SB
01/11/05 12:00
Nicolas
is a chain of pleasant bottle stores, popular enough
that the stock turns over every week, and not so
snooty you avoid the shop for the pressure of paying
too much.
They have a promotion this week on 'wines of the world'. Drooling over the thought of a Marlborough sav blanc I tore down there only to find wines from Chile, Argentina, South Africa, California and Australia.
Australian Sauvignon blanc? What are they thinking?
Well it says something about the vaunted promotion of New Zealand wine that a quality chain puts on a promotion of foreign wines and we're not even there.
And then far away in a corner almost out of reach I spotted a solitary bottle of something called 'Matahiwi'. New Zealand sauvignon blanc! Never heard of it, but what the hey.
Unfortunately it's from the Wairarapa, not Marlborough, and it's twice the price of the next most expensive sauvignon blanc on display. Still it's only nine Euro and best of all it has a screw top!
Man, I can't tell you how much I loath corks. I have to suppress a sneer when I hear wine snobs wittering about cork.
CORK = BAD WINE. CORK = ROTTEN. CORK BAD, CAP GOOD.
The only reason wine is still sold with environment-destroying, wine-oxidisng cork is bulk-buying wine snobs confused about quality.
Anyway, the Matahiwi is delicious.
It is a quintessential New Zealand SB. Grassy, unbelievably fresh, that delicious distinctive tang.
A treasure. A real treasure. Five stars.
Mmmmm.
They have a promotion this week on 'wines of the world'. Drooling over the thought of a Marlborough sav blanc I tore down there only to find wines from Chile, Argentina, South Africa, California and Australia.
Australian Sauvignon blanc? What are they thinking?
Well it says something about the vaunted promotion of New Zealand wine that a quality chain puts on a promotion of foreign wines and we're not even there.
And then far away in a corner almost out of reach I spotted a solitary bottle of something called 'Matahiwi'. New Zealand sauvignon blanc! Never heard of it, but what the hey.
Unfortunately it's from the Wairarapa, not Marlborough, and it's twice the price of the next most expensive sauvignon blanc on display. Still it's only nine Euro and best of all it has a screw top!
Man, I can't tell you how much I loath corks. I have to suppress a sneer when I hear wine snobs wittering about cork.
CORK = BAD WINE. CORK = ROTTEN. CORK BAD, CAP GOOD.
The only reason wine is still sold with environment-destroying, wine-oxidisng cork is bulk-buying wine snobs confused about quality.
Anyway, the Matahiwi is delicious.
It is a quintessential New Zealand SB. Grassy, unbelievably fresh, that delicious distinctive tang.
A treasure. A real treasure. Five stars.
Mmmmm.
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