Glengarry's Sunday ramblings of all things vinous, grain and glorious. The Sunday Sediment. Issue Seventy-Nine
Sarah, Welcome to the Seventy-Ninth edition of The Sunday Sediment, a collection of what’s new, what’s on and what’s happening instore at Glengarry and within the world of wine. Sip away.
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ROSE | IT'S IN THE PINK
The oh-so trendy rosé that seems, at the moment, to be imparting a breezy pink haze over everything, is not quite as shiny and new as you might think. In fact, the woman who drop-kicked champagne into the next century – the Widow Clicquot – made what is believed to be the first rosé champagne a lengthy 200 years ago. And she was born in 1777, so there you go. Not a new thing at all. However, the volume of rosé in general being consumed these days is somewhat off the charts, and we
New Zealand is experiencing its own surge in
in New Zealand are valiantly doing our bit to
excellence, with a veritable horde of new rosé
contribute to that record-breaking effort.
options coming onto the market as our winemakers have come to the realisation that this is a legitimate and highly popular category that requires serious commitment. The various regions, too, from Marlborough to Central Otago, Hawkes Bay to Waiheke Island, have channeled the distinctive characteristics of their terroir to put their own distinctive stamp on the pink drink. Magnums and 3-litre bottles are also increasingly sought after.
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Let’s consider what makes a great rosé.
These things are always subjective, and what
Basing your choices on colour alone is not all
works for you is what you should drink. For us,
that useful. For instance, the pale pink, almost
a good rosé will have an attractive aromatic
washed-out hues to be found in the French
nose: some pretty florals with a touch of herbal
Côtes de Provence rosés might suggest that
spice. On the palate, we would hope to find
they have little weight, but nothing could be
fresh fruit flavours, lively acidity and a full mid-
further from the truth. Having said that, beware
palate, with plenty of texture and interest.
the wash of cheaper Provençal offerings; it’s a
Ideally, the finish will tend towards dry and be
very large area, and they are a minefield of
very refreshing.
inconsistency. The overall quality has increased of late, in part thanks to a new wave
Read More..
of producers, led by the likes of La Mascaronne’s Tom Bove, and the best of the Côtes de Provence rosés are some of the world’s finest expressions, displaying delicate hues, stunning aromatics and sublime textures.
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CHATEAU PUECH HAUT
One of the stars of the Languedoc, Puech-Haut was established from scratch by the expansive Gérard Bru. Vineyards are organically managed, with old olive trees and truffles also in residence. As is art, in the form of more than a hundred hand-painted barrels – the Bib’Art Collection – exchanged with an growing group of artists for an equivalent quantity of wine. Puech-Haut has earned glowing accolades, including this from The Wine Advocate: ‘One of the top estates in the Languedoc, if not southern France.’ Read More..
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FOUR PILLARS GIN
Draped in accolades, Four Pillars is a small outfit in Victoria’s Yarra Valley dedicated to elevating the craft of distilling to new heights. Their strategy to achieve this involves state-ofthe-art German copper pot stills (named Wilma, Jude and Eileen), triple-filtered Yarra Valley water and a range of carefully selected local and exotic botanicals. Have they succeeded? Given the Double Gold, Gold and Master status their mainstay gins have picked up, it’s highly likely they have. Judge for yourself. Read More..
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TASTINGS AND EVENTS
BURNS NIGHT AT DIDAS WINE LOUNGE Any Scot worth their tartan will tell you, one must celebrate Burns Night. Dust off your best tartan, come along and join us at Didas for bagpipes, haggis and of course poetry. Read more....
