Ata Rangi – New Martinborough Releases

FEATURED WINES IN THIS REVIEW

• Ata Rangi ‘Lismore’ Martinborough Pinot Gris 2016
  Pinot Gris from New Zealand - Wairarapa & Wellington

  Review Date : 22-Oct-2016

  ☆☆☆☆☆

  This is the one wine which has quietly grown in stature. Being Pinot Gris, it’s all about subtlety, with restrained flavour, but layers of them and fine textures with complex detail. Indigenous yeast, puncheon work and lees contact. Very pale straw. Tight, but with a soft density of white stonefruits with subtle nutty and mineral complexities. Dryish to taste – every year a little drier – yet retaining richness and even a degree of opulence. The mouthfeel is rich and plush, the acidity is excellent for the variety. The best Pinot Gris to date? 19.0/20 Oct 2016 RRP $28.00 Bright straw-yellow colour with slight golden suggestions, a little lighter on the rim. This has a tightly bound nose with good depth of yellow stonefruits and savoury pears interwoven with harmonious layers of honeysuckle, nuts and flinty mineral detail, unfolding yellow florals. This has freshness, vitality and blossoms in volume in the glass. Dryish to taste and medium-bodied, bright, lively and lusciously succulent fruit flavours of yellow stonefruits and pears are enriched by honeysuckle, and detailed by nutty, flinty and mineral notes. The fruit is enlivened by fine, lacy acidity and guided by a fine line of refined phenolics lending a balancing dryness. The wine carries with some underlying alcoholic drive to a long, fine-textured and detailed finish of stonefruits, florals, honey and minerals. This is a bright, lively, rich, dryish Pinot Gris with detail, refined textures and fresh, lacy acidity. Serve with mildly spicy Asian and Middle Eastern fare over the next 4 years. Fruit from the ‘Lismore’ and ‘Ata Rangi’ vineyards, vine 22 y.o., hand-picked, WBP and partially indigenous yeast fermented in tank and 500 L oak puncheons to 13.5% alc. and 5 g/L RS, the wine aged several months on lees with no MLF. 19.0/20 Oct 2016 RRP $28.00
• Ata Rangi ‘Petrie’ Wairarapa Chardonnay 2015
  Chardonnay from New Zealand - Wairarapa & Wellington

  Review Date : 22-Oct-2016

  ☆☆☆☆☆

  Always a wonderful comparison with the ‘Craighall’, the ‘Petrie’ from a higher altitude, cooler site AT East Taratahi, which lends it to the contemporary gunflint elegance. Bright, very pale straw yellow. This is very intense and penetrating with sweet stonefruits entwined with gunflint and minerals, but completed by smoke, nuts and oak. On palate very tight, fresh and crisp, but still with sweet, underlying friuit. This combines luscious and raciness with minerality. This looks even better than when I reviewed it a couple of weeks ago. 19.0/20 Oct 2016 RRP $28.00 Bright straw-yellow colour with light green-gold hues, paler on the rim. The nose is very fresh and tight, quite elegantly presented with good intensity of white stonefruits and subtle notes of citrus fruits entwined with flinty and minerally lees and balanced, nutty oak elements. Medium-full bodied, the palate is taut, refined and tightly concentrated with a core of harmoniously melded flavours of white and yellow stonefruits, citrus fruits and complexing flint, mineral and nutty detail. The palate is bright, energetic and vibrant with a refined, textural line and fresh, lacy acidity enlivening the mouthfeel. The wine carries to a long, lingering and elegantly concentrated finish of stonefruit and flinty lees. This is a tightly bound, elegantly concentrated and harmoniously detailed Chardonnay with stonefruit, flint and nutty flavours. Serve with seafood, poultry and pork over the next 5 years. Clone 15 and 6 fruit from the ‘Petrie’ vineyard, East Taratahi, hand-picked and WBP, indigenous yeast barrel-fermented to 13.5% alc., the wine aged 9 months on lees in 18% new barriques and puncheons with 30% MLF. 18.5+/20 Oct 2016 RRP $28.00
• Ata Rangi ‘Craighall’ Martinborough Chardonnay 2015
  Chardonnay from New Zealand - Wairarapa & Wellington

