All wines featured are available at BITEwine.co.nz for a limited time.
Vidal Reserve Chardonnay 2014
I love the scent of roasted nectarine, cinnamon, caramel and grapefruit, but I love the way it tastes more. Hugh Crighton and his team in Hastings have produced a wine full of juicy, succulent stonefruit, creamy almond meal notes and spicy citrus flavours. An injection of crisp acidity creates a deliciously light and beautifully balanced chardonnay.
Price: $19
Quest Farm Alpino Vin Gris 2014
Vin gris is what you get when you make red grapes into wine the same way you would a white wine. This example made by Mark (Mac) Mason from pinot noir grown on the foothills of Mt Pisa is superb. Pinot bunches are pressed on a "Champagne" press cycle and only the free-run juice is fermented. A splash of pinot gris is blended in to flesh out the finish. The result is a ballet-shoe pink wine bursting with rose apple, anise and nashi notes.
Price: $23
Greywacke Marlborough Pinot Noir 2012
Who says pinot has to be a fruit-fest all the time? Not me. A couple of years in the bottle has given this wine a layer of earthy, mushroomy savouriness that is instantly seductive. Soy, smoke and dried herbs add complexity to its base of red cherry and baked berries. Kevin Judd is the man behind this bottle of liquid genius.
Price: $48
