, some leather and clove

oak notes and some fruit on palate.

barry riwai: Fruit on the palate is drying.

Points: 85


47

Tastings | Rosé

Rosé

rosé

PINK IS THE

NEW BLACK.

The majority of rosé wines

are produced from a single

or a blend of red grape

varietals. Most commonly

Pinot Noir, Malbec, Syrah,

Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon,

Tempranillo and Sangiovese.

Sparkling rosé is often produced

with a blend of red and white grapes.

RoSÉ FLaVoUR

The ‘base’ flavours of rosé are

floral and perfumed, featuring redskinned

fruit, citrus, and melon, with

a pleasant ‘green’ finish.

rose wine can be produced in a

sweet, off-dry or bone-dry style. But

the defining factor of most rosé is

that the flavour will reflect the grape

that the wine was made with.

The iconic wine region known for

creating the most consistent tasting

rosés that are on the dry side, is

Provence in France.

neW ZeaLand RoSÉ

rosé is currently the fastest-growing

wine category in the country, and

people the world over love the

various New Zealand styles on offer.

PaiRinG RoSÉ With Food

A lot of people treat rosé as an

aperitif in summer - a trend started

by the French, historically.

A bright, crisp, scented rose is

certainly a refreshing palate

cleanser, but it can also pair well

with plenty of different foods.

$19.99

SiLeni eStateS ceLLaR SeLection cabeRnet FRanc

HAWKES BAy 2019

Simon nash: nice colour, orange/copper, bright. dry, apricot

nose, interesting, good mid palate weight, nice fruit, berry

compote, good.

Matt Kirby: Soft cherry, fennel and strawberry leaf, even palate

that is juicy and fresh, well made.

Barry riwai: Peach and plum aromas, some spice, palate is

broad with warmth and low acidity. Full bodied.

Points: 87

$25

Rock FeRRy oRchaRd VineyaRd Pinot

MArLBorougH 2019

Simon nash: Pretty lipstick tinge. Light and quite elegant but

restrained. Quite light, tad dilute, off dry, sound finish.

Mat Kirby: Menthol aromas over oregano and parsley. Sprightly

palate that has persistent acid line.

Barry riwai: raspberry nose, pretty pale pink, lovely freshness,

fruit favours keep going with an attractive sprightliness.

Points: 87

$24.99

SiLeni GRand ReSeRVe RidGe Pinot noiR

HAWKES BAy 2019

Simon nash: Quite heavy orange/pink. nice lifted summer

fruit. Ripe perhaps tad weighty. Solid.

Matt Kirby: Strawberry and five spices. Full palate that has a

warmth. Feel solid persistence and weight.

Barry riwai: Copper tones with a fine thyme aroma. yeasty

complexity with a long structure. Weighty finish

Points: 88


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Feature | Cellar Treats

TreaTs from

The Cellar –

and furTher

afield

By Vic Williams

I

am a great admirer of New Zealand wine and

the talented people who make it, but after 28

years as Cellar Director for the New Zealand

Wine Society until it closed its doors last year

and an earlier decade or so promoting the

local product on radio and television, in print

and at tastings in various parts of the world, I’m

currently enjoying the expansion of my palate with

international wine styles that sell here in relatively

minuscule numbers.

New Zealand wines still feature strongly, of course,

at my table, but these are mostly from earlier

vintages. My cellar (grandly named, but really just

an expanded cupboard fitted with wine shelves)

hosts many bottles that are regularly bypassed

because they are the last of their kind. It is a trap

that no doubt besets other enthusiasts, and it

can be avoided only by firmly rejecting vinous

sentimentality.

I keep promising myself, but …

Nevertheless, when I have decided to open

something that in all logic should be well past its

prime, my surprise has far more often been of the

pleasurable kind rather than the reverse.

One recent example was a bottle of Church Road

winery’s Tom Chardonnay from the 2006 vintage.

A decade would have been a sensible cellaring

time, but after nearly 14 years this example opened

splendidly. The colour was relatively youthful, the

aromas still spoke of perfectly ripe fruit backed by

savoury oak and it carried just the right amount of

‘fresh bread’ from contact with the yeast lees. The

flavour profile was rich, smooth and captivatingly

mouth-filling. I shared it with a couple of wine

enthusiast sons-in-law and received rave reviews. It

was the last 2006 in my collection, but a 2009 awaits

its appointment with the glass. I’m in no hurry.

In the import section, I’m having particular fun

with whites and reds from Spain.

A current favourite is simply labelled ‘White’.

It hails from a company named HVR in Spain’s

Penedés region and is made from Xarel-lo grapes

harvested from 50 year-old vines. Imported by

Macvine International and remarkably inexpensive,

the 2016 has a bouquet that brings grapefruit and

sliced apples to mind, followed by a palate that

is clean-cut, lively and super-refreshing. The spicy

finish speaks of its time sitting on the yeast lees after

fermentation.

Also from Macvine and staying with Spain, Vina

Eguila Tempranillo 2017 has a smoky note behind

aromas like baked cherry pie, leading to a blast of

upfront plum and cherry flavours.

And if I may be permitted a touch of selfindulgence,

I am particularly enjoying the last of

the Vic Williams Selection wines, made by the New

Zealand Wine Society’s talented chief winemaker,

Jo Gear, after discussions about my favourite

styles. I am happy to report that the 2016 Gimblett

Gravels Chardonnay, made by Kate Radburnd in

consultation with Jo, is beautifully balanced and

drinking splendidly.

We’ve just opened our new

Cellar Door & Eatery.

Now you can pair our

award-winning wine with

organic, locally grown food for a

complete North Canterbury

experience.

376 Omihi Road, Waipara, North Canterbury

www.greystonewines.co.nz

@greystonewines

Feature | 4 Barrels

By Charmian Smith

Central Otago’s Walking Wine Trail.

The hub of the Central

Otago wine region

is Lake Dunstan,

with many vineyards

stretching up and down

the lake and into the

hills and valleys surrounding it.

It’s a big area for wine

enthusiasts to explore but locals

have put together a short trail on

the edge of the lake that you can

walk or cycle - or drive if need be.

The Four Barrels Walking Wine

Trail on the outskirts of Cromwell

officially takes in four wineries, but

other places nearby can easily

be included.

The wineries serve simple food

which can be enjoyed in their

gardens, vineyards or terraces so

the eight kilometre trail can make

a leisurely and very enjoyable

day out savouring the clear

luminescent landscapes of

Central as well as its produce -

and you feel much better about

enjoying wine and lunch if there’s

a bit of (relatively easy) exercise

in between!

The trail is a loop so you can

do it in any direction although

the brochure, available at the

wineries, assumes you start and

finish at the information centre in

Cromwell township.


