Te Ata Po Malbec Reserve 2008

According to this article, Sonia Carpenter and David Craw are local winemakers (Motts Landing Vineyard) who made this particular wine while wintering in New Zealand. Here’s what Iron Chef’s had to say about it.

— Iron Chef’s Review —

A local -ish wine that I just had to try.

Nose- Gamey like duck or partridge. Blueberry compote, cedar and butterscotch and vanilla aromas. Complex.

Taste- Great acidy for a red- a food wine. Mineral quality that I have come to expect from NZ wines. Medium tannins. Very drying finish. Some medicinal and herbal notes. Good dark blueberry fruit.

Overall Sonia Carpenter and David Craw of local winery, Motts Landing have produced an exciting wine that is very complex and multi-layered. I will be a regular buyer of this wine. Just Super.

Price: $19.99
Value 5/5
Score: 92
Price: New Zealand- Gisborne
Alcohol: 13.5%
UPC: 400008150194

Oyster Bay Marlborough Pinot Noir 2007

We liked the Oyster Bay Chardonnay, but it seems the Pinot doesn't quite match it. Anyone had the Sauv Blanc?

--- Iron Chef's Review---

Region: New Zealand, Marlborough
Nose: Strawberries and Raspberries- fresh fruit smell. Some herbal notes mixed with vanilla. Whiff of dry stones. Very fragrant.
Taste: More Raspberries or cranberry than strawberries with some pepper. Nice crisp grape-skin tartness. Tastes of pitted fruits. Some oak on the finish but very light. Elegant and supple.
Overall a very solid wine that is more refined and elegant than bombastic and loud. Enjoyed it but thought the price was pushing the boundaries. Also LCBO at 26% cheaper.

Price: $26.99
Value: 2.5/5
Score: 89
Alcohol: 13.5%
UPC: 9415549809679

Brancott Reserve Pinot Noir 2005

We had this wine with friends about a month ago, and this review has been floating around on a scrap of paper since then. It’s a characteristic Pinot in an earthy and floral Oregon style rather than a strawberry New Zealand style. But New Zealand it is, nonetheless. Peppery on the palate, well balanced and clean on the palate with excellent structure. I was a big fan of the nose and the style, thought a touch more complexity would have bumped up the score. Kelly gave it a 90, but since I’m writing the note, I’ll go with my score which was 89. But I have to add that our friends gave it more like an 88. Very satisfying, and a couple of $ less would have made it a 4/5 for value.

Price: $25.79
Score: 89
Value: 3/5
Region: New Zealand
UPC: 852832104704

Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc 2007

This is a very well made New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, with characteristic citrusy herbaceous nose, and crisp clean palate. Well balanced also. It didn’t really stand out from the crown, but that’s not such a bad thing - that NZ Sauv Blanc crowd is a pretty good one. It suffers in comparison to the Dona Paula, which is at least as good for $5 less.

Price: $20.49
Score: 87
Value: 3.5 / 5
Region: New Zealand, Marlborough
Grape: Sauvignon Blanc
Tasted: March 2009
Alcohol: ****
UPC: 729819315302

Stoneleigh Marlborough Riesling 2007

Here's a quick review from Iron Chef. I've picked it off the "March Madness" post to make it searchable - remember, you can search the posts from the 'Search Blog' box in the upper left corner of the blog. Unfortunately, this function does not search the comments, which is why I like to post reviews into their own posts.

Also, remember that not every review has to be long, and it worth reviewing wines that you didn't much like: knowing which wines to avoid is as important as knowing which ones to buy. A quick review of a mediocre wine is very welcome.

With that said...

--- Iron Chef's Review ---

I had this sale wine last night- It had some fun wet stones and Petrol tastes but it was completely forgetable. The palate had light pineapple and some crisp-ness, but boring- really not much there. I was pass this wine by.

Retail Price: $14.62
UPC: 9414505982005

Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2007

I haven't had a white wine in a few weeks now - not since the last of the hot weather - so it's about time for another. I enjoyed New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc all summer so I thought I'd try a new one. Whether it's the wine or the time of year is hard to say, but I didn't enjoy this Spy Valley nearly as much as the Bay of Fires Tigress that I was drinking for most of the summer. The Spy Valley is unmistakeably a NZ Sauv. Blanc, with a striking nose of citrus and melon (maybe I should add "gooseberries" since that's what everyone says about NZ Sauv. Blanc - but that's not what I taste). But there wasn't a lot of follow through on the palate and the crispness of the style veered over into tartness, giving it a bit of a sour finish. I suspect this wine would do very well with spicy food - Indian or Thai curry - as it has the punch to stand up to the spices and food would tame the acidity. But to my taste it's not really a wine to sip before dinner.

I'd be very interested to hear what others have to say about this wine.

Price: $21.49
Score: 86
Value: 3/5
Alcohol: 13%
Tasted: Oct 2008
ANBL UPC: 9421008350033

Oyster Bay Chardonnay 2006

I've never been much of a white wine drinker, though I've been trying more over the past summer. But when I do drink whites I tend to like riesling and gewurztraminer and lately I've discovered New Zealand sauvignon blanc. Not chardonnay. If you'd have asked me a couple of weeks ago I might even have said that I hate chardonnay, which has always struck me as buttery and insipid. With all that said, I was very surprised to find that I liked this wine. It was creamier in body than a sauvignon blanc, but without the butteriness that I remember from other chardonnay. Good fruit, if not quite as prominent on the nose as a sauvignon blanc, but very good length and an intriguing yeasty finish. Lightly oaked according to their web site. My eyes have been opened to chardonnay!

Price: $22.29
Value: 4/5
Score: 88
Alcohol: 13.5%
Tasted: August 2008
ANBL UPC: 9415549801604

Kim Crawford Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2007

This is a well done example of the style that made New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc famous. Crisp and fresh, with the typical nose of "cat's pee on a gooseberry bush." (That's not how I'd describe it myself, but that the traditional phrase for this style.) If you like NZ Sauvignon Blanc, you will like this wine, and if you haven't tried it, this is a good place to start.

Price: $21.29
Score: 88
Value: 4/5
Tasted: August 2008
ANBL UPC: 9419227006275