Intensely aromatic and characteristically smoky, with marked reduction, a style that Dog Point have mastered so brilliantly. That smokiness is notable yet not excessive even if it is highly stylised. Behind the struck match is vibrant grapefruit and pear,...
ABV 5.5% Available Year Round After a few years of home brewing in our garage, my brother and I decided we should open a brewery so that we could share our beer. In 2009 we started with a one barrel system and worked on a single recipe, over and over,...
It must be difficult being Cloudy Bay, because fame brings extra scrutiny and the question, ‘Does this brand offer value for money in the context of the wider region?’ In 2023, the Sauvignon Blanc silences its critics. Its vineyard may be much larger than...
he 2023 Limestone Hill Chardonnay is expressive and energetic in the glass, beginning with squeaky clean citrus and lemon aromas. Medium-bodied with a compact frame, the palate offers a fresh and vibrant facility that sways with flavors of yellow apple an...
The 2024 Otira Glacial Stones Sauvignon Blanc is just such a fantastic wine. I love it every year. Mineral tension, poise and elongated shape are the hallmarks of this wine. The wine has a smell of fresh sheets, crisp, crushed shells, white spice and ocea...
This new special cuvée, launched for this biodynamic winery's 20th anniversary, is a finessed and beautiful bottling from vines on the estate's Greywacke river stones. Wild fermented, with time on lees in old Austrian oak and minimal sulfur, it's bright, ...
The 2023 Otira Glacial Stones Sauvignon Blanc is texturally sophisticated, pure and energetic, with back-palate-weighted spices, chalky phenolics and white-scale fruits. This is a restrained, long and persistent wine, and once again, I do love it. This co...
A special cuvée launched in honor of this top biodynamic winery's 20-year anniversary, Clay is, as the name suggests, from vines with feet in the estate's Broadbridge clay soils. Native yeast, lees and old Austrian oak barrels all contribute to this prist...
Gently reductive upon opening (and still now, after 20 minutes in the glass), the 2021 Pinot Noir is savory and spicy with peppercorns, licorice, black cherry and a hint of tapenade. A pleasurable black tea bitterness lingers after the wine has gone. I li...