4 Barrels | Feature

Lucie Lawrence makes some unusual wines from pinot gris and pinot noir.

AURUM

We started at Aurum’s

charming office and tasting room

set in a cottage garden, and

found winemaker Lucie Lawrence

behind the counter.

Aurum is a real family

enterprise. Aucklanders Joan

(an archaeologist) and Tony (an

orthodontist) Lawrence planted

their first vineyard in 1997. In

2004 their son Brook who had

been working in vineyards in

France returned with his new

wife Lucie, a third generation

French winemaker, and the

younger couple slowly took over.

The winery is across the carpark

and their two houses are behind

the complex and an olive grove,

overlooking the lake.

Another olive grove shields the

tasting room from the highway so

it’s a charming place to visit and

picnic with one of their simple

platters.

The 4ha vineyard across the

lane from the buildings and

garden is organic, growing

only pinot gris and pinot noir,

although a new 4ha vineyard

on the other side the highway

includes riesling.

Lucie uses traditional

Burgundian winemaking

techniques with indigenous

yeasts, and makes several

unusual wines from the

two varieties.

Don’t miss the delicious, pale

Pinot Gris Rosé 2019 ($28) which

had three days skin contact

giving it fragrance and texture,

more akin to a Provençal rosé

than the usual pinot rosé found

in Central.

Lucie likes to retain the

natural purity of cool climate

chardonnay and her 2018 ($45)

is complex, minerally and dry

Many innovative winemakers

have been experimenting with

an ancient winemaking method

to produce amber or “orange”

wines. These are white wines

made like reds - fermented and

left on their skins for several

months giving them colour

and unexpected structure and

tannins. Amber 2018 ($45), made

from pinot gris, hints of mineral

and has a wonderful texture, dry

with subtle tannins. An excellent

wine, like most of Lucie’s, to go

with food.

With 20-year old vines, Aurum’s

Estate Pinot Noir 2017 ($38) has

a savoury aroma, texture and

a surprising weight, mouthfeel

and depth.

The reserve pinot noirs

named after Lucie and Brook’s

two daughters, Mathilde and

Madeleine, come from specific

vineyard blocks. Both evolve

in the glass as you drink them

indicating cellaring potential.

Mathilde Pinot Noir 2016

($55) is harmonious, silky,

savoury and spicy with an

underlying minerality and a lipsmacking

finish.

Madeleine Pinot Noir 2016

($88) is perhaps more elegant

and charming but powerful in a

feminine way, with fine-grained

tannins and an aftertaste that

lingers for several minutes.

Lucie also makes Port

Molyneux, a white port style

from pinot gris, pale gold, sweet,

rich and unctuous with a hint of

spice. It’s excellent with fruitcake,

and also chilled in summer with

ice and soda water as an aperitif

to get the tastebuds going,

she says.


53

Feature | 4 Barrels

SCOTT BASE

On the other side of the main

highway (take care crossing!)

and up a slope is the 6ha Scott

Base vineyard and a small, rustic

tasting room and cafe, Space

at the Base, run by Carolyn

Murray who serves platters and

sandwiches.

Scott Base is the Central Otago

arm of Marlborough-based Allan

Scott Family Winemakers - Allan’s

holiday house is on the property

behind some sheds. Besides the

Scott Base Central Otago wines

Carolyn also stocks some of his

Marlborough wines, Josh Scott’s

funkily labelled wines including

a green ginger wine (riesling

co-fermented with ginger), and

beers from the family brewery,

Moa.

After picking, the Central Otago

grapes are trucked overnight

to the Marlborough winery for

vinifying although Allan has plans

for a local, gravity-fed winery on

site.

New to me was the Scott

Base Emperor ($29) (named

after the emperor penguins), a

non-vintage sparkling wine only

available at Scott’s cellar doors.

Elegant and slightly biscuity

with a subtle hint of citrus, it’s

a blanc de blanc - made from

chardonnay.

There are few sauvignon blancs

made in Central but I suppose

it’s inevitable that a Marlboroughbased

winery famous for its

sauvignon should produce one

here. Made from Gibbston-grown

grapes, it is delicate with a hint

of nettles and schist and a crisp

finish ($31).

In true Scott style, the Scott

Base chardonnay 2018 ($32)

is a creamy, oaky style with

suggestions of freshly sharpened

pencil and citrus, and a crisp,

lingering finish.

Scott Base Pinot Noir 2018

($39) shows all the lovely dark

cherry and savoury character

of Cromwell Basin fruit backed

by a hint of spicy oak and crisp,

textural tannins.

Bigger and more oaky but still

oozing dark cherries and savoury

notes is the Reserve Pinot Noir

2017 ($47).

Carolyn Murray runs the Space at the Base, the cafe and tasting room at

Scott Base.

Photo: Charmian Smith

54


4 Barrels | Feature

Wooing Tree tasting room and restaurant.

Photo: supplied

Steve Farquharson is one of the

founders of Wooing Tree vineyard.


WOOING TREE

Many wine lovers know the

story of the Wooing Tree, a large

pine tree that still stands in

the middle of the eponymous

vineyard - the story goes that

many a troth was plighted under

that tree and some locals were

even conceived there.

However, Stephen and Thea

Farquharson and Stephen’s

sister and brother-in-law, Jane

and Geoff Bews are planning to

subdivide some of the vineyard

for housing to help meet the

demand for land in Cromwell. The

little tasting room and restaurant

at present in the middle of

the vines will move to bigger

premises on the main highway

over the next five to seven years.

The surrounding vineyard will

be smaller but as they already

source many of their grapes from

other vineyards the wine will not

change a lot, Steve says.

The two couples, originally

from North Otago, had been

working in the UK (Steve had a

wine importing business) but

wanted to return to New Zealand

for family and lifestyle reasons.

Pinot Noir in Central was starting

to take off at the time and they

decided to join the industry,

bought land and had the

vineyard planted. They returned

to New Zealand at the end of

2004 in time for their first vintage

the following year.

Some of their wines have

become well known for their

quirky names: Blondie ($30), a

fresh, white pinot noir with hints

of stone fruit; Beetlejuice Pinot

Noir 2018 ($28) - named after the

rare and endangered Cromwell

chaffer beetle that has its own

reserve nearby - oozing red fruits

with a hint of oak and spice and

a fresh crunchy finish; and Tickled

Pink ($40 350ml), a late harvest

pinot noir rosé left to hang on the

vine a month after the the rest of

the crop was picked, that charms

with floral aromas and all the

sweet fruitiness of a late harvest

dessert wine.

Wooing Tree Pinot Noir 2017

($48) is darker, more savoury

and textured with lip-smacking

tannins, and the Sandstorm

Reserve Pinot Noir 2014 ($85) is

more complex and spicy, already

developing mature tertiary

characters at six years old.

