Sparkling Taste

SUMMER 2010

Sparkling New Zealand

grill ’s tasting

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wine

Excellent, yes. The real thing, no Sam Kim on New Zealand méthode traditionelle

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re we there yet? Are New Zealand méthode traditionelles as good as Champagnes? As we celebrate success of our world-class sauvignon blanc, pinot noir and Bordeaux-style reds, it is perhaps naïve to think that

Two fine expressions of New Zealand méthode traditionelle Quartz Reef Méthode Traditionelle NV Source: Bendigo, Central Otago Varieties: pinot noir; chardonnay Winemaker Rudi Bauer notes: focused, fresh and crisp with a beautiful balance and length. Colour: Pale yellow. Bouquet: Royal gala apple with a hint of lime, brioche. Palate: Flirtatious, moreish, enhanced by an invigorating cool, creamy acidity No 1 Family Estate No 1 Rosé 2008 Source: Marlborough Varieties: pinot noir Winemaker Daniel Le Brun notes: this exceptional rosé is made from 100% pinot noir. Delicate salmon-pink with a mass of tiny bubbles, the wine offers a seamless balance of subtle cherry and almond hints combined with a dry acidity. Dry, yet fresh and elegant, this wine leaves a lasting impression of opulence and splendour.

our bubblies are as good as the ‘real thing’. There an increasing number of excellent méthode traditionelles made in New Zealand. We use the same grape varieties (not so much pinot meunier though) and same fermentation and maturation techniques, yet you can always pick a Champagne from New Zealand examples.

In fact, no other sparkling wines can match the style and quality of Champagne, even the ones made by famous Champagne houses in California and the Yarra Valley.

However, it is most exciting to see the progress of New Zealand bubblies over the past couple of decades. In the early days, wines showed either too many fruit characters or oxidised notes without the all-important elegance.

Now we are achieving better balance, fineness and length. Still, there are many méthode traditionelles showing overt fruitiness, excessive acidity and/or dullness. If a producer is going to the trouble of fermenting the wine in bottle and ageing on lees then the wine should display some yeast autolysis notes, a flowing mouthfeel backed by well integrated crisp acidity, leading to a fine, lingering finish. Yes, brands are critical in the sparkling wine category, as best demonstrated by the Grande Marques Champagnes. But these celebrated Champagnes do

deliver on quality as well.

There are indeed some lovely examples to grace your wine lists. From the exquisite Blanc de Blancs, such as Cuvée No. 1 NV (RRP$35) and Deutz Blanc de Blancs NV ($43), to beautifully harmonised and complex Nautilus Marlborough Cuvée NV ($40) and Cloudy Bay Pelorus NV ($35), to the more robust and weighty style of Hunter’s Miru Miru NV ($27), Cloudy Bay Pelorus Vintage 2005 ($53) and Quartz Reef 2006 ($40).

And poor old rosé. I am guilty, along with most consumers, of not ordering this scintillating drink often enough, even though I love it whenever I try a good one. One of my favourites is No. 1 Rosé NV ($44), which exhibits a beautiful pale salmon colour with strawberry and floral aromas followed by a seamless palate.

Our méthode traditionelles will never be Champagne. We have a different climate and vastly different soils – we don’t have Champagne’s thick layer of 100 million-year-old chalk sub-soil. But I look forward to the day when our wines are spoken about with the same reverence and having the demand similar to that of Champagne. We’ll get there with grapes from better sites, older blending materials, better blending knowledge and the consumer backing.

SAM KIM IS AN INDEPENDENT WINE REVIEWER, SENIOR WINE JUDGE, AUTHOR OF THE WINE ORBIT BLOG AND GRILL MAGAZINE’S LEAD WINE COMMENTATOR. For informative wine comment go to http://wineorbit.co.nz

WINE taste

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Sparkling savvies get savvy W

hen Mount Riley released Savée a few years ago, it was quite an innovative piece of winemaking and marketing – a sparkling sauvignon blanc from the Marlborough heartland of Kiwi savvies.

While that wine has always been an interesting, refreshingly crisp and lively cafe sipper, the style has never really caught on with other wine producers, or with a wider public, until the oversupply of sauvignon blanc that washed over the industry following the obese vintage of 2009.

Now there are wine producers inventing sparkling sauvignon blanc as a way to move excess litres of sauvignon blanc wine – they shove some bubbles in and give us another option approach. Not that this is a bad thing, and the high acid, crisp and feisty characteristics of standard Marlborough sauvignon blanc lend themselves well to the sparkling wine model. Especially for the easy drinking, light and fruity style of café drinking bubbles that works so well by the glass.

