| 2008 Wine NZ Trade Show |
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| Written by Craig Thomson | |
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Wine NZ Trade Show 2008 Our team of contributing writers descended upon the Wine NZ trade show for full days look at as many wines as possible. Many of us have attended this show several times now so we certainly know the tricks to get as much out of the format as possible. It can be a bit of a struggle to keep the palate from tiring, though this year we all seemed to last very well. We certainly are aware of the failings of trying to create accurate impressions when trying to make haste, and while tasting for 6 hours. However it is a massively efficient way of trying a hell of a lot of wines. We couldn’t live without it. It is clear that Syrah is a beacon this year. Several outstanding wines of enormous class were tasted. The prices are up there but the quality cannot be questioned. Riesling too showed up some treats, many Pinot Noir's excelled and there was a sprinkling of impressive Bordeaux based wines too. Chardonnay seemed a little weak this year though I must confess I didn't try more than dozen of them.
Riesling Everyone that reads Kiwi Wine Fan Club will be aware how much we all love our Riesling, especially the more spatlese style wines that are becoming more common. Wine NZ is missing some big producers these days. No Fromm La Strada, no Pegasus Bay, no Felton Road. However we still managed to find some outstanding wines. The Central Otago pair was just amazing. 2005 John Forrest Collection Riesling. A gorgeously refined Riesling displaying grapefruit flavours, clean acidity, a silky texture and a long elegant finish. It certainly is a step up on the homogeneous Marlborough style of old offering an extra dash of sophistication. It is damn expensive though compared to some other top labels. $50 96/109 2007 Forrest Doctors Riesling. This label certainly offers big bang for your buck. The 2007 is more light footed than the 2006 version displaying ripe lemons, limes and mandarin flavours. Fresh, lively and ripe acids this is a perfect summer aperitif. $20 93/109
2008 Martinborough Vineyards Manu Riesling. After last years wine I was keen to try this. Unfortunately it disappointed a little. Grapefruit flavours, textured from the residual sugar and just a bit disorganised and clumsy. A shame. $30 88/109 2006 Martinborough Vineyards Jacksons Block Riesling. A sherbet like, clean incisive and direct Riesling. Juicy with some sweet lemons flowing through but seemed to lack a bit of flavour concentration and I had times when I thought it was a bit dilute. Still not a bad wine, just today it had some stiff competition $25 91/109 2008 Lawsons Dry Hills Riesling. This is what I term the homogonous Marlborough style of old. Clean, fresh, simple fruit expressive wine rippling with citrus with minimal residual sugar. It is a little old fashioned in the context of the direction of wines from Waipara and Otago. Solid without being exciting $22 90/109
Again with St Clair, Cloudy Bay and Palliser missing it was up to Astrolabe to hold the torch. Villa Maria wasn’t showing their 2008 Reserves. The Astrolabes were stunning and we tasted enough to realise that there will be at least some stunning Sauvignon Blancs coming out of this problematic Marlborough vintage.
2008 Astrolabe Kekerengu Sauvignon Blanc. The nose on this wine announces a more tropical expression of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. Flavours of melons, pineapple and mango meld into all sorts of tropical island themes including what reminded me of banana fruits. Broader and softer. $30 96/109 2008 Wither Hills Sauvignon Blanc. A further refinement of this label which did sit in the bigger is better camp. Nose of nettles, capsicum and chillie. The palate is fresh lively and tropical. Finely boned acids provide a clean razor backbone to waves of typical passionfruit and cape gooseberry style fruit. This will easily keep the strong popular following that this label enjoys. Compelling and fresh $18 95/109 2008 Sugar Loaf Sauvignon Blanc. Last years wine was sensational. This one seems a little broader and not quite the focus . A sikly soft and broad wine with plenty of tropical fruit and citrus. Judgement is out on this. Will be good to revisit in a couple of months. Sauvignon Blanc changes so quickly. $18 93/109 Syrah and Blends The top handful of Syrah were just phenomenal. The precision, texture and poise found in these wines take good wines and turn them into great wines. It is exciting times as the list of superstar syrah continues to grow. I would encourage all readers to try one of the high scoring wines below. They are a major checkpoint in terms of NZ's wine evolution.
