The coveted Champion Wine of the Show Trophy at the Air New Zealand Wine Awards held a fortnight ago went to the Peregrine Central Otago Pinot Noir 2008.
No surprises there you might say, it's a great wine.
But the fact that it retails for about $39 and that it was entered
in the open class (where producers must have at least 2500 cases available) is brilliant.
For years I'd despair about not being able to actually get hold of a bottle of a trophy-winning wine because no sooner had the results come out than it was all gone!
But pinotphiles shouldn't have any trouble laying their hands on a bottle or 12 of a stunning example of Central Otago greatness.
Forty dollars will also satisfy anyone syrah-centric because that's all it will cost to get your hands on a bottle of Squawking Magpie's The Stoned Crow Gimblett Gravels Hawke's Bay Syrah 2008.
"Concentrated, rich and loaded with blackberry, plum and spicy oak characters; the palate is dense and velvety" is what the judges said of the syrah trophy winner at the same show.
Hawke's Bay also romped home in the big red categories with Trinity Hill's Gimblett Gravels Tempranillo winning the other red styles trophy for the billionth time, Church Road's Cuve Series Merlot 2007 took the champion merlot trophy and Te Awa's Leftfield Merlot Malbec 2009 made off with the champion cabernet sauvignon or merlot/cabernet blend trophy - and guess what? You could buy them for under $40 as well.
In fact, 17 out of the 19 trophies awarded retail for under $40.
