Winemaker sure $200 white will hit the spot

By SIMON HENDERY

Despite its $200-a-bottle price tag, winemaker Tim Turvey expects a flood of orders and an empty cellar when he releases a new top-of-the-range chardonnay next month.

The owner of Hawkes Bay's Clearview Estate believes wine enthusiasts will snap up the entire release of 1.5-litre magnums of his The Endeavour label, believed to be the country's most expensive locally produced white.

Mr Turvey said releasing a wine at that price - the equivalent of $100 for a standard 750ml bottle - was partly about showing Hawkes Bay's ability to produce great chardonnays.

"It's time we put some extra effort in. I think it's the way of the future. People are prepared to pay for quality. As long as you market it and the product's good, there's no problem."

He said Clearview Estate had built a strong reputation for its single-vineyard wines over 14 years and its reserve-label chardonnays regularly won five-star ratings and gold medals at wine shows.

He had been planning a wine of The Endeavour's quality for some time, and the inaugural 2002 vintage had been made possible by a "fantastic year" with ideal weather that had produced suitable grapes.

The label would be produced only in years where quality was high enough, he said.

Mr Turvey would not say how many magnums of the first vintage had been produced but he expected they would be snapped up by customers on Clearview Estate's mailing list.

He had also had strong interest from overseas and "a few cases" would be shipped to the US.

While several New Zealand red wines hit the shelves with $100-plus price tags, The Endeavour is believed to be the first white to retail at that level.

Australian winemaker Penfolds' top-of-the-line Yattarna chardonnay sells in New Zealand for about $120 a bottle. Penfolds likes to call Yattarna "white Grange" - referring to its red that sells for about $400 a bottle.

"We obviously don't have the same kudos as Penfolds but we're striving for the same quality level," Mr Turvey said.