2006 Unison Syrah. This wine is starting to open up now after a year in the bottle but is still reasonably tight. It is a juicy full bodied and dark Syrah laced with powdery tannins giving the wine structure and that trade mark Unison structure. Although it is a big wine it seems the most elegant release under this label continuing the story of evolution. There is a lot to love about this wine and seems perfectly built for rare eye fillet or venison where the freshness and clean acids would cut through beautifully $40 96/109
2007 Passage Rock Syrah. The entry level edition for this winery certainly continues to highlight that the future of Waiheke sits with Syrah. I have no doubt that in a decade this variety will dominate the landscape there. The nose gives up red fruits, white pepper and fruit cake spice. The palate is light and creamy with currants, pepper and cake spice. Balanced and refined, it is a very tasty wine. $35 94/109
2006 John Forest Collection Syrah. This is a masterpiece of a wine that defines precision, poise and sophistication. It has all the detail and texture of a great Pinot Noir. Medium to full bodied but dark at the same time. Dark plums and blackberries dominate the palate which is supremely integrated and approachable. It is pure and linear. Not much sign of spice or pepper it is perfectly ripe, silky and sophisticated. What a wine and what a line up of Syrah. Another superstar $75 98/109 2005 Corbans Private Bin Syrah. A rung below the Cottage Block label which I reviewed a couple of months ago. I was genuinely surprised at the quality of this wine. It is very dark in the glass showing excellent weight of fruit and dusty tannins. It is driven by black fruits with hints of chocolate and exotic spice. Maybe my palate is just generous today, and I am aware that I am handing out high scores by the handful but this is seriously good wine $26 95/109 Bordeaux Blends Perhaps I am wrong, but to me there sure seems a steady retreat from producing these styles by all but the very competent. It was strange in a way to see Church Road show their stellar 2005 Church Road Reserve Cabernet Merlot for the second year in a row, where the 2006 Church Road Reserve Syrah was missing as it is already sold out. It is a stark illustration as to the home of fashion.
2005 CJ Pask Declaration Merlot. This label certainly has a quiet reputations as one of the best 100% Merlots in the country. The 1998 and 2000 versions (named ‘reserve’) are particularly famous, both still drinking. The 2005 vintage is very red fruited, juicy and up front with red currants, raspberry and red plum flavours. It finishes with ripe stemmy tannins and some grip. Fresh, juicy and should improve with some time in the bottle to soften and round it out a little $50 94+/109 2004 CJ Pask Declaration Cabernet Merlot. Built more like a mid nineties Hawkes Bay blend. Maybe I am getting old when starting to recognise the ebbs and flows of wine fashion. There are some big drying tannins here surrounding some dark plum fruit. It is a fresh vibrant food wine which perhaps lacks the texture of some of the cuddlier Hawkes Bay examples. Excellent though $50 95/109 1999 St Jerome Matuka Cabernet Merlot. This is the third year this vintage has been shown at Wine NZ. If you are looking for a 21st wine, not only will it probably last the distance but you probably won’t need to buy it until 6 months before the event! It is definitely Auckland in style with a big structure. The fruit has transformed into more secondary characters with a lot of savouriness/ funkiness. A powerful mouth filling Bordeaux styled wine. It isn’t the most precise vintage produced by this West Auckland maker but still drinking. I am thinking leg of lamb preferable on the bbq is a perfect match. I look forward to trying the 2000 vintage which was favourable from memory in Auckland. $40 92/109 2004 Babich Irongate Cabernet Merlot. An old style Hawkes Bay Bordeaux.. Nose of red fruits and currants. Palate is juicy with red fruits and blackberry. The tannins are chunky and sandy. $35 92/109 2005 Babich Patriach Cabernet Merlot. Another old fashioned styled wine. Not actually how I remember previous vintages which I remember as being modern and plush. This wine is red fruited, with dusty tannins. The palate is juicy and finishes long with drying tannins $45 93/109 