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- Skeeter - 11-27-2007
Here we go again… a regular passel of TN’s from way down South where the kiwis roam. I was originally going to write up a long, detailed post on the day trip to Matakana my wife and I recently took, but if I wanted to bore you with that, I’d update my long-neglected blog more often. Besides, I’ve also got a bunch of TN’s from the latest Massive Wine Sale I attended. So, let’s just get to the juice!
**Omaha Bay Vineyards**
A tiny place in Matakana, only open about four or five months. Very friendly staff and an amazing view out over the ocean. Apparently it gets pretty windswept at times, but the vines like the coolness of the location. You chance of finding them Stateside is probably pretty low, due to their equally low output.
2006 Pinot Gris: This is pretty big for a Kiwi pinot gris. (Most of which just don’t pass muster with me, always seeming a little hollow.) No problems here, complex, nutty and creamy, almost Chardonnay-like in its’ style. A little oak contact helps get this one out of the “blah†stakes and into the “Very nice†brigade. A good start.
2006 “The Imposter†Flora: My first sampling of Flora. Named “The Imposter†due to the fact that DNA testing was needed to ID the vines. (Omaha Bay originally thought they were pinot gris.) Quite Muscat-like, semi-sweet with good acidity. Not one I’d drink all day long, but a very interesting aperitif wine.
2006 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc: Classic Marlborough nose, good palate weight and a decent finish. I think I’m running out of ways to describe Marlborough savvies.
2004 Marlborough Chardonnay: Rich, mouthfilling and rounded. Not heavily oaked, but a well-balanced seasoning. As a die-hard chardy fan, this got my first Big Tick o’ Approval.
2006 Montepulciano: And this received a bigger one. Spicy and full, really long finish, and a nice tannic bite. The first pro wine writers opinion I’ve read of this calls it “green-edged†and gave it a measly 2 and a half stars. I brought a bottle. Because my opinion is the one that counts. Only 75 cases produced, but the staff think that their 2007 is going to be better. I’ll be waiting to try it.
2004 Huapi Syrah: Grown in a tiny vineyard perhaps ten minutes drive from my house, apparently. (Also the site of Omaha Bays owners’ grandfathers original vineyard.) Nice sweet fruit, plenty of pepper, very smooth and drinkable.
**Herons’ Flight Vineyards**
This was one place I was looking forward to visiting, as we sell their wines in the store. Both of them. Yes, this vineyard defines “specialistâ€, producing just two wines, a Dolcetto and a Sangiovese. After dropping the name of my boss at the store, I had the opportunity to talk to the owner and winemaker… for about a half-hour. Needless to say, he’s very passionate about his wines. (He even waived the ten-buck tasting fee.)
2005 Dolcetto: Ruby-red, with an amazing, nose-filling aroma. Juicy and full with fine tannins and a really long finish. Despite it being the “lighter†of his two wines, it still has a ton of structure, and could go five years easily. Either that or it’s time to break out the venison. Extraordinarily complete wine.
2005 Sangiovese: Unusual bouquet for me (having never tried Sangiovese before), almost pungently earthy. Immensely powerful, wonderful ripe fruit, great tannic structure. It’ll clock up a decade in the cellar if you’ve got the patience. Stunning wine.
**Ascenion Vineyards**
One of the larger vineyards in the Matakana area, with a good-sized range of wines to match. (I was seriously ready for lunch after this one. Even after the excellent lemon-syrup plumcake at the Dragonfly Café and Gallery we’d stopped at earlier.)
2007 “The Apogee†Viognier: Ascension has a cute trait of giving each of their wines names. “The Apogee†was clean and floral, with nice honeysuckle aromas and fruit-driven flavours. Didn’t make me turn handsprings like the Hans Herzog Viognier, but a very nice lighter-bodied style.
2007 “The Rogue†Flora: Flora strikes again… first and imposter, now a rogue. Very aromatic and citrusy, great mouth-filling texture, a little vanilla on the back end. This got a Medium-Sized Tick o’ Approval.
2006 “The Ascent†Reserve Chardonnay: Another lightly-oaked style, quite yeasty and rich, but not too buttery. And that’s all my notes had to say about this one. Thumbs in the middle, perhaps.