And to accompany one of the

platters for lunch there are also

a delicious floral, textural Rosé

($27), a fragrant Pinot Gris ($32)

oozing tropical and stone fruit

but with a background texture

from some barrel fermentation,

and a creamy Chardonnay ($38)

with fruit harmoniously supported

by subtle oak.

The wooing tree in the autumn vineyard.

Photo: supplied


55

Feature | 4 Barrels

Misha and Andy Wilkinson


MISHA’S VINEYARD

A walk along the lake shore

will take you to Misha’s Vineyard’s

tasting room in a complex of

shops and cafes across the main

highway on the edge of town.

Although you can’t visit Misha’s

actual vineyard a few kilometres

up the lake, a huge photograph

of the steep vineyard swooping

down the hillside towards the

lake in a series of north-facing

slopes, gullies and terraces gives

some idea of the splendour of

its setting. From 210m above sea

level to 350m at the top there’s

a variety of microclimates and

soils in the 57ha to suit different

varieties and styles of wine.

Having spent several years

living in Asia, Misha and Andy

Wilkinson also embrace some

aspects of Chinese culture such

as the lucky number 8 and

the auspicious feng shui of the

stunning site.

The history of the site includes

Chinese gold miner Ah Foo, the

ruins of whose house stand near

the top of the vineyard.

Misha, who describes herself as

a “failed ballet dancer” and who

worked in marketing opera (her

mother was an opera singer), has

taken up the theatre theme in the

names of the wines - Dress Circle

Pinot Gris, Limelight and Lyric

Rieslings, The Starlet Sauvignon

Blanc, and Cadenza late harvest

Gewürztraminer.

Misha’s is one of the few

Central winemakers to produce

gewürztraminer, a variety that

does well in the region. The

Gallery Gewürztraminer 2016

($32) is a stunner - powerful with

a luxurious texture, oozing charm

and intensity but yet elegant and

beautifully balanced. Gewürz is a

fickle grape and the wine is not

produced every year, but if you

find it, don’t miss tasting it.

As always in Central, pinot

noir is the highlight, and they

make several, the dark, brooding

reserve Verismo ($75), the

complex, savoury High Note

($48), the easily approachable

Cantata ($30) and Impromptu

($30) which is not made every

year.

Misha’s also serves platters

which can be enjoyed with a

glass of wine on the terrace.

AND ANOTHER COUPLE OF

PRODUCERS

Although it’s not officially part

of the Four Barrels trail, right next

door to Misha’s tasting room

is another, shared by Quest

Farm and Matt Connell Wines.

It’s interesting to compare the

full-on, rich new world style of

Matt’s wines with Mark Mason

of Quest Farm’s old world styles

which have more emphasis on

structure and texture and which

accompany food particularly

well.

Matt set up his own label and

contract winemaking business

about five years ago after more

than a decade working in other

Central and overseas wineries.

He is a keen hunter and angler

- something reflected in his label

which sports his initials twined

with antlers.

Matt Connell Chardonnay,

2018 ($38) from Lowburn is barrel

fermented with indigenous yeast

and left on its lees to develop the

rich, nutty undertones that bring

complexity to this taut, fresh wine.

Matt Connell Rendition Pinot

Noir 2018 ($44), described as the

56


4 Barrels | Feature

Food is steamed and smoked in converted wine barrels in the outdoor kitchen at The Stoaker Room. Photo: Charmian Smith

quintessence of Central Otago

from a particular vintage, is a

charming ripe, spicy pinot, rich

and full in the mouth with dark

fruit and supple, lingering tannins.

Quest Farm’s 20ha vineyard is

hidden from the main highway

up at Parkburn in the warm,

north-facing foothills of the Mt

Pisa Range. In 1986 Mark and his

brother David Mason established

Sacred Hill winery in Hawkes Bay

but a dozen years later he came

south for the skiing, discovered

the briar covered hillside ideal

for grapes and established yet

another vineyard.

Most of his produce is exported

but his wine can be tasted here

in Cromwell. Lucky visitors will

even find a few older vintage

gems on the shelves. Try the floral,

textural, beautifully balanced

Quest Silver Lining Pinot Gris

2016 ($25) which includes a tiny

percentage of gewürztraminer

and viognier. Quest Pinot Noir

2016 ($40) has the lovely gamey,

savoury character of mature

pinot noir with fine grained

tannins.

AND YET ANOTHER

If you are still up for more wine

- and more substantial food than

platters - call in at the Stoaker

Room Bistro and Bar tucked away

in marquees (and a small indoor

bar and restaurant for cold

weather) behind the buildings.

Californian Quintin Quidder,

commercial diver and founder of

Wild Earth Vineyard, developed a

cooking method, part smoking,

part steaming, in old wine barrels

and found it the ideal way to

cook seafood and game. Despite

some remarkable competition

successes with his Wild Earth

wines, his emphasis has changed

to food and catering, although

he still produces his own label.

The. Stoaker Room has a

meaty menu with seafood,

burgers and sandwiches as well,

although there are some plantbased

dishes such as a grilled

cauliflower steak. The best bet,

if you are hungry, is to order the

chef’s selection of five tasting

dishes with matching wines.

The wines come in small bottles

in a rack made of a barrel stave

along with a single brandy

glass - not exactly the best

tasting situation, but the casual

atmosphere in a marquee with

an outdoor kitchen - and the

food - are worth a visit.


57

Feature | 4 Barrels

FIND OUT MORE:

Michelle Wheeler runs Quest Farm and Matt Connell’s tasting room and

doubles as a cellar hand during vintage.


cromwell.org.nz/listing/4-barrelswalking-wine-trail/

Aurum Wines

aurumwines.com

140 State Highway 6, Cromwell.

03 445 3620

Scott Base

scottbasevineyards.co.nz

27 McNab Rd, Cromwell

03 445 4715

Wooing Tree Vineyard

wooingtree.co.nz

64 Shortcut Rd, Cromwell

03 445 4142

Misha’s Vineyard

mishasvineyard.com

182 State Highway 8 B, Cromwell

03 445 4456

Quest Farm and Matt Connell Wines

questfarm.co.nz

mattconnellwines.com


The Stoaker Room and

Wild Earth wines

thestoakerroom.co.nz


03 445 4841

Visit 4 of Central Otago's top wineries

Self-paced loop trail

Takes 4 - 5+ hours

4 BARRELS

Walking Wine Trail

8km of walking

Visit 4 top wineries

Collect your map from Cromwell i-SITE, your accommodation provider

or one of the participating wineries and get walking!

58


Wine Profile | Feature

Wine Profile #1

Pask

T

op dressing pilot Chris

Pask was a winegrower

in Fernhill’s Korokipo

in the 1980s, sold his

fruit but made the odd

barrel for himself and

friends. “Korokipo was not ideal,”

he says. “The water table was

really too high, and Cabernet was

always difficult to ripen.”