2006 Newton Forrest Cabernet Sauvignon. The nose of this wine is full of ripe dark berries and blackcurrant. The palate is juicy, creamy and compelling with compact and elegant detail. Fine tannins and flavours of dark blackberry with hints of vanilla. A long finish completes the experience. This wine has a feeling of polish and style. It also is multi faceted and interesting. Gorgeous wine 96+/109 2006 Church Road Cabernet Merlot. The 2005 version of this wine we listed a few months ago as a “No Brainer Wine Buy”. This vintage too provides incredible class for what is an every day drinking price if on special at a supermarket. It is creamy and elegant with plumy fruit and plenty of control. Once more it is perfectly ripe. A sophisticated dinner wine without breaking the bank. $17 92/109
2005 Esk Valley Reserve Merlot Malbec Cabernet Franc. This is the same vintage shown last year. I think the 2005 is considered by most as a weaker vintage for this stellar wine. The fact no Terraces was produced perhaps indicates the on paper quality for Esk Valley. However a year on this wine is looking very good. It is now a creamy, complex red fruited wine with soft all encompassing coating tannins looking really interesting. Perhaps it wont live as long as bigger vintages but the quality of this wine is evident. $55 96/109 2005 Villa Maria Reserve Merlot. Memories of the 2004 still sit with me. The brooding black fruit, the purity, the spice. The 2005 again seems a lesser wine. A braiary red fruited wine that is clearly a lighter weight earlier drinking wine. A good wine but it is a step down on the 2004. $40 94/109 2004 Weeping Sands Cabernet Merlot. Nose of dry leaf and forest floor. The palate is ripe, juicy and creamy full of red currants. Plenty of complexity here and this wine will do a bit for the shredded value for money reputation of Waiheke Island. $30 94/109 Pinot Noir Pinot Noir deserves all of its tricky reputation. No other variety seems to disappoint as often. No variety seems to thrill as much when it all comes together as intended. There were some great wines this year which often simply proved as a benchmark highlighting the failing in other labels. Pinot Noir is a variety I always like to try before I buy, even the greatness of label is seldom protection from the odd average vintage. Another thing I have learnt. New Zealand Pinot Noir basically always improves significantly after a few years in the bottle. Buy a few and put them away. Then experience what critics of new release Pinot Noir often never consider. 2006 Martinborough Vineyards Pinot Noir. A classic New Zealand Pinot Noir this wine is not a pretender looking at this vintage. The nose is rich and full red cherry and subtle spice. The palate is beautifully plush and plump. It is filmy in texture and finely intergrated. Flavours of red plum lead into cake spice and milk chocolate. A lovely opulent and varietal Pinot Noir. I am impressed, this is good stuff 97/109 2007 Te Tera Pinot Noir. A great foil for the big brother. This wine made by Martinborough Vineyard is a bold wine exhibiting classic cherry and spice, open and classic. It just lacks the poise and texture of the more expensive tier. 90/109 2007 Mt Difficulty Pinot Noir. This label is centre fashion for the Auckland Viaduct set. This new vintage was a must try. The 05 and 06 versions were very tasty. The nose of this wine is rich and floral displaying red cherry and re currants. The palate is red fruited and broad with red cherry spectrum fruit, subtle spice and vanilla pod. At this stage it just seems to lack a bit of focus but it hasn’t been in the bottle long. Should improve. 93+/109 2006 Gibbston Valley Reserve Pinot Noir. We have tried this before a couple of times and there is no doubt it is one of the regions top Pinot Noirs. Today it seemed a little more red fruited than I remember it. The nose is subtle with red plum and cherry. It is a fresh, vital and elegant wine full of restraint and class. We have flavours of red cherry, cream, vanilla pod and an icing sugar like note. Classy stuff, I could drink it all night 96/109 2006 Gibbston Valley Pinot Noir. A bright and vibrant Pinot Noir, red fruit driven predominately red plums. Light, fresh, balanced displaying lovely acids. 93/109