2006 “The Song of Solomon†Riesling: A little sweetness lurks within, but it’s nicely balanced with the wines acidity levels. Nashi pear flavours to my taste. Pretty decent.
2006 “The Parable†Pinotage: It’s late spring here… and this was a perfect wine for the time of year. Light and gamey, with some nice mushroom and earthy characters. Big Tick o’ Approval as far as I’m concerned.
2006 “The Steep Bit†Malbec: Flora, Pinotage and now Malbec. Gotta give Ascension points for variety. Quite light and fruity like the Pinotage, cherry-ish, slightly spicy flavours. Seemed a little shy at the moment, but it’ll probably open up a bit more in a few years. Not bad.
2006 “The Benediction†Reserve Merlot/Cabernet/Malbec: From the subtle to the blockbuster in one easy step we go. Huge wine, lots of tannins that support the ripe fruit without overpowering it, tons of character and length. Big Tick! This one’s a keeper. (In every sense of the word.)
Ascension “Fortitude†Tawny Port: And we finished on a double-high note, thanks to this excellent fortified. (And somewhat of a rarity, thanks to a new alcohol tax that persuaded many wineries to discontinue their ports a few years ago.) Superbly balanced flavours, great length and just enough sweetness to make me happy. An obvious Big Tick recipient.
**Brick Bay Wines**
Our last stop was also our lunch venue (A delicious cheese and antipasto platter to share) and culture-vulture spot. (The Brick Bay Sculpture Trail) I did of course take a few moments after lunch to sample their three wines on offer. (Missing the soon-to-be-released rose’ by a week or two.)
2007 Pinot Gris: Ouch! Big, acidic kick on the front end, lots of power and body. The winery thinks it’s their “wine of the decade†I think it probably needs a little time to settle down, though. Will be interesting to revisit in a year or so, if I’m lucky.
2005 Cabernet/Merlot/Cab Franc: Brick Bay gave this one a year in oak and 18 months bottle age prior to release. Good berry/herbal characters on the nose, smooth plummy body with some grippy, tangy tannins. Nice wine, but it sadly got overshadowed by his big brother on the day.
2004 “Pharosâ€: A Cab Sav/Cab Franc/Merlot/Malbec this time. Beautiful spicy nosem warm and full-bodied, silky-smooth, lots of layers of flavours, balanced and bold. Excellent wine. In fact, my personal favourite of the day. And even better, we sell it in-store and I get a staff discount. I love my job.
Onwards we go… this time to the 100+ wines opened at a rival stores’ “Massive Wine Saleâ€. I snuck along on a reconnaissance mission, knowing my budget wasn’t going to allow me to buy anything that week. (And besides, staff discount at my store, right?) Let’s get to it.
2007 Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc: You typically pungent Marlborough savvie… Full and juicy, with plenty of young, zingy acidity. It’s a typical kiwi savvie, and it’s a pretty good one. (Although ’07 should be full of excellent Savs.)
Terrace Road Classic Brut NV: A budget-priced sparkler from Daniel le Brun Winery with a medium intensity to the nose and good body. Somewhat creamy and yeasty with a fairly soft mousse and some nice acidity on the finish. Great value for money, although I believe the label is being discontinued.
2006 Amisfield Pinot Noir: A full-bodied Central Otago pinot with a nice drying finish. A little spicyness and a firm tannic structure with some dark cherry flavours lurking in the background. A little bit of bottle age should see this open up nicely.
2002 Te Awa Boundary: A Merlot/Cabernet/Cab Franc blend, rich, supple and smooth. The primary fruit has given way to lots of layered complexity in the bottle. Good persistence. Good stuff.
2007 Momo Chardonnay: The second label from Seresin, it’s quite light-bodied, with an interestingly funky mouthfeel. Seemed just a little hollow to me, and the finish was a shade subtle. Well-made, but not my style.
2006 Neudorf Chardonnay: This on the other hand was not only right up my street, it was parked outside my house making “come-on†gestures at me. Rich, nutty characters, a well-oaked palate, good balancing acid levels, with a slightly creamy texture. Very nice indeed.
