Big, buttery and oaky in taste, Durvillea Chardonnay is the little sister to Astrolabe Chardonnay. It's made with grapes grown in two parts of Marlborough with 66% from the Awatere Valley and 35% from Wairau Valley. 

All grapes in this wine were hand picked then fermented with a combination of wild and cultured yeasts. A portion of barrel fermentation adds weight and structure to this incredibly accessibly priced wine. 

Its flavours are of cream, ripe grapefruit and softness. 

The story of Astrolabe

Diversity, history and family ownership are among the reasons to try the outstanding range of wines from Astrolabe, which was founded in 1996 in Marlborough by winemaker Simon Waghorn and his partner in life and wine, Jane. 

Simon has forged a reputation for being one of New Zealand's most respected producers of aromatic white wines after winning an almost embarrassingly long string of awards for his Sauvignon Blancs. He has also forged a name for adventurously diverse winemaking - he produces dry flinty whites from the most southern vineyard in Marlborough at Kekerengu on the coast about an hour's drive south of Blenheim. He is the only winemaker to produce wines from here. 

He is also one of the few in this country to make Albarino, Chenin Blanc and a consistently outstanding range of wines from the organically certified hillside sloping site that is the Wrekin Vineyard in Marlborough. 

The winery remains family owned and is now run by two generations, including Simon and Jane as well as their adult daughters. 

Commercial Description

This Pinot Noir is from our Ballochdale Vineyard, high in the Awatere Valley, Marlborough. This is the first wine Sir George made from this vineyard he acquired in 2023. The vineyard sits at 300m high and is one of the highest and most southerly vineyards in the Awatere Valley, Marlborough.

As soon as we released this wine, it was loved by all. It truly is a gorgeous example of a perfectly crafted Marlborough Pinot Noir. We are so proud to share it with you.

Commercial description

Our Merlot Cabernet Franc comes from our Cornerstone vineyard growing in Hawke's Bays' famed Gimblett Gravels appellation. An area renowned for producing excellent hot climate reds. We think Cornerstone is the jewel in the appellation's crown but there again we are rather biased!

In our Iris blend, the Merlot sets up the palate with ripeness and structure while the Cabernet Franc brings its sweet dried basil notes to create our deliciously good medium-bodied red

TASTING NOTE From grapes grown on naturally low-yielding, old vines, this wine is vibrant and complex. Grapefruit, peach and earthy clay pot aromas complement a fresh and focused palate. Fine phenolic texture and mineral acidity add depth and length respectively.  The salinity from the ocean, oak influence, together with juicy tree fruit notes from the grapes, round out what is truly a charming wine. 

VINEYARDS & VITICULTURE Our Waiheke Vineyard is accredited with Sustainable Winegrowing NZ and is entirely owned and managed by Cable Bay Vineyards to ensure we produce the best quality fruit possible. We practice regenerative viticulture. The site is located on the sun-drenched, western side of the island, on steep slopes overlooked by Rangitoto volcano. We have predominantly mineralised clay volcanic soils over Jurassic era rock. This type of geology and soil provides wines with great mid-palate weight and minerality. This wine is a blend of Chardonnay clones 15, 95, 6 and 548. 

WINEMAKING The ripe fruit was hand-harvested early in the morning whilst the grapes were nice and cool, transported across the road to the winery, and immediately whole bunch pressed. It was settled and racked taking light lees, leaving textural Chardonnay juice to enter wild yeast fermentation. We allowed partial malolactic fermentation on this wine, to both develop mouthfeel while preserving the natural acidity of our warmer sub-tropical climate. Following barrel ferment, the wine aged in second use oak puncheons and barriques on full lees for 12 months before assemblage, and then a further 3 months integrating together as a blend in tank, before bottling.

TASTING NOTE Dark purple and ruby appearance with a pink rim leads to a bouquet of ripeness, concentration and power. On the nose, the wine bursts with aromas of fresh crushed blackcurrant, rosemary flower and violet, layered with smoky clove and new leather. The palate is opulent and velvety in texture, with concentration, ripeness and power. Plum, dark cherry and cocoa beans are vibrant and lingering. This wine is both intense and delicate.  A lovely reflection of the 2021 season. 

VINEYARDS & VITICULTURE Our Waiheke Vineyard is entirely owned and managed by Cable Bay Vineyards to ensure we produce the best quality fruit possible. We practice regenerative viticulture, and we are accredited with Sustainable Winegrowing NZ. We are located on the sun-drenched, western side of the island, on steep slopes overlooked by Rangitoto volcano. We have predominantly mineralised clay volcanic soils over Jurassic era rock. This type of geology and soil provides wines with great mid-palate weight and minerality. This wine is made from the Hermitage MS clone of Syrah. 

