A little old oak fermentation adds flesh and weight to this medium sweet style of Pinot Gris, which has rich flavours and characterful spicy white pear aromas. This North Canterbury Riesling has residual sugar between 10 and 20 grams per litre, which is beautifully balanced by fresh acidity which adds purity and tension to this lively wine.

This is made from organically certified grapes grown on the banks of the Waipara River in North Canterbury.

The region's cool nights and hot days add length to the ripening season, which makes it easy to ripen grapes with rich flavours. 

* Terrace Edge was named the New Zealand Organic Vineyard of the Year in 2018 and this year was named Aotearoa New Zealand Organic Winery of the Year.

This medium styled RIesling is produced by Greystone Wines, a family owned winery in the Waipara Valley, the heart of North Canterbury. Greystone is one of North Canterbury's wine stars situated on the slopes of limestone rich hills in Omihi. All of the grapes that go into Greystone wines are 100% certified organic with BioGro NZ and all are estate grown. No additional fruit is purchased to supplement production, which is one of many incremental steps that go into Greystone's high quality wines. 

Greystone Riesling is one of our faves here in store and is a medium style with a nice balance of 23 grams per litre of residual sugar, which off sets the bright acidity and ensures that the overall flavours and style of the wine works in harmony. It contains 13% ABV and was made from grapes that contained a relatively low 8% botrytis, which adds weight and flesh to the wine. 

Certified organic with BioGro NZ.

About Greystone

The Greystone wine story began in 2000 when the Thomas Family bought an old sheep farm on the Omihi hills in the Waipara Valley, North Canterbury. The rolling limestone hills lured this family in and their goal was a single minded one: to make great wines from the limestone rich soils here. Fast forward 20 years and Greystone is one of the great (and, some might say, yet to be fully discovered) wineries in this outstanding wine region. Not least due to the work of winemaker Dom Maxwell and general manager Nick Gill, who began working together in 2005 and has grown along with the brand and quality. 

Impressive and iconic Pinot Noir from North Canterbury with commanding firm tannin structure and deep savoury flavours. Rich, ripe red and black plum aromas lead into a structured beautiful wine with spicy notes and earthy depth of flavour. This wine is unfined and unfiltered, which means it is ticks the vegan box and also may have some sediment. It also adds depth of flavour to this lovely Pinot Noir.

Pyramid Valley wines has a new lease of life following the untimely passing of its founder, Mike Weersing, whose insights and dedication to biodynamic winemaking providing an inspiration and impetus to the industry. The 2019 vintage provided ripe grapes which went into this full bodied, rich, ripe and savoury expression of Pinot Noir. It was bottled unfined and is vegan. 

Mon Cheval is a small family owned wine brand in the Waipara Valley, which is the heart of the North Canterbury wine scene - one of New Zealand's highest quality Pinot Noir regions.

A steep vineyard in Omihi that was established in 1999 has now been renamed as Damsteep (aptly enough) and is home to the grapes that find their way into this pretty aromatic Pinot Noir with its smooth and savoury flavours of fruity red berries, wrapped in firmly structured earthy notes and a lingering, silky finish. This is a great drink now from a very good vintage for quality and it will age well for up to five years, possibly longer. It was bottled unfined and unfiltered with minimal sulphur.

The Main Divide is the name of the majestic Southern Alps, which form the backbone of the South Island of New Zealand. It is also the name of a range of outstanding, approachable priced drink-me-now styled wines from Pegasus Bay winery in North Canterbury. 

These wines consistently punch well above their price weight, including this Chardonnay, which is made from hand picked grapes, which were whole bunch pressed into large French oak puncheons and fermented with the grape's natural yeasts then matured on yeast lees for a year. Full bodied, creamy, bold and powerful.

Taka K is the brainchild of Japanese born, North Canterbury based winemaker Takahiro Koyama, who has launched this fabulous new expression of Pinot Noir from the windy climate of Canterbury. Hot days, cool nights and thoughtful winemaking combine in this wine which has a medium body and intense flavours of smoked mushrooms, wild earth and a hint of thyme beautifully intermingled with red cherry aromas and dense plummy softness. 

Like diving into a velvet cushion in the glass. Need we say more.

The grapes in this wine were grown on an organically farmed vineyard on the eastern side of the Waipara Valley, North Canterbury. The vineyard has clay rich soil with a limestone influence and is undergoing transition to become certified organic. All grapes were fermented in open top fermenters with wild yeasts followed by ageing in French Oak barrels (no new oak) for about 10 months, then racked and blended into stainless steel tanks prior to the bottling without any fining or filtration.

The total production was 560 cases.

