Bellbird Spring is a new winery from Waipara who, according to the website, released a single wine in 2008 and have followed up in 2009 with three new additions to the range.
The main label Bellbird Spring wines are presented in heavyweight bottles with attractive, understated labels. Sealed with natural cork the bottles look very stylish though did cause some consternation when I thought I had mislaid the corkscrew.
2009 Block Eight Pinot Gris has a smoky, musky aroma of pear, dried apple with just a touch of cinnamon and spice. The palate is medium, richly textural though there is a lightness and subtlety to the fruit, with a ripe white nectarine and spun sugar character. Pinot Gris comes in for a hard time with critics arguing that NZ has yet to find a definitive national style as it has with sauvignon blanc and, to a lesser degree, pinot noir. Varying levels of residual sweetness confuse the consumer, a problem which is exacerbated if there is no clear indication on the label as to style. And nowhere on the back label of this wine is there any indication that it definitely walks on the sweeter side of the street.
(and this isn't only an NZ problem - Alsace is going through the same identity issues with many producers choosing to make wines with levels of sweetness that would have been unheard of 20 years ago and who give little or no information to the consumer. On a study trip to Alsace, in the mid 1980s, Etienne Hugel taught us that "Germany is sweet, Alsace is dry". How things have changed).
The 2009 Home Block White is an interesting blend of Pinot Gris, Riesling, Muscat and Gewürztraminer, all four varieties grown in the same one hectare vineyard and presumably modelled on Alsace Gentil. This wine has much in common with the Block Eight Pinot Gris, with light gingerbread and subtle toasty notes, apricot, musk, sweet spice and turkish delight too plus a noticeable degree of residual sweetness, pushing it into the medium category. Though there is sufficient acidity that prevents the wine from seeming too sweet and it finishes with a definite hint of grandma's boudoir.
A subtle, muted aroma of citrus, wet stone and chalk on the 2009 Block Eight Sauvignon Blanc together with a dry, limey palate and a chalky texture combine to give a different take on NZ's quintessential variety. There is an additional note of interest thanks to some old barrel ageing and, in contrast to the aromatic wines, the wine seems bone dry. And enjoyable as it is, it perhaps doesn't have quite the conviction of the Pinot Gris and Home Block White.The second label, 2009 The Pruners Reward Sauvignon Blanc, offers a chance to drink a simpler, more fruit focussed wine, an interesting contrast to the main label. Restrained quince, ripe apple and wet stone, dry with a succulent thread of acidity, decent weight and a creamy note adding interest. At around $20 not badly priced too.
These are lovely wines, attractively presented and made very much in a rich textural style, no doubt inspired by the wines of Alsace. The main label Bellbird Spring retails around $30.00 which seems more than reasonable for wines of this quality.
The only off note is the website tasting notes, written by a third party which seem slightly anodyne and shed no real light on the character of the wines. To have the conviction to establish a vineyard, produce individual and distinctive wines and put your main label under natural cork means the Porters, owners of Bellbird Spring, are serious about what they do. What a pity they didn't carry through this belief and write their own tasting notes instead.
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