Australia versus New Zealand on ANZAC Day

First Glass 25 April 2018 
Australia versus New Zealand on ANZAC Day
Notes by Sue Courtney
Wines were tasted blind

 
Kirrihill Regional Selection Clare Valley Riesling 2016
Golden coloured with a bright lime-scented aroma and a hint of toastiness to the quiveringly dry taste. This is classic Clare with flavours of lime, talc and honeysuckle florals, a touch of oiliness to the texture and concentration to the finish. 11.5% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $16.99.
 
Mount Pleasant 'Elizabeth' Hunter Valley Semillon 2016 – NSW, Australia
Straw gold with wispy floral aromas infused with the slightest hint of apricot, and a touch of salinity to the flinty taste with yellow apple joining the delicate apricot that imparts the finish with fruit sweetness. A subtle style and very different to the ones held for 5 years before release, this begs to be accompanied with seafood. 10% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $24.99.
 
Aronui Single Vineyard Nelson Albarino 2016
There's a hint of beeswax and toast to the scent of this light yellow gold hued wine. It’s tropical fruity and creamy with mealy, leesy notes and a honeyed nuance to the full, smooth finish.  13.5 % alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $17.99.
 
Wolf Blass Gold Label Adelaide Hills Chardonnay 2015 – South Australia
There’s an appealing sense of vanilla and malt on the nose that follows through to the palate that’s full, fat and rounded with a mealy richness, sweet ripe fruit reminiscent of white peach and apricot, underlying flinty notes and a spicy zesty zing to the long, mouthfilling finish. 13.5% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $24.99.
 
Mission Jewelstone Hawkes Bay Chardonnay 2016
Golden in the glass with hints of roasted pineapple  / pineapple wood on the nose while tropical fruit abounds in the palate. It’s oaky, sappy, and very very dry with a flinty character to the dusty finish and underlying mealy notes adding richness. Closed with natural cork again Mission believes it will impart more complexity with ageing.  13.5% alc. Cork. First Glass Price: $35.99.
 
Akarua Rua Central Otago Pinot Noir 2017
This bright, smooth, tasty pinot is a brilliant violet-edged ruby in the glass with seductive smoky nuances to the scent and touches of anise, spiced cherry and red guava in the palate with harmonious savoury gamey tones moseying about in the background where firm youthful tannins are tamed by the succulent fruit. 14% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $22.99.
 
Tolpuddle Vineyard  Pinot Noir 2016 – Tasmania, Australia
A translucent pink garnet in the glass with a delicate bouquet hinting of dried herbs, rose pot pourri and red cherry. An ethereal pinot with fine silky tannins and seemingly subtle yet increasingly complex old-school, earthy, savoury, spicy notes with compounding richness and mouthfeel, just the right amount of fruit sweetness and fabulous length. A wonderful nod to Burgundy.  13% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $58.99.
 
Take it to the Grave Langhorne Creek Shiraz 2016  – South Australia
Bright black red with crimson-pink edges. Earth, savoury and just a little tarry on the nose more akin to a cool climate wine until deep dark berry sweetness unfurls from within. Similarly in the palate it seems tight, herbal, firm and savoury then, like on the nose, the succulent fruit breaks through and all the while a bright and delicately peppered spiciness glides through. 14.5% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $16.99.
 
The Landing Bay of Islands  Syrah 2013 – Northland, NZ 
This bright black-red hued Syrah is a big wine, the only indication of its age the mellow character that frames it. Green pepper and dried herb aromas mingle with the scent of chocolate-coated berries and syruppy chocolate is foremost in the firm dry palate with dark plums, pepper, mocha and vanilla adding to the sumptuous complexity with creamy oak a feature on the silky finish. Gold Easter Show. 13.7% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $35.99.
 
Coopers Creek Reserve Hawkes Bay Syrah 2016
This is a deep dark red in the glass with crimson edges. The bouquet emanates blackcurrants, leather and cedar while black pepper is harmonious in the dry yet silky, succulent palate that’s full of dark fruit, dark oak, cake spices and liquorice with a youthful brightness to the finish. Trophy AirNZ Wine Awards. 13.5% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $49.99.
 
Heartland Langhorne Creek Shiraz 2014 – South Australia
Black red, silky in appearance. Super attractive bouquet of vanillin oak, spice, chocolate and cherries and smooth, creamy and juicy in the palate that’s crammed with black plums, blackberry, chocolate and vanilla with a well-balanced spicy savoury undercurrent, pillowy tannins and a long succulent aftertaste. 14.5% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $24.99.

Share: