New Zealand New Releases was an event organised at London’s 67 Pall Mall by New Zealand Wine to showcase 160 new wines and, on a clean crisp winter’s day, it was refreshing to see the quality of the 2024 Sauvignon Blancs delivering a clean, focused and linear style that we have been missing… also some older vintages (new releases) that also showed how well they evolve with age.
Highlights did not rest with Sauvignon Blancs, there was more bright moments from the Aromatics, Chardonnay and, of course, Pinot Noir. A whole table was dedicated to 0% (or 0.5%) and lower alcohol wine, although there was a distinct lack of Sparkling, Cabernets and Syrah. However, Thursday’s New Zealand trade tasting will rectify that I’m sure.
Sauvignon Blanc
I have in recent years not been the biggest supporter of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, particularly Marlborough (with a few notable exceptions) however this New Release tasting highlighted the inroads that winemakers have made particularly in getting a more focused, linear, clean and fresh style.
The first 4 wines are all from the same winery, te Pa. In 2003 Haysley McDonald and his family converted their dairy and crop farm into vineyards and in 2011 te Pā was established. Starting with their 100-hectare home estate vineyard on the Wairau Bar, they have grown to having close to 500 hectares across Marlborough, with plots in the Awatere and Wairau Valleys.
te Pā Signature Series Sauvignon Blanc 2024, Marlborough RRP £10.50 / Buckingham Vintners
Fresh clean and focused with a background of gooseberry fool, ginger crumbs, with a fresh clean finish, this was also the cheapest Sauvignon Blanc listed.
te Pā The Reserve Collection “Seaside” Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough 2023 RRP POA/ Buckingham Vintners
Fresh, vibrant, saline, focused with a lovely pure freshness
te Pā The Reserve Collection “Hillside” Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough 2023 RRP POA/ Buckingham Vintners
Refreshing lime and minerality, delicate granite notes, nectarine and touch of aniseed.
te Pā Oke, Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough, 2020 RRP POA/ Buckingham Vintners
Flinty, wet stone, pink grapefruit, bright citrus acidity, rather exciting, with texture, hints of tropical notes, lemon grass, touch of cedar, great wine. I had given the 2019 vintage 95/100 Gold in last year’s Decanter Panel Tasting, and I see the 2020 in the same class.
Saint Clair has always been a huge favourite of mine, established in 1978 by Neal and Judy Ibbotson, and was a constant winery listed in our restaurant from 1999. I love their ability to deliver quality at all price points, and they certainly delivered these at this tasting.
Saint Clair Ibbotson Family Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc 2024, RRP £16.99/ Hallgarten & Novum Wines
Restrained elegance, reminded me of a Quincy from the Loire, delicate and refined, tiny bubbles of bright fruit dance on the palate. Classy wine.
Saint Clair Wairau Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2023 RRP £15.99/ Hallgarten & Novum Wines
Textured, oily, spiced and zingy, juicy dried apricots, hint of elderflower perfume, citrus peel, lots of action in this wine, finishing on a pure, fresh clean palate.
Saint Clair Barrique Sauvignon Blanc 2022, Marlborough, RRP £22.25/ Hallgarten & Novum Wines
Following on from the Ibbotson above this again reminded me of the Loire, with a definite Pouilly Fume feel, combining texture, freshness and purity together. Very impressive leaving a luxurious mouth feel. Another wine that I gave a 95/100 Gold for their 2021 in last year’s Decanter Panel tasting.
SPOKE Resolute Sauvignon Blanc 2023, Marlborough RRP £16.50/ Vineyard Productions
Gunpowder, flinty, lime, citrus, quince then layers and layers of delicate refined fruit, creamy, tastes luxurious, a fabulous wine that was one of my highlights in last year’s Decanter panel tasting, where I gave the 2022 96/100. Liam Stevenson MW set up Vineyard Productions, with Ben Glover in charge of SPOKE, these wines offer exceptional value for this quality, this SPOKE Resolute highlights the way forward for New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.
The Marlborist Grande Sauvignon 2023, Marlborough RRP £21.99/ Justerini & Brooks
Textured and layered, refined delicate stone fruit, fresh clean crisp citrus notes, as the wine opens there is luxurious feel with caramelised pineapple, juicy peeled peaches, white crisp cob nuts & toasty brioche crumbs. A new wine to me, set up in 2020 by three friends: Rich Ellis (winemaker), Stu Dudley (viticulture) and Dave Nash (the fixer) with a wealth of experience working with top brands such as Ata Rangi, Greywacke and Villa Maria. Their aim is to ‘bring life back’ to Sauvignon Blanc and Rich has had experience in Sancerre. (Check out their Chardonnay and Pinot Noir too).
