Puriri Hills Sydney and Melbourne Events - Details Added

[Craig(NZ)]

For those in Aussie interested. Love this winery - a chance for you Aussies to dip the toe in. Makes elegant bdx right bank styled reds. Maybe in some ways NZ's Mount Mary?

http://newzealandredwine.wordpress.com/2009/09/15/australia-us-tour-dates/

Added below, details on the Sydeney dinner and tastings in Sydney and Melbourne

[via collins]

Bugger.

No dining event in Melbs, and that looks like a cracking event in Sydney at a very good price.

Not often I use 'Sydney" and "very good price" in the same sentence.

[Craig(NZ)]

I just read the invite for the first time. OMG what a bargain!! I would really encourage any aussie that appreciates the elegant bordeaux 'dinner claret' style of wine to jump at this straight away (don't expect Penfolds or Wendouree). You wont be disappointed. (Gav I hope you dont mind me posting this given its sydney and melbourne)



Meet the wine maker, meet the chef and spoil your senses at Aperitivo
Don’t miss a night of exquisite wine tasting and food.
Puriri Hills makes blended red wines inspired by the wines of Pomerol and St Emillion
in Bordeaux and this winery is located in Clevedon, just south of Auckland. The microclimate
and soil profile are similar to nearby Waiheke Island, with plantings of Merlot,
Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Carmenere –all top Bordeaux clones. A single estate
vineyard of 15 Acres (6 hectares) planted in 1999, the wines are hand tended and
hand picked using sustainable viticultural practices.
A “cult” New Zealand winery, so come, taste and see why!

When: Wednesday 30th September, 2009 from 6.30 to 8.30pm
Where: Aperitivo
163 Norton Street, Leichhardt, NSW

Aperitivo has recently opened its doors showcasing a new wine bar and dining
experience and it stands out from the rest with ambience and exquisite food.

Cost: $65 per person all inclusive
(yes – that includes seven Puriri Hills wines (plus taste of the sold out three 2005’s)
and four special courses of food – stunning cult wines from New Zealand and meet
the Winemaker!)

Chef: Aperitivo Chef Christian will prepare a four course mini degustation meal to
match the exceptional Puriri Hills wines.

Winemaker: Discussing the wines with us will be Judy Fowler owner and winemaker
of Puriri Hills - Clevedon, New Zealand.

Booking: Confirm your place now with Mark Ovens, Ki WiNZ ph 9798 8569 or
0438478 000
Cheque, Visa, MasterCard accepted

We will be showing seven Puriri Hills wines plus sampling the three Puriri Hills
2005’s that are sold out

On Arrival : Puriri Hills Rose 2007
Special Aperitivo Menu
ScallopswithcrispyPancettaandCauliFlowerPurèe
/SearedScallopswithcrispyPancettaandCauliFlowerPurèe

Puriri Hills Estate 2006 and Puriri Hills Reserve 2006
MelanzaneParmigiana
/LayersofEggplantwithfreshTomatoSauceandBuffaloMozzarella

Puriri Hills Estate 2003 and Puriri Hills Reserve 2002
Veal scalloppinewithPorciniandPolenta
/VealMedallions,pan friedwithPorciniMushrooms on abed of Polenta
Puriri Hills Estate 2004 and Puriri Hills Reserve 2004

Cheese Plate
Puriri Hills Estate 2005 (tasting only, sold out)
Puriri Hills Reserve 2005 (tasting only, sold out)
Puriri Hills Pope 2005 (the “Pinnacle” wine”, only vintage made to date so very small
tasting only, sold out)

Puriri Hills Vineyard, Clevedon, New Zealand

[rooman]

thanks for sharing that craig. I grabbed one of the spots. there are a few left. I will be interested to see what the wines are like given your solid support for them to date.

mark

[rooman]

anyone else going to the Sydney tasting?

[Craig(NZ)]

They should really shine in a dinner setting. Judy knows her wines and knows where they perform. They arent the style of wines that grab you in a quick swirl and spit standup affair sandwiched between say two californian styled cabernets!

[Seven]

$65 which is a steal!!!

by the way what are the retail prices of their wines being sold in Australia? couldn't see any in the market...

