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Are you the life of the party or elegant and graceful?
From merlot to Shiraz, we’ve got a list of wines that reveal the truth about your personality. Which one are you most suited to?
Shiraz
You’re the life of the party. You have no problem dancing on tables. You’re a true free spirit. You always seem to try new things because life’s too short.
Cabernet sauvignon
Always assertive and direct, you command discussion and want your voice to be heard. You enjoy the classics and have a thing for old-world affairs. Just like Brad Pitt, you only get better with age.
Merlot
The one known as “easy to drink,” just like you’re easy to get along with. You’re always a delightful partner for table conversation.
Pinot Noir
Fresh, elegant and graceful. You enjoy nothing better than the scent of sea breeze
Riesling
You’re sweet and nice. Despite being genuine, people sometimes have a hard time agreeing with you.
Sauvignon blanc
One word: sophistication. You’re always in control and you’re good at what you do. The perfect mix of herbal and a little smoky.
Pinot Grigio
You enjoy travelling the world as you yearn to immerse yourself in new cultures in order to connect with the world.
Rosé
You’re bubbly and personable and people find you easy to be around and a pleasure to sip on.
Caleb Harris/Fairfax NZ | Last updated February 10, 2016.
After 113 years in a farmhouse cellar, a bottle of wine believed to be the oldest ever opened in New Zealand has astonished critics by still tasting great.
“It’s superb. Amazing, really … It’s still hanging on, shaking its fist at you out of the glass,” was how wine writer John Saker summed up the 1903 Landsdowne Claret opened in Wairarapa on Wednesday.
Early Wairarapa settler William Beetham made the wine on land the family owned in Masterton, after his homesick French wife Hermance planted vines.
The 1903 blend of pinot noir, pinot meunier and syrah is poured at Brancepeth Station in Wairarapa.
The vineyard stopped producing around 1908, but some bottles have been cellared ever since in the Edwardian homestead at Brancepeth Station, east of Masterton, which Beetham’s descendants still own.
On Wednesday, Saker convened a panel of 12 other local and international wine writers at Brancepeth to sample the valuable vintage, a bottle of which once sold for $14,000.
The 1903 blend of pinot noir, pinot meunier and syrah is poured at Brancepeth Station in Wairarapa.
Beetham’s Masterton vineyard was revived under new owner Derek Hagar in 2009 and won an international pinot noir award, so the tasters compared Beetham’s 1903 wine with a contemporary bottle produced by Hagar on the same land.
Brancepeth’s current custodian, Edward Beetham, said seeing his forebear’s pioneering role in Wairarapa winemaking acknowledged was “a great occasion”. “We’ve always sort of dreamt of doing this.”
Although called a claret, the wine is actually a blend of pinot noir, pinot meunier and syrah.
Breaths were bated as the crumbling cork was pulled, but once the venerable wine was swished, sniffed and sipped, the consensus was that age had not wearied it.
“This wine is like … a 100-year-old human which is still not ready to die,” German sommelier Markus Berlinghof said.
“There was this sort of dried citrus-peel acidity that just made it feel alive, still, and that completely shocked me,” American wine writer Sara Schneider said.
American wine writer Sara Schneider at the tasting.
Saker found the wine not only surprisingly fault-free for its age, but also redolent of an “Edwardian summer” at the dawn of New Zealand’s wine industry. “That’s what makes it wonderful.”
BETTER WITH AGE?
1. John Saker, Wine editor Cuisine magazine
Tasting notes: “Slight faded rose, a hint of reduction … that lovely elegant passage across the palate, just a suggestion of sweetness. This is a Wairarapa pinot to be proud of.”
What about compared with the 2009 Landsdowne wine? “I thought there was a family resemblance … both have a finer, lighter, red fruit notes and a steely acidity.”
Rating (1903): 5 out of 5
2. German sommelier Markus Berlinghof
German sommelier Markus Berlinghof and American wine writer Sara Schneider get to work on their tasting notes.
Tasting notes: “A lot of dried fruit character, dried orange zest. Elegant, a very feminine mouth feel. The colour is still in very good condition, a deep garnet, very fresh.”
What about compared with the 2009 Landsdowne wine? “I wasn’t a friend of drinking the other wine afterward, I don’t want to compare them.”
Rating: Doesn’t believe in ratings, but in a word: “Superb”.
3. American wine writer Sara Schneider
Tasting notes: “That first red fruit is really gone by now, but has sort of turned into a dried fig character, kind of an earthy tang, with the tannin texture … dried rose petals … a terrific wine.”
What about compared with the 2009 Landsdowne wine? “There’s a wet loam, forest floor, mushroomy, savoury character in both wines.”
Rating: High 19 out of 20 (1903); low 19 out of 20 (2009).
Matua and Beringer wine will be served at the 22nd annual Screen Actors Guild Awards
Chloe Winter, January 23 2016
Hollywood’s finest will be enjoying a drop of Kiwi wine at this year’s prestigious Screen Actors Guild Awards.
Treasury Wine Estates’ New Zealand brand, Matua, and Australian brand, Beringer, will be served to the rich and famous at the event – now in its 22nd year.
Beringer’s 2013 Knights Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and 2014 Napa Valley Chardonnay will be on offer during the awards ceremony while Matua’s 2014 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc and 2014 Marlborough Pinot Noir will be served at the party afterwards.
About 1200 bottles of wine would be on-hand for celebrities to indulge in.
Treasury Wine Estates spokeswoman Megghen Driscol said guests would drink about 100 cases of wine throughout the evening.
“That’s approximately 6000 glasses of wine.”
With stars like Kate Winslet at the event, boosting brand awareness is a big aim.
This is the company’s third year serving wine at the awards show, Driscol said.
“We were initially approached because the organiser wanted well-respected wines that were nationally distributed – both Beringer and Matua fit that bill perfectly.”
Two wine bars would serve only Beringer, and several full-service bars would pour Matua along with other beverages, she said.
When asked whether the celebrities enjoyed their wine, Driscol said: “Well, they go through 100 cases of premium wine in one night, so one would have to assume they enjoy it…
“We don’t want to name-drop, but I can say that that several celebrities ask for Beringer and Matua by name now, so we’ve certainly created awareness amongst this highly influential group of tastemakers.”
With big names like Leonardo Dicaprio, Cate Blanchett, Helen Mirren, Johnny Depp, Kate Winslet and Rachel McAdams in attendance, brand exposure makes for great business.
“This truly is a win-win partnership.
“In addition to awareness and trial, we very much consider this to be a brand building activity which is always tough to score,” she said.
“However, we do leverage SAG content [through] our social media channels and see it as a great opportunity to build brand awareness amongst an influential group of people and create a buzz in the market.”
A few US-based Treasury Wine Estate’s staff get the honour of pouring the wine and educating the stars on the wines, she said.
The SAG awards are being held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on January 30.
