Tag Archives: 2006

Seifried Nelson Riesling Ice Wine 2006

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Saw this on the supermarket shelf the other day and it piqued my interest, both because it’s a dessert wine made of Riesling and it’s (ostensibly) an ice wine too. The Seifried website says this wine is made “in the style” of an ice wine, and that the grapes are pressed frozen (whether on the vine or not – the site isn’t specific).
Although this wine is under screwcap, I swear there’s a slightly corky flavour on the nose that hasn’t blown off with swirling. It’s the same slightly musty note one sometimes observes in aged Rieslings and Semillons – quite attractive actually, but unexpected in this wine. It’s otherwise a lovely, if subtle, nose of intense, musky florals and sweet candied fruit. The palate is strikingly sweet from the very first moments of the entry onwards, and shows a flavour profile approaching delicate marmalade. Good complexity and, in spite of the level of sweetness, quite a linear structure, owing to well balanced acidity. So, it’s a sweet wine, to be sipped rather than gulped, but it’s not broad or sloppy in the least. The after palate tapers off gently, towards a delicate finish of good length.
I enjoyed this wine very much, and would probably choose to serve it with a dessert of equal intensity, perhaps with both in small quantities. A big experience in miniature, as it were.
Seifried EstatePrice: $NZ25 (375ml)Closure: StelvinDate tasted: December 2007

Unison Vineyard Marie's Vineyard Reserve Merlot 2006

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If you’re in the Hawkes Bay area, I strongly recommend a visit to Unison Vineyard. We dropped in and were greeted by the effusive and extremely passionate viticulturalist, who gave us a sensational tasting and lots of information about each wine, the vineyard, and the region generally. Oh, also they make a lovely olive oil (from Estate fruit) and a delicious Balsamic vinegar. This wine is their straight Merlot, priced reasonably and intended to be consumed sooner rather than later. Garnet colour, looking a bit older, perhaps, than one might expect from a 2006 vintage wine. Attractive, though. The nose is fabulous — a lifted, multifaceted flavour profile that passes through herbal, medicinal notes, dark fruits and some oak quite seamlessly. Overall, quite savoury and tight. The entry is subtle, and the wine builds intensity as the palate progresses. The middle palate is again quite savoury, with lots of dark fruit and more herbal flavours, and a sweet edge to keep things relatively easygoing. Medium weight palate with a nicely textured, rustic mouthfeel (somewhat Italianate, perhaps). Oak is reasonably prominent, and perhaps a little coarse in its sappiness, but never overwhelms the wine. The after palate starts to drop slightly in intensity before drying, slightly rustic tannins kick in to carry the wine off with good length. This is a very drinkable wine that will, I imagine, go very well with Italian food. A nice expression of Merlot that will please lovers of the more savoury side of this variety. Good value too.Unison VineyardPrice: $NZ24Closure: StelvinDate tasted: December 2007

Unison Vineyard Syrah 2006

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This wine sits alongside the Unison blends (regular and Selection) that form the core of the Unison Vineyard range. All Gimblett Gravels Estate fruit. A deep, perfumed nose that shows as much rich dark berry fruit as it does floral pot pourri and black pepper. There are also violety, raw meat and vanilla edges to the wine that create an overall impression of depth and complexity of flavour. The palate’s entry has good impact, and rich berry flavours begin from the very tip of the tongue onwards. This is a generous, full bodied wine that has a focus on ripe fruit without becoming vulgar or one-dimensional. There’s also a bit of toasty oak in there but it’s very much a support act. Acidity isn’t especially attention-grabbing but provides firmness and structure, and a focussed line. Mouthfeel is sophisticated, mostly silky smooth, with slightly chunky tannins as the finish takes hold. Length is quite impressive in its quality (deep fruit just keeps on singing) and persistence. An excellent Syrah that is rich yet balanced. If I had more bottles of this, I’d probably wait a year or two before retasting, as it’s quite evidently a youthful wine that may benefit from time in bottle.Unison VineyardPrice: $NZ35Closure: DiamDate tasted: December 2007