[rooman]

I have seen them for sale at Kemenys. Unfortunately I cant remember the price.

[RedVelvet]

Wont be able to make this one as it is on the same night as the Charles Melton dinner. It is unfortunate when these type of events clash.

[Craig(NZ)]

Wont be able to make this one as it is on the same night as the Charles Melton dinner. It is unfortunate when these type of events clash.

Must be international day of the catholic? Nine Popes at the Charles Melton dinner and Pope at the Puriri Hills dinner??

[Christo]

by the way what are the retail prices of their wines being sold in Australia? couldn't see any in the market...

From what i can tell KiwiNZ are the Aust distributor of Puriri Hills. they have the 05 listed as: estate ($70), Reserve ($170) Pope ($350). seen some at Langtons exchange from time to time, 05' Pope selling aboy $250.

c

[Craig(NZ)]

From what i can tell KiwiNZ are the Aust distributor of Puriri Hills. they have the 05 listed as: estate ($70), Reserve ($170) Pope ($350). seen some at Langtons exchange from time to time, 05' Pope selling aboy $250.

those prices are steep! kemenys had them at a reasonable premium over nz, cant remember how much and probably not the best place to discuss but google/ winesearcher?

[Christo]

From what i can tell KiwiNZ are the Aust distributor of Puriri Hills. they have the 05 listed as: estate ($70), Reserve ($170) Pope ($350). seen some at Langtons exchange from time to time, 05' Pope selling aboy $250.

those prices are steep! kemenys had them at a reasonable premium over nz, cant remember how much and probably not the best place to discuss but google/ winesearcher?

so did several other retailers... all goooone!!! i bought mine considerably cheaper than that.
c

[Craig(NZ)]

Yeah they have gone up in price a lot in nz. I was buying when 05 Estate was $33, Reserve was $49, and Pope $99 (I did see Pope for less than that at one retailer for a while too). Magnums at x2 750ml price (in nz we know the 1500ml maths: twice the vol, twice the price)

Anyway we all have "I remember when x was $y stories" End of the day, the price in the market now makes the Sydney PH dinner even more of a bargain especially considering the scarcity of most of the vintages being opened.

The rose is very good too, often overlooked - one of the best in NZ in a dry, clean refreshing style - more following the Unison mould than say the Esk style

[Craig(NZ)]

Sydney Wine Tasting

Meet the wine maker and try these stunning Bordeaux blends from New Zealand.

When: Wednesday 30th September, 200Where: Peter Bourne “The Wine ManL2, 123 Harris Street, Pyrmont NSW 2009(Above Nomadic Rug Traders shop,Cost: $20 per person on arrival – cash onlyWinemaker: Discussing the wines will beZealand.When: Wednesday 30th September, 2009 from 4pm to 6pm

Where: Peter Bourne “The Wine Man” Tasting Room, L2, 123 Harris Street, Pyrmont NSW 2009

(Above Nomadic Rug Traders shop, opposite Union Square) - Ph 9552 2366

Cost: $20 per person on arrival – cash only

Winemaker: Discussing the wines will be Judy Fowler owner and winemaker of Puriri Hills – Clevedon, New Zealand.

To reserve your place as attendance is limited please contact Mark Ovens ph 9798 8569 or 0438478 000

Email: wines@kiwinz.com.au


Melbourne Wine Tasting


Meet the wine maker and try these stunning Bordeaux blends from New Zealand. A “cult” New Zealand winery, so come and taste and see why!

When: Monday 28th September, 2009 from 4pm to 6pm

Where: La Vita Buona, City Square, Melbourne VIC 3000 (on Swanston Street, between Flinders Lane & Collins Street – under Westin Hotel) – Ph: 03 9654 7855

Cost: $20 per person on arrival – cash only

Winemaker: Discussing the wines will be Judy Fowler owner and winemaker of Puriri Hills – Clevedon, New Zealand

Ten Puriri Hills wines in a vertical tasting. To reserve your place as attendance is limited please contact Mark Ovens ph 02 9798 8569 or 0438478 000 E: wines@kiwinz.com.au

[Christo]

anyone go?
c

[rooman]

Yes.