WHEN: Friday 25th January WHERE: Didas Wine Lounge 54 Jervois Road, Ponsonby TIME: 7.00pm
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PRESTIGE CHAMPAGNE TASTING | THORNDON For a strictly controlled region such as Champagne it is surprising that there very few regulations regarding Prestige Champagne. However, it is clearly in the best interest of each House to make sure that these wines are the very best that they can produce. A typical Prestige Champagne is made entirely from
WHEN: Wednesday 30th January
Grand Cru grapes from the oldest vines. These
WHERE: Glengarry Thorndon,
wines are also aged a lot longer in the cellars
53 Hutt Rd, Thorndon
and there are numerous examples of late
TIME: 6.00pm
disgorged wines. There is also more thought put in to the bottle and the presentation to make it as luxurious and special as possible. We have a stellar line up and look forward to trying them with you. Read more....
ACHAVAL-FERRER - MENDOZA, ARGENTINA | WITH JULIO LASMARTRES For many serious wine loves, the top Malbec in the world is made by Achaval-Ferrer. Situated in the best hilltop vineyards of Mendoza, they are very much the first family of Argentinean wine. Their vines are pre-phylloxera with an average age of 107 years! Very high density planting with very low yields.The vineyard is
WHEN: Tuesday 12th February
irrigated the traditional way, with water
WHERE: Glengarry Devonport
channels. In the winery there are no additions
Devonport Cnr Clarence & Wynyard Devonport
or interventions, these are extremely pure. The
TIME: 7.00pm
style of Achaval-Ferrer wines is a balance of
BOOK NOW
ripeness and natural acidity for freshness. These are much more elegant and refined
WHEN: Wednesday 13th February
Malbecs than you might have tried previously,
WHERE: Glengarry Victoria Park
a bridge between the old world and the new
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world. We have their director Julio Lasmartres
Glengarry Victoria Park 118 Wellesley St West
here to present these incredible wines. We will
Auckland
be tasting Achaval-Ferrer Cabernet Sauvignon
TIME: 7.00pm
2016, Cabernet Franc 2016, Malbec 2017,
BOOK NOW
Quimera 2014. We will finish with their three WHEN: Thursday 14th February
legendary single vineyard Malbecs, where it
WHERE: Glengarry Thorndon
takes 3 vines to produce just one bottle. Finca Mirador 2013, Finca Bella Vista 2013 and
Glengarry Thorndon 53 Hutt Rd Thorndon
Finca Altamira 2014.
TIME: 6.00pm BOOK NOW
TAKAPUNA MALT CLUB | IRISH WHISKEY Ah, St Patrick's Day, a day that has become synonymous the world over for people both remembering and inventing their deep Irish heritage. Rather than wearing awful green hats and imbibing too much Guinness we have decided to take a deep dive into Irish Whiskey, exploring the wide range of flavours and styles
WHEN: Wednesday 13th February
that are made! The spiritual home of Whiskey,
WHERE: Glengarry Takapuna
it was the Irish monks returning from
Takapuna Cnr Hurstmere & Killarney Takapuna
pilgrimage that first produced what was then
TIME: 7.00pm
called Uisce Beatha or the ‘Water of Life’. Join us at our Takapuna store as we try our way through Blended, Single Malt, Single Pot Still and Peated expressions to see which you like most! Read more....
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WESTMERE WINE CLUB | SOHO Soho was founded in 2009 by Rachel Carter. In just a handful of years, Soho has earned various accolades as well as a reputation for creating top quality regionally-distinctive wines. Soho aims to take ‘both quality and fun in equal measures’. Whilst using relatively untraditional winemaking approaches, Soho uses family-owned vineyards from three of New Zealand’s best wine regions. Soho then WHEN: Wednesday 13th February
pairs award-winning winemakers with each of
WHERE: Glengarry Westmere,
the vineyards. On Waiheke Island they have
164 Garnet Rd, Westmere
James Rowan, in Marlborough they have Dave
TIME: 7.00pm
Clouson, and in Central Otago they have Grant Taylor. Read more....
