Last week I got to go to a trade tasting of NZ wines up in Seattle. Since I live in the Portland area we decided to take the train. This was a trade tasting put on by the New Zealand Winegrowers. There were 32 wineries represented and 90 wines. Unlike most tastings I attend, here all the wines were set up by varietal. There were not winery reps behind the tables. So as you entered the room here were 32 Sauv Blancs. All but 2 were 2006. They were all Marlborough except for one each from Hawkes Bay and Martinborough. What a way to spend an afternoon. I am going to try an hit my highlights in the different categories. We started with the aromatics like Riesling, Gewurz, and Pinot Gris.
Spy Valley Riesling Marlborough 2006 - This wine had a more floral nose and nice sweetness but off dry. It showed nice balance with good acidity and mineral content. $20
Mud House Riesling Marlborough 2005 - This was a little drier but with a nice mineral component also. This was very nicely balanced. $14
Thornbury Pinot Gris 2006 - This is a richer, more full tasting wine. It also is more off-dry. I like the mineral and pear flavors here. $20
Spy Valley Gewurztraminer Marlborough 2006 - Now this was very expressive Gewurz. Very spicy nose so classical in this grape. $20
They also showed the Vinoptima Gisborne 2003 which for me did not come close in complexity or intensity. At $50 I just don't get it.
Now on to Sauvignon Blancs.
Stone Paddock SB Hawkes Bay 2006 - If the bottle had not said Hawkes Bay I would have picked this as Marlborough. I felt that it had that same kind of intensity. This had more of the tropical flavors and very good intensity. $16
Seifried SB Nelson 2006 - Once agian this struck me as Marlborough but of course it is not that far from Marlborough. Here it was passionfruit but with that great acidity. $16
Mud House SB Marlborough 2006 - Now we get into the more gooseberry profile but still with that fresh acidity. $14
Oyster Bay SB Marlborough - Not quite the intensity of the previous wines but still much to like, especially the price. Once again more gooseberry. $10
Because of the volume of wines I will be doing this in several segments. There were many very impressive wines at this tasting. I loved the venue with no winery people behind the tables because it all flowed much faster. I certainly enjoy talking to the reps but this way I got to go through the wines and compare and evalute them more efficiently. The people who organized this tasting did a wonderful job. If you wish to see the full list of wines then go to nzwine-eventsusa.com.