So we ventured into the sparkling savvie pool for a quick and critical round-up of what precisely is out there behind this new wave of fizzy wine, and what we found was, as follows: MOUNT RILEY SAVÉE NV Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough Méthode Traditionelle Compound cork 5 Fragrant and fruity with a sweet, passionfruit character on the nose.

Bubbly, fresh and easy with pleasant fruit flavours, no hint of yeast, and a clean finish that has some pleasantly plump pastry notes. Tasty and tidy.

LINDAUER SAUVIGNON BLANC NV Sauvignon Blanc Plastic 4 Zesty nose has a hint of tomato leaf and asparagus, but the palate is all fruit and brash, lively bubbles. Clean and simple with a crisp manner. Good thirst quencher with a hint of citrus at the end.

SILENI CELLAR SELECTION SPARKLING SAUVIGNON BLANC NV Sauvignon Blanc Hawkes Bay Plastic 5 Light in colour with an aromatic, hay and herbs nose that is very appealing.

Flavoursome and fizzy, with a crisp edge and nice dry finish. Just a dash of minerality adds to its clean, bright character.

TOI TOI MARLBOROUGH SPARKLING SAUVIGNON BLANC NV Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough Plastic 4 Pale with hearty bubbles.

Smells aromatically stuffed with citrus and herbs in classic Marlborough fashion.

Fresh, very lively mouthful with a tingly acidity and clean, fresh finish.

Mouthwateringly zingy, clean and bright with sweet fruit by the metre. www.toitoiwines.co.nz SAINT CLAIR VICAR’S CHOICE MARLBOROUGH SAUVIGNON BLANC BUBBLES 2010 Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough Plastic 6

Light colour with boisterous bubbles.

Aromatic to the point of pungency, with tropical fruits, summer herbs and a hint of holiday T-shirt. Excellent flavour intensity that is packed with passionfruit character and a brash, loud bubble. Finish is full of flavour, long, intense and bristling. Begs for a beach and a sack of pipis.

KIM CRAWFORD FIRST PICK SPARKLING SAUVIGNON BLANC NV Sauvignon Blanc Cork 6 Light colour with a steady bead. Aromatic nose suggests tropics and gooseberries in its fruity fastness. Sweet fruit impact with nicely gentle fizz, even and sustained. Minerality in the mid palate pushes through to the finish. Nicely balanced, well flavoured, smartly made wine that has all the advantages of sparkling style with sauvignon blanc panache.

SHOOTING STAR NV Sauvignon Blanc Méthode Traditionelle Cork 7 Light gold with a steady, even bead. Creamy guava and crème anglais nose like some exotic summer pudding. Taste hits with a thwack of wonderful tropical fruit that is arrestingly delicious. Palate has a touch of silk and brilliance from the sparkle, while the flavours go round and over and through the palate to linger on in a delicious haze of summer. Unlike any sparkling before it, this is a completely new wine style, buxom and ravishing.

Drinkers will either love it to death, or hate its flamboyant manner. I love it. www.grill.co.nz

SPECIALIST WINEGROWERS

COMPANY PROFILE

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The Specialist Winegrowers of New Zealand Understanding excellence – Recognising quality The dedication of time, care and life-long passion to their craft is the distinguishing characteristic of ‘The Specialist Winegrowers of New Zealand’.

They are a select group of ultra premium artisan winemakers who have each chosen to specialise in single wine varietals or styles. Between them the group produces Gewurztraminer, Cabernet Blends, Methode Traditionelle, Syrah, Pinot Noir & Sauvignon Blanc.

Cabernet Blends

Syrah

Gewurtztraminer

Mike Spratt, co-founder of Destiny Bay, Waiheke Island.

Chris Canning, chief winemaker at The Hay Paddock, Waiheke Island.

Nick Nobilo, winemaker at Vinoptima, Gisborne.

Methode Traditionelle

Sauvignon Blanc

Pinot Noir

Daniel Le Brun, champagne-maker

Sarah Inkersell, winemaker at

Steve Farquharson, co-owner of

at No1 Family Estate, Marlborough. Fairbourne Estate, Marlborough.

Wooing Tree Vineyard, Central Otago.

You can contact The Specialist Winegrowers of New Zealand at 021 527 380 (Brett Taylor) or info@tswnz.com These sought-after wines are highly regarded and will add interest and standing to the most discerning restaurant’s wine list.