This wine is a labour of love and was made from hand picked grapes grown on the organically certified Ashmore Vineyard in Fairhall, Marlborough. A combination of spontaneous yeast and inoculated ferments (50/50) were taken to 12.5% ABV and residual sugar of 19.5 grams per litre, which makes this wine medium dry in style. It tastes like lemon zest and fresh ripe Granny Smith apples on speed… a gorgeous refreshing, full bodied Marlborough white wine made from one of the greatest grapes on Earth. 

A must try. 

This is a great red from a small wine producer just outside the village of Clevedon, in the rolling green hills southeast of Auckland. It's an unlikely destination for a top red as there are few other vineyards in the area, which is warm with a maritime climate - the coast can be seen from the vineyard and is about a 10 minute drive away.  

The wines are made solely from estate grown grapes from the four acres on site, which include Merlot, Carmenère, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Cabernet Franc. This bunch of classic Bordeaux red grapes inspired founder Judy Fowler to make wines modelled on the great reds of Pomerol and St Emilion in Bordeaux. The first wines were made in 1999 and continue to be produced on site by Judy, her partner Phil Nunweek and winemaker Evert Nijzink.  

Petit Manseng is a rarely known, refreshing white grape grown in a small appellation in the south of France where it makes outstanding wines such as this fresh, bright and complex sweet white wine. This is one of our absolute faves here at Regional and a wine we admire greatly from one of the smallest wineries in New Zealand's biggest wine region, Marlborough. 

Churton founder and winemaker Sam Weaver cut his teeth on the classic wines of the world while working in fine wine retail in the United Kingdom. His background is in microbiology and he was raised on a farm, so when he and his wife Mandy founded Churton Estate, it combined all of his passions. The couple and their adult sons, have created one of this country's most high quality small wineries, which lives up to the dream of creating 100% estate grown grapes, 100% certified organic production and 100% bottled on site, nearly all of the wines without fining or filtration. All grapes are hand picked and natural yeasts ferment the majority of Churton wines. These incremental qualitative decisions impact at every step of their winemaking provides exceptional quality grapes which in turn express themselves in outstanding wines.

Here's a great little red blend from Antinori, which is a gorgeous expression of the insanely beautiful Tuscany region, but which is made from an interesting mix of Italian and French grapes. Sangiovese leads the way here with small quantities of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah, all grown in Tuscany. 

Antinori's winemakers describe this wine as firm bodied on the palate, supple with  velvety tannins and a long, savoury aftertaste.

Nautilus Cuvee Brut is inspired by the richness and depth of Bollinger Special Cuvee, which in turn takes its inspiration from Pinot Noir - which provides the toasty depths of flavour, along with three years ageing on lees in bottle, before release. The result is a dry, full bodied, deliciously yeasty sparkling wine is a blend of 71.4% Pinot Noir and 28.6% Chardonnay. All grapes are hand picked, fermented with a champagne yeast with only the first run of juice going to fermentation to retain a fineness in flavour and texture. The wine typically contains 5 to 15% of reserve wines, held back from previous vintages, to add complexity and consistency to the wine. 

It is aged on lees in bottle for three years prior to disgorgement, which takes place regularly to ensure every bottle on the market remains fresh in flavour. 

Winemaker Clive Jones creates a consistently vibrant sparkling wine here which has pronounced yeasty, fresh bread aromas and rich savoury flavours. 

Nautilus is a member of Methodé Marlborough, a group of quality minded winemakers in the country's biggest wine region, who have dedicated themselves to producing sparkling wines with a minimum of 18 months aging in the bottle and made 100% from grapes grown in their region.

Delicious complex champagne with great depth and super fresh flavours; amazing value for money. Andre Clouet Grand Reserve is aged on lees for four years before disgorgement. It's made from 100% Pinot Noir, which is where all its rich, deliciously toasty aromas come from and the style is a complex blend of wine from the 2015 vintage with depth of flavour coming from the 50% proportion of older reserve wines from 2014, 2013, 2012, 2008, 2005, 2004 and 2002. 

The dosage is 8 grams per litre, which makes it dry in taste and in style. 

This wine offers substantially more flavour than most champagnes at this price on the market today - and kicks many more expensive bubbles to touch too.

Champagne AndreClouet dates back to 1741. Today the family owns eight hectares of estate vines in the best middle slopes of Bouzy and Ambonnay in the Champagne region from which it makes (along with purchased grapes) great wines of richness and depth. André  Clouet Grand Reserve is one of our staff faves here at Regional and is made from 100% Pinot Noir grapes, all grown on grand cru vineyards and aged on lees for four years before disgorgement. That is significantly longer than the legal minimum of 18 months aging on lees, pre release, in the Champagne region. 

This long aging time provides great depth and complex flavours to this deliciously flavoursome non vintage champagne. It offers incredible taste and richness.

* The André Clouet Grande Reserve is also available in half bottles.

If you’re after a complex champagne made from the great Pinot Noir grape, try this.

Bodega Terras Gauda overlooks the gentle green countryside of Galicia in north west Spain where its vineyards are planted. Terras Gauda uses its own yeasts, selected from its vineyards. These yeasts are unique to the winery and have been patented. This is one of the reasons the TG wines are so consistent because they don’t need to rely on commercial yeasts.

Chill this wine to 12 degrees and break out your best seafood, recommends wine importer Sophie Cotter, who brings this wine into New Zealand. 

Albarino is on trend globally right now and originally comes from north west Spain and the north of Portugal, where makes its fresh, zesty, dry as a bone and super flavoursome taste go particularly well with seafood. This wine comes from Terras Gauda Winery on the Spanish side of the Minho River, which separates Portugal from Spain.This region and its Portuguese counterpart over the border is the original home for the Albarino grape, known in Portugal as Alvarinho.

This fleshy, savoury, super silky and earthy Pinot Noir is made from grapes grown on a small .8 of a hectare situated on the road to Castlepoint in the northern Wairarapa. The first vintage was 2016 and the wine is a  collaboration between winemakers Karl Johner and Raphael Burki. All grapes in this smooth Pinot were hand harvested with 20% whole bunch to provide floral and fruit aroma lift and silkiness. The wine was aged for 12 months in French oak, 20% new, and bottled without filtering or fining. It is vegan friendly.Lime Hill Pinot Noir is made from a small vineyard of .8 of a hectare situated on the road to Castlepoint in the northern Wairarapa. The first vintage was in 2016 and the brand is a  collaboration between winemakers Karl Johner (of Johner Wines at Gladstone) and Raphael Burki, who have been making wine together since 2009. 

This wine is bottled without any filtering or fining. It is vegan friendly.