'No Brainer' Wine Shop Visits

The great thing about a non commercial blog with no affiliations and no one to answer to is you can be as ‘biased’ as you like. You don’t have to be PC and pander to everyone. What a relief!

Perhaps it is time then to profile some of NZ’s finest wine shops. The first one I will look at is one I can proclaim as my favourite wine shop; Finer Wines from Katikati. Owner Jim Bartee is an import from the USA. Once more he has been reading www.kiwiwinefanclub.co.nz for years and even remembers the photos of the kids we used to publish! It is obvious that as an 'import' that he thinks a little differently to most wine shops that in many ways all stick to the same formula.

Finer Wines of Katikati is an Aladdin’s Cave if there ever was one. The first thing you note is a complete absence of boring ‘who cares’ labels. We are talking icon upon classic upon cult here. Next you notice the depth of back vintages, rare wines and wines you thought you would never see for sale. A few times I’ve heard “I bought the entire NZ allocation”. Jim has an eye for a top label that draws on experience that not many in NZ have. A different perspective on things operates here. Top that off with very competitive prices and a friendly and helpful proprietor and you are on to a winner.

At a recent Stonyridge Larose Vertical Tasting we were able to fill a few gaps from his strong back catalogue. I have in the past also found great wines as rare as 1998 Martinborough Vineyards Pinot Noir. Looking for a Hawkes Bay 1998? You can select from Coleraine, Terraces, CJ Pask Reserve and others. Perhaps a cult Barossa Shiraz is more your bag? Kay Brothers Block 6 from at least half a dozen vintages, Amon Ra, Rockfords, Henschke, Penfolds – you name it. Perhaps you will look to choose something from his extensive selection of fine German Rieslings or top rank Sauternes. The selection is endless. I always feel like a possum in the headlights, and always push the budget!

Our Ratings:

Range Breadth: 8/10
Range Depth: 9/10
Service: 10/10
Pricing: 8/10
Final Score: 9/10

Contact:

Finer Wines Bay of Plenty
8 Main Rd, Box 262, Katikati
New Zealand Ph 64 7 549-3463
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

A Couple of Pictures of the Shop: