2010 vintage wines are starting to hit the retail shelves about now and I can’t wait to wrap my tastebuds around them. The release of the first new seasons wines seems to arrive quite quickly after harvest but about now it seems like we have to wait ages for them, even though the better sauvignon blancs are only a matter of week away.
While I have been talking to winemakers and vineyard owners about the 2010 vintage a number of them have told me about different varieties they are trialling. Trying new things in vineyards and wineries is simply part of making better wine but adding varieties that are common in Europe comes with both risk and reward. The risk is that the variety simply doesn’t deliver the flavour profiles when planted here but when they do deliver the results can be outstanding.
Another risk is that you and I are less likely to pick a wine off the shelf if it has a name we don’t recognise, for example what does Grüner Veltliner taste like – sweet, dry, fruity, austere, oaky, citrus, stonefruit? Is it a red wine or a white wine?
Now being grown in small quantities in Nelson Grüner Veltliner is a white aromatic style wine commonly grown in Austria. Regarded as a perfect food wine it is expected the variety will do well in Nelson’s cool climate and I can’t wait to find out. Waimea Estates have produced a very small trial batch this year that is highly unlikely to be sold but I am going to twist a few arms and get my hands on a bottle later in the year.
The Spanish variety Albarino is also being trialled in the region. Best known for red varieties Albarino is regarded as one of the few white varieties that produces reasonable white wine in Spain. Again, its fresh, crisp peachy characters are expected to suit Nelson’s climate.
In Nelson’s cooler climate varieties like cabernet sauvignon and merlot have limited success because, other than in little microclimate spots in the region, we don’t have enough heat for the fruit to develop fully ripe characters. However varieties like montepulciano from Italy and zweigelt from Austria deliver great flavour in our cooler climate. You will find fine examples of these at Blackenbrook Vineyards (montepulciano) and Seifried Estate (zweilgelt – bottled under the Sylvia label by Seifrieds). Others are also trialling monetipulciano so watch this space with interest.
The Italian variety dolcetto is being grown with some success by Golden Hills and again is also being trialled by other growers in the region.
Nelson may be very well known for it’s chardonnay, riesling, pinot gris, sauvignon blanc, pinot noir, dessert wines and to a lesser extent gewurztraminer but the pioneering attitude of the family owned wine producers in the region means there are lots more treats in store for you and me in the years to come.
I have been drinking
If you want to know how the use of different oak affects a wine get your hands on both of these and find out for yourself. Using the same juice, the same ratio of new oak to older, both wines were fermented with the same yeast and all winemaking processes were the same – except for the oak.
Saint Clair 2009 Omaka Reserve Chardonnay (RRP $32.95)
Fermented in American oak barrels this has a rich, generous mouthfeel, a hint of creaminess with underlying stone fruit flavours. A delicious wine.
Saint Clair Pioneer Block 10 Twin Hills 2009 Chardonnay (RRP $29.95)
Fermented using French oak barrels this is rather more restrained with delightful minerality, tropical fruit flavours with hints of fresh baked biscuits in the aromas. Beautifully elegant.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Wine Tours
Sari (my partner) and I organise a fundraising dinner each year for The Suter Art Gallery and for my sins she auctions me off to the highest bidder; that is she auctions my services as a tour guide.
Arranging tours of wineries is not something I normally do, in fact this is the only one I do each year as there are commercial operators out there who do a fine job catering for tour groups.
Each year I make sure the tour has a focus on something in particular and this year it was aromatic style wines. First stop was Te Mania Wines and Richmond Plains where David Holmes introduced us to a white wine made from red grapes (Richmond Plains Blanc de Noir made from pinot noir fruit) and talked about organic production.
I thought 10am might be a bit early to be tasting wines but not for this heroic bunch, they approached the task with gusto as David lead them through a tasting of finished wines and tank samples. The tank samples proved just how good the last harvest was with all of the wines bursting with clean, pure varietal flavours.
