2008 Man O' War Wines



I tasted these a couple of days ago with viticulturist Rachael Hughes when she was passing through town. The wines are very, very modern and quite commercially styled but extremely well executed. I think what I am trying to say is that while they are not my sort of wines they are very good indeed.

Other than the Pinot Gris which is grown on Pounui Island, just south of Waiheke all the wines are grown on the 150 acre Man O' War Estate on Waiheke.

2008 'Pounui Island' Pinot Gris
This is a really bright, fresh Gris with peach, apricot, pear and quice fruit - dry but with a nice ripe fruit sweetness. Quite rich but it has balance and finesse. Very creamy - with almond meal like texture and white pepper and cinnamon spice. The wine also has a small portion of Viognier in the blend which may account for the stone fruit component. VG

2008 Chardonnay
Very bright peach fruit with a nice yeasty/bready autolysis component and sweet Lemon and orange marmalade. VG

2008 'Valhalla' Chardonnay
Toasted coconut with grilled pineapple, banana and vanilla - this wine is HUGE!!! It has lemony acidity underneath all that fat and oak. Super tropical. I have to admit that on my second tasting of the wine it was so oaky it made me want to vom - I think it suffering from a bit of bottle shock and may balance out in the future. If you see it around the 07 is still big but more refined and balanced. G

2008 Syrah
Talk about Bacon Explosion! Ultra smokey bacon and meat with very bright red cherry fruit and nice powdery tannins and a hint of floral action. Very much in a style I don't like but extremely well executed. E

2008 Merlot Cabernet Franc
Very ripe plum and blackcurrant with a slight hint of green tobacco. Taut tannins and a long finish with a hit of chocolate and espresso. VG

I have previously reviewed their 08 Sauvignon Blanc here.

End of May tasting notes...

I don't blog often enough but sometimes I taste some wine like it but don't quite know the best way to blog it. So I just thought I'd write up my notes in a end of week report like this.

2008 Te Whare Ra Riesling D
Marlborough


D if you hadn't worked it out stands for dry - they also release a M (medium) and S (sweet). It is a linear, pure, typically Marlborough Riesling with stoney minerality and lime, pineapple and soft apricot fruit with a subtle floral finish. VG

Alluviale Blanc and Rouge

Alluviale Blanc 08
Dartmoor Valley, Hawkes Bay
This is an interesting white from producers committed to making wines in a very Bordeaux driven style. It is both very fruity and funky with bright tropical pineapple and passionfruit and a typically savvie sweaty funk. Great acid and can't wait to see the development of this wine over the next few vintages. G

Alluviale Rouge 07
Gimblett Gravels, Hawkes Bay
This wine is just a baby (but still drinks remarkably well) with dark plum and boysenberry fruit and roasted red earth, a hint of florals and a slight bitter edge which detracted from the wine to begin with but integrated itself into the whole by day two. Very serious Merlot. E

Valli 07 Gibbston and Bannockburn Pinot Noirs



Was tasting these wines for a piece I wrote for The Second Glass on regional characteristics of NZ Pinot. Very interesting to see the differences between sub-regions with these wines but also the characteristics they share due to Grant Taylor's winemaking. I think these are their lightness, depth and the purity of fruit. They are not cheap ($55 approx) but do pick them up as they are some of the most interesting wines out of Central.

Valli Gibbston Pinot Noir 07
Gibbston, Central Otago
Bright black cherry fruit with intensely meaty undertone - has a note I often describe as flat but it seems to work very well in the wine. Light in weight and colour but doesn't lack anything - if anything the lightness seems to work in its favour as the wine comes across as incredibly sexy. Supple tannins and great acid. E

Valli Bannockburn Pinot Noir 07
Bannockburn, Central Otago
Black cherry with thyme and spice. Very Bannockburn but much lighter and more refined than most other producers in the area maybe even more so than Felton Road. Beautifully pure fruit with wonderful aromatic florals. Volnay-esque. Despite its lack of weight it has intensity and enthusiasm - very exciting. E

Just a little bit of Sunday Morning Cake Porn...

Coffee Cake - the amalgamation of two of the best things in the world.

Your message here...
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05 Zepelin Reds
Havelock Hills, Hawkes Bay

Too often I taste wines with the personality and disposition of a quarterback - wines that try and make up a lack of something in sheer brawn. These are something different - think of them as balets: elegant, poised, refined but an untold power - masculine in the very best sense of the word.

Syrah $40


One of the finest HB Syrahs I have tried - particularly under the $40 mark - it had a wild, balsamic vinegar note on the nose, bright plum fruit spice and earth. The most remarkable thing about these wines is the purity of acid - balancing and bringing together fruit and savoury elements as well as giving the wine ageability - At four years old the wine seems like a baby, a coiled spring. Truly stunning.
E

Cabernet Merlot $20


I could not believe this was a twenty buck wine - it could easily pass for something twice the price. Bright blackcurrant and black plum fruit with a hint of green capiscum edge, clean acid and structual tannins beginning to soften with a bit of bottle age. Stunning. E - Value


Merlot Cabernet Franc $35


And this is the big brother... more in the plum end of the fruit spectrum but a bit of cassis showing. While the wine has beautiful purity of fruit it is only a minor component of the wine - ferrous red earth, tobacco leaf, a hint of spice and a green cab franc edge play roles as do the massive drying tannins. Its a keeper and a testament to Merlot as a grape as well as the site. E

These are exciting wines - some of the best out of the Hawkes Bay in a long time.

2008 SubLime Pinot Noir and Gris

SubLime are a new Waitaki Valley producer - they are owned by Fernella Barry and her husband Steve Harrop (who works for Craggy Range as CEO of Wild Rock but who used to manage the Waitaki Valley Estates. They are exceptionally good value - rocking in at around $30 - $35 mark rather than the $50ish being charged for the likes of Ostler, Valli and I would guess CR when they are released later this year. Stylistically both wines are lean, focused and bursting with acidity but surprisingly drinkable - they both have a refreshing lightness.

SubLime Pinot Gris 2008
Pure and linear on the nose - bone dry with searing acid. Very subtle and elegant with pear, apricot and pear fruit and lime and slate minerality. E

SubLime Pinot Noir 2008
Very restrained fruit - taut and savoury with powdery tannins and soft florals. Game, porcini mushroom and cherry. E

In the future they will also be producing a Chardonnay and traditionally made sparkling wine.