Elephant Hill Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2010. Another one of those different Sav Blancs...fermented in barrels and on lees, definitely a nice change to your typical NZ Sav Blanc. NZ nose with added complexity and not so in your face. The palate has a great deal more complexity than a normal NZ Sav Blanc...Still getting a little bit of passion fruit, lemon, grass, good acidity..good length. It is really too bad most Sav Blancs aren't like this...quite good. Not too bad at 37 RRP.
Fancrest Estate "Di" Pinot Noir 2007. Small producer in New Zealand, and I believe 2007 was their first vintage. Located in Waipara...Definitely a nice little pinot here. Very nice nose of cherry and herbs...Good acidity and starting to pick up some secondary characteristics. Not sure this will go the long haul but it is drinking very well right now. At $30 RRP, it is a really good buy, possibly one of the best at the show. Their 2009 and 2010 were also good but both need more time. They're currently seeking distribution in Australia. I will say they need to do something with their website, it is quite a chore to hack around it.
Northburn Station Pinot Noir 2008. Like all Central Otago Pinot Noirs...good acidity. Cherry and rocks on the nose....Good structure on this wine. Firm tannins, very nice fruit...good complexity...I think 2008 was challenging for many in Central Otago but Northburn seems to have done quite well. To me this was significantly better than their Bill's Blend Pinot although it is priced accordingly (34 vs. 49 RRP).
Pasquale "16" Riesling Waitaki 2010. Maybe it was because I didn't find enough Rieslings with a bit of Residual Sugar but this one came in at 16g/L and it was quite nice. 16g/L is really not a lot....Maybe by Australian standards it is but to me, a little bit of RS helps soften the acidity. Or you can look at it as, with sufficient acidity, it balances out the RS...as well as I think it helps brighten the fruit. This one was well made and a good change of pace. To be honest, I'd really like to taste this again before making any further judgements but from what I had there, it was one of the better Rieslings...RRP 22.
Saint Clare Pioneer Block 5 Bull Block Pinot Noir 2009. Another Pinot Noir from Marlborough...Maybe it is the day or what I ate..I'm not sure. Good acidity, clean fruit, a good amount of complexity. Not too much oak, balance is good. I wasn't a fan of either the Premium or the Block 14 but this one was showing very well. RRP is 31.50, I'm keeping an eye out for them as I'd like to try this again to confirm my initial gut.
State Landt Syrah, Marlborough 2009. Deep dark fruit on the nose. Palate is clean, dark fruit, some oak coming through but the wine has good balance, reasonable acidity and fine tannins. I was a little bit surprised by this one, I'm not sure why, maybe because I'm not looking for a Syrah out of Marlborough...at 45 RRP, this is a good buy. Another one I'd like to re-try.
Wooing Tree 2009 Pinot Noir. VERY nice pinot here. Has a little bit of that Cherry Cola thing going on with the nose but really nice overall. Wine has tons of complexity. Red Fruit, herbs, a bit of crushed rock..Tannins are nice but firm enough to give you the impression this will last awhile. Acidity is good like all Central Otagos...Great pinot, a bit dear at 55 RRP but if I compare that to what is available in Australia, it is better than nearly everything....
Wooing Tree Sandstorm Reserve Pinot Noir 2009. Way too young. Big tannins, the fruit is clean and very nice but I'm really not getting too much here. From what I get, I'm sure this will end up being a really great wine once it has some time to age. At this stage I prefer the normal Pinot to the Reserve...and at 120 RRP, I strongly prefer the normal Pinot over the reserve. If I'm lucky enough to try one of these with 10 years+ on it, maybe I'll be able to give it a better assessment.
Surveyor Thomson Estate Pinot Noir 2007. I really like the stuff coming out of this estate. Part of it is because it is different but really, they do make a really nice Pinot Noir. Really nice nose, some herbs, maybe a bit of stink (not in a bad way). Good acidity. Fruit is not too big..and the oak comes through nicely (although not too much). Balance on this wine is really nice. For people that think Central Otago Pinot Noir is too fruit forward, this is a good one to try. Very burg like to me. It is one of those wines that shows its terroir quite nicely.
Surveyor Thomson Estate Pinor Noir 2010. I don't know if they changed styles or they just start off like this but the 2010 is big, but big as in, acidity is really big, big tannins, really big fruit, big oak...To be honest, I couldn't pick these as coming from the same vineyard or the same maker. I asked the guy if they all start off like this he said yes..but I don't know if I believe him or not. Granted, I've only had the 2006 and 2007 so everything I had tried from them so far had some age on it....It'll be interesting to see how these develop...
Trinity Hill "The Gimblett" 2009. A blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cab Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec. Really nice wine. Dark fruits and black pepper on the nose...DEEP big fruit on the palate. Maybe this is a bit too big or maybe it is just when I tried it. Really nice though and balance is good. Tannins are firm but not too firm. Has some acidity which is nice. A really well made, crowd pleasing Bordeaux Blend...A wine that both the wine geek and regular punter would like... A really good buy at 38 RRP.
Trinity Hill Tempranillo 2009. I was curious as to why the winemaker wanted me to try this after the Gimblett but I can see why...This is a BIG Tempranillo. I think it actually has some Touriga Nacional and Malbec and a bit of Viognier...which is probably to try to soften the thing because it is really too big for a Tempranillo. As a wine, it is pretty good. Nice BIG fruit, big tannins, I'd probably prefer a bit more acidity but overall the wine tastes great. I definitely don't associate Tempranillo with being like this, but it is nice to try different styles of this grape. Australia is starting to do Tempranillo better (most of it was dreadful before) and I'm sure NZ is doing the same. One to watch. 38 RRP.
Trinity Hill Homage Syrah 2009. HUGE Dreadnought bottle. Massive. The winemaker said these bottles cost about $3 each..and I can believe it. HUGE wine. A bit too big. Really big tannins suggest it is made for the long haul. The fruit is pure and clean with a lot of dark dark fruit, chocolate. Hard to say where this will be in a few years but it is just too harsh at this stage. At 120RRP, the price is a bit much. It is a big contrast to their other offerings which I think are good value...
Overall this was a very well done show. The number of different wineries and wines was impressive. It was very well organized and the staff were very professional. I would have to say, it is probably one of the best overall shows I've been to. +1 for the NZ wine in a Glass folks...really great work!
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