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Bottle 'n' Bite, Palmerston North City (2026)

11/09/2017

Tour Europe 05.09.17

20/08/2017

Tour #43

02/08/2017

Producer: Man O'War
Vintage: 2016
Wine Type: Still
Colour: White
Country: New Zealand
Region: Waiheke Island
Sweetness: Dry
Alcohol: 13.00%
Body: Light
Time in Oak: 6 months
Oak: Lightly Oaked
100% Sauvignon Blanc, 0.04% Sémillon

This is a generous and forward varietal bouquet with flavours of mandarin and peach. Generous acidity is also there, providing a tangy, refreshing finish.

Drinking Window 2017 - 2022

Raymond Chan Review: Bright pale straw yellow colour with slight green hues, lighter on the rim. The nose is fresh and softly packed with ripe gooseberry and tropical fruit aromas along with green tonefruits, lantana, soft grassy notes and fresh herbs. Dry to taste and medium-bodied, the palate has an elegantly concentrated core with flavours of gooseberries, cut grass, green stonefruits, along with waxy, nutty and smoky suggestions adding interest. The mouthfeel is refreshing, zesty and bright, with lively acidity, and the wine flows along a fine-textured line, leading to a sustained, dry finish of gooseberries, cut grass and herbs. This is a bright and lively Sauvignon Blanc with fresh gooseberry, cut grass and green stonefruit flavours on a fine, textural palate.
Food Pairing: Blinis with smoked salmon, crème fraiche, topped with raspberries, salmon roe (caviar) and sprinkled with lime zest, chopped coriander and black & white sesame seeds.

This dish was aloof from the the Sauvignon/Sémillon flavours and I wanted to concentrate on complemeting the wine and the food!! The jewel-like, glistening orange balls of salty goodness are the eggs, or roe of salmon. They're delicious and have a wonderful mouthfeel. The salmon was smoked and gave a hint of smouldering hickory (I said a hint), the raspberries a top released a fruity richness which was toned down by the lime zest and grassy coriander flavours. Worked well together!!

20/07/2017

CASTILLO DE FUENDEJALÓN CRIANZA 2013
ALCOHOL: 13 % Vol.
GRAPE VARIETIES: Garnacha, Tempranillo
VINEYARD CHARACTERISTICS: Vine age of 30 years for Garnacha and 20 years for Tempranillo.
DATE HARVESTED : From 2nd week of September
PROCESS : Traditional wine making, fermented at 28º C followed by a 15 day maceration with skin contact. A¬fter the malolactic fermentation both varieties are blended.
AGEING : For 6 months in American oak barrels. Additional ageing in bottle before release.
TASTING:
Colour.- Very clean and bright; ruby red colour with crimson hues.
Aroma.- Medium intensity, its complex aromas are a fine blend of spicy and ripe fruit scents.
Palate.- Smooth and full favoured in harmony with the tannins afforded by the oak. The taste lingers on for a long time.
*Note – My notes:
Colour: Dark red with a slightly lighter hue around the outer edges.
Aroma: Earthy, cigar box, black fruits and oak.
Palate: Old-ish tasting fruit, black plums and blackberries, nice finish with good length. Excellent buying for $17.99!!