WINEMAKING These Syrah grapes were hand-picked in March 2021, on a cool morning, and immediately taken across the road to our winery. The ferment was 100% whole berries, which helps to enhance the floral and bright fruit characters in the wine. At pressing, only the free run wine was retained to ensure delicacy, and run to French oak puncheons and barriques. In 20% new oak, it aged for 21 months before assemblage and bottling.

Commercial Description

We are lucky at Čuvar to have arguably one of the best red wine vineyards on the Gimblett Gravels, which meant that the Syrah weathered the early cyclone and continued to ripen to produce fruit with depth of flavour and ripe tannins – the perfect palette to create this wine.

Firm, ripe tannins create a backbone enveloped in juicy sun kissed fruit that lengthens on the palate to leave you wanting more.

Commercial Description

made from fruit sourced from Ballochdale in the Awatere Valley. Proudly sitting 300m above sea level, the vineyard’s spectacular inland location provides the most desirable conditions for producing wines of identity and intensity.

Čuvar Guardians Pinot Noir 2023 is the first wine Sir George made from this vineyard he acquired in 2023. This wine displays vibrancy and a ripe red fruit profile typical of the regions, along with added depth, structure and spicy nuances from ageing in French oak barriques. While still youthful, the wine already shows nice complexity from the oak maturation and will age gracefully well into the end of the decade.

This bright ruby red Pinot Noir has aromas of ripe red cherry, cranberry and accented hints of savoury earthiness.

Hieronymus is a blend of grapes and of vineyards and is composed of 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 17% Cabernet Franc, 12% Malbec and 8% Tempranillo with 58% from the Gimblett Gimblett and 42% from the Bridge Pa Triangle.

Grapes were harvested in three separate hand picked lots and fermented separately in oak cuves, then drained to barrel without pressing. The wine was aged for 26 months in 50% new French oak.

The wine's name pays homage to an ancestor of the winery's owners, the Weiss family.

BIG Ted Pinot noir 2023
Classic Central Otago Pinot Noir in classic packaging

Organic, soft, supple and Otago delicious fruit with red fruits, cherries, plums and all in between– everything you want in premium Pinot Noir.

Yes  - it is wine with a tap. it's really good wine, yes again. We have sourced the very newest packaging that allows us to put this high end wine in a cylinder, allows you to have a glass when you want with nothing to worry about including not finishing the bottle. Finally premium wine with convenience.

New tech delivers no wastage, fresh with every glass, lasts up to a month once opened, fully recyclable, and less than half the carbon footprint of the same wine in bottles. Times are a changing so get with a new programme - BigTed

Grapes from our Estate vineyards, destemmed, wild yeasts all aged in French oak.

100% organic, vegan friendly.
2 litres, 2.67 bottles

Artwork by Callum Robertson

TED  - redefining wine culture

From Jules Taylor...

Forget what you think you know about Pinot Gris and try this tasty little treat. Jules conjures up some winemaker witchcraft to coax every last ounce of personality out of this subtle little grape. Modern clones combine with traditional wild ferments, barrel aging and lees stirring to supercharge the aromas and textures of this wine. The end result is a flavour-packed mouthful of peach and citrus with an elegant spicy dry finish: a wine that will keep everyone happy.

Bold, dry deliciousness and peachy perfection with just a hint of hint of spice come together in the perfect party pour.

Dry, full bodied, iconoclastic Riesling from New Zealand's king of spatlese styles, Mat Donaldson and his winemaking team at Pegasus Bay Winery, which is New Zealand's greatest Riesling producer. 

This wine, Bel Canto, is the queen of the winery's Riesling range. It is bone dry with 5 grams per litre of residual sugar due to high brix (grape sugars) at harvest time and a small percentage of noble rot (also known as botrytis). It drinks well now and can age for the long term; up to and beyond 10 years. 

Extended hang time on the vines has resulted in the intensely ripe, tropical fruit flavours in the grapes which were picked to retain refreshing, high but balanced acidity. The free run juice was fermented slowly at cool temperatures to retain fruit characters and varietal purity. Alcoholic fermentation was left to continue until residual sugar of 5 g/l was achieved. Retention of a little of natural carbon dioxide gives spritz character to add liveliness and accentuate freshness.

Made by Mt Edward winery co-owner, winemaker and Riesling devotee Duncan Forsyth, whose focus is on dry Rieslings. This is a super tasty with with complex fresh aroma spectrum and flavours of lemons, limes, and grapefruit, underpinned by the freshness of sorbet and a lingering dry finish. 

Grapes were whole bunch pressed and fermented in stainless steel barrels and stainless tanks with wild yeasts, no temperature control and lees aging for three months.