First glass

It is the short rows of grapes surrounding an old flax mill at Saint Clair’s own Awatere Valley vineyard that make this an outstanding wine. If you believe that, I’ve got a herd of flying pigs you may also be interested in. Let’s just say this is a soft, elegant pinot noir — with hints of ripe cherry and plum. Concentrate fully and you may even imagine a slight hint of coffee, in the best possible way of course, because we don’t want to confuse a fantastic pinot noir with the kick of a well made espresso. A lot of care goes into getting the right fruit from selected sites on the low vigour soils of St Clair’s Omaka Vineyard and the end result is more than worth it.

St Clair Pioneer Block 4 Sawcut Chardonnay 2009

St Clair has won a truck load of medals and praise for its sauvignon blanc, thanks to Neil Ibbotsen’s grape growing knowledge and Matt Thomson’s masterful wine making. But hey, sauvignon blanc is so last week. Chardonnay is the thing, or was that back in the eighties? Whatever, this chardonnay, named after the Sawcut Gorge in Marlborough’s Ure Valley, has gold medals in its DNA and peaches and nectarines in every golden glass. If you like big, rich chardonnays with appealing fruit and weight, this is your tipple. Master of wine Bob Campbell gave it five stars and 93 out of 100, which is pretty damn close to an Olympic medal.