Tiraki Sauvignon Blanc 2024, Marlborough RRP £18.50/ Amathus
Lime zest, mineral, delicate and refined, lovely balance – from a ‘fresh mountain stream’ to delicate citrus notes (clementine oil), and to delicate tropical notes – vibrant and glowing.
TAPI, Sauvignon Blanc 2024, Marlborough RRP £17.50/ Seckford Agencies
Lovely balance of stone fruit, citrus acidity and spice, lots of fresh vibrant flavours brought together with a creamy texture, another wine to hit Gold in the Decanter panel tastingwith their 2023.
Kelly Washington, Organic Wairau Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2024 RRP £28.00/ Jeroboams
Pure class, nutty, flinty, matchstick, pink grapefruit acidity, focused and elegant. Been a favourite of mine for a couple of years now.
Hans Family Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2020 Marlborough RRP £35.50/ Vindependents
Restrained and refined, elegant and classic Loire style, there is an amazing bouquet of hand-picked edible flowers, citrus leaves, white stone fruit, creamy nutty texture uplifted by a vibrancy of lime zest. Luxurious
Aromatics
TAPI Pinot Gris 2023, Marlborough RRP £17.50/ Seckford Agencies
Perfumed nose, with notes of Persian food markets, gentle essence of stone fruit, excellent value and quality.
Seresin, Chiaroscuro 2023, Marlborough RRP £26.00/ Enotria&Coe
A blend of Pinot Gris, Viognier, Riesling & Gewürztraminer delivering a pure fresh tingling wine that also has texture and flavour in abundance, whilst also giving a focus on the finish – tangerine, zippy citrus notes, fragrant and perfumed. Perfect with ceviche or classic Alsatian dishes like foie gras and rich cassoulets.
Esk Valley Pinot Gris 2023, Hawkes Bay RRP £14.90/ Hatch Mansfield
Focused, clean, pure, delicate, refined white stone fruit with a hint of perfume.
Q Waitaki Valley Barrel Reserve Pinot Gris, 2023, Waitaki Valley RRP £25.00/ Seeking Distribution
Always love a New World Pinot Gris and this barrel aged wine delivers both vibrancy and class, it is textured with a chalk/stone/creamy balance, with herbaceous aromatics on the nose, then the magic evolves in the glass, delivering an amazing pure refined wine that has a lovely salinity, delicate peeled stone fruit and then layers and layers of beautiful ‘romance’ left on the palate.
Hawkshead Pinot Gris 2022, Central Otago RRP £30.80/ Humble Grape
Fresh and pure with a tangy apricot and honeysuckle background, this is seamless, linear, pure classy Pinot Gris that delivers and cries out for some classy Dim Sum.
Spy Valley Marlborough Gewürztraminer 2024 RRP POA/ Bibendum Wines
Liked the vibrancy and freshness of this aromatic which is focused with a clean-cut finish.
Zephyr Gewürztraminer 2024, Marlborough RRP £27.99/ Bancroft Wine
Made by Ben Glover, this oozes class, ginger and spice at the fore then rose hip, then the crunch of Cadbury’s Turkish Delight bar, the purity and focus is excellent on this wine which is perfect for modern Chinese cuisine.
Heaphy Monterey Old Vine Riesling 2023, Nelson RRP £19.99/ Boutinot
(3 g/l residual sugar) A Mosel style of luscious Riesling that shows class with wet stone freshness, bright fruit-forward with a crisp refreshing finish. Impressive, great with some Munster cheese.
Felton Road Riesling Dry, 2024, Central Otago RRP £27.00/ Cornish Point Wines
With 5g/l residual sugar this is the driest version from the Felton Road camp, it is a clean, linear, focused wine delivering a superlative style of Riesling – think orchard fruit, perfect Pear William, crab apples, luscious but tempered with pink grapefruit and flinty notes.
Felton Road Bannockburn Riesling, 2024, Central Otago RRP £27.00/ Cornish Point Wines
(49g/l residual sugar) Ripe, classic tropical notes, then peaches and nectarines, juicy and luscious, flint notes then tame the exuberance – a class wine that ages well, trust me these are stars with a few decades of age.
Pegasus Bay Riesling 2024, North Canterbury RRP £18.99/ New Generation Wines
(26 g/l residual sugar) Classic Pegasus Bay purity and richness in harmony; quince, apricots and a golden luscious mouthful that cleans and focuses at the end. Love the texture, crispness and depth in these wines.
Pegasus Bay Bel Canto Dry Riesling 2023, North Canterbury RRP £29.75/ New Generation Wines
(5 g/l residual sugar) Orange blossom and torched pineapple aromatics, then on the palate it is a fruit basket of apricots, mango, quince, kumquats balanced by wet flinty notes. This is rich and textured, an outstanding wine that will age for years, a class act.
