Author: EvelynD

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Hawkes Ridge Wines, March 2021

Hawkes Ridge owner & winemaker Douglas Haynes with a small range of his wines.
Hawkes Ridge owner & winemaker Douglas Haynes with a small range of his wines.

Douglas Haynes with the assistance of Anne Boustead presented a well-received tasting last month and a great turnout. This was an exciting evening, with some very different expressions of wine varieties on hand to taste. Interestingly this vineyard also has its own brand of olive oil.
Hawkes Ridge Wine Estate is a family-owned, boutique winery located in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand. The wines we tasted were:

  • Cest Beau Rose: The introductory wine. This was a non-vintage Viognier base
    with both Tempranillo and Semillon that was late harvested in the Moscato
    style
  • Deux Blanco 218: A Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon 50/50 blend that was entirely
    barrel fermented where the grapes were picked early
  • Viognier 2020 was also completely barrel-fermented. Viognier is Douglas
    passion and this Viognier did not disappoint.
  • Rosado 2020 is a 100% Tempranillo rose being entirely stainless steel fermented and aged. This wine was one of the highlight wines of the evening.
  • Pinot Noir 2014 was a surprise wine from Hawkes Bay with an interesting
    back story. The wine was aged in French oak for 10 months and just bottled
    before Christmas 2020
  • Syrah 2014 had classic Syrah characteristics of dark berry fruits with coffee,
    chocolate and subtle spice
  • Grand Reserve Tempranillo 2015: This is Hawkes Ridge Winery’s premium
    wine. It was another highlight of the evening. The wine was only bottled in 2018 and should cellar well
  • Late Harvest Viognier 2016 is one of three late harvest/noble wines that Hawkes Ridge Winery produce. This wine was bottled in 2018 and although very rich, it was true to Viognier’s varietal characteristics.

Thank you to everyone who supported Hawk Ridge by ordering wines, as well as their olive oil which was on the order form, albeit not tasted. This meeting was great to start our tasting year.

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Cellar Club 40th year celebration Wine Trip

Cellar Club members celebrating the club's 40th-anniversary wine trip to Wairarapa Feb 2021
Cellar Club members celebrating the club’s 40th-anniversary wine trip to Wairarapa Feb 2021

It was a brilliant day weather-wise, to travel via train, then bus to Martinborough. The three vineyards that were organised for us to visit, thanks to Gayl’s marvellous efforts, were Nga Waka, Tiwaiwaka and Grava/Alana.

We were divided into three groups, with each group assigned to two of the three vineyards to taste at – for ease of the smaller cellar tasting rooms, and the exuberance of the people attending.

Each of the vineyards was fully welcoming and at the Grava tasting room, if you asked, you could taste the Alana version of the wine being tasted, which was great if you were tasting with a partner.

Grava/Alana

At Grava/Alana where Lunar are the new owners, the vineyards brands are kept very separate. Grava has its vines on the Lake Ferry Road which has gravelly/alluvial soil and Alana’s wines are made from vineyards further in around Martinborough. The wines tasted were:

  • 2018 Sauvignon Blanc – 12 months in oak/12 months in barrel fermented
  • 2020 Alana Pinot Gris
  • 2016 Riesling [also tasted the 2016 Alana Riesling]
  • 2017 Alana Pinot Noir
  • 2018 Pinot Noir
  • 2017 Late Harvest – Sauvignon Blanc harvested mid-May

Nga Waka

At Nga Waka – where the new American owners are stuck in Nevada – the wines tasted were:

  • 2020 Sauvignon Blanc – planted in 1988/89, the first wines made in 1993
  • 2019 Chardonnay – fermented in oak barrels for 10 months
  • 2019 Rose – from Pinot Noir grapes
  • 2018 Pinot Noir

Tiwaiwaka

At Tiwaiwaka the tastings were conducted under the branches of a lovely oak tree. The wines tasted were:

  • 2020 Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon Blend – an excellent surprise to start with 2019 Semillon
  • 2018 Rose
  • 2020 Chardonnay
  • 2018 Pinot Noir
  • 2019 Cabbage Tree Pinot Noir – the second favoured tasting for group B
  • 2019 Merlot

Orders were good for all vineyards and many have been delivered directly to members already, with the delivery of the smaller lots being arranged by Wayne and Murray in the coming days.

The bus driver, Craig, was brilliant and was always where he was needed.