“Frequently flying over the

barren stretches around Gimblett

Road I felt the area could grow

grapes successfully. It was

definitely warmer and the stony

terrain was similar to France’s

Rhône Valley.”

“It was a big gamble,” says

Chris. “ I had friends who tried to

grow tomatoes there. They had

the heat but no success otherwise

but the area definitely had two

or more degrees extra heat than

Koropiko; just what was needed!”

He bought land and planted

Merlot, Cabernet, Chardonnay

and Cabernet Franc and rather

than on-selling fruit began

making his own wines; the first,

a 1985 fully ripened Cabernet

Sauvignon.

Succeeding wines were a

success and as the business

grew, in 1990, Kate Radburnd,

with experience both in Australia

and with Vidals in Hawke’s

Bay, became winemaker and

later as the venture reached a

production of 50,000 cases from

2008 onwards became a part

shareholder.

In 2017 the Benton Family Wine

Group, who also own Jackson

Estate in Marlborough, became

the majority shareholder in Pask

and saw the benefits of utilising

the co-efficiencies of the two

boutique wineries.

Today, although the cellar door

is located just a little outside the

Gimblett Gravels area, visitors can

taste one of the widest ranges

of Gimblett Gravels wines in the

District.

Their Pask range wines are

immediately accessible and

while priced at around $22, still

conform to the GGWGD origin

restrictions. A newer range of

‘Small Batch’ wines are sourced

from special sites and made with

special attention. They are vintage

dependant and priced at $25-30.

The pride of place goes to

Pask ‘Declaration’ wines that

display the full quality of Gimblett

Gravels fruit. They use a greater

preponderance of new oak,

are made from selected sites

throughout the estate and are

matured by the winery for 18

months. The cost is around $50.

Pask have won numerous

awards: the 2014 Declaration

Chardonnay took gold at the

2015 London IWC competition

as well Champion Wine at the

2000 Air NZ Awards. Pask took

the IWC Bordeaux & Cabernet-

Merlot Trophy in the same year.

DECLARATION

WINES – GOLD

MEDALS WINNING

RANGE:

Pask Declaration

Syrah 2014 - GOLD

- International Wine

Challenge – 2017

Pask Declaration

Chardonnay 2016 -

GOLD - NZ International

Wine Competition – 2018

Pask Declaration

Merlot 2013 - GOLD -

Decanter World Wine

Awards 2017


59

Food | Vic's Food N Wine...

Vic Williams

Vic Williams is a seasoned wine and food writer who

has spent the last 25 years communicating about

their combinations in print and on radio.

A TIME OF

TRANSITION

As autumn glides us gently from

the heat of summer to the cold

of winter, the consequent lack

of temperature extremes gives

us more options for climatically

appropriate food and wine

combinations. On these pages are a few dishes

and wine styles to use as starting points for your

own gustatory and vinous adventures. Happy

creating!

Crudo of TreVally

Wine match: Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc

Trevally is an under-rated

fish that sells for far less than

more popular species such

as snapper or tarakihi. That’s a

shame. People put off by its dull

pink colour can be reassured

that it turns pristinely white when

cooked, but in our house we

love to celebrate its deliciously

savoury flavour by serving it

raw, a trick we learned from the

kitchen team at Gusto at the

Grand, the Italian-inspired eatery

within the Sky City complex. Our

version places thin slices over

a rivulet of verjuice spiked with

chopped Vietnamese mint and

shiso (a Japanese herb also

known as perilla), with extra-virgin

olive oil drizzled over the top.

Pinches of sea salt and cracked

pepper are the only other extras.

We enjoyed it with a 2018 St Clair

Wairau Reserve Marlborough

Sauvignon Blanc, a multi awardwinner

that had enough vivacity

to match the trevally point for

lively point. The crudo technique

is Italian, but we mixed cultures a

little by serving it with Japanese

chopsticks.


Orecchiette pasta with brOccOli and anchOvy

Wine match: Trebbiano

Vic's Food N Wine... | Food

This ear-shaped pasta is fun to make at home,

but dried versions are readily available. Begin the

dish by adding a little olive oil and one or two

chopped anchovies to a frypan placed over a pot

of boiling water and ’melting’ them by pressing

them into the oil with a wooden spoon. When they

have formed a paste, remove the pan and briefly

parboil the broccoli in the water. Remove and put

aside while you add the pasta and cook for the

recommended time. A minute or two before it is

cooked, place the frypan over direct heat and

faintly brown a chopped garlic clove, adding a little

more oil if necessary. Finally, stir through a spoonful

of the pasta water, then carefully fold through the

parboiled broccoli and drained pasta, plus a little

extra-virgin olive oil. Season to taste, remembering

that the anchovy will be salty. In southern Italy’s

Puglia region, where this dish originates, it is

invariably accompanied by a hearty red such as

Nero d’Avola or Primitivo, and while the flavours on

the plate are certainly robust enough to handle

the tannin, we prefer a white with enough acid

to balance the salty anchovy. Staying with Italy

but moving more to the centre of the country, we

enjoyed it recently with a 2013 Adrio Trebbiano

d’Abruzzo. Faintly herbal with plenty of stonefruit

and toasted nut flavours, it sat nicely with the pasta

and had just the right amount of acid to bring out

the best in the anchovy-flavoured broccoli.

pan-fried pOrk

chOp with

mustard/

cream sauce

Wine match: Chardonnay

First, let’s get one thing straight.

Despite the recommendations

of local websites, pork can be

cooked to retain a slight degree

of pinkness. That translates

to around 63degC internal

temperature — not the 71deg

C that is still officially cited. It

is perfectly safe at the lower

temperature and will be in no

danger of becoming dry and

tough. This chop was seared for

a couple of minutes on each

side then finished in a fan-forced

oven. While it rested, tented with

foil, the pan was deglazed with

Chinese cooking wine (it has a

little salt added, making it perfect

for cooking) and home-made

chicken stock, then finished

with a spoonful of cultured sour

cream (we used Lewis Road). That

creaminess makes it a natural

match for Chardonnay that has

spent time in oak and undergone

the acid-softening process of

malolactic. Ask your wine shop for

recommendations.


61

Food | Vic's Food N Wine...

SALAD OF CHICKPEAS AND CAPSICUM

Wine match: Grüner Veltliner

Chickpeas are a versatile ingredient

with the advantage of suiting a wide

range of wine styles. We like to use them

dried, but seldom plan our meals far

enough ahead to allow for the overnight

soaking they require, so in this case their

canned equivalent did the honours.

