This wine is what is sometimes described as a ‘fruit and oak’-style chardonnay, but exceptionally made and done with panache. …

Fresh and clean with aromas of grapefruit citrus, meadow blossoms and herbal spice on the nose. The palate is well …

A sulphidic style of chardonnay done really well with ripe fruit and vibrancy from the get-go. Though the acid is …

On the nose the smoky sulphide profile sits alongside fresh apple and zingy lime aromas that awaken the senses. So, …

As there isn’t another red wine tasting scheduled here at Cuisine for 2024, I had thought that I was done …

Bright citrus and white florals come through on the nose with just a hint of creaminess that adds a luxurious …

A low-key example that doesn’t need to shout to make an impression. White stonefruit and florals abound on the nose …

A pale colour in the glass which belies its seven years in bottle, this wine is fresh and understated on …

Lots of fruit and fragrant florals on the nose with herbal spice and some subtle reductive characters. The palate is …

Savoury complex notes on the nose and palate with lots of reductive smokiness for those who are a fan of …

Looks fantastic in the glass with lots of oak and phenolics balanced against ripe fruit and creamy cashew and bran …

I wonder if, when the first vines were planted on Waiheke in 1977, anyone imagined it would become the wine …

Clean and bright in the glass with fresh lifted aromatics. The palate is very well structured and precise with flavours …

Three years ago at our 2020 chardonnay tasting, the head judge Ben Glover commented that the newer – as they …

A medium colour in the glass with high- toned fruit on the nose; lifted citrus (both lemon and yellow grapefruit) …

High toned and toasty with lots of buttery notes against juicy peach, melon and mango aromas that segue through to …

Medium in colour with a reductive nose set against ripe peach and grapefruit aromas. The palate is bold with lots …

Aromas of clean, pure stone fruits stream from the glass and through to the well- structured palate where the flavours …

Lots going on through this complex but not overt example. The fruit here is bright – citrus and stone fruit …

Understated on the nose with restrained aromas of lemon citrus pith, baking spice with oak and reductive characters. On the …

The nose is warm and toasty with a smoky, savoury complexity and aromas of bright peach and pink grapefruit that …

Ripe and full from the first whiff to the last remnants of flavour on the palate, this is a borderline …

Pale with sweet citrus and stone fruit aromas on the nose. The palate is mid weighted, focussed and lean with …

Pale and fresh on the nose with clean fruit aromas in a moderate intensity alongside nougat and almond aromatics. The …

Youthful and concentrated with lifted fruit and lots of oak on the nose. The palate is full and chewy with …

Rich and inviting with aromas of stone fruit, vanilla, panna cotta and coconut on the nose combined with just a …

An understated nose with ripe fruit aromas well balanced by the generous oak present. The palate is bold, yet with …

Medium colour in the glass with citrus and white flower aromas on the nose. While not overly complex, it is …

There’s no absence of sulphide on the nose with this wine which will be catnip to lovers of those reductive …

Medium colour in the glass with sweet pastry aromas and ripe citrus fruit present with lots of reduction evident on …

Generous and inviting, this fruit-forward example is filled with character. It is creamy and ripe with warm and rich fruit …

Youthful appearance in the glass with aromas of nectarines and just a hint of butterscotch. The palate is energetic and …

Big, bold and ripe with attractive fruit and lots of well-managed oak. It’s big without being too much, a style …

A full style of chardonnay with ripe aromatics of quince and white peach on the nose with yellow grapefruit and …

Medium colour in the glass with aromas of stonefruit and lovely toasty, nutty characteristics. The palate is very sound with …

Understated but fruit forward with aromas of ripe peaches, florals and a hint of butterscotch on the nose. The palate …

A stylish chardonnay that is showing positive development characters from time already spent in bottle. Both oak and fruit are …

Understated with a slightly reductive nose and notes of oak spice and lemon citrus behind. The palate is ripe yet …

An unabashed fruit bomb with judicious use of oak which is exceptionally well balanced against the fruit present on the …

Pale lemon in the glass with a youthful green hue. The nose is fresh and clean with aromas of peach, …

A forward and bold, almost brazen, style done well. The palate is richly fruited with lots of butterscotch, cream and …

Fresh and bright on the nose with aromas of white florals and some thiol influence. The palate is lovely with …

A very reductive style with lots of flint alongside the citrus aromas on the nose. The palate is full, rich …

Aromas of citrus, apricot, cashew and hessian fabric and sulphide commingle on the nose with good intensity suggesting the bold …

A reductive style done well with lots going on through the nose and the palate. That said, it all works …

Pale in the glass with citrus and stone fruit through the nose and on the palate. A lovely core of …

A style that is sometimes described as cuddly, but who doesn’t love a cuddle? Well weighted and complex, this example …

High-toned vanilla and sun-warmed peach aromas delight on the nose with hints of flint that add complexity. The palate is …

Pale yellow in the glass with flecks of gold, this is a bold chardonnay with cream, oak stonefruit and reduction …

A lovely understated nose with green stone fruit, nuts and cream aromas. The palate, too, is restrained, fine and focussed …

Lovely fruit aromas come through on the nose balanced by oak sweetness and some spice. The palate is well focussed …

Quiet on the nose with subtle aromas of mandarin, sherbert and coconut. The palate, however, is rich and chewy with …

A medium lemon colour with aromas of fresh pastry and oak alongside the bright fruit on the nose. The palate …

Grilled lime and apricot aromas shine through offset by a richer note of butterscotch on the nose. The fruit on …

Reductive in style with struck match prominent alongside proud oak on the nose. The palate is tasty, complex and well …

Attractive on the nose with apricot, brioche and spices alongside lime citrus and floral notes on the complex and beguiling …

Ripe citrus and stonefruit aromas abound on the nose with a nutty, creamy character coming though. The palate is lovely …