Coney’s

Tim Coney welcoming members for a tasting & celebration lunch
Tim Coney welcoming members for a tasting & celebration lunch

Our tasting and lunch at Coney’s was entertaining, with one of the owners Tim Coney regaling us with his stories of the vineyard, his band and his love of opera (which is where the musical names for the wines come from), and life in general in the Wairarapa.

To accompany the wines each table as served with a small platter of food. The wines tasted during this session were:

  • 2020 Rallentando Riesling
  • 2018 Riesling
  • 2020 Ragtime Riesling
  • Piccolo Pinot Gris
  • 2019 Foxy Lady Syrah Rose’
  • 2016 Reserve Pizzicato Noir – a gold medal winner made to go with food
  • 2015 Que Sera Syrah
  • 2020 Ramblin’ Rose Pinot Noir
  • 2020 Sticky Fingers Riesling Dessert – double gold award-winning wine

The lunch was well-received when served. The train trip to the Wairarapa and back was an added highlight for everyone, with many having never travelled that line before.

Thanks to Gayl and Wayne for your efforts in making this event such a memorable occasion.

Finally, if you are interested in viewing the various photos taken on this wine trip, they are on the club’s gallery page.

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Looking back to Jan BBQ 2021

Our Club year started off in the same fabulous way that it usually does, with our annual BBQ held at Derek’s place – thanks, Derek!

Helped by the magnificent cooking done excellently by Richard and Wayne – as witnessed here.

Forty club members attended and the mixing, conversations, joviality and general socialising went down well.

Everyone enjoyed the fare of Salmon, Angel Bay burgers and sausages, together with the salads and desserts brought by the members. It was a proverbial feast that was needed to help soak up the huge variety of wines that accumulated on Derek’s outdoor bench. The 20+year bottle of Penfolds 389 was the highlight for many, but its presence did re-enforce the need for everyone to always take a small tasting at the annual BBQ and AGM.

The weather came to the party too with the sun unrelentingly beaming down on the gathering. A great time was had by all.

See more pics.

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Important things to know for our Wairarapa wine tastings

In the interests of everyone having a great time on this trip and no surprises on the day, the following is to help with your wine tasting and purchasing decisions, free of the hazy glow of alcohol!

Tasting fees

At Grava/Alana, and at Tiwaiwaka, it’s $10 per tasting, which you’ll need to pay directly to the applicable winery. This charge is per glass so if two people share a tasting from the same glass it’ll only cost $10 total. While there is no charge to us for tasting at Nga Waka, there is a cost to the winery so please think seriously about supporting them by buying some wine. Some of the wineries are considering sending us an order form in advance so that all members have the opportunity of buying their wines and we’ll circulate those when received. The tasting at Coney’s is included in the cost of lunch.

Redeeming tasting fees on wine purchases

The tasting fee at Grava will be waived on bottle purchases on a per person basis, ie if two people buy one bottle of wine between them, they’ll also have to pay one $10 tasting fee.

Transporting your wine purchases The club will provide stickers so you can identify any wines you’ve bought. Tranzit policies mean that we can’t take any wine at all on the bus and any wine purchases will need to be stored in the separate luggage compartment. Please note that any wine stored in the luggage compartment will be at your own risk. Grava, Nga Waka and Coney (Tiwaiwaka TBC) will pack our wine purchases in boxes – smaller orders will be combined to fill up the boxes. If there’s a large enough number of orders, they’ll ship them to one address.

If we end up transporting any boxes back home, to make it easier at the Featherston or Wellington ends, we recommend writing the owners’ names on the boxes and combining your smaller orders with those of people you can easily distribute to. And no sneaking wine inside the bus! The club will be liable for the clean-up costs for any messes, which will be passed on if they relate to spilt wine. When we return to Featherston Station there’ll be time, if necessary, for everyone to reunite with/sort out their purchases in preparation for taking them onto the train. Bear in mind there’ll probably be limited storage space, especially for boxes, so you may prefer to bring your own wine carry bags for this part.

Keeping ourselves safe

It’ll be a long time between leaving home and having lunch so please think about bringing your own water and snacks (we’re allowed cold snacks on the train). While there’ll be lots of wine on offer during the day, we encourage everyone to drink responsibly and to feel free to skip a tasting as you see fit.