Back in the van at 11am and off to Blackenbrook Wines at Tasman where co-owner and winemaker Daniel Schwarzenbach showed us around his winery, talked about how he makes wine and let my bunch of wine lovers taste some of his product, comparing finished wines with new season tank samples. The group were astounded at Daniel’s passion and dedication to quality in everything he does. For me Blackenbrook’s 2007 reserve gewürztraminer was the best match with the still warm home baked bread Ursula produced for us.
12.30pm meant arrival at Neudorf Vineyards for lunch and a wine tasting and chat with Tim and Judy Finn. Tim is widely regarded as one of the country’s premiere winemakers who has an affinity with the environment that contributes so much to the flavours and textures delivered in every bottle of Neudorf wine and for this group the chance to sit down over lunch (in the sun believe it or not) and chat with him about his winemaking philosophy, the continual search for new techniques, technologies and research to help improve his product was a unique opportunity.
By 3pm we were driving through bitterly cold pouring rain heading to Seifried Estate to meet Chris Seifried who not only talked with passion and a deep understanding of the things that make Seifried Estate the success they are but he simply couldn’t resist pouring ‘just one more’ tank or barrel sample. Learning about the almost extreme lengths they go to in making Sweet Agnes Riesling in an ice wine style showed us how even a large winery puts huge effort into creating something very special.
5.15pm and my tour group was tucked up in the warmth of their homes and I got to put my feet up for another year.
I have been drinking
Golden Hills 2009 Dolcetto - $34.90 from the winery
I have been following this wine for a couple of years and I am just as impressed with the latest release as I have been with previous versions. Medium to full palate weight and packed with elegant cherry and aniseed flavours. A delight
Morton Estate ‘The Regent of Morton’ 2002 - $54.99 but on special for $21.99 at Freshchoice Nelson City
This eight year old blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc is a beauty. The age means the flavours have had time to get to know one another, the tannins are still firm but are nicely integrated into the refined mouthfeel and to top it off you can save $33. Fantastic wine at a fantastic price.
Arranging tours of wineries is not something I normally do, in fact this is the only one I do each year as there are commercial operators out there who do a fine job catering for tour groups.
Each year I make sure the tour has a focus on something in particular and this year it was aromatic style wines. First stop was Te Mania Wines and Richmond Plains where David Holmes introduced us to a white wine made from red grapes (Richmond Plains Blanc de Noir made from pinot noir fruit) and talked about organic production.
I thought 10am might be a bit early to be tasting wines but not for this heroic bunch, they approached the task with gusto as David lead them through a tasting of finished wines and tank samples. The tank samples proved just how good the last harvest was with all of the wines bursting with clean, pure varietal flavours.
Back in the van at 11am and off to Blackenbrook Wines at Tasman where co-owner and winemaker Daniel Schwarzenbach showed us around his winery, talked about how he makes wine and let my bunch of wine lovers taste some of his product, comparing finished wines with new season tank samples. The group were astounded at Daniel’s passion and dedication to quality in everything he does. For me Blackenbrook’s 2007 reserve gewürztraminer was the best match with the still warm home baked bread Ursula produced for us.
12.30pm meant arrival at Neudorf Vineyards for lunch and a wine tasting and chat with Tim and Judy Finn. Tim is widely regarded as one of the country’s premiere winemakers who has an affinity with the environment that contributes so much to the flavours and textures delivered in every bottle of Neudorf wine and for this group the chance to sit down over lunch (in the sun believe it or not) and chat with him about his winemaking philosophy, the continual search for new techniques, technologies and research to help improve his product was a unique opportunity.
By 3pm we were driving through bitterly cold pouring rain heading to Seifried Estate to meet Chris Seifried who not only talked with passion and a deep understanding of the things that make Seifried Estate the success they are but he simply couldn’t resist pouring ‘just one more’ tank or barrel sample. Learning about the almost extreme lengths they go to in making Sweet Agnes Riesling in an ice wine style showed us how even a large winery puts huge effort into creating something very special.
5.15pm and my tour group was tucked up in the warmth of their homes and I got to put my feet up for another year.