A quieter style that is often overlooked in favour of louder counterparts. This lovely example has delicate white florals and …

An elegant, accessible and well-rounded chardonnay with aromas of apricots, peaches and custard on the nose which segue seamlessly onto …

Pale in the glass with lovely lifted fruit aromas alongside reductive characteristics. The palate is youthful and well balanced with …

Understated on the nose with subtle yet fresh primary aromas and lightly reductive aromas. The palate is lean but well …

Plenty going on from the start of the busy nose to the end of its lengthy finish. Complex aromas of …

Bright acid is apparent with quiet stonefruit and some reductive aromatic characters present on the nose. The palate is mid …

Ripe, rich stone fruit, cream and butter with a grapefruit citrus lift on the nose that delights. The palate is …

Ripe yet understated on the nose with lithe fruit and oak characteristics intertwined. The palate is nicely weighted and complex …

A powerful example with lots of fruit and oak evident on the nose and through the palate. This style is …

Bright and fresh with immediacy on the nose that is layered with lemonady citrus aromas alongside oak spice and butter …

Ripe on the nose with a whisper of reduction and an attractive mealiness. Rich, ripe and toasty, the palate is …

Deeply coloured for such a youthful wine this wild wine is full of character and intrigue. The nose is rich …

A golden colour in the glass with aromas of orange citrus and peaches on those nose that leads into a …

A touch of haze in the glass that shouldn’t cast doubt in your mind that this is anything other than …

Scents of orange citrus blossoms lead the aromatic profile with undertones of mandarin and biscuit. The mid-weighted palate has vigour …

Abundant with citrus fruit, pastry aromas and some hints of baking spices on the nose, this wine is complex yet …

A lovely expression with juicy peach aromas alongside toasty nut and creamy vanilla oak characteristics on the nose and through …

A cool-climate, leaner style with good complexity. Nice oak, citrus and toasted nut characters are present on the nose. The …

Fresh fruit aromas on the nose balanced by sweet nougat, nutty cashews and just a hint of reduction. The palate …

The fruit present on the palate is restrained with subtle aromas of yellow apples and lemon citrus which segue through …

Medium colour in the glass in such a youthful wine can imply power and this wine delivers that with ripe, …

Bright yet subtle citrus and peach aromas come through on the nose alongside a smoky, flinty reduction that adds intrigue. …

This American example will please lovers of the style. Complex, oaky and heavy on the nose with aromas of butter, …

Creamy citrus and spicy oak characters appear on the nose alongside delicate white blossoms and crushed almonds. The palate is …

Pale in the glass with delicate fruit aromas sitting alongside subtle oak spice which belie the richness within. The palate …

A medium colour in the glass with lovely cool fruit characteristics on the nose. The palate is clean, stylish and …

A fruit-forward style with lots of lifted citrus on the nose alongside delicate orange blossoms. The palate, too, is bright …

A fruit-forward chardonnay with aromas of lemons, stone fruit, coconut and vanilla with just a hint of spice on the …

A complex nose with plenty going on including lifted oak, bright clean fruit and lees characteristics. The palate also has …

A medium-coloured wine with lots going on. White-peach aromatics come through on the nose and into the lithe palate. The …

Understated on the nose with delicate white peach and florals on the nose alongside just a hint of lees. The …

Understated on the nose with subtle reductive characteristics. The palate is well weighted with some richness and sweet citrus fruit …

Medium coloured in the glass with aromas of fig and ripe nectarine on the nose. The palate is dense and …

Pure, clean fruit aromas and bright, white-floral aromas abound on the nose of this attractively understated wine. The palate has …

A straw colour in the glass verging on gold with lovely lifted aromas of citrus, nuts and baking spices on …

A solid wine that continually delivers high-toned fruit aromas on the nose with lovely notes of butterscotch. The palate is …

Rich, ripe fruit aromas on the nose which segue through to a linear and focussed palate which is mid weighted …

This wine is pale in the glass with youthful green hues. It’s reductive in style with citrus aromas alongside flint …

The reductive nature of this wine is evident on the palate, but it’s this style done well as the balance …

That this is a rich style is immediately evident with an abundance of fruit and oak spice on the nose …

A wine developing nicely in the bottle with a medium colour in the glass. A fruit-forward expression with beautiful restraint. …

A traditional, dare I say ‘old-school’ style of chardonnay that’s unashamedly big and bold. Rich and full bodied with generous …

Lifted fruit aromas on the fresh bright nose with zesty citrus and delicate blossom aromas. The palate is nicely weighted …

Fresh and clean on the nose with bright citrus, stone fruit and layers of creamy aromas that are also reflected …

Understated on the nose with white nectarine and citrus aromas and just a hint of oak on the nose and …

The nose is rich with delightful creamy aromas that sit alongside the bright citrus and delicate blossoms. The palate is …

A well-made example, pale in the glass with stone fruit and floral aromas on the nose. The palate has lots …

Peach and lemon aromas are proud on the nose with some tropical fruit notes alongside. The palate is fruit forward …

Initially smoky on the palate this wine has lovely understated ripe stone fruit aromas balanced against judicious, but well-handled oak …

Lovely colour in the glass for this still young wine and the nose has lots of butter and oak aromas …

Ripe on the nose with thiol coming through alongside fleshy peaches and nectarine aromas on the nose. The palate is …

Medium coloured in the glass this is a riper style of chardonnay that is fresh, well balanced and very stylish. …

Pale in the glass with bright, yet right citrus fruit on the nose alongside nougat and some baking spice aromas. …

Sweet fruit abounds with hints of oyster shell and minerality coming through both on the nose and through the palate. …

A touch of sulphide wrapped around ripe citrus, stone fruit and tropical aromas on the nose. The wine is well …