16/07/2017

Whisky tasting with the PNRSA in conjunction with Whisky Galore – 13.07.17

1. Wolfburn ‘Northlands’ 46%
Region: Highland
Strength: 46%
Volume: 700ml
The Wolfburn distillery is one of Scotland's newest distilleries, founded in 2013 in Thurso, making it the most northerly distillery in Scotland. Wolfburn is a traditional coastal Highland style, made with unpeated malt and aged in quarter casks that formerly held peaty whisky. Softly fruity and sweet to start, with buttery, fruity (pears, ripe banana), nutty flavours that drift towards a very subtle and lingering peat smoke finish. This is a truly accomplished whisky for such a new distillery, and a taste of great things to come. * Notes from Whisky Galore
Only 4 years old – for me ginger, spice and ok!!
2. Hazelburn 'Barolo Cask Finish' 9 years old
Region: Campbeltown
Strength: 57.9%
Volume: 700ml
The much anticipated Hazelburn Barolo cask finish has finally arrived. Hazelburn is the name of Springbank's triple distilled and unpeated spirit, and this new release has an interesting history - first matured for 6 years in fresh bourbon barrels before spending the last 3 years maturing in refill Barolo wine casks. The nose starts with sweet confectionary notes, sherbet, fruit salad and sugared almonds. The palate is again sweet, with dried fruits, coconut shavings and a peppery, light tannic feel. The finish is rich and long, lingering on stewed fruit, pineapple custard and a subtle hint of that foosty old warehouse character so common to the distillery. We think this is one of the best Hazelbun releases in the last few years. * Notes from Whisky Galore
Sweet nose, vanilla, oak and very nice.
3. Blair Athol 'Distillers Art' 1997 / 17 years old
Region: Highland
Strength: 48%
Volume: 700ml
Rarely seen in New Zealand we have a unique 'Langside' release by independent bottler's, Hunter Laing, as part of their 'Distiller's Art' series. This particular bottling is from the Highland distillery of Blair Athol and has been maturing in a single sherry butt for 17 long years with only 689 bottles yielded from the cask. It has a fragrant nose, with hints of golden syrup and sultanas. Sweet vanilla fudge and Victoria sponge cake on the palate with more rich dried fruits developing. A delightfully decadent dram! * Notes from Whisky Galore
Full bursting fruit cake! Raisins are to the fore – quite lovely!
4. BenRiach 'Moscatel Cask Finish' 22 years old
Region: Speyside
Strength: 46%
Volume: 700ml
This new limited edition BenRiach has been matured originally in American oak casks before spending a second period of aging in Moscatel wine casks from Portugal. To start this is a full and fruity nose - rich fig notes, dark orange marmalade and other dark fruits. The palate is rich and full, with dark chocolate, maraschino cherries, cinnamon and nutmeg spice. The finish is long and distinctly 'vintage' in character, with a touch of leather and oak spices throughout. A complex and beautiful old dram from the heart of Speyside. * Notes from Whisky Galore
This was a great dram! There’s a lot going on but all in harmony. Just divine.
5. Port Askaig Cask Strength 19 years old 50.4%
Region: Islay
Strength: 50.4%
Volume: 700ml
Distilled at an undisclosed distillery on the Isle of Islay, 'Port Askaig' has been bottled at cask strength from a small selection of 19 year old single malt whisky. The aroma is softly smoky, with layers of peat, aromatic citrus, honey and herbal spicyness. The palate shows the mature character of an Islay malt, with a gentle flinty smoke and zesty lemony tang. The finish lingers with a sooty peat smoke that slowly drifts away - a superb dram. * Notes from Whisky Galore
My least favourite. It was peaty, smoky but tropical – slightly confusing!
6. Glenfarclas 25 years old
Region: Speyside
Strength: 43%
Volume: 700ml
Bottled after 25 years of quiet maturation at the Glenfarclas distillery in Speyside, this whisky is hued amber with dark gold highlights, and has hints of sherry, honey, dark roasted coffee beans along with a distinct oaky spice and nuttiness. The finish is long lasting with a gentle touch of peat smoke in the background. An elegant and complex dram from one of the true greats of the Speyside region. * Notes from Whisky Galore
Sometimes age will never help, however in this case it has, beautiful, complex and lingering on the palate. To be more eloquent – yum!

10/07/2017

Ata Rangi Martinborough Lismore Pinot Gris 2013, 13.5% (under screw cap), Paired with Tuna Tartare with Guacamole and Soy Sesame Emulsion.
Wine Pairing: Ata Rangi Martinborough Lismore Pinot Gris 2013
Colour: Bright, pale gold.
Aromas: Expressive fruit characters of pear, white nectarine and just a touch of fresh lemon. There’s also a more savoury underlay of flavours and aromas – think nutty, creamy, pistachio-nougat and a hint of fennel seed.
Palate: The palate has weight, yet is fine and silky-textured with the lovely ripe pear-juice, pear-drop character and the long, lingering finish making this a very moreish offering.
Food Pairing: Tuna tartare with guacamole and soy sesame emulsion. Another raw tuna dish incorporating Asian, Mexican and western flavours. As the recipe states buy the best tuna you can (I used yellowfin tuna), cut into small dice and basically infused in ginger, garlic, sesame oil (I also squeezed in a little lemon juice). Fill a ring mould about 50mm high and flatten with a spoon. The emulsion is soy (Japanese and sweet), sesame oil and hoisin sauce, whisk all together. Guacamole was the usual ingredients – avocado, red onion, coriander lemon juice, salt and pepper (I added a ¼ cup of cream). The Ata Rangi Martinborough Lismore Pinot Gris 2013, worked very well with this dish, allowing each element to stand out without be dominated by the other. The soy combination assisted in toning the mouth (palate) weight of the wine with the guacamole’s creaminess enhanced its fine, silky texture. The Ata Rangi Martinborough Lismore Pinot Gris 2013 was beautifully crafted and the tuna tartare with guacamole and soy sesame emulsion combination worked together splendidly.

