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Saturday, April 13, 2013

Turkish Wine?

While on my trip to Turkey, I've had the chance to try some Turkish wine...

My thoughts....

It is difficult to find a spittoon.  I think the thought of spitting wine doesn't sit right with them...or no one really does it there..I'm not sure.

They serve you tastings in these tiny glasses which is probably not the best way to show your wine.  Basically, you can't swirl, you don't get much on the nose..it just isn't a good way to show off your wine...

I did find a grape, Emir, which was quite interesting.  Good acidity, good texture...quite an interesting wine...Apparently it doesn't age well but this is the first time I've tried so..

There were some other really random grapes that I hadn't heard of and they were not all that pleasing....Like a bad Chambourcin or funny Gamay...

Overall, most of the wine I've tried in Turkey was not very good...I suppose there is a reason why you don't see it outside of Turkey..

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

New Zealand in a Glass 2013 part 4

I had no idea I'd have 4 parts to this and still have this much left :).  I think the approach of trying to talk about each wine is a bit much but let me know what you think.  I'm thinking of just sticking with highlights and adding bits more...

Matua

I don't remember being overly impressed with them last but this year they had a couple of interesting wines..

Matua Estate Paretai Sauvignon Blanc 2011
Very NZ SB but a different texture to it.  Quite enjoyable and priced right at 25RRP

Matua Single Vineyard Chardonnay 2011
Very nice acid, nice citrus peach, really good balance.  A bit pricey at 50RRP but a very good drop.  Will be looking out for them..



Northburn Station

www.northburn.co.nz

Northburn Station Bill's Blend Pinot Noir 2009.
Good acid, nice bright fruit, good balance...Not terribly complex but at 30RRP, a good buy. 



Tarras Vineyards
www.tarrasvineyards.com


Tarras Vineyards The Steppes Pinot Noir 2008
Good acid, great balance, darker fruit, good complexity.  Quite a nice Pinot...Maybe a bit of a stretch at 50RRP but a pretty reasonable buy.



Wooing Tree
www.wooingtree.co.nz

Wooing Tree Pinot Noir 2009
Usually pretty impressed by this but I just thought it was decent.  Same good acid, good complexity..but just overall not that impressed when RRP is 60.

Wooing Tree Sandstorm Reserve Pinot Noir 2009
Good acid, BIG tannins, you can get hints of the different layers of fruit but still relatively tight.  Not as tight as the last one I tried but still, VERY young.   Looks like it'll be fantastic in 10+ years but hard to say.  At 120RRP there are a lot of good Pinots...





William Murdoch Wines

One of the more interesting winemakers here.  I hadn't heard of them but they make handcrafted organic wines that are made to age.  All of the wines were quite tannic,

Their Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon/France had big tannins...good complexity, nice fruit...and price nicely at sub 30RRP....

William Murdoch The Guardsman Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2010
BIG TANNINS.  Good acidy, deep dark fruit.  Layers of complexity on this wine and it is definitely made to age 20+ years.  I would love to see this with age.  53RRP