About half were braised in olive oil along

with the capsicums and chopped red

onion to give them extra ‘oomph’, then

blended with the remainder. Tossed with

Chardonnay vinegar, extra-virgin olive oil

and a selection of chopped fresh herbs

(we used flat-leafed parsley, marjoram

and coriander), they made a splendid

partner for a 2017 Ata Mara Grüner

Veltliner from Central Otago, made by

the super-talented winemaker for the now

defunct New Zealand Wine Society, Jo

Gear. The wine’s upfront fruit brought out

the best in the sweet-edged capsicums,

while its savoury, nutty notes were perfect

with the chickpeas.

BRAISED OX KIDNEY AND

RED ONION

Wine match: Tempranillo

Ox kidney has a stronger aroma and flavour

than its more common ovine equivalent, so it’s

a good idea to marinate it for a couple of hours

in buttermilk (ideally) or plain milk before drying

and shallow-frying it. We slowly caramelised thinly

sliced red onion and chopped garlic in a little

olive oil while the kidney underwent its pre-frying

marination, then combined all the ingredients

with home-made beef stock, Chinese cooking

wine and a spoonful of Hoisin sauce. Once the

liquid had reduced a little, we stirred in three

or four tinned Italian tomatoes and their juice,

roughly chopping them in the pan. Fresh thyme

provided the herbal lift. The kidneys take only

10 or 15 minutes to cook, at which stage they

should still offer some resistance to the bite. This is

a rustic dish that would sit well with a hearty red

like South Australian Shiraz or Italian Primitivo, but

we looked to Spain and partnered it with a bottle

of 2012 Toro Pintia, a boldly fruited but beautifully

balanced Tempranillo from Vega Sicilia with a

rather frightening alcohol percentage of 15%.


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Feature | Restaurant Reviews

64


Restaurant Reviews | Feature

23 Boutique wines to sample at

XUXU, Britomart, Auckland.

By Martin Gillion

XuXu Dumpling Bar in the

Britomart Quarter of Auckland,

lies just across the road from

its sister restaurant Café

Hanoi. But this establishment,

signalled by the iconic Asian

symbol of a birdcage hung over the

entrance, is really an Asian bar with a

difference.

For although there are more than ten

different choices of dumpling baskets to

share, the emphasis really lies with the bar

side of things.

There are cocktails with extravagant

names such as the ‘Far East Paloma’ and

the ‘Ping Shi Highball’ as well as eight

different six-sets of dumplings and an

extensive range of craft beers from all parts

of the country; from Helensville to Dunedin

and Matakana to Gisborne.

But where XuXu really comes into its own

is the far reaching wine list of 23 wines

sourced from boutique producers both

globally and within New Zealand.

And the most remarkable aspect is that

this eclectic range is not only entrancing

with its variety and scope, but all 23 are

available by the glass and all priced at

less than $13.50, or less than $65 if a bottle

looks like a better bet for sharing.

Among the wines we tasted at the

launch of their new wine list were such

offerings as Felines Jourdan Picpoul de

Pinet 2018 ($12.50) a grape grown in

the Languedoc region in France which

was previously used for blending but

has become increasingly popular in

recent times – perhaps due to reduced

cropping. Crisp and light, it was a natural

accompaniment to the Asian tastes of the

dumplings we were served.

Among the reds is the Luigi Giusti

Lacrima Morro d’Alba 2015 ($12) from

the Marche area of Italy’s north east; it’s

another ancient grape variety that has

become increasingly acknowledged

as crops are reduced. The wines are

renowned for their perfumed density as

this one showed.

But not all the choices are from offshore.

There are boutique wines from

Marlborough’s Rock Ferry and Petit

Clos, Waipara’s Mountford, Muddy

Water and Mon Cheval, as well as a

Collaboration wine from Hawke’s Bay.

Jahn Hansen, wine supervisor for the

Comenso chain of restaurants (Xu Xu,

Café Hanoi and Saan) says that his aim

was to open the public to the tastes of a

range of boutique wines at reasonable

prices. “I like to think we are introducing

our customers to unique wines made in

small quantities by dedicated, boutique

producers.”

He has certainly done that.


65

Feature | Rudi Bauer Story

How Rudi BaueR

overcame

the doubters

Rudi Bauer with

Beau in the

Quartz Reef

vineyard.


Rudi Bauer Story | Feature

Every day in Central

Otago is like a holiday,

Central Otago

winemaker Rudi Bauer

told CHARMIAN SMITH

years ago. Does he still

feel that way a couple of

decades on?

Rudi Bauer of Quartz Reef has been

a stalwart of the Central Otago

wine industry from its early days. A

quiet, earnest achiever with a tireless

enthusiasm for what he does, he is one

of the remarkable group of winemakers

who have led the Central Otago wine industry from

its debut, when people doubted good wine could be

made there, to its current place as one of the world’s

leading pinot noir producing region.

The Austrian-born winemaker came to New

Zealand in the mid-1980s to work at Mission in

Hawkes Bay. He met his future wife, photographer

Suellen Boag, and stayed on, working vintages in

California and Oregon in the off seasons.

They came to Central Otago in 1991. After making

several of Central’s earliest medal-winning wines at

Rippon, he moved to Giesen in Canterbury for several

years - but not before he had set eyes on a virgin

slope in Bendigo and started discussions with John

Perriam, owner of Bendigo Station, about developing

a vineyard there.

Meanwhile Mike Wolter and others had set up

Central Otago Wine Company [Cowco], to make

wine under contract for small growers who would not

otherwise have access to professional winemaking.

It provided a valuable start for many early producers.

However, with Mike’s tragic accidental death in

1997, Rudi returned a year earlier than planned to

take over Cowco. There he made wine for Dry Gully,

Peregrine, Kawarau Estate, Two Paddocks and others,

and became involved in the wider wine community -

not to mention being named Winemaker of the Year

in 1999, the first of several such awards by different

organisations.

Busy years followed as he and his partners

developed the 30ha Quartz Reef vineyard, 15 ha

on a steep slope and 15 on rolling country across

the road. Named after the large seam of quartz

running under the vineyard and mined for gold in the

19th century, it was the first vineyard in the Bendigo

subregion.

He was at the inception of the now famous Central

Otago Pinot Celebration that attracts enthusiasts


67


Under a threatening sky, the upper and lower sections of Quartz Reef vineyard are small in the vastness of the

landscape.

Not for making wine - the oldest vine in Bendigo planted

by 19th century gold miners.

“A rock salad” the glacial soils in the “royal” part of the

vineyard.

and professionals from all over the world and has

contributed to the region’s international reputation.

Rudi explains how it started.

The idea of an international New Zealand pinot

noir celebration was discussed in 1999 but despite

Central’s bid to host it, Martinborough won the right

to hold it in Wellington in 2001. Rudi, along with Alan

Brady, Grant Taylor and others were disappointed

not only that Central missed out but also that it was

going to be two years away.

