Take time when choosing your wine. Photo/Thinkstock
There's nothing like New Year to make you take a bit of an x-ray of your own internal habits and behaviour, to take stock of the things you like and dislike about yourself and then flap into a mad panic creating "strategies for change" or some such.
Apart from the usual things such as "lose weight", "try not to dye my hair so often", "wear more sunscreen", "learn French" and "figure out how to use my MacBook properly", I've figured out that there are a couple of things that I'm actually okay with and won't change.
The first is that there is nothing wrong with wearing dresses everyday and that I'm happy to be a model consumer with an uncontrollable case of FOMO or Fear of Missing Out.
By model consumer, I mean that I really enjoy chuffing around the supermarket, taking my time, and inspecting all the new products that appear on the shelves each week. I look at all the new gadgets profiled in magazines and newspapers and make lists of those cool things I'd buy if I won Lotto.
If there's a new fitness fad I'll enrol for a session, download every Booker Prize nominee on my Kindle as soon as the list comes out and if I read recipes featuring some new "wonder ingredient" then I have to test them out on my family immediately.
I love discovering something new, having "wow" moments.
I can't bear the not knowing, the chance that I could miss out on experiencing something which could possibly add another layer of awesomeness to my life.
The first time I visited a fancy hotel offering a "pillow menu" I went out of my skull with excitement.
Did I want my pillow scented with lavender, marjoram or chamomile? Duck down, wool-stuffed or memory foam? Having never come across anything remotely like a pillow menu before, it's no stretch to say I went through nine different combinations of pillow in a single weekend.
So when a new wine comes along I'm like a pig in the proverbial.
Yes I'm hopeless, but happy. Join me in a bit of joy this week.
The Fuder Clayvin Vineyard Marlborough Chardonnay 201,1 $56
1/2Made by the team at Giesen, The Fuder range brings a new level of loveliness to their portfolio. This is definitely my kind of chardonnay, oozing aromas of smoked peach, roasted almonds and grilled citrus. In the mouth there's a burst of fresh, bright fruit and spicy intensity. The acidity is zingy and crunchy and I love the slightly grainy, smoky finish. There's a lot going on in this wine. It still feels quite young, like it's waiting to uncoil itself to reveal something truly beautiful in another year or two.
TerraVin Te Ahu Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2011, $40
1/2 "Te Ahu" loosely translates to "new beginning" in Maori and for many sauvignon blanc fans, one sip of this will send them into new realms of possibility. Barrel-fermented, as opposed to the usual stainless-steel treatment, and using wild, indigenous yeasts, this wine offers almond meal, frangipani, freshly baled hay and baked tropical fruits on the nose. I love the crushed-stone character and crisp acidity, which gives the wine a mineral-like edge. The finish is long and textural and darn lovely. Another couple of years in the cellar could also do wonders for this wine.
Peter Yealands Sparkling Sauvignon Blanc NV, $16
One sniff tells you straight away that sauvignon blanc is the star here, but it's delicate and subdued with soft tropical notes and green herbs rather than being big and sweaty as sauvignon often can be. It's fresh, racy and really clean-cut in the mouth with a lovely citrus edge and an excellent finish. Definitely a new favourite.