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Henry Lyons What I'm Drinking

Chardonnay
This week we’ll peel back the covers and focus on one of the world’s most intriguing and widely planted varieties—chardonnay. This variety epitomises the globalisation of wine and is regarded as a rite of passage into the international wine market by many new world producers. Chardonnay grapes have a green skin and relatively neutral flavours that are definitely nothing to write home about, but could be worth a quick email or text message.

Many of the flavours within chardonnay fruit are derived from the climate and environment where the grape is planted. When this is combined with various wine-making techniques and the use of oak, the result is vastly different regional expressions throughout the world. Chardonnay produced in Chablis tends to be elegant and flinty, whereas Marlborough chardonnay is renowned for its vivacious zest and white peach aromas.

When it comes to chardonnay, New Zealand has well and truly thumped on the door of the international wine scene, acquiring a reputation for producing top-quality fruit-laden examples of the variety. The first records of chardonnay being planted in New Zealand date back to the 1830s, however from the 1970s onwards large-scale plantings of the variety started as public demand grew.

One thing that always flummoxes me is people who turn their noses up at chardonnay and label it as tacky and boring. In my opinion it is everything but. Chardonnay is fascinating and diverse with a constantly evolving array of styles that make the wine appealing with or without food.

Wine of the Week: The wine of the week is arguably the best value for money chardonnay in the country and is the Redmetal Chardonnay 2009 ($14.95) from Hawke’s Bay. The focus of the Redmetal label is bang for buck, and the wines are made by Grant Edmonds, who is also the head winemaker for Sileni Estates.

This wine is fruit-driven, made for early drinking, and great in any situation. The bouquet is rife with nectarine, grapefruit, and also contains a subtle hint of oak. Mouth feel is clean, balanced and pure. If you’re keen on matching this wine with food then I’d recommend something more mellow and creamy rather than spicy. Fish, chicken pasta, and oven fries are all great options.



Viognier
This week’s column will focus on one of the greatest varieties of all time—Viognier (pronounced vee-on-yay). Viognier, like Riesling and Pinot Gris, is an aromatic variety that is well-known for its floral aromas and rich texture which make it an excellent wine to drink with food.

The history of Viognier remains shrouded in a thick, dark cloud of mystery—the common presumption is that the variety was brought to Rhone in France by the Romans in ancient times.

Historians muse that the variety drew its name from the Roman pronunciation of via Gehennae, meaning the “road to Hell”. Don’t let this scare you though; Viognier is variety that has a warm and sensual embrace that you need to feel.

As far as the New Zealand wine industry goes, Viognier is relatively new on the scene. Pioneering regions for the variety have been Gisborne and Hawkes Bay, and as of 2009 New Zealand has 170 productive hectares of Viognier planted.

In my opinion, Viognier is a variety with an exciting future in this country; it just needs sustained, good quality exposure. If you’re interested, wineries such as Ngatarawa, Te Mata Estate, and Tietjen Witters all produce fantastic examples of Viognier between the $20-$30 mark that are well worth checking out.
 
Wine of the Week:This week’s wine of the week comes from a Hawkes Bay producer and is the Vidal Estate 2009 East Coast Viognier ($16.90).

Vidal Estate, located in the heart of Hastings, is one of Hawkes Bay’s oldest, most recognisable wine producers, founded in 1905 by Spaniard Anthony Vidal. If you’ve never tried Viognier before then this one is a great first example as it is approachable, like an inviting cashmere rug, and easy drinking.

This wine has the trademark varietal bouquet of apricot, pear and spice, as well as an apple crumble-esque/biscuit aroma which instantly slaps a smile on your face. The texture is soft and rich with a spicy complexity that adds great length to this dry wine. I’d recommend drinking this wine on it’s own or with seafood, chicken or pork.

Its hard to find Viognier under $20 in Wellington, but you can scoop this one up from Moore Wilson’s for $16.90. Regional Wines and Spirits also have a big range and a few hidden gems under the $20 mark.



Pinot Gris
This week’s column will focus on a variety that has become increasingly popular with wine consumers in recent years—Pinot Gris.

Pinot Gris is essentially the white variant of Pinot Noir and is easy to spot on the vines, as the grapes have a unique pinkish/greyish/bluish colour.

The variety is versatile and capable of producing weight along with deep, rich varietal flavours without the use of oak in the winemaking process. In fact, as far as winemaking goes, Pinot Gris isn’t as challenging as other varieties for winemakers and is commonly bottled and out on the market within 4–12 weeks after fermentation.

Pinot Gris took off in New Zealand in the early 1990s, and overall plantings of the grape in this country have increased from 19 hectares in 1994 to around 400 hectares in present day. In New Zealand most Pinot Gris are made to be drunk early, within two years of bottling.

Winemakers in New Zealand seem to have mixed feelings about the variety that has been heralded as “The Great White Hope”. Even some of the country’s top winemakers have stated that they can’t get their heads around the variety.

Wine of the week: This week is the River Farm Godfrey Road 2009 Pinot Gris ($14.95) from Marlborough. River Farm is a small-scale winery that crafts limited release distinctive Marlborough wines from selected vineyards that are closely managed to concentrate the wine’s flavour and character. River Farm is new to the industry and had their first vintage in 2008.

This Pinot Gris is dry and rife with the variety’s
Staff Recommendations

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