I have been drinking
Golden Hills 2009 Dolcetto - $34.90 from the winery
I have been following this wine for a couple of years and I am just as impressed with the latest release as I have been with previous versions. Medium to full palate weight and packed with elegant cherry and aniseed flavours. A delight
Morton Estate ‘The Regent of Morton’ 2002 - $54.99 but on special for $21.99 at Freshchoice Nelson City
This eight year old blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc is a beauty. The age means the flavours have had time to get to know one another, the tannins are still firm but are nicely integrated into the refined mouthfeel and to top it off you can save $33. Fantastic wine at a fantastic price.
Wine Lists
For the last few years I have been asked to judge the annual Hospitality Awards Outstanding Wine List award and this year’s task was the most difficult to date.
It has always been challenging comparing wine lists from café/bars with those from formal style restaurants but this year the step up in wines being offered was significant.
When deciding the best wine list I considered a number of criteria with an over-riding consideration for balance. By balance I mean does the list have something for everyone and does it reflect the focus of the establishment. For example I don’t expect a bar to offer the same high value wine I would expect to see on a fine dining style restaurant list but I do expect them to offer wines that reflect the style of food they serve, the price point their customers expect to pay and have a selection of Nelson, New Zealand and international wines.
Just because these establishments are in Nelson it doesn’t mean they should have only Nelson wines on their lists. I think they should have a good representation of Nelson wine but when I go out I also like to drink wine from other regions in New Zealand and I like to try wines from overseas. For example Nelson is not really suited to making full bodied red wines so there should be a choice from Hawke’s Bay or Australia to pair with a rich steak.
In recent years wine marketing companies have been putting a lot of effort into helping the industry offer you, the consumer, better choices and the owners have been investing in more and higher quality stock holdings. This raises another issue faced by the industry, consumer reluctance to pay reasonable money for wines they serve.
I can understand people thinking ‘why should I pay x when I can buy it for y in the supermarket?’ The answer is simply that the establishment has to invest in the stock and have it sitting on the shelf so you can have choices, they need to provide and clean glassware, replace glassware broken by customers, have trained and licensed staff (who they need to pay more to), meet liquor licensing requirements and finally they are a business that needs to make a profit.
The wine lists I judged this year showed that owners are prepared to invest in good product so you can have choices when buying wine in a bar, a café or a restaurant. They are also putting a lot of effort into helping you make good wine buying decisions with many establishments now including a description of the wine so you know whether it is sweet, dry, full bodied or rich and fruity. Some are also making wine match suggestions on their menus so when you are deciding what to eat you can choose a wine the chef thinks will go well with the dish.
When you are dining at one of our fantastic hospitality venues have a closer look at the wine list, you just might be surprised at the well considered selection you have to choose from.
By the way this year’s winner was Hopgood’s Restaurant and Bar.
I have been drinking
Chateau Marguerite Fronton 2007 - $24.95 from Mediterranean Foods
From the South West area of France this is a delightfully rich wine. With plums, prunes, black berry fruit flavours, firm but balanced tannins and a long satisfying finish this is a cracker.
Petaluma 2008 Hanlin Hill Riesling - $28
I bought my bottle of this from Liquor King in Christchurch but it is worth searching for if riesling is your thing. From the Clare Valley in Australia this is a rich, powerful dry wine. Packed with ripe citrus and mineral characters and has a nice oily texture. Great now and perfect for the cellar.
It has always been challenging comparing wine lists from café/bars with those from formal style restaurants but this year the step up in wines being offered was significant.
When deciding the best wine list I considered a number of criteria with an over-riding consideration for balance. By balance I mean does the list have something for everyone and does it reflect the focus of the establishment. For example I don’t expect a bar to offer the same high value wine I would expect to see on a fine dining style restaurant list but I do expect them to offer wines that reflect the style of food they serve, the price point their customers expect to pay and have a selection of Nelson, New Zealand and international wines.
Just because these establishments are in Nelson it doesn’t mean they should have only Nelson wines on their lists. I think they should have a good representation of Nelson wine but when I go out I also like to drink wine from other regions in New Zealand and I like to try wines from overseas. For example Nelson is not really suited to making full bodied red wines so there should be a choice from Hawke’s Bay or Australia to pair with a rich steak.
