THE wine harvest is now under way in New Zealand. I missed it by a month. Everywhere the vine rows were swathed in netting to protect from predatory birdlife. Underneath the fruit was swelling in some of the best grape-growing conditions on earth.
In my whistlestop road trip I took in over a dozen wineries, not one of them a dud, in six regions across North and South Islands – Waiheke Island, Hawkes Bay, Martinborough, Marlborough, Nelson and Waipara Valley.
Many of the wines I tasted are not available over here or the current vintages aren’t; some I can’t find local stockists for, so apologies to my new friends at Cable Bay, Mudbrick and Stonyridge on idyllic Waiheke in Auckland Bay.
The beauties of New Zealand on a wine tour Below are my Kiwi wineries (with stockists) to look out for:
Man O’War
My Waiheke representative grows its grapes in 76 separate blocks around a glorious bay where Captain Cook once landed (the local kauri trees making ideal masts for Royal Navy warships, hence the winery name). Some of the aromatic whites are harvested on an island in the bay, but not their Man O’War Valhalla Chardonnnay 2011 (Oddbins, £26), a rich melange of white stone fruits and passion fruit with high acidity, oak fermentation giving it a decided toastiness. The reds are equally impressive. Oddbins also stock their Man O’War Ironclad 2010 (£29), a hugely fruity/minerally blend of Bordeaux blends from 45 different plots (winemaker Duncan McTavish is beyond meticulous). More immediately approachable is another Claret homage, Man O’War Cabernet Merlot 2011 (Harvey Nichols, £19.50). Great Western Wines of Bath stock a good range to buy online.
Some people such as the woman on the bottom left will go to extraordinary lengths to get a Man O'War wineCraggy Range
I was lucky enough to stay in a cottage in the grounds of this expensively created showpiece winery in the Hawkes Bay region with French-influenced fine dining in situ. Much of the grape-growing and winemaking goes on elsewhere with spectacular results. Harvey Nichols and Waitrose stock several benchmark bottles. Try two contrasting reds – Craggy Range Te Kahu 2013 (HN £22.50, it’s also on special offer for £17.99m at Majestic) and Craggy Range Te Muna Road Pinot Noir (Waitrose, £22.99). The first is named after a mist that envelopes the Gimblett Gravels vineyards (Te Kahu means ‘cloak’ in Maori) and is a sweetly fruited Bordeaux red blend, immediately attractive but with the legs to develop complexity. The Te Muna comes from further south in Pinot Noir-rich Martinborough. It’s all earth and rose petals on the nose, then savoury and silky in the mouth. Quite lovely and the Syrah from the same site is nearly as good.
Craggy Range and friends
Wines from CraggyAta Rangi
New Zealand’s greatest Pinot Noir producer is based in deceptively rustic premises in Martinborough. The entry level Ata Rangi Crimson Pinot Noir 2014 (HN, £25) is a charming introduction but pales beside the dusky, plummy, bittersweet intensity of the prime Pinot. Ata Rangi Pinot Noir 2013 costs £50 a bottle (£45 for a mixed six) at Majestic and is worth every penny. Majesti also stock the impressive Ata Rangi Craighall Chardonnay 2012 (£35, £31.50 mixed six), figgy, honeyed and subtly oaked.
Neudorf
But if you are seeking true world class New Zealand Chardonnay, look no further than this pioneering Nelson winery, run by Tim and Judy Finn since the Seventies. Alas, the flagship Moutere Chardonnay rapidly sells out swiftly. For their equally subtle way with a white, that across in Marlborough can be rather strident, check out their juicy, mineral-rich Neudorf Sauvignon Blanc 2013 (Harvey Nichols, £17.50).
Judy Finn threatens to punch people who don't appreciate a good wine - not really, she's just showing her enthusiasm for flavourTinpot Hut
Renowned consultant Fiona Turner’s own wines are among the most interesting in Marlborough, with much of the fruit sourced from vineyards in the high altitude Awatere Valley. Reserve Wines in West Didsbury generally stock some of her restrained creations. Sauvignon and Pinot Noir are superb, while the Tinpot Hut McKee Vineyard Gruner Veltliner is better than many Austrian examples of their indigenous varietal. Hanging Ditch stock this firm, fruity white with characteristic white pepper notes at £17.
Fiona Turner of Tinpot HutSeresin
Amazing wines from New Zealand’s leading name inorganic and biodynamic wines. Harvey Nichols sell their distinctive Leah Pinot Noir at £21.50, but I’d recommend buying a mixed case from Kiwi specialists New Zealand Wine Cellar.
Framingham
Funky neighbour of Seresin’s, specialising in Rieslings, from dry to Trockenbeerenauslese sweetness and run by a Gateshead-born former chemist with a love of rock and roll. Elbow lyrics are engraved in flagstones outside the winery, alongside words by Iggy Pop and The Stranglers. Oddbins stock their Ribbonwood sub-range and Carrington’s of Chorlton their smokey, Burgundy-style Pinot Noir at £17.99.
Framingham and ElbowPegasus Bay
This Waipara winery created by a neuro-surgeon boasts New Zealand’s top winery restaurant to match its excellent Bordeaux-syle reds and aromatic whites, among them again Riesling, the country’s under-rated white. Try Pegasus Bay Riesling (Waitrose, £17.99 on special offer at £12.44), better still Pegasus Bay Bel Canto Dry Riesling 2014 (Hanging Ditch, £22.50), powerfully floral and mineral – a stayer.
Meanwhile, elsewhere on planet...
Rioja tasting at Evuna
The UK accounted for one third of wine sales from Spain’s Rioja region last year, as sales rose 10 per cent. In Manchester, Evuna certainly played its part at both its outlets – on Deansgate and in the Northern Quarter.
They did so by sourcing interesting family producers rather than relying on brands, many of which at entry level can be rather dreary or in pursuit of immediate fruitiness straying away from the vanilla and creamy template from oak ageing.
You can’t accuse Bodegas SANTALBA from the heart of the Rioja Alta of being dreary. From their oak fermented and aged 100 per cent Abando Rioja Blanco (£13), all peaches, lime and lush texture to their silky reds they offer tremendous character and value. Their aim is to maintain Riojan winemaking traditions while crafting natural wines in a sustainable manner.
The flagship for this approach is their Santalba Ecologica (£13) where the level of antioxidants through natural and ecological meanS is the highest in the world. So good for you but also delicious, cherryish with a squeeze of pepper in one smooth package.
Two supermarket wines of the month
Chateau Senejac Cru Bourgeois 2012 (Co-operative down £2 to £14.99 until April 5)
A rare example of affordable, quality claret, it ticks all the boxes – cedary on the nose, black cherry, blackcurrant and slightly austere tobacco notes on the palate and some tannic substance.
Malbec 22, Mendoza, Bodega Toneles 2012 (Lidl, £5.99)
As usual, the quarterly tranche of one-off wines from Lidl has flown off the shelves, so act swiftly to pick up this delectable Argentine steak red, darkly fruity and spicy with hints of chocolate. Their standard Malbec is not in the same league.
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