GLENGARRY WINE ACADEMY | STAGE 1 - INTENSIVE Over the last 20+ years, the Glengarry Wine Academy has established itself as one of the leading wine educators in New Zealand. Initially created to train Glengarry staff, it is
WHEN: Saturday 16th February
also widely used by the hospitality industry and
WHERE: Glengarry Victoria Park
wine enthusiasts. Informative, but never
118 Wellesley Street, Auckland
intimidating, the Glengarry Wine Academy
TIME: 10.00am
courses are an opportunity for beginners as well as experienced aficionados to expand their knowledge and develop their interest. The only prerequisite is a passion for wine! Usually staged over four weeks, this is an intensive two-week version run on Saturdays. Very much a hands-on course that encourages participants to gain 'wine confidence' by breaking down the intimidation factor and providing a good grounding in the sensory evaluation and perception of wine.
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Read more....
WESTMERE WINE CLUB | ZEPHYR WITH BEN GLOVER Zephyr’s name comes from the characteristics of the prevailing winds which is part of the Marlborough region’s unique ripening reason. Owen and Wendy Glover, the pair behind Zephyr Wines, converted their farm in Dillons Point into a vineyard in 1985. They initially planted Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Riesling, and this has been
WHEN: Tuesday 5th March
mainly unchanged. In the early 1990s,
WHERE: Glengarry Westmere,
Gewurztraminer left a lasting impression on the
164 Garnet Rd, Westmere
Glovers. As a result, Zephyr is an aromatic
TIME: 7.00pm
specialist today. Zephyr Wines is Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand accredited. “Zephyr wines are created with the spirit, passion and values of the Glover family.” – Zephyr Wines Read more....
GLENGARRY WINE ACADEMY | STAGE 2 Domaine Jean Chartron was established in 1859 by Jean Edouard Dupard a cooper craftsman, it has been managed by five generations that have all contributed to make what is today. Burgundy seems to be tested by the weather more than any other French wine region and 2016 was no exception. In spite of
WHEN: Wednesday 6th March
the challenging spring and late late flowering,
WHERE: Glengarry Thorndon
the 2016's are turning out to be delightful,
53 Hutt Rd Thorndon, Wellington
expressive, mid-weght wines that should offer
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early appeal. These wines are always a delight
TIME: 6.00pm
to taste, so if you love Chardonnay, this is an opportunity to taste wines from some of the hallowed ground that produces some of the best Chardonnay in the world. We will taste.... Read more....
GLENGARRY WINE ACADEMY | STAGE 2 In stage 1 you learn about the varieties, stage 2 you explore their differing personalities around the world. In Stage 3 you take a major look a key wine making regions in the world. A four-week course | Wednesday 6th March, Wednesday 13th March, Wednesday 20th March, Wednesday 27th March 2019. The course fee and content covers all four weeks.
WHEN: Wednesday 6th March WHERE: Glengarry Victoria Park
Read more....
118 Wellesley Street, Auckland TIME: 7.00pm
GLENGARRY WINE ACADEMY | STAGE 3 For only the third time, a third stage of our Wine Academy is being offered. This course has been written recently and follows on from stage 1 and 2. In stage 1 you learn about the varieties; stage 2 you explore their differing personalities around the world. Now in stage 3 you take a major look at key wine making
WHEN: Wednesday 8th May
regions in the world. This course dives under
WHERE: Glengarry Victoria Park
the cover, you learn all about the great wines
118 Wellesley Street, Auckland
of Bordeaux, Burgundy and many more.
TIME: 7.00pm
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A four-week course | Wednesday 2 May, Wednesday 9 May, Wednesday 16 May, Wednesday 23 May 2018. The course fee and content covers all four weeks. This particular Wine Academy is a little different as it is the first time this stage is being presented and as such will also be used to train future presenters for this course. With that in mind it will be presented by our General Manager Liz Wheadon, who knows this subject inside out and has written this new stage. So not only will you receive all the training you can expect at a Wine Academy, you’ll have four nights of stories, great wine and a fair amount of good humour from Liz. Read more....
That's it for this week's Sunday Sediment. Issue Eighty will be winging its way to your inbox next Sunday. Cheers,
Jak Jakicevich