Heaphy Riesling 2023, Nelson RRP £15.25/ Boutinot
(7 g/l residual sugar) Clean but luscious, fresh zingy and flinty, citrus peel and jasmine, luscious stone fruit, sourced from 30 and 50-year-old vines, as the wine evolves on the palate there are tangerine and ginger notes, a generous wine that smiles.
Zephyr Riesling 2024, Marlborough RRP £24.00/ Bancroft
(10.3 g/l residual sugar) At 10% alcohol this fresh, vibrant, focused Riesling has a lovely unwaxed citrus feel, with hints of clementine and fresh herbs, focused easy drinking and rather good.
Chardonnay
Felton Road Bannockburn Chardonnay 2023, Central Otago RRP £36.00/ Cornish Point Wines
Fresh clean and focused, delicate stone fruit and grapefruit, zesty and clean Chablis-like Chardonnay
Felton Road Block 2 Chardonnay 2023, Central Otago RRP £43.00/ Cornish Point Wines
Crushed stone fruit, unwaxed lemon, flinty notes, white nectarines, love the purity and finesse of this Block 2
Felton Road Block 6 Chardonnay 2023, Central Otago RRP £43.00/ Cornish Point Wines
Peaches and nectarines to the fore, magical purity, but restraint whilst full of promise and ability to age a long time, this will become an even classier act
Heaphy Monterey Chardonnay 2023, Nelson RRP £19.00/ Boutinot
Matchstick, flinty, clean white stone fruit, elegant, focused, clean and fresh.
Tiraki Chardonnay 2023, Marlborough RRP £23.50/ Amathus
Clean and gentle on first taste, I love the delicacy of this, refined flinty, restrained, peeled white stone fruit, white nuts, mineral, fresh zesty citrus peel oil, impressive.
The Marlborist Chardonnay, 2023, Marlborough RRP £25.99/ Justerini & Brooks
Classic, focused Chardonnay, which oozes with citrus freshness, toasted brioche notes, elegant refined nectarines, fresh and textured, clean and bright.
TAPI Chardonnay 2023, Marlborough RRP £32.00/ Seckford Agencies
Pineapple, quince, pear and nectarines evolve from this excellent wine, my notes said “elegant and seamless”; as the wine opens up there is a moreish feel to this wine that uses older barrels to ensure everything is balanced. As the wine evolves there are deeper notes of white nectarines, delicate cedar spices, cobb nuts and pink grapefruit citrus notes.
Te Kano Landwalker Chardonnay 2023, Central Otago RRP £35.00/ Davy’s Wine Merchants
Matchstick, pineapple, nutty, white nectarines, love the intensity and purity, there is a bright clean citrus cut to the wine, giving it a lift – this is a lovely, elegant Chardonnay that will evolve beautifully with age.
Saint Clair Family Estate Omaha Reserve Chardonnay 2022, Marlborough RRP £22.49/ Hallgarten & Novum Wines
Stone fruit to the fore with juicy citrus essence, flinty notes, textured and well balanced
Nautilus Chardonnay 2022, Marlborough RRP £24.00/ Hill-Smith Family Estates
White peaches, nutty aromatics, fresh citrus notes, clean, focused, linear, lovely purity.
te Pa Reserve Auntsfield Vineyard Chardonnay 2022, Marlborough RRP POA/ Buckingham Schenk
Spiced, nutty, apricots, peaches, nectarines, pineapple, citrus all abound in perfect harmony giving a layered textured wine full of bright fresh notes
Pinot Noir
Folding Hill Pinot Noir 2021, Central Otago RRP £45.00/ Vindependents
Delicately refined perfume, clean, fresh and focused, I love the linear purity of this, delicate but intense crushed red berries, with pure pomegranate and cranberry essence
Folding Hill Orchard Block Pinot Noir 2021, Central Otago £65.00/ Vindependents
Wow, this really delivers! A pure focused linear Pinot, it is fresh and vibrant, with a hint of flint, matchstick, then as with its sibling above that purity of fruit is immense… a class act.
Tiraki Pinot Noir 2023, Marlborough.RRP £23.50/ Seeking Distribution
Cocoa and rosebud-perfumed nose, fresh vibrancy on the palate of red berries with herbaceous spices and forest floor notes, a well balanced focused Pinot Noir offering value for money
The Marlborist Pinot Noir 2023, Marlborough RRP £27.99/ Justerini & Brooks
Lovely perfume on the nose, spiced dark floral notes, cranberries on the mid palate giving it a delicate thrill then, as it evolves, the textures bring through darker notes, ending on a fresh and vibrant style – follow this wine there’s plenty of promise from this youthful winery.
