Yesterday was spent in the two main subdistricts of Hawke’s Bay. The afternoon was spent in the famous Gimblett Gravels, but the morning was in the Bridge Pa Triangle Wine…
Bordeaux varieties and blends from New Zealand, with some benchmarks
The second part of the Classic Reds Symposium in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand, looked at Bordeaux varieties and blends. There were 12 wines, served blind, and as well as the…
New Zealand Syrah masterclass, with four imposters
These are my notes from the first tasting At the Hawke’s Bay Symposium on Classic Reds, held at Trinity Hill, Hawke’s Bay, 4 February 2017. This flight looked at New…
The New Zealand Wine Flight, over four wine regions
Yesterday we had a great experience, courtesy of New Zealand Wine Growers and Air New Zealand. It was a specially chartered flight over four wine regions, beginning in Wellington and…
What is greatness in a wine?
What is greatness in a wine? This was the subject of a session at the Pinot Noir symposium, where we were encouraged to discuss this question among ourselves. These are…
New Zealand Gewurztraminer
This masterclass was led by Nick Nobilo, who is the expert on this variety, and one with some experience: he’s now completed 56 vintages. He began making wine when his…
Pinot Noir 2017: the International Pinot Noir Tasting
This was the headline International Pinot Noir tasting at Pinot Noir 2017 in Wellington. In this session, rather than focus on New Zealand, it was time for the panellists to…
Pinot Palooza: a great consumer Pinot event in Wellington
Yesterday afternoon I popped into Pinot Palooza, a consumer Pinot Noir event that hails from Australia but which has been transplanted to New Zealand for the day before the Pinot…
New Zealand Riesling masterclass, with Andrew Hedley
This masterclass focused on the variety that’s the darling of the trade but which is sadly not loved so much by consumers: Riesling. It was led by Andrew Hedley of…