Fall in love with Matakana's Pinot Gris

2007 Matakana Estate Pinot Gris, Matakana, New Zealand (£11.99, Cambridge Wine Merchants, 01223-568991; Oz Wines, 0845-4501261; Wimbledon Wine Cellar, 020-8540 9979; D Byrne & Co, 01200-423152; Taurus Wines, 01483-548484).

I visited the Matakana wine region of New Zealand in 2004 it is two hours north of Auckland, and frankly there is little to see, but I was there to taste one specific wine this one. I fell in love with it in a restaurant in Sydney when I was on tour and I had to see where it came from.

Since then each consecutive vintage at Matakana Estate has pushed their own very high-quality bar even higher. These days, Pinot Gris is exceptionally trendy in New Zealand, but most producers simply get it wrong; either making Italian Grigio wannabes that lack zippiness, or lardy, puppy-fat-loaded, Alsatian Gris styles that groan under high alcohol and headachey fruit. Matakana, thanks to its weather and perhaps a fair slice of fluke seems to have unwittingly nailed this style and I adore this wine.

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