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- Skeeter - 10-15-2004
Well, long time, no post. Too many days a'working, too little time a'tasting. But here's the skinny from the N.Z Winemakers' Centers' tasting selections from the last two months.
2003 Spy Valley Riesling. Already gaining a kerosene-y nose even at this early stage.Lemon and lanolin characters on the palate, a little tart but "interesting" according to my notes. Will age well by the looks of it. Could be better in a few years at a guess.
2004 Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc: Typically Marlborrough nose of gooseberries, and another exaple of the great grwoing season in '04. Very long and well balanced, plenty of lime and gooseberry flavours. Very drinkable. (Dangerously so, in fact.)
2002 Odyssey Chardonnay: Originating in Gisborne, this is a Big Tick o' Approval winner. Butterscotchy, good length and mouthfeel, and a firm spine of acid. Could go a little longer, but drinking nicely.
2003 Bridge Pa Syrah: A "young vine" syrah from Kumeu, with typically stunning (For kiwi syrahs, anyway) deep ruby colour in the glasas. The wine itself was a little underwhelming, quite subtle without enough "Ooomph" to it. (You know what I mean, right?) Maybe as the vines mature a little it'll improve... I'll look for it in a few years.
2003 Odyssey Merlot: This offering made me happier, though. Nice spicy nose. (Even a little "beetroot" suggested by the tasting room dude.) Good body, plenty of weight and flavour. Firm, tingly oak, too. Good stuff.
2003 Weeping Sands Cabernet Merlot: Waiheke Island. Really restrained style which didn't do a thing for me. The winemaker apparently thinks it'll be excellent 2005+, but for me, it was just vaugely disappointing. Let's move on to the October range.
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2004 Jules Taylor Sauvignon Blanc: Big passionfruit nose, lime on the palate, crisp, full-bodied and exceptionally drinkable. Marlboroughs' '04's SB just keep improving. Thumbs up!
2004 Borthwick Riesling: Another nasal-assassin, huge and full of honeysuckle and jasmine. (Sounds like I walked into a cosmetics shop by mistake.) Very nice, and definitle one I could drink easily... but there's a big backbone of acid that could see this one age for some time. Ahh, the agony of choice. (Well, not really, I could just buy two bottles at a time... open one and hide the other away. If only my bank balance would let me.)
2004 Mud House Chardonnay: An easy-drinking chardonnay, given a little bit of oak-chip treatment. Citrus-y, a little malo influence. Perfectly Acceptable Chardonnay, and should be a nice summer wine.
200_? Mud House Pinot Noir: I THINK this was an '04. My notes said otherwise, possibly an '03. (Then again, my scrawl is difficult to dechiper, even for me.) But I shared a laugh with the tasting room guy about the phrase "...Spent a lengthy time in oak" blurb on the back label. (If it WAS an '04, lengthy means "About 3 months or so...", I figure.) There's a little sweetness lurking in the background, fresh ripe cherries on the palate. Gluggable. An excellent summer red, in my humble opinon.
2003 Borthwick Cabernet Merlot: The best was held for last this month. Hails from Martinborough. Exceptionally smooth, balanced and full-flavoured. I was going to offer more superlatives based on the bottle I intended to take home, only to discover I'd left my wallet back at work. Oh well, I'll have to head back tomorrow and pop it on the weekend. Cellaring be damned, my "drink-now" wine rack has been decimated this month. Just one solitary bottle left... I've been reduced drinking tequila sours this week instead. Lucky I LIKE tequila, huh? [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb2/smile.gif[/img]
- winoweenie - 10-15-2004
Well Skeets I thot you were upset because I made some uncouth remark. Glad to have the heads-up. It'll probably be a year before the good reds show up here. WW
- tandkvd - 10-15-2004
I liked the 2003 Spy Valley SB a lot. I will keep an eye out for the 2004. Our local World Market usualy carries the Spy Valley.
Thanks for the notes.
- californiagirl - 10-15-2004
The Spy Valley and both Odyssey's sound great. I'll definitely add those to my "keep an eye out" list.
Thanks
- Skeeter - 10-17-2004
A lot of the '04 SB's have been spectacular... with the occasional dud for good measure, of course. The top at the Bragato Awards (The kiwi win industrys' top honour) was Amor-Bedalls' "Limited Edition" SB... made from grapes harvested from a neglected, overgrown patch of vineyard. I tried it from a bottle opened two days before, and it was STILL incredible. Probably not enough to export it, though.)
Matua Valley (Where I work at weekends) picked up champion White for our '03 Botrytised Reisling. Not a lot left, and they'll be less if I can save up enough for a case... I LIKE sweet wines. [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb2/smile.gif[/img]
EDITed to add the Bragato Awards link: http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/CU0409/S00008.htm
[This message has been edited by Skeeter (edited 10-17-2004).]
- wondersofwine - 10-18-2004
Thanks for the notes. We now know some to keep in mind if they show up here. In a wine tasting I held for a church fund raiser, an inexpensive 2002 Charles Wiffen Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough, N.Z.) was preferred by 2 to 1 over a Sancerre S.B. and a California S.B.