Makaraka Reserve Pinot Noir 2012 – $

I’m ‘in charge’ of shopping online for my company’s weekly office supplies, and that includes the Friday wine and chippies. So on the website I see a Maori name, Makaraka, it sez ‘Reserve Pinot Noir’. I remember seeing a red label somewhere and an image of a pohutukawa flower, it sounds safe, so I press, ‘add to order’…

…the wine arrives. It is Product of Chile.

Grrr. Now I am sure Chile produces some fine wine. But this isn’t one of them.

Red cordial. No nose. Sweet. Fruity. Flabby.

The computer sez 1.5

…But then L came to the rescue…over dinner of Chicken Risotto with broccoli and courgette she fronted up a bottle of The Natural Wine Co Gisborne Organic Chardonnay Viognier 2012.

It went a treat with the food. Light gold, medium weight, lightly fragrant. The unoaked chardonnay provides a level backbone of fruit, while the viogner adds spice. Very interesting. Tastes a bit like pinot gris, and there is ginger ale (without the fizz) in there as well! 3