  Review Date : 06-Sep-2017

  ☆☆☆☆☆

  This shows richness and layers of fruit with barrel-ferment, and a far more opulent mouthfeel, but not the penetration. This just fills the mouth. Old vines doing their job. Bright straw-yellow with green hues. This is creamy and nutty, the barrel ferment and oak totally melded with layers of sweet, ripe stonefruits and tropical fruit, mealy notes, and integrated MLF butteriness. The palate reflects the decadence of the nose, the savoury fruit balancing the sweetness. Soft and lush textures, yet fine, poised acidity. Very rich, long finishing. Something very special here, and a must buy. 19.5/20 Oct 2016 RRP $38.00 Full straw-yellow colour with light golden hues, lighter edged. This has a finely proportioned and tightly bound nose with concentrated, vibrantly rich aromas of ripe yellow stonefruits and citrus fruit harmoniously melded with creamy and nutty barrel-ferment notes and complex, but refines flinty lees and reductive elements, and soft lemon-curd MLF nuances, enriched by toasty oak. This is complex, detailed, layered, exuding vitality. Medium-bodied and elegant in presentation, the palate is taut and tightly bound, unfolding layers of yellow stonefruits, citrus fruits, nutty and toasty oak with nuances of gunflint. The mouthfeel is creamy and seamless from the fruit richness and barrel-ferment, the palate showing refined phenolics and balanced, refreshing acidity. This has excellent linearity, carrying to a very long and sustained stonefruity finish with complexing nutty and flinty detail. This is a beautifully elegant, detailed and complex Chardonnay with richness, intensity and refinement. Serve with seafood, poultry and pork over the next 5-6+ years. Mendoza clone fruit from the ‘Craighall’ vineyard, vines over 30 y.o., hand-picked and WBP, indigenous yeast barrel-fermented to 13.5% alc., the wine aged 12 months in 25% new barriques with partial MLF. 19.5-/20 Oct 2016 RRP $38.00
• Ata Rangi ‘Craighall’ Martinborough Riesling 2012
  Riesling from New Zealand - Wairarapa & Wellington

  Review Date : 26-Oct-2017

  ☆☆☆☆☆

  Brilliant colour, very pale straw, with some depth. The bouquet is very elegant and very concentrated with fruit density, showing complex secondary notes to the lime fruit, with some kero notes to the toastiness. Very much rounded in presentation and complete. Dry to taste, the palate is firmly concentrated with fruit extract textures, the acidity softening. Lovely harmony of lime fruit and secondary development, excellent linearity and length. Fruit from the ‘Craighall’ vineyard, some vines over 30 y.o., hand-picked and WBP, and indigenous yeast fermented in tank to 12.5% alc. and 5 g/L RS, TA 7.1 g/L and pH 2.9. 70 cases made. 18.5+/20 Oct 2017 RRP $38.00 This is a no-compromise dry Riesling that for me gives a nod to the great dry Australian Rieslings of the Eden Valley. It’s a classic style in a world sense, but can be a shock to the system for Kiwi Riesling drinkers used to higher sugar and lower acidity. The other aspect of this wine is that it has been given bottle-age, and has developed complexity. Still very pale colour, the nose is strikingly intense and concentrated with firmly bound lime and toasty notes and a little kero. Very dry, quite mouthwatering, and very concentrated, the depth of flavour is noteworthy. There is fruit richness and extract, but finesse and tautness. It will live for a long time. 19.0-/20 Oct 2016 RRP $38.00 Brilliant straw-yellow colour with a pale edge. The bouquet is very elegant in proportion with a tightly bound core and intense, penetrating aromas of lime fruit entwined with a complex amalgam of honey, toast and kero, along with steely minerals. This has developed savoury secondary nuances adding a delicate layer to the aromatics. Dy to taste and medium-bodied, the palate is fine in concentration and presentation, showing lime fruit layered by complexing notes of honey and toast, along with savoury minerals and nuances of kero. The palate is taut and sleek, with brisk, racy acidity providing energy, tension and linearity. The mouthfeel is fine-textured and the wine leads to a dry, very long and sustained, thirst-quenching finish of limes, toast and minerals. This is a tight, firm and intensely penetrating dry Riesling with complex lime and honey flavours with secondary toast and mineral notes, and excellent linearity. Serve as an aperitif and with seafood over the next 4-5+ years. Riesling fruit from the ‘Craighall’ vineyard, some vines over 30 y.o., hand-picked and WBP, and indigenous yeast fermented in tank to 12.5% alc. and 5 g/L RS, TA 7.1 g/L and pH 2.9. 70 cases made. 19.0-/20 Oct 2016 RRP $38.00
• Ata Rangi ‘Celebre’ Martinborough 2014
  Blended Red from New Zealand - Wairarapa & Wellington