Trinity Hill Syrah 2006

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Second in a lineup of Gimblett Gravels Syrahs. I was a little underwhelmed by the previous example (from Craggy Range).
Youthful purple colour, good clarity, a lovely wine to look at.
On the nose, identifiably regional notes of black pepper and pot pourri, but also a prominent strand of clean, attractive bright berry fruit and some undergrowth. Good complexity and interest. Also some nice vanilla oak, in a supporting role.
On entry, the wine feels a little dilute and lacking in immediacy of impact. The middle palate is where things become quite expressive. Medium bodied, fresh flavours that echo those on the nose, with good balance between all the elements. The mouthfeel is very clean, not especially textural, but appropriate given the freshness of the flavour profile. The after palate shows good continuity from the middle, and attractively persistent flavour. Chalky tannins finish off the wine nicely.
This wine is a tasty, drinkable expression of Syrah and stood up extremely well to a rather spicy pasta dish.
Trinity HillPrice: $NZ29Closure: DiamDate tasted: December 2007

Craggy Range Block 14 Syrah 2006

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I bought a few Gimblett Gravels Syrahs to taste so that I can better understand the style being produced there as well as how individual producers are approaching things. This one is from Craggy Range, which gets my vote for most grand tasting facility in Hawkes Bay, at least that I’m aware of.
Nice sparkling purple-red colour, good density.
A really striking nose of black pepper and dried flowers, a bit like sharp pot pourri. Lots of impact, and quite characterful, but the more I sniffed it, the more I realised that it’s a wine that exists almost entirely at this high toned, spicily aromatic end of the spectrum, with little fruit weight of the regular berry kind. With some time in glass, a bit of red berry fruit emerged, but it really does remain in the background.
The palate is a virtual rerun of the nose. The same pepper and dried flowers dominate the flavour profile. The wine is of light to medium weight, very linear, with firm and yet delicately structured acidity. Despite the acidity’s presence, it adds very little to the texture of the wine, and the tannins are quite laid back. Again, there are some berry flavours but they are an undercurrent more than anything else. Fairly good length on the finish.
Whilst it’s a wine with impact, it’s also quite one-dimensional and didn’t go with a dinner of lamb (NZ’s finest!) especially well. The food seemed to clash with the wine’s flavours and reduce rather than add to complexity. Possibly needs some time in bottle to settle down, as I expected much more from this wine, given its reputation. Would be interested in retasting in a few months.
Craggy RangePrice: $NZ38Closure: StelvinDate tasted: December 2007

Clearview Reserve Chardonnay 2006

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Clearview’s restaurant is a pretty popular place, judging by the crowd we saw at lunch today. I can confirm the food and setting are both excellent. But how are the wines? We tried two with lunch, of which this was the first. Really nutty, yeasty aromas initially dominate the nose, with nectarine and melon-like fruit emerging with some vigorous swirling. There are also sweet butterscotch aromas and toastiness. All in all, this wine seems pretty heavily worked, but also complex and interesting.In the mouth, this is a little lighter than one might expect from the nose. Initially, the oak is quite dominant, but that’s ok because it’s super tasty and the winemaking creates a wide spectrum of flavours. Acidity is lively through the palate, and well integrated. The malo-derived flavours are quite prominent. As the wine warmed up, some fruit weight became evident, and to my taste the balance of the wine improved markedly. So I wouldn’t serve this straight from the fridge if you want to taste all that’s in there. A lengthy finish rounds the wine off nicely.Despite the style, it’s a food friendly wine that accompanied our meal well.Clearview EstatePrice: $NZ35Closure: StelvinDate tasted: December 2007

Stockman's Station Central Otago Pinot Noir 2006

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One thing that bugs me about Central Otago Pinot is the lack of what I would call “everyday” or quaffing wines. There has, in recent years, been an emergence of affordable, quality Australian Pinot Noir, so the scarcety of Central Otago cheapies has become more evident. I nabbed this one at the local supermarket, as it was well priced and the label talks about ecologically friendly farming practices, etc. Good on paper for sure.This wine shows good typicity of fruit flavour on the nose, so from the perspective of a “sense of place” in wine, it’s doing the right thing. The nose lacks impact, though, as the fruit flavour is both rather simple and somewhat dilute in character. The palate continues this impression, with a promising entry leading to a middle palate that never quite delivers the goods. It’s light to medium bodied, again a bit simple and dilute in flavour, and with acidity that is too aggressive for the wine’s intensity. Tannins are very fine and even, length is acceptable.It’s nice to be able to buy an obviously “Central Otago” Pinot Noir for a smidge under $NZ25, so I shouldn’t grumble too much, I suppose. It’s just not an especially compelling wine.Stockman’s StationPrice: $NZ24Closure: StelvinDate tasted: December 2007

