New Zealand Annual Tasting 2011

Jean Smullen

New Zealand winegrowers returned to Dublin on Monday January 17th for the annual tasting in the Radisson Hotel, Golden Lane which is run every year by the indomitable Jean Smullen.
New Zealand is regarded by many as the most exciting wine brand in the trade today, with exports to Ireland of New Zealand wines up by 12% in 2010, not bad considering the economic climate.
Although there are a vast  array of styles available, Syrah is being noted as the one to watch but their signature grape variety is still Sauvignon Blanc.
All the 2010 whites were on show and the stars of the show for me were...

Greywacke Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough 2010

Made by Kevin Judd who is formerly chef winemaker at Cloudy Bay, Greywacke is the name of the silver stones in the soil of the vineyard.This is only his second vintage and it is everything one would expect to find in a classy Sauvignon with lovely citrus fruit,wonderful balance and a lovely lingering finish. The wine retails around €20  and is showing better, to my mind then the iconic Cloudy Bay which sells at around €28 .. Seek it out!

Saint Clair Marlborough Riesling 2008

A wine that won a Gold Star Award in the Irish wine show last year, it shows that lovely distinct  Riesling character of ripe lime and grapefruit with subtle hints of honeysuckle yet  most refreshing and a very easy drinking style. This wine is an ideal match for spicy food, pork with apple sauce and any fish dish and retails around €16.

Yealands Estate Pinot Gris Marlborough 2009

This is a young winery practising sustainable wine production and is one of the few Carbon neutral winery's. The Pinot Gris is a rich style with lovely pear fruit and great minerality coming through on the palate. Well worth seeking out at €16.99

Enjoy,
Julie.

JUS DE VINE, PORTMARNOCK




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Seifried Pinot Gris '07

Wines that don’t resemble Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand was our topic for week 5 on 106.8fm.

Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand is a little like Rioja from Spain. People rely on these wines and are sometimes reluctant to be adventurous with anything else from these countries.

New Zealand produces some of the most affordable, diverse and interesting whites the World over. As they are a relatively new wine producing country, they work hard at producing the best and know that the consumer is taking a risk when purchasing, so they’re keen to impress.

The wine choice for my 2 minute slot was Seifried, Pinot Gris from the Nelson region on the South Island. I am a serious fan of this Kiwi white.

I took it in to sell in the shop about 5 years ago. It was when New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs were massively popular on the Irish market but we saw very little else that they produced. I totally fell in love with this wine and the successful Pipe dream story that went with it.

The man behind the wine is Herman Seifried, an Austrian man who moved to New Zealand in response to an apple winemaking job. He met and fell in love with Agnes- a local school teacher, whose family originated from Donegal, The Mc McCarthy’s.

They married in 1971 with a dream to be the 1^st people to plant on the South Island.

Funding proved to be very difficult as all the Banks thought their idea was crazy, eventually the local church lent them enough money to buy some land and plant vines. Herman and Agnes became the pioneers of the South Island and their wines exude their passion and innovation.

This pours a light apple juice/ pineapple juice colour with a slightly pink hue.

The nose displays ripe tropical fruit. Pineapple, dried mango, peach and pink grapefruit. If the wine remains in the glass for long enough, you can pick up aromas of aniseed and fresh basil.

The palate is quite different to the nose, Flavours of grapefruit, pineapple and some citrus along with candied fruit finishing in this lovely balanced acidity.

This is a wine for the warm weather. Ideal with meaty fish- monkfish or lemon sole, fresh garden salads or even just sausages on the barbeque with tomato relish.

If the weather forgets to improve, crank the heating up, dig out those summer shorts, pull the blinds and get playing Ella Fitzgerald. I’ve applied this technique for the last 3 years and although our ESB bill has been surprisingly high for July it’s managed to keep me relatively sane for the wet summer months. Try it... Not a bad alternative!.

O&O

Ruth