University of Canterbury Wine Club

Sauvignon Blanc 22nd October

admin — Sat, 23 Oct 2010 04:09:31 +0000

You Want New Zealand?

You Have Got It! THE New Zealand Wine Style – Sauvignon Blanc

Sauvignon Blanc – an indigenous grape of South West France – is now planted in many of the world’s wine regions, producing a crisp, dry, and refreshing white wine. Depending on the climate, the flavour can range from aggressively grassy to sweetly tropical. And it is recognised as New Zealand’s flagship wine, with the variety representing over 50% of wine produced in New Zealand. This tasting will certainly include New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs, but we will also be trying some examples from around the world to compare and contrast with the veritable bounty of N.Z. wines.

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Syrah/Shiraz 8th October 2010

admin — Sat, 09 Oct 2010 04:05:09 +0000

Syrah, or Shiraz if you prefer, is one of the great red wine varietals and finds itself widely planted around the world. Once thought to have originated in the city of Shiraz in what is modern day Iran, Syrah, in actuality, is a Northern Rhone Valley original. Calling the grape and the resultant wine either Syrah or Shiraz is a judgement call, generally, although not entirely consistently done, by assessing its character. Syrah predominates in moderately tempered climes like France and New Zealand where the wines exhibit a certain spiciness and a greater tannic presence, and Shiraz predominates in warmer climes such as Australia where a riper fruit presence is brought to the fore and tannins take a backseat. Either way, the wines are rich, deep and dark but can simultaneously be truly fine and elegant, if not exactly delicate. Although blended predominately with Grenache in the Southern Rhone and regularly with Cabernet Sauvignon in Australia, we’ll be tasting wines that are pure Syrah/Shiraz excepting that a little of the traditional Viognier is present in a few, lifting the nose, broadening the palate and even darkening the wine but in the nicest time-honoured way. Selected to show the range of expressions the varietal is capable of, we’ll be visiting Australia, Argentina, and France as well as showing a couple of fine local efforts.

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Chardonnay 24th September 2010

admin — Sat, 25 Sep 2010 04:00:49 +0000

Danielle and Andrew bring you a tasting of New Zealand’s second most produced wine:

CHARDONNAY

This tasting will look at wines from regions we’re not so familiar with. Danielle and Andrew’s home regions will go head to head in a bid to become:

New Zealand’s Next Top Region

In the second half the reigning Chardonnay Region (we think) comes to the fore as well as a surprise… This will also be a “C” theme costume tasting, so no excuse to not dress up. Go wild, (we will be)! If you are short on inspiration for a costume try these two websites!!!

http://hubpages.com/hub/Costume_Ideas_Starting_With_C

http://www.lucyindisguise.com/Costumes/Adult/CostumesC.html

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Port 20th August 2010

admin — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 07:38:15 +0000

As mentioned at our last tasting, we recently had the good fortune to obtain some Special Port Wines at a good price. Some excellent Tawny’s and some genuine aged Vintage Ports. This is a fantastic opportunity to try some wines which would normally out of our price range. These are all fortified wines and as such there will be a limited number of grades and since the Vintage ports will need decanting we will be having a strict limit of only 16 places for this tasting.

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Spanish Red 6th August 2010

admin — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 07:37:02 +0000

Spanish Wines

French Whites 16th July

admin — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 09:02:32 +0000

White Wines of the Loire

The Loire Valley is the largest of all the major quality wine regions of France, although probably the least well known in New Zealand. It stretches from the mouth of the Loire for over 600 kilometres to the very centre of France, producing mostly white wines. Unlike the more fashionable French regions these wines are still reasonably affordable and we have been able to buy from the most reputable producers for our tasting.

We will taste wines from three separate areas of the Loire. From the very western end of the region we will taste two wines from the Sevres et Marne area, made from the muscadet grape and famous for accompanying fish dishes. In the middle of the region we have two chenin blanc wines from the Vouvray area, famous for their ability to age for decades, and from the south east end of the region we will have two sauvignon blanc wines (completely different from their NZ cousins) from the Sancerre area. Finally we will have two sweet whites from the central areas.

This is a chance to try famous wines most rarely drink, so don’t miss out! At just $25 for prestigious French wines, this tasting represents a not to be missed opportunity with strictly limited numbers.

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Hawke’s Bay Reds 11th June 2010

admin — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 07:35:06 +0000

Presentation Hawke’s Bay

Pinot Noir 21st May 2010

admin — Sat, 22 May 2010 08:21:28 +0000

Our next tasting is New Zealand Pinot Noir – one of the most sought-after varieties in New Zealand. Pinot Noir is a more expensive wine, so the cost for this tasting will be a bit more than usual at $20 for members. This will be a good tasting – with some classic New Zealand wines and some up-and-coming contenders to try. Limited numbers for this one, so get in early and let me know if you want to attend!

New Zealand Pinot Noir tasting 210510

NZ Rieslings 30th April 2010

admin — Sat, 22 May 2010 08:14:38 +0000

New Zealand Riesling

Southern Rhone 16th April 2010

admin — Sat, 17 Apr 2010 00:20:48 +0000

Southern Rhone