2006 Bannock Brae Goldfields Pinot Noir. Expansice clean and varietal wine. Fresh ripe acids. This is a top cheaper Pinot Noir with plenty of varietal expression. 94/109 2007 Wooing Tree Pinot Noir. As a new label this wine sure crashed to the front of the crowd with some impressive show results from previous vintages. The 2007 is a graceful continuation for this wine. The nose is cram packed with fruit cake spice. The palate is creamy, rich, plump and succulent. So much so that it displays many characters of a Pinot Noir from further north. Red cherry, a spot of confection like fruit and integrated spice. I really like this wine. 95/109 2005 Lawsons Dry Hills Pinot Noir. Very much a typical more’ run of the mill’ Marlborough style. However as a stand alone drink there isn’t much wrong with it. Some development here and the red fruits have integrated nicely with the oak and it is a pleasant drop 92/109
2007 Kawarau Estate Reserve Pinot Noir. Kawarau Estate as a rule seems to display a little more body, depth and stuffing than most New Zealand examples. The are rich and complex wines. The 2007 is a bit lighter than usual, more red fruited and light footed. I did get dragged away from this wine so impressions only but it is different. It didn’t grab me quite as much as previous vintages. 93/109
I didn’t try many chardonnay's at Wine New Zealand. Most of the country’s top examples were not there and it is hard on the palate to taste them, especially the heavily oaked examples. However a few did make their way into my glass.
2004 Montana “O” Chardonnay. This wine seems to have huge show success. It is a very worked wine with complex toasty oak and nectarine on the nose. The palate is expansive and bold with a silky texture but the spicy ok just seems to show too much for me. Not my cup of tea. 92/109 2006 Villa Maria Taylors Pass Chardonnay. Last year the 2005 version of this wine was stunning so a revisit was a must. It displays the same gorgeous refined grapefruit nose with hints of marmalade. The palate followed thorough on the nose but didn’t seem to exhibit the same concentration as the 2005. 93/109 2004 Lawsons Dry Hills Chardonnay. A typical bold Marlborough offering displaying yellow grapefruit, citrus. 92/109
2006 Church Road Reserve Chardonnay. The nose on this wine is extremely complex and alluring with refined citrus and a good whack of marmalade drawing the drinker in. The palate is worked but in a well done way displaying plenty of complexity to complement the nectarine/ peach fruit flavours. There are smatterings of butterscotch, caramel and toffee to round out this wine. Silky and expansive, it is the archetypal Hawkes Bay Chardonnay. 95/109
Sweet Wines 2005 Villa Maria Reserve Noble Riesling. This is a rich layered and textured wine crammed full of canned peaches, quince, honey dew and hints of dried apricot. Full on Noble Riesling, sweet thick but with balancing acid spine. 97/109
2006 Forrest Botrytised Riesling. This mega multiple Trophy/ Gold winner obviously impresses the judges and it is a good wine. However to me it is a step down from the John Forrest Collection in my books. It definitely seems a one glass wine appearing incredibly sweet. It is peachy, creamy and rich packed with apricots and canned peach flavours. 95/109 2005 Montana P Gewurztraminer. Many people I talk to don’t rate this label but ive always found it pretty good. It is full of peaches and cream and rose petals. It isn’t very spicy or overly perfumed but creamy and displaying good fruit flavours. 94/109
2008 Te Whare Ra Gewurztraminer. Obviously just bottled this wine needs some time to settle. It is full on with flavours of Eskimo lollies and bubblegum. It is a broad, textural and highly perfumed wine. Rampant, opulent and full throttle. Needs time to settle to give this a proper analysis. Some of the guys hated it but it has potential 93+/109 2008 Johanneshof Gewurztraminer. The nose of this wine is of silky Turkish delight and roses. On the palate lemon Turkish delight sets the day off with icing sugar. Light footed and elegant, floral but not spicy. Seems to be a good follow up to recent great vintages. 97/109