Further Information:
Winemaking - Fruit hand-picked and whole bunch pressed. Juice cold settled. Inoculated and fermented in a combination of stainless and 500 litre oak puncheons - in both cases left on lees for several months. No malo-lactic fermentation.

*Note: The majority of this recipe can be found in The Vintner's Table, - Stories, wine and recipes from Pegasus Bay

08/07/2017

Framingham Marlborough Dry Riesling 2005, 12.5% (under screw cap), Paired with Smoked Tuna, Mushroom Carpaccio and Horseradish Dressing.
Wine Pairing: Framingham Marlborough Dry Riesling 2005, 12.5% (under screw cap).
Colour: Bright, pale gold.
Aromas: Developed, secondary aromatics of toast, butter and grilled lemon over primary mandarin notes.
Palate: Intense palate with “crystalline” structure. Complex mixture of fruit and secondary notes; peach, mandarin and lemon curd with hints of toast and honey. Acid structure is still bright and linear, though it has softened since the wine was bottled, giving a juicy, tense and mineral finish.
Food Pairing: Smoked tuna, a top of celery (because I couldn't obtain any celeriac) remoulade, mushroom carpaccio (exotic mushrooms - oyster, enoki, shimeji) and horseradish dressing. I smoked the tuna with cherrywood chips for 30 minutes. As noted within he recipe this is essentially a raw dish and a lovely 'clean' way to start a meal. The Framingham Marlborough Dry Riesling didn't dominate, but rather enhanced the freshness and flavour combinations. This was an excellent pairing and a great start to the main course.

Further Information:
Alcohol: 12.5 % vol
Total Acid: 7.8 g/l

WINEMAKING
A significant amount of work is done in the vineyards that produce grapes for all of Framingham’s Rieslings. Extensive crop thinning (when necessary) and leaf plucking are practised, giving low yields of grapes that have had reasonably good exposure to sunlight. Fruit was harvested by hand, whole bunches being loaded into the press and the gently extracted free run portion separated for Dry Riesling.
Resultant juices were clarified by cold settling for 2-3 days before racking to ferment. Ferments were conducted in stainless steel tanks at cool rather than cold temperatures. Once fermentation was complete, the wines were left on ferment lees for 4 months to add a little texture. After blending, the wine was fined to soften its phenolic structure, stabilised, filtered and bottled under screwcap to preserve freshness, flavour and integrity.

*Note: The majority of this recipe can be found in The Vintner's Table, - Stories, wine and recipes from Pegasus Bay Winery.

08/07/2017

Church Road Reserve Syrah 2007, 14% (under cork)
Variety: Syrah 100%
The wine remained in French oak barrels (53% new) for approximately 12 months.
Colour: Deep, rich red.
Aromas: A core of dark berry fruit overlaid with fragrant violet and spice characters, whilst subtle, savoury oak adds complexity and a chocolate richness.
Palate: Full and supple with soft, ripe tannins and good length of both texture and flavour.
This wines primary berry fruit characters had
diminished although blackberry was very evident. Slighty musty on the nose - a bit like strong blue cheese its very morish and you wonder why!!! I think this was getting to the latter stages of it's life but extremely enjoyablbe none the less.
*Note: The Church Road Reserve Syrah 2007 was more enjoyable than the Trinity Hill 2007 Syrah, however not up to the Craggy Range 2007 Syrah tasted and shared earlier.

08/07/2017

Cake time half way throught Tour #42!!
Home made and a beautiful chocolate cake - happy birthday Ian L!

01/07/2017

Obsidian Estate Montepulciano 2016, 14% (under screw cap).
Variety: Montepulciano 100%
Racked in 20% new French; 40 one year old oak; balance in seasoned oak.
Colour: Purple/crimson.
Aromas: Cherry, cassis, wild berries and spicy oak.
Palate: Shows great structure and length. More akin to the 2014 than the boisterous 2013 vintage and showing restraint.
The Obsidian Estate Montepulciano 2016 will cellar for another 9 years according to the wine maker and for me it was to young when opened. I will come back to this in say 5 years time and try again. I feel it will develop and the restraint will give way to richer black berry flavours over time?

Bottle 'n' Bite

11/09/2017

20/08/2017

02/08/2017

20/07/2017

16/07/2017

10/07/2017

08/07/2017

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08/07/2017

01/07/2017

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