In recent years wine marketing companies have been putting a lot of effort into helping the industry offer you, the consumer, better choices and the owners have been investing in more and higher quality stock holdings. This raises another issue faced by the industry, consumer reluctance to pay reasonable money for wines they serve.
I can understand people thinking ‘why should I pay x when I can buy it for y in the supermarket?’ The answer is simply that the establishment has to invest in the stock and have it sitting on the shelf so you can have choices, they need to provide and clean glassware, replace glassware broken by customers, have trained and licensed staff (who they need to pay more to), meet liquor licensing requirements and finally they are a business that needs to make a profit.
The wine lists I judged this year showed that owners are prepared to invest in good product so you can have choices when buying wine in a bar, a café or a restaurant. They are also putting a lot of effort into helping you make good wine buying decisions with many establishments now including a description of the wine so you know whether it is sweet, dry, full bodied or rich and fruity. Some are also making wine match suggestions on their menus so when you are deciding what to eat you can choose a wine the chef thinks will go well with the dish.
When you are dining at one of our fantastic hospitality venues have a closer look at the wine list, you just might be surprised at the well considered selection you have to choose from.
By the way this year’s winner was Hopgood’s Restaurant and Bar.
I have been drinking
Chateau Marguerite Fronton 2007 - $24.95 from Mediterranean Foods
From the South West area of France this is a delightfully rich wine. With plums, prunes, black berry fruit flavours, firm but balanced tannins and a long satisfying finish this is a cracker.
Petaluma 2008 Hanlin Hill Riesling - $28
I bought my bottle of this from Liquor King in Christchurch but it is worth searching for if riesling is your thing. From the Clare Valley in Australia this is a rich, powerful dry wine. Packed with ripe citrus and mineral characters and has a nice oily texture. Great now and perfect for the cellar.
Neudorf Vineyards 30th Anniversary Dinner at Hopgoods restaurant
Thirty years ago this month Tim and Judy Finn completed their first vintage at Neudorf Vineyards and to celebrate this milestone and a year packed with awards and accolades they joined forces with Cuisine Restaurant of the Year category winner, Hopgood’s Restaurant, to present a celebration dinner.
Over the years Neudorf Vineyards has proved to be one of New Zealand’s leading producers of fine wine and a long history of top accolades has been added to in the last 12 months; named New Zealand’s Greatest Winery for 2009 in The Wine Report by Tom Stevenson, Winner of Champion White Wine at the Tri Nations in Sydney (also winner of the Chardonnay Trophy and runner up for the Riesling Trophy), Decanter magazine chose Neudorf Chardonnay as ‘New Zealand’s Best’ and Michael Cooper awarded all the Neudorf Moutere wines Five Stars in his indispensible Guide to NZ Wine.
The six course celebration dinner was held on the 10th May and each course was matched with a premium Neudorf wine. I would like to say ‘my favourite course was xyz’ but I can’t, all of the food was simply outstanding and the careful pairing of the wines made sure the dinner was simply faultless.
Some of the delights about 80 diners enjoyed included dishes like Smoked Venison carpaccio with a fried quails egg, creamy celeriac and beet jelly served with Neudorf Moutere Pinot Noir 2007’ followed by ‘Salmon and crayfish ravioli with watercress, apple & fennel salad and sorrel cream paired with Neudorf Moutere Chardonnay 2004’
The skill and imagination of Kevin Hopgood and his head chef Aaron Ballantyne were displayed throughout the entire meal with little treats like the quail eggs that were poached, removed from the shell, crumbed then quickly deep fried and duck that can be quite dry but in this case was rich and succulent.
As to the wines, well they were as good as we expected – refined and elegant. One thing that did make me sit up and take note was the pinot gris. From the 2005 vintage the Neudorf Moutere version reminded me that good pinot gris can age magnificently.
In recent years pinot gris has had plenty of bad press (from me included) because there are a number of bland, boring, flavourless versions being sold for about $10 or less however when made well from grapes grown with care and attention pinot gris can be a super wine and will age beautifully. Buy a good version, put it in the cellar or cupboard for a few years and be pleasantly surprised.