Te Mata Estate Woodthorpe Vineyard Chardonnay 2006

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This is a single vineyard wine from the Hawkes Bay region of New Zealand. According to the label, it’s gone through the gamut of winemaking tricks, including lees contact and malolactic fermentation. The nose immediately establishes the flavour profile of this wine’s fruit. It’s very much in the nectarine spectrum, quite ripe and with good complexity. There’s some spicy oak influence too, but it sits on the edges. The wine’s entry has good impact and spreads flavour quickly to the middle palate, where more of the same delicious fruit is evident. There’s some nuttiness, though I can’t detect the creaminess that might indicate lees stirring. There’s also a subtle butterscotch richness from the malo, but it’s very much a supporting note here, the fruit taking centre stage. Really good intensity of flavour, with a driving line that helps the fruit to sing. There’s a fair amount of acidity and this keeps the wine both focussed and fresh, although it also means there’s considerable astringency on the palate. The wine’s after palate continues on for some time, and the finish is of decent length, with echoes of the fruit seeming to stick to the back of the tongue. There are subtle phenolics that add some texture to the finish also.Really nice wine, this one. I think what impresses me most is the restraint of the winemaking combined with the intensity of the fruit flavour. Nice things to have, especially when it comes to Chardonnay. Good value too.Te Mata EstatePrice: $NZ23Closure: StelvinDate tasted: December 2007

Mt Difficulty Pinot Noir 2006

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I couldn’t resist picking up a few bottles of wine at the Auckland duty free stores. In fact, the selection had quite a few little numbers that were of interest. I grabbed this one immediately. Earlier in the year, I had the pleasure of visiting Central Otago and the Mount Difficulty cellar door. I quite enjoyed the wines there, and so jumped at the chance to taste this one (at local prices too!).Lovely, expressive nose, showing distinctively Central Otago “sweet sour plum” fruit character, with edges of forest floor and the opulent sweetness of something like creme brulee. Absolutely seductive. The entry is quite striking in its immediacy and, although the wine is obviously young, it’s not holding anything back, with the middle palate showing lots of fruit flavour. It is perhaps a bit unfocussed, but strongly regional and delicious. There’s a good whack of caramel oak too. The wine’s flavour continues strongly through the after palate and lengthy finish. There’s a roughness to the mouthfeel that is part acid, part chunky tannin. The alcohol also protrudes a little, at times masking the fruit. I suppose one could accuse the wine of being a bit overdone, and if your taste runs to light to medium bodied pinots of finesse, you may not especially enjoy this one.  I’m more inclined, though, to accept and enjoy it for what it is: a big, flavourful Central Otago Pinot that will probably respond to a couple of years in the bottle.Other half, who generally enjoys full bodied red wines, loved it.Mount DifficultyPrice: $NZ38Closure: StelvinDate tasted: December 2007

Yalumba Bush Vine Grenache 2006

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Wines don’t have to be “super premium” to be worthwhile. If you’re like me, you’re always looking for wines to drink with dinner during the week, “everyday” wines in the best, most enjoyable sense of the word. I went hunting in the bottlo tonight for just such a wine to accompany gourmet pizza. I almost went for a Sangiovese, but this one pleaded with me to try it. I’m nothing if not attuned to the needs of others.


Fruit bomb, spice, a bit of oak. There you have it, that’s about as accurate a tasting note as one could write about this wine. Aromas are lovely and generous, with loads of raspberry jam type fruit, along with sweet spices (think cloves) and a hint of vanilla oak. It’s simple, but that’s ok because it’s a wine that knows what it is, and does it well.  The palate is a seamless continuation of the flavour profile discerned on the nose. Medium bodied, easygoing, well judged acidity to keep things peppy, but no significant tannins to speak of. The wine is really well constructed, texturally, and sits well in the mouth in this regard. With some time, the flavour developed a slightly medicinal, cough syrup note, that I rather liked. 

The pizza we had with this wine was strongly flavoured, plenty of pepperoni and so on. The wine stood up to this assault well due to the generosity of its fruit flavour, and counterbalanced the savoury pizza with sweet spicy fruit. Not a bad combination at all.

Price: $A17
Closure: Cork
Date tasted: December 2007