2000 Daniel Le Brun Blanc de Blancs. This is usually my favourite of the Daniel Le Brun stable. Nose of oat meal, almosts and yeasty biscuit. On the palate are treated to plenty of Granny Smith Apple, stewed apples, and apple crumble. Perhaps lacks a little vitality and freshness but still a good wine 94/109 Number One Family Vineyards. Cuvee No 1. Near the end of a long day this was just something to finish off with. I found it elegant and stylish with plenty of focus, good ripe acids and a slither of sweetness. Stylish wine 94/109
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| Last Updated ( Sunday, 19 October 2008 ) |
2008 Mt Difficulty Target Gully Riesling. This gorgeous wine has a nose that leaps out of the glass with floral perfumed peach blossom and citrus. The palate introduces an outstanding texture, talcy, minerally. Lemon citrus, quartz, white peach, sherbet. It is creamy, integrated, long and convincing. Another cut above Riesling that is numbered in New Zealand’s finest. $35 98/109
2007 Gibbston Valley Expressionist Series Le Fou Riesling. Let me say it again Central Otago is off dry Riesling heaven. This is a jaw dropping, stop you in your tracks sensation of a wine. An epiphany. How do I do justice to describing it? The nose is rich and layered with hints of grapefruit, quartz, icing sugar and citrus. The palate is simply magnificent. Firstly there is the depth of flavour and layering which one would almost relate to a fine chardonnay. There is just so many facets to it, so many angles. It is as pure as a diamond, complex, beguiling and building on your palate as the flavours cascade through a long finish. This is a Riesling drinkers dream and simply a must have wine. I ordered my 6 pack the following morning. One of the greatest NZ Rieslings I have ever tried. A masterpiece, I can’t wait to try it again. This is NZ Grand Cru $35 100+/109
2008 Astrolabe Voyage Sauvignon Blanc. Nose of dry straw, nettles and snow peas. The palate is perhaps the broadest of the three astrolabes with flavours of ruby grapefruit, passionfruit pulp and lemon curd. It has a creamy texture with a long finish. Excellent $25 95/109
2008 Astrolabe Awatere Sauvignon Blanc. The nose of this wine explodes with green capsicum, green chillie and passionfruit skin. The palate is dry and clean exhibiting capsicum, gooseberry and passionfruit. A textural but fresh and focused wine with ripe razor acidity and all the varietal and regional definition you could ever ask for. A classic. Amazing stuff. $30 98/109
2006 Unison Selection. This is the first release of this wine under the new owners Philip and Terry Horn. The 2006, for the first time is Syrah predominant. The nose is rich and brooding letting up notes of rich fresh blackberry, bran and dark chocolate. The palate is deep and restrained, textured and creamy with dark spicy fruit, blackberry and the typical Unison dusty, grainy tannins. This all carries on to a long complex and fresh finish. The Syrah really shows and this is a shift in style giving it density and weight more reminiscent of the brooding 2004 vintage. It will be interesting to try this wine side by side with older vintages, a chance I should have this month at the winery 10 year celebrations. $50 97/109
2007 Passage Rock Reserve Syrah. This is a mind blowing wine. The nose is floral with notes of fine white pepper and red currant/ cranberry. The palate is a sensation of texture. It is light footed, creamy, chewy and mouth filling, blackberry, currants, cream and integrated sweet spice. Integrated fruit, soft, seductive and just cascading across the palate. It isn’t as big as the 2005, and not as funky as the 2006. It just impresses with poise, complexity elegance and class. It really is a notch above. Amazing wine and in the context of Waiheke, amazing value $55 98+/109
2006 Esk Valley Reserve Syrah. Another amazing Syrah based wine. This exotic ripe example has an amazing thick unctuous texture crammed full of smooth slippery chocolate, blackberry and Christmas mince flavours. There is a hint of pepper spice but this wine is dominated by dark deep fruit, slippery tannins and gorgeous mouth feel. It is compact, linear, poised and classy. Just an amazing wine. $60 98/109
2006 Villa Maria Reserve Gimblet Gravels Syrah. Is Syrah pushing to be NZ’s leading red varietal? I am starting to think so with yet another high scoring example. The nose of this wine just leaps out of the glass, so rich and expansive with dark blackberry, ripe dark plums and a hint of pepper. The Villa is a little more open knit than the Esk. The tannins are a little more dusty and predominant. It is powerful and silky with obvious complexity from the layers of different flavours nothing blackberry, black pepper and more savoury notes. It is soft, warm and inviting. In its own way an amazing wine and your style preference will be the thing at play when choosing. $60 98/109