“I said ‘stuff it' and I said to Alan ‘we’ll do our own

one now’, and with the support of Alan we gave it

our best shot and Cowa [Central Otago Winegrowers

Association] were happy to run with it,” Rudi said.

While they might not have been aware at the

time of what they were getting into, Rudi found it

exciting being part of the hardworking team uniting

producers, promoting the region and involving

newcomers and younger people.

The Central Otago Pinot Noir Celebration, held in

years when the triennial international one is not, has

grown from strength to strength. A marketing arm

of Cowa, Central Otago Pinot Noir Ltd [COPNL], of

which Rudi was a director, was born and teams sent

to London and elsewhere to promote Central Otago

wine.

“The other big part [in the early development of the

region] was all the younger winemakers that came

in, particularly Grant [Taylor at Gibbston Valley] and



We are just in love with

Central, and that gives you

a lot of energy and drive.”

Blair [Walter at Felton Road]. They are highly skilful

people with extraordinary experience and were able

to translate that to Central Otago.

“And mainly we are just in love with Central, and

that gives you a lot of energy and drive and you

want to put your best foot forward particularly talking

about pinot noir which in its own right is a very

special medium to work with,” Rudi said.

So does he still feel as if every day in Central is a

holiday?

“I do. I guess what has changed - there is still a

lot of energy around from the land and myself, but I

guess sometimes I have to ask why are you so busy

engaged in your own methods and matters that you

forget about it. That’s maybe more to the point.

“In the beginning you did everything at once,

like planting the vineyard, building a winery, having

a family and building a house. That was all quite

extraordinary, but you were perhaps more aware

of your surroundings while perhaps now everything

is more and more coupled. Effectively life got more

complex.”

Now the Bauers’ children, Roman and Greta, have

left home for tertiary education, he and Suellen are

adapting to another phase in their lives, doing things

together and with friends, enjoying their little Maltese

puppy Beau - unlike most winemakers who have

large dogs, they prefer a small one. Swimming is also

an important relaxation for him, he says.

Perhaps he’s grown more comfortable - a word

he uses often to explain getting familiar with things,

achieving something after a struggle such as

encouraging the vines and grapes to give of their

best and to continue that quality into the wines he

makes from them.

“We are very comfortable with what we have

achieved without making too much fuss about it

because the wine speaks in its own right. Then the

philosophy - the big key in regards to biodynamics is

effectively you take on the responsibility of the land

because there’s a good chance the land might

outlast my life - maybe we have forgotten that in our

short lifespan we do have a lot of responsibility.”

About a quarter of Central Otago vineyards

Behind the rabbit-proof fence the land is bony and infertile.


69


are now run organically or

biodynamically, and this, it seems,

enables a wine to be able to

speak of its terroir, to express

its place to the aware taster.

Certainly some such wines have

a sense of “somewhereness” or

their own “turangawaiwai” - a

Maori concept, taken up by New

Zealand winemakers, of “a place

to stand” or how a person’s sense

of themselves is shaped by where

they come from.

When Rudi first developed

Quartz Reef it was a stony, weedy

desert just as it still is beyond the

rabbit proof fence surrounding the

lush vineyard.

Initially, against his principles, he

applied herbicide.

“I was so overwhelmed by the

site, a lack of water, too many

weeds and lots of wind, the 3

W’s hit me hard. Also it was very

difficult to work the land because

there were so many rocks in the

soil.”

However, biodynamics was

always on his mind.

“I was nine years pregnant with

the idea but I just didn’t have the

confidence and I felt too scared to

fail,” he said.

However, in 2007, encouraged

by some friends, he made the call

and converted the whole 30ha

vineyard.

“There was no tiptoeing. It was

a big breakthrough to have three

people with the same philosophy

and understanding and it gave

me the comfort to make the

change.”

The goal was not just to

eliminate the use of chemical

sprays and fertilisers but to

promote the health of the soil and

in turn the health of the vines and

quality of the wines.

At the time, he explains, the

soil had no fitness because the

rabbits allowed little to grow and

there was no organic matter. The

composts and other preparations

since applied to the soil have

made the vines more resilient.

“If you work within the

biodynamic guidelines you leave

what you have in better shape

and you increase your awareness.

Rudi demonstrates how to make a vortex for one of the biodynamic

preparations.

We need to understand this is a

northern hemisphere philosophy

and not everything applies to the

south. Ideally what we aim to do

now is to incorporate native plants

that can achieve the same thing.”

So what actual change did it

make to the vines and wines?

“It’s tricky to put the finger on the

pulse. Not only do the vines get

older, we as people have more

knowledge,” he says.

“I used to say that with Quartz

Reef wines the structure was a bit

like stainless steel - the strength of

it, but now stainless steel has been

replaced with titanium, which is

much smaller, much slimmer, but

has the same strength, so you are

no longer seeing these beams.

You see very fine lines and this is

reflected in more finesse and also I

think a more precise expression of

the land itself.”

However, he feels wine has

not yet been fully integrated into

New Zealand culture or heritage

and many people still have little

knowledge about wine.

“Where we come from wine is

part of our culture and it wants to



be integrated because it gives us far more stability

instead of looking it as a commodity,” he says. I’m

reminded that although he’s lived here for more than

30 years he grew up in Austria and returns annually.

And before we leave Bendigo to go back to the

Cromwell winery he takes me to see the oldest vine

in the area. We scramble over a fence in the former

1860s gold mining settlement and walk through

what had once been the garden or orchard of

someone’s cottage. A large vine, its arching, twisted

trunk lush with leaves, sprawls several metres along

the ground. It’s probably a hybrid table grape, he

says. He’s planted some cuttings along a fence in the

lower part of his vineyard and has sent samples for

identification.

QUARTZ REEF WINES

Among the partners involved in Quartz Reef in the

early days was Clothilde Chauvet who succeeded

Rudi as winemaker at Rippon. From a champagnemaking

family in France, she helped set up Quartz

Reef in 1996 but has since returned to run her family

estate, Marc Chauvet in Rilly-la-Montagne.

Her legacy is Quartz Reef’s sparkling wines.

The non vintage ($33) is precise with hints of

granny smith, apricots, cream and a remarkable

fresh purity.

The rosé ($39) hints of red berries with a

suggestion of freshly baked brioche and finishes with

a superb texture, weight and length.

“If you have cold smoked salmon with a baguette

and a glass of sparkling wine, you don’t want more,”

Rudi says.

“That kind of simplicity makes the wine quite

unique in its own right because it really speaks not

only of Bendigo but also of Central Otago. It speaks

of its climate, and also of its winemaking - I use only

free run juice, no skin contact and no malolactic to

retain the purity of the fruit. It’s not trying to pretend

to be anything, it’s comfortable in its own right,” he

says.

