Vavasour Awatere Valley Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2018
Radiating pungent aromas of freshly picked summer herbs and capsicum with wafts of pineapple and passionfruit all overflowing into the vibrantly fruity taste. The juicy tropical fruit is laced with mandarin-like citrus and purple passionfruit lingers on the bright tangy finish. Gold NZIWS 2018. 13% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $18.99. 
 
Vavasour Marlborough Chardonnay 2017
Light buttery oak scents and more of the same in the soft, smooth, creamy palate that has a captivating coating of caramel with the voluptuous curvaceousness brought into check by soft citrus, touches of peach and spicy oak tingles. Great for socialising / ice breaker drinks. 13.5% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $17.99. Limited stocks at this great price.
 
Matchbook Old Head Dunnigan Hills Chardonnay 2016 - California 
Savoury oak tinged with sizzled butter, nougat and candied fig emanates from the bouquet and it's fine and silky flowing in the opulent palate with touches of caramel, ‘banana bike’ candy and lingering fleshy flavours of apricot and peach with the savoury oak more noticeable again on the seamless finish. 13.9% alc. Cork. First Glass Price: $19.99.
 
Coopers Creek Swamp Reserve Hawkes Bay Chardonnay 2017
The extravagant and compelling bouquet radiates toasty oak, grapefruit, butterscotch and grilled peach and it's a complex wine in the concentrated palate with reductive characters of gun smoke and struck match together with butterscotch-coated oak framing the focussed tropical fruit and peach with the grapefruit detected on the bouquet emerging again to linger on the classy finish. 13% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $27.99.
 
Archangel Lace Central Otago Pinot Noir Rosé 2018
Like a pink sapphire gemstone in hue, the prettiness of this wine continues into the bouquet and taste. There’s red cherries on the nose and it’s initially crisp and delightfully dry in the palate that has soft creamy flavours of apple, pear, raspberry and morello cherry with unexpected richness to the texture with a touch of pepper to the lingering finish. Gold NZIWS 2018.Gold & Trophy NZWotY Awards 2018. 13% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $26.99. Very limited stocks.
 
Te Kairanga Martinborough Pinot Noir 2016 
This deep Burgundy-hued wine has an attractive and inviting bouquet of bottled cherries, berries and cream, followed by spicy, savoury flavours with Martinborough’s classic earthiness in the lightly jammy palate where the silky tannins provide a firm bed for the plump berry fruits while the finish lingers with vibrant accents of cake spice. Gold NZIWS 2017. 13.5% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $20.99.
 
Maude Central Otago Pinot Noir 2017 
This remarkably opaque hued pinot is a deep pinky red with a shiny allure. The bouquet is embellished with savoury gamey notes that carry through to the concentrated, fruit driven yet deeply profound palate with plums, black cherries, subtle woody herb notes, silky tannins and the sought after 'peacock tail' flare to the finish. An opulent and succulent pinot with a phenomenally long finish. Awarded overall Wine of the Year at the NZWotY Awards 2018. 14% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $39.99.
 
Church Road McDonald Series Hawkes Bay 2015
An inky, vibrant, purple-stained, crimson-edged hue. Plum jam fills the bouquet with a touch of smokey oak in the background and the blackcurrant, plum and blackberry fruit profile is juicy and ripe with beautifully honed savoury cedary oak, velvet-cloaked tannins, touches of vanilla, a whisper of mint and hints of Christmas cake spices. A massive wine that will continue to develop in the bottle if you can resist the urge to drink it right now. Five gold and four trophies. 14.5% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $26.99.
 
Kirrihill Gleeson & Co Clare Valley Shiraz 2016 
This striking red black-hued wine has a touch of boot leather on the nose together with plums and the oft-found Clare Valley mint, and it's firm yet juicy in the silky palate with dark savoury leathery notes, touches of nut chocolate, creamy oak, a twist of pepper and more obvious mint on the long, succulent finish. Gold NZIWS 2018. 14% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $19.99.
 
