WHAT I’M DRINKING
My wine picks this month are a tasting tour of the South Island’s two great wine-growing regions – Marlborough and Central Otago – with a tasty pre-mix cocktail or two in between.
WORK HARD, DREAM BIG
These cocktail premix three-packs from Luxerose are presented in twist-top test tubes. Each 90ml measure can be poured over ice or shaken or simply added to your favourite spirit. I recommend you chill a tube in the fridge first then taste a teaspoon and decide how to imbibe from there. There are lots of warmweather beach- and pool-drinking options; they won’t break if you drop the pack. There are three options in the range, with my favourite the limited-edition Kings collection with Athena, Venus and Hera blends. luxerose.co.nz
SUCCESS IN SUNNY NELSON
“Family holidays were loading up the boot of the Cortina and knocking on the door of every pub and bottle shop in the South Island and selling wine,” says Anna Seifried. This year marks 45 years of winemaking in Nelson for the Seifried family. Anna’s Austrian-born father, Herman, arrived in Aotearoa in 1971 to start a job in the apple and winemaking sector. He had already qualified in winemaking, viticulture and oenology and was employed directly with the Apple and Pear Board. Her mother, Agnes, was already living and working in the Nelson region as a teacher. Soon after, Agnes and Herman married and decided to make Nelson their home and to start a business and raise a family. One of the key pieces of advice Herman acted on at the beginning was ‘where hops grow well, so too will grape vines’ (Nelson is known for quality hops). They purchased land in the Moutere Valley and planted a vineyard. Today, the Seifried brand and wines are a household name offering quality at affordable prices. The Seifried Sweet Agnes Riesling is the most-awarded ‘dessert’ wine in New Zealand.
PERFECT CHEVAL DES ANDES
If you have not yet tasted a 100-point, perfect-score wine then perhaps now your chance is here. Although this could be a great gift for someone, this wine is probably best kept for you and your cellar. Available in New Zealand in extremely limited quantities, wine critic James Suckling described the Argentinian wine as “the greatest Cheval des Andes ever ... discrete aromas of blackberries, flowers, stone and licorice...the integration of fruit, tannins and acidity is fantastic ... solid with beautiful depth and integrity ... extremely long and exciting”. Now, that’s a tasting note to scan when your bottle is ready for opening. By the way, the 100-point scale is the most common scoring system used in wine competitions and by wine critics. Is it perfect? No, but it allows wine commentators and competition judges to defend their score with precise detail when needed. The wine itself is a 2017 vintage made with malbec, cabernet sauvignon and petit verdot.