Greystone is one of North Canterbury's wine stars situated on the slopes of limestone rich hills in Omihi. All of the grapes that go into Greystone wines are 100% certified organic with BioGro NZ and all are estate grown. No additional fruit is purchased to supplement production, which is one of many incremental steps that go into Greystone's high quality wines. 

This impressive Pinot Noir is the top of the Pinot tree at Greystone. It's made from fully destemmed whole berries which were cold macerated and fermented with wild yeasts, 25% of the wine having been fermented in small tanks amongst the vines, which ensures a completely wild vineyard yeast fermentation. The wine is bottled without fining, filtration or cold stabilisation.

It drinks well now but will reward those with patience to wait for it to develop further with age and has the potential to evolve positively for up to a decade, if kept in good conditions. 

Certified organic with BioGro NZ.

About Greystone

The Greystone wine story began in 2000 when the Thomas Family bought an old sheep farm on the Omihi hills in the Waipara Valley, North Canterbury. The rolling limestone hills lured this family in and their goal was a single minded one: to make great wines from the limestone rich soils here. Fast forward 20 years and Greystone is one of the great (and, some might say, yet to be fully discovered) wineries in this outstanding wine region. Not least due to the work of winemaker Dom Maxwell and general manager Nick Gill, who began working together in 2005 and has grown along with the brand and quality. 

This Sauvignon Blanc is all about precision and feel. Bright notes of green apple and fennel glide over a chalk-dusted, subtly creamy core.

A firm mineral seam underpins the wine, while layers of grapefruit zest and savoury tomato leaf build in complexity. It tapers to a dry, grainy finish with an almost tactile grip.

Terrace Edge is a family owned, certified organic winery based in the Waipara Valley wine growing region. This Syrah has a nose of ripe blackberry and plum with notes of liquorice and spice. The palate is rich with dark fruit, supported by elegant ripe tannins.

Terrace Edge was named the New Zealand Organic Vineyard of the Year in 2018 and this year was named Aotearoa New Zealand Organic Winery of the Year.

Winery Notes:

An exotic nose of baking spices, pear, peach and cashew. This single block
Chardonnay naturally builds on the palate initially with ripe fruits,
beautifully restrained by fine-grained oak and integrated acidity. A long
flowing wine ready now, or age for up to ten years for increased complexity.

Note from our Viticulturist Mike Saunders :
Erin's Chardonnay grows on our steepest and highest slopes, in limestone soils which
impact a beautiful minerality and tension to the wine. The block is 100% Mendoza clone, its natural acidity is a perfect companion for the limestone soils. The small berries and thick skins from 2018 have created a wine with concentration and fine phenolics which add to the structure of the wine. Variation between the top and bottom of the slope adds layers of different flavours to the fruit and texture of the resulting wine. Extensive leaf plucking and bunch thinning ensured balanced crop loads and even ripening.

Note from our Winemaker Dom Maxwell :
We hand picked our steepest block of Mendoza Chardonnay before a gentle whole-bunch pressing to tank without additions. We allowed the juice to settle overnight before we racked to French oak barrels for wild fermentation and full malo-lactic fermentation. The extended nature of fermentation brings not only richness to the wine but also layers and complexity. Barrel ageing lasts 15 months before the wine was estate bottled without fining

Black Estate - This Riesling is grown on the rolling slopes of our Damsteep Vineyard.  The site's dense clay and mineral limestone provide weight, texture and salivating freshness.  A true character.

Hand-picked and fermented with natural vineyard yeasts and aged in 20% new French oak barrels and 38% in a concrete Tulipe for 12 months before settling in a concrete Tulipe on light lees for a further 5 months. Bottled unfined and unfiltered.

Slightly hazy, lemon golden hue. Complex aromas of grilled nuts, citrus fruits, florals and a hint of lemon rind. Mouth-watering acidity drives the wine with laser focus, flavours of citrus fruits, toasted nuts and a creamy texture gives the wine body and weight. A classic North Canterbury Chardonnay that is fully ripe and saline.

Prima Donna is the top Pinot Noir and best red from Pegasus Bay Winery, made from a blend of barrels tasted by the winemaking team and chosen for their quality and superior style. It is produced by Mat Donaldson and his winemaking team, who aim to create the most complex and balanced Pinot Noir possible in this wine, which is part of Pegasus Bay’s reserve series wines. 

Traditional Burgundian winemaking sees the inclusion of approximately one third of the grapes in this blend fermented as whole bunches. The maturation is in French oak, approximately 45% new, for 18 months, using oak barriques from selected artisan Burgundian coopers.

This wine drinks well now and can also age superbly for 10 years and further, in cool cellar conditions.

* Prima Donna Pinot Noir is produced only in vintages regarded as exceptional quality.