The best Kiwi pinot noir for just £15

Very few Kiwis can make stunning pinot noir at 15 quid, says Matthew Jukes. Yealands Estate is one.

Matthew Jukes
By Matthew Jukes
published

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2015 Yealands Estate, Single Vineyard Pinot Noir, Awatere Valley, Marlborough, New Zealand (£14.95, Great Western Wine, 01225-322810; Noel Young Wines, 01223-566744; The Whalley Wine Shop, 01254-822581; The Fine Wine Company, 0131-669 7716).

Peter Yealands is, apparently, a "can do" man. I have never really understood what that means, but he has certainly built a number of very successful companies over the years and his exploits in the wine world are to be greatly admired. I attended the annual New Zealand tasting the other day and only a handful of tables shone with complete portfolios of excellent wines. It's hard to hit the high notes with a variety of styles, but this winery has a few stars which you should not miss.

The 2016 Peter Yealands Sauvignon Blanc (about £9 from Sainsbury's and the Co-op) and 2016 Peter Yealands Reserve Sauvignon Blanc (£11.59, Waitrose) mean that you can easily pick up an example of Yealands' work today! The 2016 Yealands Estate Single Vineyard PGR (£13.95, Great Western Wine, Noel Young) is a pinot gris, gewurztraminer and riesling blend, which is one of the finest whites imaginable to serve with Thai and Malaysian cuisine.

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My featured wine, though, is the real star. Very few Kiwis can make stunning pinot noir at 15 quid. I know this because I have tasted every single version in the country. This one is the best.

Matthew Jukes is a winner of the International Wine & Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year (MatthewJukes.com).

Matthew Jukes
Matthew Jukes

Matthew Jukes has worked in the UK wine business for well over three decades and during this time has written 14 wine books.  

Matthew regularly lectures, judges, speaks at wine conferences and runs masterclass tastings for both corporate and private clients all over the world. Matthew is also the creator of his ground-breaking initiative, the One Day Wine School, an indulgent day of tasting and learning first performed in 2006.

He has been the MoneyWeek wine correspondent since 2006 and has written a weekly column for the Daily Mail’s Weekend Magazine since 1999. His four highly-acclaimed, annual wine reports – the Burgundy En Primeur Report, the Bordeaux En Primeur Report, the Piemonte Report and the 100 Best Australian Wines – are published on his website, www.matthewjukes.com.

Matthew is one of the world’s leading experts on Australian wine and, with Brisbane-based wine writer Tyson Stelzer, runs an annual competition in Australia to find ‘The Great Australian Red’.  He was made Honorary Australian of the Year in the UK at the 2012 Australia Day Foundation Gala dinner. 

Matthew is a winner of the International Wine and Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year Trophy.  His thoughts, recommendations and tastings notes are followed very closely by the wine world at large.

 

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