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Wairarapa Wine Trip – Timetable

The Cellar Club
40TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL – TRIP TO MARTINBOROUGH
13 FEBRUARY 2021
Timetable

  • Meeting place - Wellington Railway station
    Meeting place – Wellington Railway station

    9.45 am, Saturday, 13 February, Wellington Railway Station – meet the rest of the group on the departure platform (see the departures board at the station). The train departs Wellington Station at 9.55 am so please be on the platform by 9.45 am so that we can form into a group and hopefully commandeer our own carriage! Tickets (one way or return) can be purchased at the station ticket office or on the train. The cost is $30 same-day return or $15 one way. Tickets bought on the train require payment in cash only. Gold Cardholders can use those.

  • 10.55 am, the train arrives at Featherston station where we meet the bus.
  • On arrival in Martinborough the bus will drop us off for wine tastings at Grava/Alana, Tiwaiwaka and Nga Waka wineries from 11.15 am. Grava/Alana will provide tastings of five wines and a sticky for $10, refundable with a purchase. Tiwaiwaka has a flat fee of $10 to taste seven wines. As Nga Waka has no on-licence, they are unable to charge for a tasting. The time available before going to Coney’s means each group will go to two wineries. Group A will go to Grava then Tiwaiwaka, Group B to Tiwaiwaka then Nga Waka, and Group C to Nga Waka then Grava.
  • 12.50 pm – the bus will start pick-ups at Nga Waka, with Tiwaiwaka and Grava pick-ups shortly afterwards. Please be ready!
  • It’ll then take us to Coney’s for a leisurely lunch from 1.15 pm. We will start with a wine tasting (charge included with lunch cost) which will be accompanied by small taste plates. This will be followed by a lunch that includes two mains plus sides together with petit fours for dessert. A limited amount of wine will be provided with the meal. Please note that if you order any wine over and above that supplied, or tea or coffee this will be at your own expense.
  • The bus will leave Coneys in time to connect with the train at Featherston where it is due to depart at 5.25 pm.
  • 6.25 pm – scheduled arrival time at Wellington Station.

Some additional points to note:

  • To ensure we keep on schedule and as a courtesy to others please make sure you are ready for the bus on time. It does take a few minutes to get everyone on board and settled before it can move on.
  • Please also see the “Important things to know” sheet for further details.

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Wairarapa Wine Trip – Saturday, 13 February

Less than a fortnight to go now and it was evident at the club barbecue that our members are really looking forward to this fun day out.

We ask all who are intending to come to double-check that your name is on the attached list. If you’re not intending to come, there’s no need to read any further.

There are three sections to this newsletter – please read all of them so that you’re up with the play.

We’ve allocated the groups along the lines of the seating at our dinners. If you’d particularly like to be in another group, you’re welcome to arrange your own swap.

However, please ensure overall group numbers remain the same and let Wayne know about the change.

If anyone has any special dietary requirements for our meal at Coney’s, please email Wayne asap.

While we encourage you to only drink as much wine as you can comfortably handle, please be aware that Nga Waka, Tiwaiwaka and Grava have small cellar doors and our groups will fill their tasting rooms. If there are significant numbers of people who are skipping a tasting at any one time, we’d ask that you make way for any members of the public who want to have a tasting.

And please also give these wineries your support – particularly Nga Waka seeing it’s unable to charge for tastings. There’s been quite a lot of discussion in various media about the difficulties faced by wineries who don’t have an on-licence, which is a pre-requisite to charge for tastings. for background, see the Stuff.nz article  Wineries unable to profit from tasting tourism call for law change.

We look forward to seeing you soon and wrapping up the club’s 40th birthday celebrations in style!

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Wairarapa Wine Trip – Saturday, 13 February

44 people are booked to go to on this trip, which includes a tasting and then lunch at Coney Wines.

If you are one of that 44 and can no longer go, it is imperative that you text or ring Gayl on 021 040 6244 and let her know before this weekend as Coneys are seeking urgent confirmation of our numbers.

Once we do that, any subsequent cancellation is unlikely to result in a refund.
Sadly, Palliser Estate is no longer part of our itinerary as they want to focus on the operation of their new restaurant which adjoins their tasting area, much like what we will experience at Coney Wines.

Updated details including times and the replacement winery will be emailed to everyone early next month, if not beforehand.

Palliser Estate

Grave Wines

alana wines

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