Krebiehl’s pick of Central Otago

Quartz Reef, Methode Traditionelle, Bendigo 2012

94 N/A UK www.quartzreef.co.nz This vintage release of 91% Chardonnay and 9% Pinot Noir spent 46 months on lees and is a picture of brilliance and freshness. Creamy apple notes on the nose turn into drive and acidic thrill on the palate, accompanied by vivid, ripe apple fruit and subtle, distinctive, lemony autolysis. This is a serious, joyous, very long and intensely fresh wine. Pure drinking pleasure. Drink 2018-2028 Alcohol 12.5%

Mount Edward, Morrison Vineyard Riesling, Lowburn 2015 93

£ 19.95 Alliance Wine, Wine Direct Lifted purity of lime zest and Granny Smith apple spells both seriousness and refreshment. With some evolution, this is slowly hitting its stride. The palate shows crystalline acidity, which creates lots of tension between apple sweetness and zesty thrill. There is so much lime that you might almost think this finishes dry.

Drink 2018-2035 Alc 12%

Valli, The Real McCoy Pinot Gris Orange Wine, Gibbston Valley 2016 93 POA New Generation

This, in effect, is a Pinot Gris treated as though it was Pinot Noir: 100% fermented on skins, then 14 months in used oak. The colour veers from deep salmon to amber; the nose has rose petal, white pepper and peach. With a palate merely haunted by tannin this is beautifully pure and precise. Unusual but disarming. Drink 2018-2028 Alc 13%

Two Paddocks, Picnic Riesling, Alexandra 2017 91

£ 24.30 The New Zealand Cellar For sheer fun, enjoyment, exuberance and levity this just off-dry Riesling gets full marks. It is light and fresh with vivid green apple and bright lemon notes. The palate is zesty and oh so juicy. Underneath is serious intent and enough stuffing to allow for some bottle age – but don’t let that hold you back. Drink 2018-2025 Alc 12.5%

Rippon, Rippon Mature Vine Pinot Noir, Wanaka 2015

96 £ 37.95 (2013) Lea & Sandeman The most perfumed nose, with white pepper, wet pebble and red berry aromas. These soaring aromatics are toned down on the taut and firm palate, which is still tightly coiled. This is a paradigm of balance, of seamlessness, of elegance. All of Otago’s wilderness is distilled here in a serene, delicious and utterly harmonious beauty. Drink 2020-2035 Alc 13.5%

Felton Road, Cornish Point Pinot Noir, Bannockburn 2016 95

Nicholson, The £ Just 30 NZ a (ib)-£49.95 gentle Cellar, Justerini whiff The Wine BI, of & James Brooks, redcurrant Society here savouriness. with a hint The of red boxwood fruit continues on the concentrated but charming palate, where the finest tannins unfold. With some air, both floral notes and raspberry appear. Always the most dreamy of all the Felton Pinots. Drink 2020-2035 Alc 13.5%

Akitu, A1 Pinot Noir, Wanaka 2016 94

£ Green, NZ The 36-£40 Cellar, Wine The Reserve, The Edencroft, Champagne NZ House Wine Noble Co, of Utopia Wine, The Subtle nose. The cherry palate notes is a on lovely the expression of unforced balance, an interplay between aromatic, ripe fruit and bracing freshness with a lovely savoury glint. Nothing is overdone here: just 25% of the oak was new, while 40% whole-bunch gives backbone and structure alongside the freshness. Drink 2020-2035 Alc 14%

Burn Cottage, Pinot Noir, Cromwell Basin 2015 94

£49.99 Enticing, Available heady notes via UK of agent ripe, Liberty red cherry Wines have the merest touch of Amarena and spell pleasure right away. Splendid fruit is joined by fresh acidity on the palate and a fine frame that shimmers with pepper and thyme. Full of fruit, with a quiet, convincing and beautiful energy. Finish is brooding and full of promise. Drink 2020-2035 Alc 13.5%

Prophet’s Rock, Cuvée aux Antipodes Pinot Noir, Bendigo 2016 94

£70.30 A with A Kiwi-Burgundian subtle help (2015) lift from of red, François Exel tart production cherry Millet. and On the wet palate pebble it’s on a picture the nose. of precision: concise, taut, tart but ripe fruit pervaded by glorious freshness. A gentle brush of tannin against the tongue. The soaring, aromatic quality, poetic in its way, is supported by a firm, fresh frame. Drink 2020-2030 Alc 14%

Carrick, Bannockburn Pinot Noir, Bannockburn 2015 93

£ 28.40-£ 30 (2014) Exel, Great Western Wine Savoury, herbal notes precede ripe but tart redcurrant fruit. Very fine tannins give the most pleasant, gentle crunch. Backbone and bite allow the fruit to become luminous. Impressive. Drink 2020-2035 Alc 13.5%

Ceres, Artists Collection Inlet Vineyard Pinot Noir, Bannockburn 2015 93

£70 Matthew Clark Fragrant notions of redcurrant and thyme on the nose continue with a streamlined, channelled energy along the palate. Freshness and drive are the hallmarks. The pure nature of the fruit shines through with brightness and verve, unburdened by any new oak. Drink 2020-2035 Alc 14%

Cloudy Bay, Te Wāhi Pinot Noir, Bannockburn 2015 92

£60 (2014) Clos 19 Floral overtones of new oak play on the nose. The palate is a picture of restrained sumptuousness: although the texture is rich, the body remains slender. Freshness, white pepper spice and gentle, dark cherry fruit characters. Drink 2020-2028 Alc 14%