[Christo]

Yes.

hehe.. how are the new wines?
c

[rooman]

First up was a merlot based Puriri Rose 2007. I enjoyed the style, finding it crisp with a dash of strawberries and a dry savoury finish. It is a style that is much less fruit driven (aka fruit bomb) than comparable Australian styles and hence did generate some debate amongst the Inner West attendees. I must say, it was rather fun being over that side of town. If you ignore the horrendous toll on the cross side tunnel, the locals are really rather friendly.

The meal then proceeded in a series of flights based around the 2006, 2002/2003, 2004 and finally 2005 vintages. Styled after Right Bank Bordeaux wines, the wines are a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Carmenere with the percentages varing quite radically from year to year and from Estate to Reserve. Starting with the 2006 Estate, it is a much lighter style of wine built around Merlot than the 2006 Reserve. The Estate is a garnet like red, medium bodied wine and much lighter in style than its more serious big brother the Reserve. To be drunk now or over the next year or so, it has soft tannins built around red current fruit. By way of contrast the Reserve has considerably more depth of flavour and quite frankly is a more interesting wine. Still very approachable now, again very soft silky tannins I found the flavours to include mild tobacco and spices with an overall elegant structure, think outstanding St Emillion claret from a vintage such as 2002 or 2004.

The 2002 Reserve again had lovely depth with 50% Merlot, 42% Carmenere and 8% Malbec. Not dissimilar to the 2004 with just a little more bottle age complexity coming through. The 2003 Estate, was one of my least favourite wines of the evening. On the nose I got tomato leaf and capsicum, not something I normally pick up on in wines. Again medium bodied, this finish was much shorter than the 2006 and the flavours rather vegetal. As the vines were only planted late 1990s, I suspect the increase in the age of the vines at this stage of the vineyards existance is fairly noticeable.

2004 Reserve. This time the mix 36% Merlot, 46% Carmenere, 11% Cab Franc and 7% Malbec. The bouquet on this wine was extremely desceptive, blind tasted, a number of us would have guessed Burgundy with its rose and mushroom aromas: extremely seductive. Slightly more dark fruit style and fuller bodied but with more of the super soft tannins, again very elegant and probably my favourite wine of the evening. By way of contrast, the 2004 Estate comprised 67% Merlot, 3% Carmenere, 11% Cab Franc, cab sav 15% and 4% Malbec. Quite a different bouquet, this time more cinnamon and spice with a medium bodied ruby colour with red current flavours, some tobacco and more spices.

We were also luck enough (I think) to try the 2005 Estate, 2005 Reserve and 2005 Pope. Unfortunately the portions were miniscule and served in tiny plastic container not dissimilar to the ones I serve the kids their cough medicine in. Of the three, I actually prefered the Reserve as the palate appeared more robust than the super silky Pope with hint of white pepper and spices. Overall very enjoyable wines though my preference would always be for the Reserve. The only question is whether the wines have enough structure to really develop sufficent complexity over time to justify the price tag.

[Craig(NZ)]

Roo

Cheers for your impressions

Interesting note re the 2003, a difficult vintage in Auckland. I have tried this wine three times. The first time my comments were the same as yours - it really announced "poor vintage, a bit leafy". The other two subsequent times I have tried it it has been magnificent and didnt show any sign of under ripe - didnt make sense to me how my opinions could vary so wildly but there you go. Ditto the 04 Estate. A couple of times I havent been taken it has been a bit angular and acidic, but the last bottle I drank was sensational....

Shame re the small samples of 05 especially as they are absolutely drinking wines, not tasting wines but hopefully you got a bit of an idea. Pope can be shy - it takes some work to get it to open up at the mo (not easy in a test tube?). When i attended a full vertical at the winery I had the same impressions as you; the 05 reserve showed better. However on most other occassions, Pope has blown everything off the table and can be tear jerking stuff when it is singing.

re 06 Estate, i agree its a drink up wine, liked it young (a year ago+) best. The 06 Reserve is way too young, its not really giving much away yet

As for the future? The 07's (though on paper a lesser vintage) look really good before bottling. The 08's and 09's though should be further steps up. Some of the barrel samples Ive been very fortunate to try are just mind blowing. I will be buying all three vintages I expect

Your comment re price is fair enough, those kiwinz prices are "pretty cheeky" for the 05's but at this stage of the game its supply next to zippo driving it I guess. At $NZ49 for the 05 Reserve on release (2 years ago+) I was quite happy!