Greenhough Stone’s Throw Pinot Noir 2023, Nelson RRP £32.00 (although I have seen older vintages online at £21.00)/ Merchant Vintners Group
Delicate perfumed nose, focused and clean, red cherries and cranberries, touch of wild herbs, love the fresh vibrancy of this Pinot.
Te Kano Landwalker Pinot Noir 2023, Central Otago RRP £40.00/ Davy’s Wine Merchants
Stunning, this is a beautiful Pinot Noir, delicate and refined with the perfect balance of fruit-to-savoury notes, cherries and red berries, mocha, cocoa spice, hints of herbs and aged, cured Iberia ham.
Main Divide Pinot Noir 2022, North Canterbury. RRP £26.25/ New Generation Wine
Dark fruited, roast leg of lamb juices, violets, cranberries, spice, textured, lots of guts and fruit in this robust but focused Pinot.
Pegasus Bay Pinot Noir 2022, North Canterbury RRP £42.25/ New Generation Wine
Beautifully clean, focused Pinot, cherries, juicy plums, pomegranate, delicate, expressive perfume, the finish on the palate is amazing and balances the finest fruit notes with the very best savoury nuances – pretty perfect.
Kelly Washington Organic Bannockburn Pinot Noir 2022, Central Otago RRP POA/ Jeroboams
Dark and seductive, glorious-perfumed nose, ripe dark cherries, dried herbs, truffled notes with texture and balance in harmony.
Villa Maria Attorney Pinot Noir 2021, Marlborough RRP £64.99/ Hatch Mansfield
Truffled cep nose, dark cherries, pomegranate, cranberries, hints of dark fruit, full-flavoured Pinot that needs time but already showing huge potential. Decant and use a Burgundy glass to get the ‘full Monty’, the finish is quite superb leaving a harmonious, perfumed, delicate savoury/ berry feel
Akitu A1 Pinot Noir 2021, Central Otago RRP £42.00/ Mentzendorff
Delicate perfume, red fruits with dark cherries, hint of bonfire, textured, will evolve well in the next few years.
Nautilus Clay Hills Pinot Noir 2023, Marlborough RRP £39.00/ Hill-Smith Family Estates
Redcurrants, dried strawberries, pomegranate, flinty with a hint of cedar – I love the balance, elegance and restraint of this wine.
Other Reds
(let’s be honest there were not enough represented at the tasting)
Babich Syrah 2023, Hawke’s Bay RRP £24.95/ Berkmann Wine Cellars
This bright crimson, forward, juicy red is full of Christmas cake notes, lovely vibrancy between the juicy fruits (cherries) and seasonal spices, with a clean raspberry ripple vanilla finish, fresh and fun
Man O’War Dreadnought Syrah 2021, Waiheke Island RRP £54.90/ Enotria&Coe
Dark and seductive, pure class. Full of red, black and blue-berried fruit, savoury notes and graphite; this is drinking well now but will age gracefully for years.
Man O’War Ironclad 2022, Waiheke Island RRP £54.90/ Enotria&Coe
This is a Bordeaux blend with dark berries, mocha coffee, cedar, violets, cassis plummy notes, relaxed and beautifully crafted, I love the saline freshness, the bright crushed granite feel, awesome wine.
Zero/Low Alcohol
And what about this table Mr Jones, you probably needed it after the 160 wines you tasted?
For me the 0% classified wines were very sweet and much more a cordial sweet drink than a wine although, as we moved along and the alcohol moved up, there were a few pleasant surprises. Please note that the 0% classified wines do contain 0.5% alcohol and if this was a food product they could not be classified as 0%, just like with an allergy – a food cannot have 0.5% nuts in a product classified as containing 0% nuts.
Kim Crawford Illuminate 0% Sauvignon Blanc 2024 RRP POA/ Liberty
This was the only truly 0% alcohol wine listed on the day, luscious ripe gooseberries, lychees, hints of ginger syrup, it was a touch sweet but served on ice would be rather cool and refreshing. (24 g/l residual sugar!)
Kim Crawford Illuminate Eclairer Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc RRP £POA/ Liberty
7% alcohol. Fresh focused with racy notes of gooseberries, luscious fruit, spices and clean finish (12.2 g/l residual sugar)
Ara Light Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough RRP £7.00/ North South Wines
6% alcohol. Tinned gooseberries, ripe kiwi fruit, elderflower, classic old style Sauvignon Blanc (13.95 g/l residual sugar)
Conclusion
A comprehensive tasting showcasing how New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, especially Marlborough is fighting back as a category to not only deliver a more focused clean modern style of Sauvignon but also to establish a more luxurious style that is more of a dining wine than a cheap necking wine. New Zealand winemakers have always shown restraint on their Chardonnay and these continue to shine, and it is wonderful to see Pinot Noir excel all over New Zealand.
