My score changed three times over 48 hours as I tasted this wine, ever upward. On opening, the palate showed assertive structure of firm, fine, savoury tannins of near Burgundian proportions, its oak and fruit tussling in structural tension. In time, a core of red cherry fruit burst from its brittle shell, blossoming into a […]
readArticles
Introducing one of the finest wines yet to emerge from Mt Difficulty, one of just an handful of grande marques of New Zealand pinot noir. There is a purity and delicacy on display here in rose petal and violet perfume, sour red cherries, black cherries, underlined by the savoury complexity of brambles, sage and forest […]
readThe highest in altitude and latest harvested of Mt Difficulty’s single vineyards also enjoys the largest proportion of whole bunches in the ferment, lending notes of exotic spice and dried herbs. These take some time to emerge from such a focused, precise and coiled Target Gully. As one of the later released Central Otago pinots, […]
readThe recipe far outclasses the price: Ninety percent estate vines, mostly eighteen years of age in 2010 (ancient by NZ standards!), aged in barrels, predominantly of French oak. The wine transcends the price, too, one of the best $20 pinots on the shelf, and one of the finest vintages Mount Riley has put forward yet. […]
readWhen the Clare and Eden Valleys were hit by a record heatwave of twelve days over 35oC in January/February 2009, some commentators were quick to write off the entire Riesling vintage before the grapes even commenced ripening.
readAustralia’s finest expressions of Riesling are to be found in South Australia’s Clare and Eden Valleys.
readTyson Stelzer shares a few truths about the wine variety that has eclipsed all others in Australia this year.
readDo you look for the biggest, boldest wine in the shop when you’re hunting for a red? Tyson Stelzer explains that bigger doesn’t necessarily mean better in the wine world.
readIf you want to sound in-the-know about a dessert wine, simply refer to it as a “sticky.” This month, Tyson Stelzer unlocks the magical world of sweet wines.
readIs the Barossa becoming more European?
read