2007 Seresin Sauvignon Blanc: Now we’re among the heavy-hitters of the Marlborough savvie lineup. And the ’07 doesn’t disappoint. Ripe, structured and immensely long, with tons of added complexity from the Semillon and barrel-fermet components. This one got a Huge Tick o’ Approval. Great stuff.
2006 Te Mata Elston Chardonnay: A return visit to the Elston for me, having tried it earlier this year. And it’s still as good as it ever was. Somehow both smooth and drinkable, yet at the same time still tightly poised, with tons of room for development in the bottle. Nice minerally characters and some well-judged oakiness led to back-to-back Big Ticks on the same tasting table.
2006 Muddy Water “Hares Breath†Pinot Noir: A light-bodied style with smooth cherry/berry flavours. Not the longest finsher, but a nice summery pinot.
2006 Te Mata Awatea Cabernet/Merlot: My first chjance to try this consistant four-and-five star rating wine, the younger sibling to Te Matas’ famous Coleraine Cab/Merlot. And frankly, I was somewhat underwhelmed. It’s drinking well, not overly tannicand medium-bodied. Not bad, but I was expecting a little more from it. Such is life.
Allan Scott Sparkling Rose NV: And off-dry sparkler, light and fruit-driven. Okay, but it didn’t really light my fire.
2005 Tatarini Brut: Another highly-rated wine that failed to fire for me. Nice minerally character, but it just seemed to die early. Still, there’s plenty of bang for twenty bucks New Zealand. But I’d probably go up a tier or two.
2006 Sacred Hill Riflemans’ Chardonnay: This should have one of those signs that used to be on Geocities websites… “Under construction, check back laterâ€. There’s a little hint of butterscotch on the back palate, but this needs time to really show its’ potential. Because there’s a LOT of potential here.
2006 Kim Crawford Unoaked Chardonnay: I used to drink this regularly, loving the uncomplicated, buttery style. Now it’s just getting too creamy, too early for me. Ease up on that malolactic fermentation a touch, guys. My notes read “sherbet and candy flossâ€, if you can believe that.
2006 Rockburn Pinot Noir: A recent trophy winner for “Pinot of the Year†at the Air New Zealand Wine Awards. I liked its spicy, smoky flavours now, but I think it’ll be seriously prodding buttock in a year or so. Excellent body underscored with plenty of oak. Might want to put this down, or pop a rack of lamb in the oven.
Man, this is turning into a thesis. And I still have 17 notes to transcribe! I would have got them done, but one of my regular(ly irritating) customers came into the store, made a beeline for the tasting table, prattled at length about his wine collection (Which is doubly annoying when you're working for a pitifully small wage just for the opportunity to expand your wine knowledge), made a few ill-iformed cristicisms about some stunningly good wines, made my brain explode by telling me he's writing a book on wine, (Great, that'll be a wine writer I detest even more than Robert Parker.) and left, as usual without buying a thing. While in the process making several of my customers leave the store thanks to him monopolising my time. My concentration for the rest of the shift was a little off thanks to him. Lord spare me from stuffed-shirt merchant bankers!
I'll get the rest put up soon.
Ninja Edit: "Lunsh"? Damn, forty or fifty wines and I even my writing gets slurred. *hic*
[This message has been edited by Skeeter (edited 11-27-2007).]
[This message has been edited by Skeeter (edited 11-27-2007).]
- wondersofwine - 11-27-2007
Loved your notes, Skeeter. Keep them coming. Sorry about the stuffed-shirt non-customer.
- VouvrayHead - 11-27-2007
Recently tried the Tatarini Rose (Tache) twice and was very impressed with it, more so the time with food. Outstanding value rivaling Albrecht's Rose Brut.
- TheEngineer - 11-28-2007
Great notes skeeter!!! That's a helluva note! I assume you were spitting?????? or else you were sitting down for the rest of the shift? Customers like that will only make you want to drink more......
- winoweenie - 11-28-2007
As Us-U-Al great notes Skeets! You critic sounds like he needs a small attitude adjustment. Tell him about Wines.Com. I'm sure he'll get ambushed here regurally. WW