Wine Notes and Accolades
Brodie Estate Chardonnay 2014 - Reveiwed by Raymond Chan.
Bright, light straw-yellow colour with slight green hues, pale on the im. The nose is full and rich with aromas of citrus and yellow stonefruits harmoniously melded with layers of savoury and spicy, nutty oak, creamy barrel-ferment elements and buttery, lemon-curd MLF nuances. Oak toastiness emerges in the glass. Medium-bodied and elegantly presented, rich citrus and stonefruit flavours are layered with nutty and creamy oak, with buttery MLF elements and toasty nuances. This has a soft-textured core and a harmoniously smooth-flowing mouthfeel. The textures are soft and fine and the acidity well-balanced, and the wine leads to a soft, lingering dry finish of cream, toast and citrus fruit. This is a rich, creamy textured, citrussy Chardonnay with distinctive toasty oak notes. Match with roast pork over the next 5+ years. Mendoza and clone 15 fruit from the 'Croft' vineyard, Pirinoa Road, barrel-fermented in seasoned barriques and one new 480 L puncheon to 13.0% alc., the wine aged 8 months on lees with 4 months in barrel and partial MLF. 100 cases made. 18.0-/20 Sep 2015 RRP $30.00
Brodie Estate Pinot Noir 2011 Martinborough 93 5 NIck Stock Review
It's beautifully elegant and stylish, displaying red/black cherry, floral and subtle spice aromas on the nose. The palate is juicy and delicately flavoured with fine texture and polished tannins, finishing elegantly dry. The wine offers lovely ripe flavours within a sturdy frame, ensuring its graceful development. At its best: 2015 to 2022. $42.00. Oct 2013.
Brodie Estate Pinot Noir 2012 Martinborough 91-93 4.5 Sam Kim Review
Youthful, restrained and delicately perfumed on the nose displaying red/black cherry, floral and subtle savoury aromas. The palate is bright and juicy with lovely fruit intensity, backed by refreshing acidity and gently firm tannins. Wonderful structure and harmony. This is an elegant beauty destined to evolve to show greater richness and complexity. At its best: 2016 to 2022. Oct 2013.
Brodie Estate Pinot Noir 2013
Raymond Chan review
Dark, deep, purple-red colour, youthful appearance. Elegant dark cherry fruit aromas show complexing fresh herbal interest and detail, the nose still tight and a little slender at present. A little on the cooler end of ripeness. Again, elegant on palate with red cherry fruit. The palate has a fine tannin line and the acidity is noticeable. The fruit grows with time in the glass to show richer and sweeter fruit, as well as balancing extract and substance. 5-6 years. Dijon clones, destemmed and soaked 5 days, 25-30% new oak. 17.5+/20
Nick Stock Reveiw
Attractive fragrances and floral aromas on the nose here. This has a leafy side too with violets, herbs and bracken, as well as purple cherries. The palate is supple and smooth, showing layered, ripe nutty tannins and boysenberries. Plenty of light, fleshy appeal. Drink now.
John Saker Wine reviews
Dark fascinating nose.. dark cherry, molasses… gorgeous palate… real harmony, and complexity… fine structure… finishes long. 18+
Boutique vineyard and winery
We are a small family owned vineyard in Martinborough in the lower North Island of New Zealand. Martinborough was the first place to grow Pinot Noir successfully in New Zealand. It is ideal for Pinot Noir with a special climate - low rainfall, good heat in the summer but rarely above 31 degrees, long warm autumns with little rain and cool nights. Our terroir consists of silts over tight clays, wet in winter and rock hard in summer with tight gravels below.Martinborough Pinot has similar phenolics to Central Otago Pinot except Martinborough wines have one less of the fruity characteristics and two more that express forest floor, savoury and mushroom characteristics.Our vineyard was planted in 2001 with 10 acres of Pinot Noir Dijon clones – 777,667,114,115, Clone 5. 777 clone has chocolate characteristics,Clone 5 brings spices and 667 brings structure and soft tannins. We blend them together to produce our single estate wine.Our plants have been grown without irrigation This leads to plants that put their energy into the fruit and not into the vegetation. We produce small succulent berries with intense fruit flavours and spicy and savoury characteristics We wait until the grape is truly ripe, This means the brix (sugar levels) levels are between 23 and 25 brix. The aim is to produce ripe fruit with a medium alcohol level.
Review by Eleanor Ainge Roy in the Guardian
Taste the Wairarapa with a wine tour
While Wellington city offers plenty of excellent local wines, an all-inclusive wine tour (NZ$164) in the Wairarapa is a great excuse to get some fresh air and take in the rural scenery when you tire of cityscapes and bitumen.
The tour departs from central Wellington station at 9.30am, and chugs slowly north for an hour through the grey suburbs of Lower Hutt before disappearing into a tunnel beneath the Rimutaka mountain range and emerging on the other side to a stunning vista of vineyards and native bush.
The Wairapara vineyards are largely small and family run, making them casual and charming, and we stopped at four. Our day was spent sitting in lush gardens as the vineyard ownershosted us like old friends, and their dogs rested their heads in our laps. At Brodie Estate, our small crew of six went weak at the knees for the 2014 pinot noir.
