sounds a great trip, nice to know people are about. I still lurk, but having
had another new knee, its been quiet on the wine front. SFWS still going
strong.
Son and daughter in law expecting second sprog, so a trip to Queenstown may
be in order. Felton Road, Peregrine etc oh, and see the kids

JT Solihull UK

"Mark Lipton" wrote in message ...

st.helier wrote:
> Yesterday, at the end of their 3 months sabbatical in Christchurch, at the
> onset of autumn in Godzone, Profs. Lipton, Chmielewski with Prof.Jnr
> Andrew in tow, fled NZ bound for the familiarity of thunderstorm stricken
> Lafayette, IN.
>
> Despite protestations by the esteemed Professor that delays at O'Hare,
> Chicago (en route to Indianapolis) were weather related, Lord St.Helier
> has learned that, in fact, a larger aircraft was needed to carry the
> excess baggage accumulated by these intrepid travellers (I mean, how can
> three persons, weighing-in at a total of 160kg check-in with 500kg of
> baggage? Did your card require a special authorisation? :-)

Indeed, we ended up with 9 checked pieces of luggage after our carry-on
luggage was deemed too bulky to be accomodated on-board the plane in SFO
and was checked planeside. More surprisingly, we paid not a red cent
for 9 pieces of checked luggage, an unexpected windfall that left Jean
and myself giggling like schoolchildren on holiday.

>
> The NZ constabulary are investigating the removal of a kitchen sink from
> Hot Water Beach, Coromandel, while Martinborough Vineyards are mystified
> at the disappearance of the contents of an entire barrique of their 2011
> Pinot Noir.

Ah, if only... We did come home to find a traffic warrant from some
town in NSW that apparently booked me for speeding in a rental car. All
done with cameras, I suppose, as I was never pulled over.

>
> Nonetheless, His Lordship can announce that the visiting party spent their
> last night in NZ mulling over the question "Is NZ the new Alsace?" - with
> not a Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Noir to be found.
>
> With a menu comprising totally of seafood (kokoda/ceviche/poisson cru
> followed by grilled spiced salmon with spinach ravioli and a dessert of
> brown trout and jellyfish) - His Lordship dispensed with formalities and
> "plonked" three bagged bottles of white on the table for evaluation.
>
> '08 Lawsons Dry Hills Riesling - off-dry; very appealing "petrol" nose

Yes, clear petrol (or kerosene) scents atop some lime-y fruit. Quite
dry, too.

> '10 Johanneshof Gewurztraminer - very subdued to start but improved with
> time.

Very subdued in the nose, but on the palate were clear-on Gewurz flavors
with a rosewater finish. Moderately sweet, but retaining good acidity.

> '11 Main Divide Pinot Gris - second label of Pegasus Bay, on the medium
> side of off-dry - but this was gorgeous.

My son Andrew was a participant in the blind tasting, and loudly
proclaimed this wine a "Gevurtztraminer" (with a long i) after tasting
it. I was convinced of this too, from the spicy nose, but when
presented with the real deal (the Johanneshof) it was clear that this
grape was different. Very spicy, tropical fruit, dryish, medium bodied
with good acids, this wine was terrific with the salmon.
>
> Decided to open a pink
>
> '11 Martinborough Vineyard Rosé (500ml) - 100% Pinot Noir - bone dry,
> great pinot flavours.

We had this wine at the winery, and it was good there, too, though a
trifle hot from the 12.5% ABV. Classic strawberry and minerals.

>
> With dessert
>
> "08 Trinity Hill Noble Viognier - wow - botrytis with a capital B - lush,
> ripe apricot and lychee - scarce as rocking-horse s**t but worth the
> effort to find if you can.

Yes, the botrytis character was so dominant that it was impossible for
me to make out the varietal character of this wine. I was fairly sure
that it wasn't an aromatic variety, but couldn't come close to Viognier
with my guess.


> Come back soon, Mark - and bring that gorgeous woman of yours.
>
> I shall arrange for a few days sailing in the Bay of Islands.
>
> As to my namesake - leave him behind - far too clever for my liking :-))

And many thanks to (ex-)Lord St. H. and his lovely lady friend Almarie
for a splendid night of great food, good wine and great company, not to
mention their great hospitality.

Mark Lipton