Discover New Zealand

Lets dive into one of the worlds most unique regions - New Zealand

The country's two islands cover a vast area from north to south. The maritime climate is influenced by the strong prevailing winds off the Pacific Ocean and the striking mountainous terrain. These factors give the islands a wide range of growing conditions; broadly speaking, the regions of the North Island tend to be warmer than the cooler South Island.  Much of this countries prestige directly correlates with the region of Marlborough which put New Zealand on the international wine stage with its exquisite Sauvignon Blanc in the 1980’s.



What to look for when buying New Zealand wine

There are three important things to look for when buying New Zealand wine:

Grape variety

Region

Producer

Each plays its role on the style, quality and taste of the final wine.

Sauvignon Blanc -New Zealand has taken this white grape variety and put its own brilliantly zesty stamp on it, creating a wine style that the rest of the world now attempts to copy. The majority tend to be unoaked, combining delicious tropical fruit flavors with lively, fresh-tasting acidity and a directness that makes them especially satisfying.

Chardonnay is also New Zealand’s most widely grown variety, thriving in all of the major wine-growing regions.  Hawke’s Bay, Gisborne and Marlborough are particularly well known for their Chardonnay, although each region produces its own distinct style, ranging from Gisborne's softer Chardonnay through to the more concentrated wine from Hawke's Bay.

 New Zealand Pinot Noir also has a strong international reputation and is the country’s second-most exported wine after Sauvignon Blanc. Pinot Noir relishes in cool temperatures and low rainfall, so performs particularly well in the Martinborough and Central Otago regions.

Here are a few of our recommendations for New Zealand wine.


Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2018
Bottle Price: $46.25
This Sauvignon Blanc is fresh and vibrant on the nose, with aromatics of bright citrus, kaffir lime, orchard blossom and passion furit. The palate is concentrated and mouthwatering, with juicy stone fruit and subtle tropical characters underpinned by a fine minerality and meyer lemon acidity.




Dog Point Vineyard Marlborough Pinot Noir 2016
Bottle Price: $46.00
Dog Point’s Pinot Noir is a head-turner because of the immense reputation they have as a Sauvignon Blanc producer. Their Pinot is not just good – it’s one of the very best in New Zealand, and truly world class. The intensive vineyard work they carry out to produce distinctive Sauvignon Blanc results in fantastically complex Pinot fruit when carried out in clay hillsides of Marlborough. 



Greywacke Pinot Gris 2016
Bottle Price: $31.00

Greywacke is the Marlborough label of Kevin Judd, and the fulfilment of a long held dream. The name Greywacke was adopted by Kevin and his wife Kimberley for their first Marlborough vineyard located in Rapaura, named in recognition of the high prevalence of rounded greywacke river stones in the soils of the vineyard. Kevin registered the name back in 1993 with the vague notion that he might one day want to use it on a wine label of his own.