Here’s a suggestion for an easy wine lover’s resolution. Promise yourself that occasionally you will try something new. Walk past your usual and explore.
This selection — including a fascinating quartet from the Dicey brothers in Central — won’t always be easy to find, but the thrill lies in the quest and the sense of discovery.
2025 Jules Taylor Marlborough Gruner Veltliner
Rating Very Good to Excellent
Engaging nose leads
with a raft of sea shell/
salinity, wisps of
cracked pepper, peach
skin and growing,
beguiling fragrance.
Cool in the mouth, juicy
summer fruits, peach,
just ripe apricot, a fresh,
tangy counterpoint.
Rather moreish, leaves
you keen for another
glass. That saline
quality now on the
palate, a touch of lime
cordial too running to a
cool, crisp, tangy close
2024 Hawkshead Central Otago Pinot Blanc
Rating Excellent
A nutty backdrop
(cashew and brazil
perhaps), nectarine,
hints of smoke/pencil
lead, perfume evolving.
The palate is all
vibrancy and liveliness,
fruit sherbet, apple,
nectarine, spice notes,
really hitting the
refreshment factor.
Great length, the
flavours hang in the
mouth. Quiet underlying
power, just a pleasure
to drink, continues
along that fine, juicy
path as it opens up.
2025 Pegasus Bay North Canterbury Gewurztraminer
Rating Excellent
The nose leaps out of
the glass, rose petal,
musk, lychee, stony
minerality, yet not just
about sweet fragrance,
there’s a deeper register
too. The palate
continues the journey,
structure here rather
than blowsiness,
freshness too, closing
with an apricot kernel/
almond bittersweet
quality that lends this a
drier feel. The nose
tightens slightly, teasing
rather than effusive, the
palate lovely.
2024 Ruru Central Otago Gewurztraminer
Rating Very Good to Excellent
There’s an attractive
subtlety to this, musk
and rose petal notes
leading the way.
Those characters
also evident on the
palate, spices,
there’s a lovely
silkiness to the
texture. Does a great
job in showcasing
both the aromatic
and textural qualities
of the grape variety.
Quite simply, very
drinkable, the nose
swelling as it opens
up, a great intro to
this variety.
2024 Dicey Brothers Muscat #6
Rating Excellent
The nose bounds out
of the glass, really
fragrant and
aromatic, rose petal
florals, lychee, fresh
grapes, spices, yet it
gives the impression
of being drier. There’s
textural richness
here, ripe fruit yet dry,
an almost almond
bittersweet aspect a
contrast to the
fragrant ripe fruit. A
fascinating and rare
(in New Zealand)
example of this
aromatic white grape.
2024 Dicey Central Otago Chenin Blanc
Rating Excellent to Outstanding
A little wildness,
initially flint, struck
match and earthy
nuances, parting as
apple and quince
blossom, now straw
and wisps of light
honeycomb/beeswax.
Fat and rich in the
mouth, in the off-dry
spectrum, flitting
between apple, honey
and pineapple, perhaps
pears too, crisp acidity
and a touch of chewy
phenolics lending a
drier close. A raft of
flavours to get your
teeth into, delicious.
2024 Dicey Brothers Central Otago Gewurztraminer #5
Rating Very Good to Excellent
A welcoming note of
Turkish delight,
white flowers and
bush honey. The
palate amps up the
honeyed notes,
stem ginger, spice,
and a stony mineral
aspect with the oily
richness typical of
the variety, a fleeting
bittersweet note on
the finish. The mid-
palate shows some
sweetness, yet the
close tends more to
the off-dry.
2023 Dicey Brothers Infusion Pinot Gris No #4
Rating Excellent
Fascinating wine,
coppery orange
colour alluding to its
skin contact.
Riverstones, fresh
baked bread, orange
zest, peach, hitting
different buttons,
nuttiness later. Lightly
honeyed palate,
grilled nuts, orange,
apricot, quiet grip to
this with a bittersweet
quality, the flavours
hang in the mouth. A
wine to contemplate
for the complexity,
and gastronomic as
well. So interesting.
