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A selection of recent reveiws of Auntsfield wines:
Sauvignon Blanc
2010 Auntsfield Estate Sauvignon Blanc
“ Its good to see a wine labelled as Southern Valleys especially when it’s in a rich, complex and intense style typical of that newly designated area. It shows a mix of green capsicum, mineral, passionfruit, gooseberry and subtle nettle flavours. Linear and long with assertive fruity acidity. A portion of the grapes (15%) was hand-picked, whole bunch pressed and fermented with wild yeast in seasoned oak barriques to add texture and complexity to the wine. ” ‘Top 12 Tasted & Rated NZ Sauvignon Blanc’ Bob Campbell Australian Gourmet Traveller Wine Magazine, March 2011
“ ...This wine has a soft, full nose of sweetly ripe passionfruit and tropical fruit aromas, with some pungency and lifted estery nuances. Dry to taste, this is full and rich with weighty tropical fruit flavours filling the palate. Lovely herb and mineral elements along with fresh acidity provide excellent liveliness... 18.5-/20 ”
“ Rising Marlborough star, showing a near perfect vintage in 2010. Serious wine; pretty dry and with excellent spine and mineral characters in the backdrop. Still unfolding and will open up further over summer yet this is a classic dinner wine for the lover of dry, spiny and true to varietal styles”
Peter Saunders, Hospitality Magazine, Nov2010
2009 Long Cow Sauvignon Blanc
“ Fleshy and rounded, mouthfilling and crisp, a very fresh and vibrant wine with ripe, sweet-fruit delights and strong melon/lime flavours”
‘ Best of 2010 Releases’ Michael Cooper, Winestate Annual 2011
Chardonnay
2009 Auntsfield Estate Chardonnay
“ A nicely fresh style, not without its French oak influence but left at a subtle level to allow the fruit to come through as clean and overt. Very nice food-friendly chardonnay, plenty of life and vigour as befits Marlborough, peachy and quite intense with it. A classic style with some class. ”
Peter Saunders, Hospitality Magazine, Jan2011
2008 Auntsfield ‘Cob Cottage’ Chardonnay
“ Superb wine, celebrated by all judges. Fragrant, highly complex bouquet, suggestive of grilled nuts, leading into a mouthfilling, very generous palate with great depth of peach and apricot flavours, finely balanced oak (30% new) and impressive complexity. Beautifully rich, finely textured and layered. ” 5 Stars Michael Cooper, Winestate, Marlborough Tasting, March/April 2011
“ ... a full, rich bouquet of mealy, nutty aromas complexed by sweet, spicy oak, the nose dense and in complete proportion. Full, rich and mouthfilling in flavour, this is packed with ripe, succulent mealy, yellow stonefruit and citrus notes, and powerful nutty oak. The wine is soft and beautifully textured, the components integrating and harmonising.... 18.5/20 ”
“ Assertive chardy with strong citrus, stonefruit, mineral and spicy oak flavours together with some bran biscuit and sizzled butter characters. Full-flavoured wine with character and appeal from one the region’s emerging quality winemakers ”
Bob Campbell, Gourmet Traveller Wine, July2008
Pinot Noir
2009 Auntsfield Estate Pinot Noir
“ Smoky, funky nose. Dark cherry and blackberry fruit flavours are balanced by dried herb, spice and some charry oak. The creamy palate is nicely pure, round and soft with a minerally finish ”
NZ Wine Magazine, Winter 2011
“ Deeply coloured, with a voluminous bouquet of plums, herbs and violets, showing great complexity. Rich, finely textured palate, overflowing with ripe cherry, plum and spice flavours. 'Ethereal and complete,' enthused one Judge. ” (5 Stars) Winestate Magazine, March April 2011
“ ...this has a full, softly fragrant nose of ripe, dark berry fruits with a deep core, unfolding lovely soft red fruits and florals in the glass. Rich and sweet with lush dark cherry, berry and raspberry fruit flavours on the palate, this combines generosity with concentration and depth. The wine is very well-structured with firm, but refined tannins which carry through to the long finish. Excellent acidity provides focus and tension.... 18.5+ / 20 ”
2007 Hawk Hill Pinot Noir
“ The lovely 2007 Hawk Hill Pinot Noir, matured in 40% new French oak, is bursting with fresh raspberries on the nose that just build and build in the glass. The palate is very well balanced, superb crispness and acidity, again that theme of raspberries augmented by raspberry and a twist of lemon. Very focused, very fresh and lovely from start ‘til finish.
Savour its youth and drink over 4-5 years. Auntsfield is one of New Zealand’s stalwart producers that can trace its roots back the 19th century and they presently farm vineyards in the Wairau Valley. They have an interesting portfolio full of character and occasionally, great quality. Drink 2009 – 2014 ” – 90pts
2007 Hawk Hill Pinot Noir features in New World Top 50
Auntsfield's Hawk Hill Pinot Noir was featured in a list of the 50 best New World Pinot Noirs in the June 2009 edition of Decanter magazine. It says of the wine:
“The softer Marlborough Pinot model is generous and welcoming but no less attractive than more minerally types. This is one of the most intricate.”
Steven Spurrier MW chooses Auntsfield Hawk Hill Pinot Noir 2005 as ‘Best New World Red’
“This superb Pinot Noir stood out at the recent New Zealand tasting for it’s depth of colour, richness of fruit, purity, length and sense of place - a wine to rival the very best from Central Otago.” as described by Steven Spurrier MW in Decanter, the UK’s influential wine magazine.
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