Mister Riggs Outpost Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2015
This beautifully honed cabernet is a deep black red hue and the bouquet that reveals dark chocolate, cassis and cedar gives an impression the wine will be smooth and creamy. It’s firmly framed in the palate, however. Crammed with flavours of mint, cedar, redcurrants and blackcurrants, peppermint and a lingering sense of vanilla and jaffa, it’s bright and exciting with the initial tannins seemingly dissolving with every sip. Gold NZIWS 2017. 14.5% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $19.99. Superbuy.
 
Piedra Negro Gran Malbec 2011 – Mendoza, Argentina
Deep dark inky red with saturated colour intensity. The jammy, almost porty bouquet hints of cranberry and plum and the taste is savoury, spicy and gamey with a tangy peppery vibe, firm tannins and concentrated plum, cherry and cranberry fruit. It's a big wine with sweetness from the alcohol and a heady sense to the finish with a lingering taste that is like Christmas cake in a glass. 15.5% alc. Cork. First Glass Price: $38.99.
 

Vigna Nuova Prosecco DOC Brut NV - Treviso, Italy
White gold in the glass with a lemon cream biscuit scent and a crisp, fresh, lightly foamy taste with steely acidity underpinning hints of vanilla and creaming soda, and a fine dry finish with a soft and pleasing lingering taste of dehydrated apple.  11% alc. Cork. First Glass Price: $16.99.
 
TED by Mount Edward Otago Pinot Gris 2017
Straw gold in hue with a delicate fragrance and a touch of salinity to the lightly zingy and fairly crisp taste with satisfying, food-friendly palate weight and tropical guava-like notes complementing out the sucking-on-a-peach-stone finish and just a hint of herbaceousness. Elegant and not a run of the mill style. 14% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $21.99.
 
Vidal Hawkes Bay Soler Chardonnay 2017
Light yellow gold. Evocatively fragrant with delicate hints of peach, apricot kernel and almond blossom. Full-bodied in the palate with restrained spicy oak, an almost oily richness to the flow, underlying gunflint and lingering nuances of lemon and gauva. Exhibiting elegant Burgundian restraint rather than flamboyant fruit at this youthful stage of its life yet hints of stonefruit flesh out nicely as the flavours linger. 13% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $31.99.
 
Paritua Hawkes Bay Chardonnay 2014
Light yellow gold with a bouquet reminiscent of salted caramel popcorn before it has popped, and full and fat in the spicy oak palate with sizzled butter, butterscotch and more salted popcorn suggestions with fruit playing a supporting role. There’s a mellow savoury impression as the wine lingers softly yet persistently with a touch of pineapple lifting the rounded and more-ish finish. 14% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $38.99.
 
Wooing Tree 'Blondie' Central Otago 2017
There’s the merest wash of baby pink to the glassy hue of this Blanc de Noir made from pinot noir.  Cherry and subtle nuances of musk float on the scent and strawberry and pepper fill the taste with a lightly viscous mouthfeel and lingering touches of salinity that make you want to have another sip. Dry to off dry in style with a succulence to the cherry-filled finish. 13.5% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $24.99.
 
Casa Santos Lima Colossal Reserva  2016 – Portugal
Made from a blend of Touriga Nacional, Syrah, Tinta Roria and Alicant Bouschet, this is vivid purple black in the glass with vibrant magenta edges.The bouquet is awash with dark plums, prunes, tar and polished oak and it is immediately seamless in the spicy, savoury, oaky, medium to full-bodied palate filled with succulent dark berry fruit and accents of baking spices and pepper. Terrifically tasty with lovely balance of fruit and savouriness and tannins more noticeable on the long dry finish. 14% alc. Cork. First Glass Price: $27.99.
 