To top it off for Neudorf Vineyards the dinner was held about a week after one of the best vintages ever in the region came to an end.
These two outstanding Nelson businesses are proof that quality will always shine.
To see what is happening at Neudorf or to check out the stunning vineyards go to their website and have a look at the live webcam images. Tim moves the camera occasionally, depending on what is happening on any day.
I have been drinking
Neudorf Moutere Pinot Gris 2009 - $28 at the cellar door
This is a luscious wine designed to last the distance. It has enough acidity to hold the fruit flavours together while the full palate weight continues to develop complexity that results from extended yeast lees contact. Bursting with spiced nashi pear and quince flavours and a little twist of ginger in the background this is delightful autumn drinking right now. Perfect with cheese.
Blackenbrook Vineyards Pinot Gris 2009 - $23.90 at the cellar door
This is another wine designed to stand the test of time. The big, rich mouthfeel is there predominantly because of the huge 15% alcohol. The alcohol is high because the sugars have been fermented out resulting in a drier style wine packed with ripe flavours but without being too sweet. A beautifully balanced delight.
Over the years Neudorf Vineyards has proved to be one of New Zealand’s leading producers of fine wine and a long history of top accolades has been added to in the last 12 months; named New Zealand’s Greatest Winery for 2009 in The Wine Report by Tom Stevenson, Winner of Champion White Wine at the Tri Nations in Sydney (also winner of the Chardonnay Trophy and runner up for the Riesling Trophy), Decanter magazine chose Neudorf Chardonnay as ‘New Zealand’s Best’ and Michael Cooper awarded all the Neudorf Moutere wines Five Stars in his indispensible Guide to NZ Wine.
The six course celebration dinner was held on the 10th May and each course was matched with a premium Neudorf wine. I would like to say ‘my favourite course was xyz’ but I can’t, all of the food was simply outstanding and the careful pairing of the wines made sure the dinner was simply faultless.
Some of the delights about 80 diners enjoyed included dishes like Smoked Venison carpaccio with a fried quails egg, creamy celeriac and beet jelly served with Neudorf Moutere Pinot Noir 2007’ followed by ‘Salmon and crayfish ravioli with watercress, apple & fennel salad and sorrel cream paired with Neudorf Moutere Chardonnay 2004’
The skill and imagination of Kevin Hopgood and his head chef Aaron Ballantyne were displayed throughout the entire meal with little treats like the quail eggs that were poached, removed from the shell, crumbed then quickly deep fried and duck that can be quite dry but in this case was rich and succulent.
As to the wines, well they were as good as we expected – refined and elegant. One thing that did make me sit up and take note was the pinot gris. From the 2005 vintage the Neudorf Moutere version reminded me that good pinot gris can age magnificently.
In recent years pinot gris has had plenty of bad press (from me included) because there are a number of bland, boring, flavourless versions being sold for about $10 or less however when made well from grapes grown with care and attention pinot gris can be a super wine and will age beautifully. Buy a good version, put it in the cellar or cupboard for a few years and be pleasantly surprised.
To top it off for Neudorf Vineyards the dinner was held about a week after one of the best vintages ever in the region came to an end.
These two outstanding Nelson businesses are proof that quality will always shine.
To see what is happening at Neudorf or to check out the stunning vineyards go to their website and have a look at the live webcam images. Tim moves the camera occasionally, depending on what is happening on any day.
I have been drinking
This is a luscious wine designed to last the distance. It has enough acidity to hold the fruit flavours together while the full palate weight continues to develop complexity that results from extended yeast lees contact. Bursting with spiced nashi pear and quince flavours and a little twist of ginger in the background this is delightful autumn drinking right now. Perfect with cheese.
This is another wine designed to stand the test of time. The big, rich mouthfeel is there predominantly because of the huge 15% alcohol. The alcohol is high because the sugars have been fermented out resulting in a drier style wine packed with ripe flavours but without being too sweet. A beautifully balanced delight.
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