  Review Date : 26-Oct-2017

  ☆☆☆☆☆

  Dark, deep, ruby-red colour. This has great depth and soft concentration with plump plummy Merlot fruit dominating. The nose unfolds layers with dark herbs, spices, pepper and dark curranty fruits. The palate is bright and lively with rich plum, berry and curranty fruit forming a fine, concentrated core with strong linearity. The textures and acidity lend energy and carry the fruit to a long, black-fruited finish. This has firmness and suggestions of robustness. This will age well. A blend of 55% Merlot, 35% Syrah, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc, with uninoculated fermentations to 13.0% alc., the wine on skins 25 days and aged 17 months in 20% new French oak. 18.5+/20 Oct 2017 RRP $40.00 A blend of 55% Merlot, 35% Syrah, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc. Again an interesting comparison with the 2013, which to me was vigorous, robust, textural and very ageworthy. This 2014 has a dark, deep ruby-red colour, and on this showing the Cabernets are showing through with their curranty aromas and flavours. But there’s supporting black plum, herbs and red fruit aromas and flavours too. Lovely stylish, fine-grained tannin extraction lending a velvety flow. The terms stylish and sophisticated come to mind, and this has a degree of finesse and accessibility. I rate the 2013 and 2014 Celebre the same, but mu palate will drink the 2014 now. 18.5+/20 Oct 2016 RRP $40.00 Dark, deep ruby-red colour, a little lighter on the rim, youthful in appearance. The nose is full and firmly concentrated with near robust aromas of vibrantly ripe blackberry fruit along with black plum and blackcurrant notes, detailed by subtle nuances of dark herbs and earth, unveiling suggestions of spices and nutty oak. Medium to medium-full bodied, the palate has bright and plush fruit flavours of ripe black-berried fruits, black plums, Asian spices, with herb and currant notes, unfolding some black pepper and toasty oak. The fruit richness is supported by fine-grained tannin extraction structure with good, elegant grip, and enlivened by softly ripe acidity. The flavours are harmoniously melded and carry with energy to a softly full and long lingering finish of black fruits, pepper and cassis. This is a rich, plush black berry, black plum and curranty red blend with spice ant oak detail on a finely structured palate with soft, ripe acidity. Match with lamb, beef, venison as slow-cooked game dishes over the next 6-8+ years. A blend of 55% Merlot, 35% Syrah, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc, from the ‘Ata Rangi Home’, ‘Craighall’, Di Mattina’, ‘Champ Ali’, ‘Boundary Road’ and ‘Kahu’ sites, with uninoculated fermentations to 13.0% alc., the wine on skins 25 days and aged 17 months in 20% new French oak. 18.5+/20 Oct 2016 RRP $40.00
• Ata Rangi ‘McCrone Vineyard’ Martinborough Pinot Noir 2013
  Pinot Noir from New Zealand - Wairarapa & Wellington

  Review Date : 22-Oct-2016

  ☆☆☆☆☆

  From the ‘McCrone’ site, the vines younger, and not quite the clonal diversity, but seen as sufficiently distinctive for an individual bottling. Ruby-red colour with youthful purple hues. This is very firm and tightly bound with striking complex secondary savoury aromas melded with the Martinborough Terrace earthy and game-nuanced notes. The palate takes the aromas and open them up in flavour unfolding complex detail. The fruit is still sweet and rich, enlivened by fine acidity, but the extraction is serious with a firm core that grows and carries the wine to its long lingering finish. This is classical savoury, complex and structured Martinborough Pinot Noir, already showing what it has got. 18.5+/20 Oct 2016 RRP $75.00 Even ruby-red colour with some depth, a little lighter on the rim with slight purple hues. This has a well-bound and finely concentrated, intense bouquet of dark-red berry and cherry fruits interwoven with subtle, savoury dried herb, earth, nutty and mineral complexities, unveiling nuances of spice, liquorice, and violet florals. The nose is still fresh, vibrant and lively, and just beginning to show secondary complexities. Medium-bodied, the palate is well-proportioned with deep and intense, tightly bound flavours of savoury dark red berry and cherry fruit complexed by subtle dried herb, herb and earthy layers. The palate has a refined grip, structure and linearity, with balanced, integrated acidity, and the textures carry the wine to a long, finely concentrated finish of savoury red berry and cherry fruit. This is a well-proportioned, tightly bound, fine-and seriously structured, savoury red-fruited Pinot Noir just beginning to show secondary complexities. Serve with coq au vin and casseroles over the next 6-8 years. The fourth release of a ‘McCrone’ vineyard Pinot Noir. Clones Abel, 5, 115 and 777 from the 2.43 ha ‘McCrone’ vineyard in Regent Street, vines planted 2001, fermented to 13.5% alc., the wine on skins up to 21 days and aged 11 months in 20% new French oak barriques. 18.5+/20 Oct 2016 RRP $75.00