Rudi also makes a rich, textured, dry pinot gris

($32), a small amount of grüner veltliner, a noble

Austrian white variety.

New to the line up is chardonnay, the $2018 ($37)

is richer than many others from Central but with hints

of citrus and tropical fruit and well integrated oak.

Pinot noir is of course special. It’s the variety that

can express its terroir, the soils, climate and other

physical conditions it is grown in, he says, an attitude

shared with many other earnest pinot noir makers.

“I guess we all know what pinot noir really wants

is to express where it’s grown and this is the beauty

about pinot noir. It wants to express its origin in the

glass,” he says.

From the beginning he produced the “regular”

white label pinot noir - the 2017 ($49) oozes dark

spicy fruits with undertones of dark chocolate and

mineral, intense, lively powerful but harmonious with

a long aftertaste.

In contrast to the lush

vineyard the land behind is

bony and rabbit-infested.

“I really do

believe deep

down that it’s all

based on love for

the region and if

we don’t make

wines of the

highest standard

we might not be

able to love this

region.”


71


Quartz Reef vineyard, the first in Bendigo, looking northwards up the Clutha valley.

Then there came the black label Bendigo Estate

that is well worth cellaring for six or eight years.

The 2012 ($85) is one of the best pinot noirs I’ve

tasted in a long time with power, finesse, harmony

and length, still with lovely dark and red fruits, spice

and dark chocolate, but developing those prized

tertiary flavours - a hint of forest floor, complexity and

harmonious tannins on a lingering aftertaste.

It takes time for a vine to get its roots down, for the

winegrower to get to know the different soils within

their vineyard and their effects on the grapes and

resulting wine. Quartz Reef’s vines are now 21 years

old and Rudi is producing a single block pinot,

the gold label Royal series named after Austro-

Hungarian emperors.

“We always have isolated the various blocks, but

this seems to be unique in its own right and now we

need to learn a bit more about it,” he said.

The soil at the steeper end of the vineyard is

different from the rest and produces a different wine.

A “rock salad”, he calls it, with several types of large

rock in the sandy loam left by a glacier several

thousand years ago, whereas the soil in the rest of

the vineyard is finer gravels and clay.

The first single block releases from the glacial soils

is Franz Ferdinand 2015 ($120). It’s more assertive

and powerful, though still with the dark fruit, spice

and chocolate, balance and length characteristic

of the other pinots, but perhaps with more innate

strength and harmony.

quartzreef.co.nz

8 Hughes Cres, Cromwell [at the top of Pinot Noir

Drive off McNulty Rd in the Lake Dunstan Industrial

estate.]

03 445 3084

Unlike most Central Otago’s swish cellar doors,

Quartz Reef’s is a no-frills room at the winery in

Cromwell’s industrial area. Outside are a few vines,

but it’s very much a working winery. You may even

get to see the sparkling wine in its riddling racks.


Feature | Our Experience, Sicilian Style

OUR EXPERIENCE,

Sicilian Style

By Joan Gestro

When travelling

through Sicily,

one is overcome

with landscapes

that unfold to

both sides of

the tour coach. We joined a six-day

Wine and Food Tour, therefore, to

see a landscape of olive groves,

grape vines, fruit and vegetables

fields spreading for miles around us,

was indeed no surprise filling us with

anticipation as to what tastes and

aromas were ahead of us.

After traveling up smoking Etna,

and it always is smoking! the

coach headed down through the

lava strewn region to one of Etna’s

wineries where we were fed, and

tasted-up by the winery owner. Don

Saro relishes showing off the winery,

and treated us to the wonderful

Sicilian cuisine, our table, in one of

his cellars, decked out with a Sicilian

feast and the wine flowed.

The company was born in the

Arrigo district high up the slopes

of Etna. Breath and time; these

are ingredients that have always

distinguished and given character

to our company’s forty hectares of

vineyards.

Since 2000, the Don Saro winery

has literally been born from the

ashes and under the ashes “da

Muntagna” (of the mountain) as

its inhabitants call it. “You break in

Muntagna, you break in Muntagna,

you will hear each new tremor and

jolt in the ground.” Everything that

nature has of great, pleasant and

terrible can be harnessed, the entire

production, of Don Saro smells of life,

real and wild.

Don Saro,Vinyard Owner


PREMIUM OPPORTUNITY

For Sale 1750 Tarras-Cromwell Road and 140 Bendigo Loop Road, Cromwell. Web ID. NZW10515

Zebra Vineyards produce grapes that appear in several

awarding winning wines, from two world-class blocks of

Pinot Noir vines. Located in the most southern wine

region of the world - Central Otago, Bendigo is home to

some of the best vineyards in the region.

Craig Myles

Sales Associate

2019 National Top Performing Licensee

+ 64 21 467 585

craig.myles@nzsir.com

75

Each Office is Independently Owned and www.winenzmagazine.co.nz

Operated. Browns Real Estate Limited

(licensed under the REAA 2008) MREINZ.

Feature | Our Experience, Sicilian Style

Being wined and

dined at Cantine

Don Saro.

The VINeYARDS

The vineyards, all in suitable areas of Etna,

extend over an area of about 40 hectares

impregnated with a strong, decisive

character, given by the lava composition

of the soil that conditions and determines

the life of all the surrounding vegetation. The

lava stone terraces, protagonists of the Etna

landscape, help to drain rain water and

provide the best ventilation to the vines. The

vines are grown from saplings, up to almost

10,000 plants per hectare. They harvest

late, and only healthy and naturally grown

bunches of grapes, to create great wines,

with Etna character.

The production has been designed by

combining the century-old traditions

handed down with the support of new

technologies, now indispensable, to be

competitive in a global market. The use of

stainless-steel tanks and oak barrels are

used for the refinement and maturation of

the wine. The barrels, all in French oak, allow

the storage of 3,375 hectolitres, providing

the opportunity to expertly pamper the

wines so that they can express to the palate

all the strong and incisive character of the

near-by volcano.


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Matt Kirby: strong vanilla and coconut notes.

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Barry Riwai: vanilla, spicy oak, cedar on the

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Matt Kirby: Big, pepper lift, liquorice and anise.

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simon nash: mid bright, good

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Matt Kirby: Pungent apricot.

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boysenberry.

Points: 90

MissioN JewelsToNe RosÉ

HawkeS Bay GImBLett

GRaveLS

$120

$40

simon Nash: Onion skin to orange.

Quite heavy semolina. a little

weighty on palate.

Matt Kirby: Light tone rose petal

and forest floor notes. Balanced

acidity and lingering strawberry

flavours.

Barry Riwai: Strawberry jam, cherry

liqueur. Soft and gently fading.