2006 Newton Forrest Syrah. Newton Forrest is a label that has a huge reputation. It is though for whatever reason one I have had little to do with. The Bordeaux varieties have a big reputation but today it was the Syrah that really impressed me above them. The nose on this wine I have noted as being very fragrant with plenty of floral notes with spice and white pepper. It is a dark and brooding wine, creamy and elegant in a compact precise style. Again, poised, textured and exact. 97/109
2006 Obsidian Cabernet Merlot. An established Waiheke Island producer. This is very Bordeaux in style, not showing the ripe fruit nose of a gimblet gravels wine but instead classic dry leaf notes and slight herbaceousness which isn’t at all out of place. The palate is creamy with dark plums, currants, rosemary and mint flavours gripped in old style waiheke tannins which affords a long complex finish. I really like this wine. Those who enjoy the jammier warm climate cabernet styles might want to subtract from my score. $50 96/109
2005 Church Road Reserve Cabernet Merlot. This wine received high praise from all of our team. It certainly has broadened out and gained complexity over the last 12 months. It is a warm, generous and plump wine, generously textured and proportioned. Dark plums, ripe blackberry and nutty spice can be found among the flavours. It has some savouriness to it and a lovely softness. Now well integrated, you have to say that as noted in previous reviews here, this wine offers amazing value for money. Essential. $30 97/109
2006 Wither Hills Pinot Noir. This has always been one of the biggest Pinot Noirs coming out of New Zealand. It is bold, expansive and flavour packed pulling no punches. The nose is big for starters crammed with black cherry and plum. A big structure in the form of ripe dry tannins envelops a big black plum and cherry fruit set. It sure has enthusiasm but today lacked a little in the finesse department. 92/109
2007 Highgate Soultaker Pinot Noir. This is impressive stuff. Nose displays integrated red cherry, red plum and subtle spice. The palate is full of fresh blackberry and cake spice. Integrated, poised and refined. The whole package displays a fantastic texture. Sultry and sensual 97/109
2004 Babich Irongate Chardonnay. This is a classic chardonnay in the true sense of the world. Trends and fashion seem to have passed this wine by but it is still an excellent drop with proven performance as a cellar option. It is an intellectual style off chardonnay built boldy. The fruit in this wine is very concentrated and rich. It is fresh rippling with citrus, citrus zest and a smattering of pith giving it some edge. A weighty and fruit pure wine. 94/109
2007 Clearview Reserve Chardonnay. Spicy nose displaying creamy mango, pineapple and nutmeg. The palate is silky and opulent. Flavours of nectarine, cream and harogate toffee invade the palate. Texturally it is very sensual, opulent, sumptuous and seductive. A beautifully crafted wine. Mark especially absolutely adored this wine. 97/109
2005 John Forrest Collection Noble Riesling. We awarded this wine our sweet wine of the year last year and another revisit saw no reason to question that decision. This wine is a masterpiece. The texture is so silky/ satin like. It is elegant and restrained with peaches and mango predominating. It is linear, integrated and sensually smooth. The mouth feel of this wine is quite unique. I always liken it to an absolutely front rank sauternes; it idles quietly. Gorgeous acid balance. 99/109
2007 Lawsons Dry Hills Gerwurztraminer. A very powerful nose announces this wine with its floral rose, Turkish delight and lychee. The palate is a bowl of potpourri flavours, rose, icing sugar and marshmallow along with a desiccated coconut edge. Extremely varietal and flamboyant. Full on. 95/109
NV Daniel Le Brun Brut. Lots of green apples crammed into this compact and creamy wine. Fresh light, refreshing and stylish. Top stuff 94/109| < Prev | Next > |
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