Tenuta Ulisse Amaranta di Ulisse Montepulciano d'Abruzzo 2015 – Italy 
Inky black red with crimson edges. Dark, dense, smoky and tarry with a wafting fragrance of plum jam cooking in the kitchen. A massive wine to the taste with bright berry fruit, powerful tannins, tar, spice, leather and fruit cake. It’s a rich, meaty, dry-styled red with touches of liquorice on the velvety and almost creamy finish. Very very tasty with loads of flavour. 14% alc. Cork. First Glass Price: $34.99.
 
Beresford Barrel Select McLaren Vale GSM 2016 – South Australia
Deep dark cherry red, more translucent than opaque. Attractive rosehip and milk chocolate bouquet. Seemingly medium-bodied in the fruit driven palate with early season plums, glace cherries, blueberries and cake spices, a touch of toffee apple and creaminess to the mouthfeel as the flavours linger. An approachable blend of Grenache, Shiraz and Mouverdre with fine tannins, vanillin oak playing a supporting role and a pretty finish. 14% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $21.99.
 
Beresford McLaren Vale Shiraz 2016 – South Australia
Bright purple red with crimson edges. The fragrant bouquet is reminiscent of berry pie with a suggestion of chocolate box and tar. Immediately spicy and peppery in the silky palate with succulent purple plum, cherry and mulberry fruit, dry savoury oak, strawberry chocolate in the background and a long bright creamy finish with lingering juicy oomph. 14% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $21.99.
 
Beresford McLaren Vale Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 – South Australia
Blackish red in the glass with dark red edges. Nut chocolate, vanilla and cedar fill the bouquet and there’s bright berry fruit balancing out the meaty rustic depth of the palate with oak spice and cabernet’s classic brambly acidity. The tannins have a firm teeth-coating exterior with a plump bouncy centre and a touch of cigar box lingers on the even-toned finish with a subtle nuance of mint. 14.6% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $21.99.
 
Galway Pipe Grand Tawny Aged 12 Years – South Australia
This fortified wine is a transparent amber hue with golden edges. The bouquet radiates raisins and brandy-soaked muscatels and the taste is heady, viscous and mouthcoating with candied orange peel and raisin flavours with the fruity succulence beautifully balanced by a pleasing nutty, rancio, mellow oak savouriness. Sweet yet not sweet with touches of orange toffee. Delicious. 17.8% alc. Cork. First Glass Price: $41.99.

 
Rapaura Springs Reserve Marlborough Pinot Gris 2017
Light gold with an attractive fragrant aroma of poached pear and a soft citrussy zing to the off dry flavours that are full of delicious honey poached pear.  
Choc match: Whittaker’s Nelson Pear and Manuka Honey in Milk Chocolate. Enhances the freshness of the wine but the sweet milky creamy chocolate is the overall lingering taste.
13% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $14.99.
 
Main Divide North Canterbury Gewurztraminer 2016 
Crisp, dry and oily smelling and strong and spicy to the taste with tingles of ginger and candied lime with abundant musk flavours in a full-bodied, off dry style. 
Choc match: Cadbury Dairy Milk Turkish Delight. A sweet sugary chocolate that needs the wine to balance it out, which it does with a peppery vibe and the musky taste of Turkish Delight lingers.
14% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $17.99.
 
Archangel Central Otago Pinot Noir 2013
Rich ruby red in the glass with an alluring earthy savoury scent infused with leather and spice yet surprisingly fruity to the taste with still fresh acidity, lightly firm tannins, spiced tamarillo and bittersweet berries.  
Choc match: Whittaker’s West Coast Buttermilk Caramelised White Chocolate. The chocolate is quite sweet and cloying on its own but makes the wine seem silky smooth and rich with a lingering creamy caramel taste. A winning match.
14% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $35.99.
 
Zolla Primitivo Di Manduria 2016 – Salento, Italy 
A vibrant black red. The bouquet is rich and ripe with wisps of cocoa powder and black cherries and the taste is sweet, ripe, gutsy and full-bodied with prunes and cherries, an earthy savoury undercurrent and smooth tannins that make it seem almost seamless in its flow.
Choc match: Cadbury Dairy Milk - Milk Chocolate. This old favourite seems dry on its own compared to the voluptuous wine but it balances the wine’s sweetness beautifully and introduces a fresh acid zing. 
14% alc. Cork. First Glass Price: $28.99.
 
