1994 New Zealand Wines

Glowing yellow-green; velvet-smooth lime/citrus aromas are distinctly Germanic in character; a marvellous Riesling on the palate, rich and full, yet not heavy, the acid and residual sugar in perfect balance.

Full red-purple; rich, opulently ripe fruit with lots of black cherry and some plum leads into a marvellously high-toned, flavoursome wine with more of that black cherry and plum fruit, a seductive touch of spice, and tremendous length and structure.

Deep gold; the bouquet is intense with apricot, cumquat and marzipan aromas flowing into a gloriously rich palate with quite exceptional flavour and balance, offering honey, marzipan and apricot flavours girdled with tight acidity.

Golden orange; intense mandarin and cumquat aromas, strongly reminiscent of the great sweet wines of the Loire Valley. A powerful, aristocratic and complex palate, with the lusciousness of the fruit balanced by powerful acidity. Marvellous stuff.

Strong purple-red; a spotlessly clean and sweet bouquet with fully ripe cabernet fruit is supported by first class oak handling. The palate, similarly, has a mix of luscious cassis/berry fruit together with a touch of mint; supple tannins on the finish.

Strong red-purple; classically styled, with clean, firm strawberry and plum fruit, and oak very much in the background. The palate has length and grip, with a range of strawberry, plum and more stalky/leafy characters, and even a touch of mint; once again, the oak is subtle.

Medium red-purple; a complex bouquet, showing quite ripe fruit with some gamey/earthy notes. There are very interesting flavours on the palate with red berry fruits softened by distinct gamey barnyard characters which are far from unpleasant. Persistent tannins run through the palate, all in all reflecting an extremely low yield of less than a tonne per acre and unusual levels of ripeness.

Light to medium yellow-green; the bouquet is clean, with gentle autolysis characters and fruit neutral. The wine opens up on the palate, with intense citrus flavours on the back palate, and a classically long, lingering finish.

Deep gold-bronze; the bouquet is quite massive, with orange peel and madeirised aromas followed by the biggest, boldest and brassiest palate imaginable. A total renegade in the conventional scheme of things.