Points: 83

BaBich RosÉ 2019

NZ 2019

simon Nash: Pale, onion skin colour

light. Orange citrus bouquet light

quite fresh. Solid finish.

Matt Kirby: Concentrated raspberry

aromas. Firm acidity, keeping palate

fresh. Good tension.

Barry Riwai: Rosehip, spice, dry

clean very modern style, great

freshness subtlety but with lingering

berryfruit flavours.

Points: 90


79


2018

Endeavour

Chardonnay

This exceptional

wine is only ever

made when the

vintage is considered

spectacular and 2018

was considered a

spectacular vintage.

“At harvest, the grapes are

carefully sorted and only the first

few hundred litres of extraction

actually make the grade. The

best French oak we have at our

disposal and a really light touch

in the winery, gives this wine the

‘Tyson punch, in a velvet glove’

feel that has made it famous.

The major efforts of Matt

Kirby and Rob Bregman are

responsible for the winery,

vineyards and wine quality,

along with marketing, sales and

administration, help to achieve

this exceptional quality.

“The Endeavour name reflects

both the historical significance

and the fact we strive to make

the very best wine we possibly

can” says Tim Turvey, wine maker

and co-owner of Clearview

Vineyard.

The vineyard, situated on the

coastline of Hawkes Bay, the Te

Awanga sub-region, enjoys a

warm extended growing season

and the benefit of cleansing

sea breezes in a virtually frostfree

microclimate. A producer

of award-winning wines with

great fruity intensity, the proximity

to the Pacific Ocean also

offer stunning views of Cape

Kidnappers, Te Kauwae-a-Maui,

the fishhook of Maui.

The red cloth featured on

the label, honours the first item

traded by Captain James Cook

with local Maori on his first visit

to New Zealand in 1769. “

Retail

$200 Available at the Clearview

Cellar Door, website and

selected wine retail outlets

across New Zealand. This wine is

considered NZ’s most expensive

white wine.


Boundary lines are indicative only



Award-Winning Winery Portfolio

Selling ‘all or parts’ of the portfolio

Through dedication and investment over a two-decade period, this award-winning winery has

unlocked the secrets of the prized Gimblett Gravels soils of Hawke’s Bay. Consistently producing

arguably New Zealand’s Number One Syrah, the opportunity presents itself to purchase a slice of

the iconic Gimblett Gravels soils.

The vineyards, including a total landholding of approximately 46.64 hectares (38.32 hectares

planted) across three titles within the Gimblett Gravels area. The award-winning wines are

produced from the fruit of the three standalone vineyards. All parcels are offered in one line

or individually. With flexibility key to the shareholders’ ongoing commitment to the investment

made in the brand and ultra premium wines, the vineyards are offered with the added option of

long-term fruit supply contracts of up to 95 tonnes.

Land Area Planted Area 5yr Av. Production

Gimblett Estates 18.39ha 15.33ha 87.14t

For sale by way of Tender (unless sold prior)

closing 4pm, Thursday 23rd April 2020

Bayleys House, 30 Gaunt Street, Auckland

Duncan Ross

+64 21 663 567 | duncan.ross@bayleys.co.nz

BAYLEYS REAL ESTATE LTD, AUCKLAND CENTRAL,

LICENSED UNDER THE REA ACT 2008

Tim Wynne-Lewis

+64 27 488 9719 | tim.wynne-lewis@bayleys.co.nz

EASTERN REALTY LTD, BAYLEYS, LICENSED UNDER THE REA ACT 2008

www.bayleys.co.nz/1689872

Gimblett Stones 17.76ha 15.72ha 107.85t

Tin Shed 10.49ha 7.27ha 58.83t

Food & Wine Events

➽

➽

➽

➽

➽

➽

➽

➽

➽

➽

➽

➽

➽

Marlborough Wine and Food

(February 8 th 2020)

Whitianga Scallop Festival

(September 21 st 2019)

Toast Martinborough

(November 17 th 2019)

Waiheke Wine and Food Festival.

(May not be held in 2020)

Hawkes Bay Wine and Food

(June)

Graggy Range

(November)

Taste of Auckland

(October 31 st – November 3 rd )

Hokitika Wildfoods Festival

(March 7 th 2020)

Wellington on a Plate two weeks

(August)

Bluff Oysters Food Festival

(May 23 rd 2020)

Central Otago Pinot Noir

Celebration

(January 30th- February 1 st 2020)

North Canterbury Wine and

Food Festival (Waipara Valley)

(8 th March 2020)

Pinot Noir New Zealand 2021

Christchurch

(February 23 rd – 25 th 2021)

These are mostly annual events with dates

being as accurate as possible. Please Google

for updates as they are posted by organizers

of events.


Contract Winery For Sale

Heaphy Vineyards is a fully-equipped winery, cellar door and vineyard

strategically situated at Upper Moutere in Nelson’s renowned wine region.

This is an award-winning, high-quality processing facility with capacity for

both red and white wine production and is the only dedicated contract

winery in Nelson.

Purpose-built, the winery has a stainless steel vessel capacity of up to

850 tonnes for winemaking, storage and fermentation including extensive

barrel storage and operational facilities.

- Only dedicated 100% contract winery in Nelson

- Winemaking contracts for approximately 500 tonnes

- Current capacity for 850 tonnes with room for expansion

- Extensive winemaking facilities and storage

- Centrally located between Nelson's plains and hills vineyards

- Award-winning winemaking team and experienced staff

Additional income from:

- Leased vineyard that produces between 80 to 100 tonnes per annum -

can be sold or produce your own wine

- Cellar door / café - currently leased

- Owner’s house on-site, currently leased

- Cottage Airbnb on-site

Purchase price: $1,500,000

Includes all winemaking plant, equipment and vineyard machinery.

(estimated replacement cost of plant and machinery is $4 million)

The winery and vineyard are leased to Heaphy Vineyards Ltd on a long term basis with further

rights of renewal

For more information contact:

Greg Day, Heaphy Vineyards Ltd

Phone: +64 3 546 5321 Mob: 021 2277669

greg@heaphywine.co.nz

The new Continental GT Convertible.

From the definitive grand tourer, the world’s finest convertible is born.

From $395,000 + options, discover more at bentleyauckland.com or call (09) 975 8070.

Visit us at 119 Great North Road, Grey Lynn.

Continental GT Convertible: fuel consumption, mpg (l/100km) – Urban 13.0 (21.7);

Extra Urban 28.5 (9.9); Combined 19.8 (14.3). CO 2

Emissions 333 g/km.

MAG17698

The name ‘Bentley’ and the ‘B’ in wings device are registered trademarks.

© 2018 Bentley Motors Limited. Model shown: Continental GT Convertible.

Autumn 2020 Web

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