McManis  Family Vineyards Petite Sirah 2016 – California, USA 
Vibrant purple red with crimson edges. The leathery bouquet hints of a savoury wine but there's a juicy plum and mulberry sweetness to the taste with earth, straps of leather and a sprinkle of pepper on a bed of fine tannins.
Choc match: Cadbury Old Gold Roasted Almond Dark Chocolate. Makes the wine seem full, smooth and seamless. Good match. 
13.5% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $18.99.
 
Chocoholic Pinotage 2016 – Darling, South Africa
Dark ruby red with garnet edges. Aromas of cherry jam and spice and quite peppery in the savoury palate with lightly firm tannins and a smoky touch to the finish.   
Choc match: Cadbury Dairy Milk Black Forest. The chocolate is milky and sweet but the sweetness is toned down by the wine and the glace cherry in the chocolate is the lingering taste. Good match.
14% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $15.99.
 
Mister Riggs The Truant McLaren Vale Shiraz 2015 – South Australia
Deep dark red. Ripe and fruity smelling with touches of vanillin oak, chocolate and cherry then spicy and peppery to the taste with velvety tannins, plums and cherries, irresistibly smooth in its flow. 
Choc match: Cadbury Dairy Milk packed with Crunchie. This is a milky chocolate and not overly sweet, but makes the wine seem a little more earthy and savoury and drier than it seemed on its own. 
14.5% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $18.99.
 
Chocolate Box Dark Chocolate Barossa Shiraz 2016 – South Australia 
Inky black red. Deep intense scent of cedar and leather with hints of red berries.  Beautiful fine tannin structure, fresh acidity, purity of plum and raspberry fruit, a tingle of pepper and a silky chocolate-like smoothness to the finish.   
Choc match: Cadbury Dark Milk with Roasted and Caramelised Hazelnuts. The nut flavours are strong and the match brings out a bitterness in the wine. Not a good match.
15% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $20.99.
 
Grant Burge Barossa Ink Shiraz 2016 – South Australia
Inky black red with vibrant crimson edges. The chocolate and plum bouquet is cloaked with vanilla and the taste is ripe and voluptuous with fine velvet tannins, juicy plum, prune and bottled cherry fruit, a sprinkle of pepper and a well-balanced nutty oak note to the creamy finish. 
Choc match: Whittaker’s Black Doris Plum and Roasted Almonds in Dark Chocolate. This is a silky smooth chocolate, not overly sweet, not overpoweringly nutty, nice on its own and an excellent match to this wine.
14.5% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $19.99.
 
St Hugo Coonawara Cabernet Sauvignon 2014 – South Australia
Deep dark red hinting of a little age. There's mint wafting through the bouquet and heaps more in the taste. A firmly structured wine, quite dry with savoury oak and plum and cassis fruit that is starting to fade as bottle developed earthy leathery characters take over yet the cabernet fruit sweetness still signs off the finish.  
Choc match: Cadbury Old Gold Dark Chocolate with Peppermint. While the mint is complimentary, the chocolate brings out a bitterness in the wine. 
14.1% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $33.99.
 
Villa Maria Reserve Noble Riesling Botrytis Selection 2016
Sunshine gold. Candied orange fills the bouquet and the sticky, delicious, nectar-like taste is crammed with luscious liquid honey and candied tropical fruit with a vibrant and beautifully balanced citrussy zing.
Choc match: Whittaker’s Fijian Ginger and Kerikeri Mandarin in Dark Chocolate. This is a excellent chocolate on its own and goes beautifully with the wine, foiling the sweetness a little. The chocolate is subtle in the match, the ginger and mandarin flavours are complimentary and the wine’s flavours are the lasting memory. Excellent combo.
10% alc. Screwcap. First Glass Price: $28.99. 375ml.