Thoughts on Cloudy Bay

I have to say that, IMHO, there is still nothing quite like it. Since NZ almost universally embraced the screw-cap two or three years ago there have been some pretty serious challengers, most notably from Nobilo, Belmonte and Villa Maria in my experience. Last year my son worked his gap year in a hotel and was able to provide as much Cloudy Bay as we wanted (it can be hard to buy in any quantity in UK) at about GB£8 a bottle, so we were in heaven for a time. I would like to think that I could still pick it out in a blind tasting, as it has whatever Kiwi for "je ne c'est quoi" is, but some of the other Marlboroughs are getting pretty close. For all the "as good as Cloudy Bay" hype coming from the rest of the world, nothing comes close IMO. Now that I'm back in the real world supply-wise, I may very well conclude that two bottles of universally available Villa Maria is preferable to a time-consuming hunt for one of CB.

Regards,

Ian

Ian, I must confess to having a different perspective. IMO, Cloudy Bay is but one of a dozen or so top SB producers in NZ. When you refer to Villa Maria, which bottling do you mean: Private Bin, Cellar Select or Reserve? All 3 are excellent, but the Private Bin is their entry level and the Reserves are their top-of-the-line. To me, Palliser Estate from Martinborough is a perennial standout, though it is far less restrained than CB. At the other end of the spectrum is Wairau River's Reserve SB, which is designed for development with age. YMMV, of course.

Mark Lipton

In October of 2003, I attended a tasting of NZ Chardonnay at Toronto Vintners Club (a 25+ year old wine club of generally knowledgeable wine drinkers) in association with the NZ trade commission. The group as a whole (some 50 members at the tasting) ranked as follows: (All NZ Chardonnay)

1. Kim Crawford, 2001 Gisborne
2. Gold Ridge Reserve, 2001 Marlborough
3. Matacana Estate 2002 Marlborough
4. Te Kairange, 2002 Martinborough, Wellington
5. Wairu River 2001 Marlborough
6. Cloudy Bay 2001, Marlborough
7. Collards, Rothesay, 2001 Auckland
8. Gold Ridge Estate 2002, Hawkes Bay,
9. Trinity Hills, Shepereds Croft, 2001 Hawkes Bay

What I don't have is the raw scores. In most tastings, the top 1 or 2 are usually highly preferred, and the bottom 1 or 2 are way behind with *very* little separating the middle ranks. All the prices ranged in just under $20 CAD to upto $27.95 for the Cloudy Bay. Everyone was surprised how poorly the Cloudy Bay did, as I think many attended just for that wine. I ranked it 6th as well. I found it closed, with some mineral, flint on the nose. Little fruit. Good balance but I found it lacking concentration, almost simple. I don't know if Cloudy Bay's Chardonnay is as prized as the Sauvignon Blanc.

Villa Maria's Private Bin is certainly my first choice for "everyday" drinking", representing about the best quality/price balance at GB£7-8. The Reserve is a qualitative improvement without doubt, but I'm not sure that it's 50% better (insofar as one can make such judgements). I have enjoyed both Wairau and Palliser in the past. Indeed, I recently "found" a bottle of the latter which I had previously "lost", and consequently drank it about a year after conventional wisdom says that NZ SB is at its best. It was delicious. Significantly, perhaps, it was screw-capped. My star of the 2002 vintage was Nobilo's Marlborough SB. I was served a 25cl bottle (and then another!) on a British Airways flight, and was so impressed that I sought out a case at my local trade wholesaler. I shall be going back for the 2003 very shortly.

Ian

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According to our NZ correspondent (Lord St. H), '03 was a very small vintage, so supplies may be short. FWIW, I'm still drinking selected '02s -- all with Stelvin -- while searching for '03s (got the Kim Crawford). Your Palliser experiences mirror my own: in '02 they bottled under both cork and Stelvin, and I found both. Earlier this year, I opened up a cork-finished and a Stelvin-finished Palliser and the comparison was dramatic: the cork-finished bottle had become flat and muted, whereas the Stelvin-enclosed bottle was alive and fresh. I agree about the Private Bin being a good everyday SB, but at that price point the Kim Crawford is a cut above (IMO).

Mark Lipton

I have enjoyed Grove Mill in a few good vintages. When the vintage is right, I think it is the best of the NZ SBs. Unfortunately when they are not, Grove Mill is just barely average.

I have not been a fan of the CB style myself. Its a couple of years since I've tasted one, but as far as I know, they still have a portion of semillion in the blend which to my taste gives the wine a slight detracting coarseness, especially in texture, and a hint of oak as well, another negative. Like Lord St H. (maybe I'm from the same city) we locals have plenty of choice, many of which are unavailable internationally so I'm reluctant to add to many personal favorites. I tend to stick to the Marlborough producers -no oak, crisp styles at the best prices. Martinborough has good wines but they are generally small producers and tend to higher prices. Hawke Bay being warmer has more tropical flavours and the use of oak more common. There is considerable vintage variation as well. FWIW I think 2004 maybe very good: cool year, low rainfall march/april, huge crop picked. I agree with the comments on Villa Maria wines. I'm a bit biased however. I own a share in a grape growing company which supply VM. The private bins are good value, the reserves greater concentration, esp the Clifford Bay. The Wairau offen has that sweaty armpit character which can quickly overpower the palate. BTW if any producers out there are listening, wot about cutting the alc level a notch. Most NZ sav blanc has around 14-14.5%. A bit less of the sugar to 13-13.5% would produce much better balanced wine........

cheers jafa

Salut/Hi jafa,

le/on Sat, 29 May 2004 12:05:02 +1200, tu disais/you said:-

I can't say I share your feeling about oak on NZ Sauvignon blancs. That said, I can't say that I find the very "in your face" gooseberry style of Cloudy Bay is perfect for me either. I guess from your comments, that the more you like a NZ SB, the less I will like it (I'm talking about _styles_ of wine rather than quality, of course), and vice versa. Probably perverse of me, especially when it is exactly that style which has made the reputation of New Zealand.

I'm a fan of the Hawkes Bay style with a touch of wood, and wonderful passion fruit/tropical fruit nose, and a less aggressively sharp attack. Mind you, 6 year old Cloudy Bay has calmed down a lot, and I like it then very much!

Grin...

Yup, so do I. Impressive company. I adored some of the Esk Valley wines too, when we visited.

Hi Ian, I'm thinking your comments on our respective SB style preferences are correct. I do prefer the fresh fruity crisp. When I started drinking NZ SB I went for the Hawke Bay wines, in those days the fashion was to oak everything. I've drifted to less in the oak department, as a lot of the industry has. Growers have learned quickly about canopy and general vine management in the last 10 years and the Marlborough SB's are not are grassy and sharp as earlier. Mind you, since you're keeping CB for 6years I'm not surprised you prefer the warmer oaked style. Despite being in the drink'em quick camp I have a few bottles of '94 Dry River and a couple of '97 Esk Valley SB's lurking in the cellar. Getting them drunk is difficult now. The last time I tried the DR ( about december) it was a much more pleasant experience than expected. Soft, mellow I bit tired really, but without excessive tinned peas/asparagus (catpee) that I expected. I had another wine on hand just in case the DR went down the sink, but it wasn't needed. Cellaring NZ SB is a failed experiment, not to be repeated.

cheers jafa