I am interested to see how Australians take this winery. It is so "not aussie" in style, and i would imagine a few of the "love barossa shiraz" crowd would totally miss the attraction. Will definitely be enquiring about the feedback next time I visit the winery

The only question is whether the wines have enough structure to really develop sufficent complexity over time to justify the price tag.

I am thinking "yes", but as with all young wineries we are yet to know for sure. I will let you know, I invested a fair few coin to ensure i am present when that question is answered

[rooman]

Craig

I did appreciate the heads up and enjoyed the wines. As you will no doubt already know, they intend to release a Pope wine again in 08 & 09. It really was impossible to get a handle on what the 05 really tasted like.

The only point I missed out in the notes above was that one of the 02 Reserve was corked. According to the winemaker, NZ had a load of bad corks dumped on it during 2002 by the Portuguese. Since that time the quality has vastly improved. Notwithstanding that experience they are quite anti screw cap, not a discussion I like getting into given it tends to polarize people.

Cheers
Mark

[JDSJDS]

Is always amazes me to get plastic glasses at a tasting like this. What are they thinking?!?!

I tasted the 2005 vintage of the Puriri Hills wines at the winery last year, and I have to say I was impressed by the wines, especially given the dicey climate in the area. And the owner was a very congenial host. But I was equally astounded at the new prices. The rose and the estate are relatively reasonably priced, but there were many other very high quality NZ wines available for equal or cheaper prices. I suspect that the American background of the owner may have something to do with this. It's certainly her right to price her wines as she pleases.

I wasn't quite as struck by the wines as Craig is, but there's no denying they are more than an interesting addition to the NZ wine scene, and as Craig notes, are not in a fruit bomb style, and are quite a different style than Kiwi bordeaux blends from the Hawkes Bay region.

[Craig(NZ)]

But I was equally astounded at the new prices.

Back vintage pricing (as with other wineries when they do it) is steep but latest release pricing?... I see it as follows

The Rose is at the price it would need to be to make any money in this size operation and maybe at $25 is 3 or 4 bucks a stretch but it isnt out of the ballpark. I guess in NZ there is still an attitiude that Rose is a by product and as such should be cheap as chips. Even I probably suffer from this attitude. Its good stuff though, the type of wine you want on a summers day chilled with crusty french stick and a runny brie!

The estate will settle in the early thirties pricingwise I think and as such sits to compete with some wines like the iconic Te Mata Awatea. Qualitywise you can definitely argue its in the game there especially for the later vintages though Awatea I think still sets the standard for all. One context to consider is many other Clevedon wineries make reds that are absolute crap and charge close on $30 for them. PH estate is is smart buying for the wine tourist in the area. It certainly dispays some class

The Reserve at $65 is at the top end and announces it plans to compete with the likes of Te Whau, Goldwater, Te Mata Coleraine and Craggy Range Sophia. It is early days and not much history but it has competed well blind against wines such as these. For example the 2005 Coleraine and 2005 PH Reserve we have had paired blind at an event and although the Coleraine won on the night it was by no means unanomous. They were both brilliant interlectual styles. If the PH style is the one that rocks your boat over the more modern bdx expressions flowing from the gimblett gravels then again you can argue it competes.

Pope is very expensive now for the 2005, but lets assume release price of $120 which is on my last enquiry where future releases are to be pitched. Here you are competing with other 'super cuvee' wines such as Esk Terraces, Church Road Tom, Trinity Homage as well as more established cult/classics such as (at a stretch) Stonyridge Larose and Providence. Of course I do not even mention bdx or aus, but for simplicities sake will limit scope to NZ wines. It is a wine that has performed well vs some of these labels, though I have only heard this second hand from the likes of our Sue and Judy. I personally haven't the money or stocks to open Pope prematurely to experiment, but when the time is right no doubt I will whack it up against some heavyweight icons to see how it performs.

Of course the thought that Aussies get ripped off when it comes to wine is hardly new news. Its just as well you earn those big Sydney salaries!!