Pyramid Valley – 2020 White Wine Releases
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Pyramid Valley North Canterbury Sauvignon + 2019
90 Points – $30
Drink 2020 – 2023
Should one judge subjectively or objectively? A little of both?
Sauvignon Blanc is a divisive variety at the best of times, but this wine takes it to a new level. You will love it or hate it. I don’t see many sitting on the fence. The extreme worked Kiwi Sauvs come in the form of Dog Point Section 94, which I really like, or the Cloudy Bay To Koko, not so much. For me, this falls in with the latter category. As they say in the classics, not my cup of tea at all. But there will be many who adore it.
The team have thrown everything they can at this wine. A dollop of Riesling, portions left on skins and fermented in amphora, others parcels in barrel with wild yeasts and some in stainless steel. It sat on ferment lees with no SO2 for three months before blending and was bottled unfined. All of this is why the wine is labelled with the ‘+’. From three vineyards in the Waipara region.
A pungent wine with herbals, a hint of creaminess and a real soursop note. A wine with power, force and length. It is building complexity and should be interesting in three to four years. The flavours might not appeal to me but they will to many and it is undoubtedly a well crafted and interesting wine. And in the world of worked Savvy’s, value.
Pyramid Valley North Canterbury Chardonnay 2018
95 Points – $50
Drink 2020 – 2027
A cracking Chardonnay. For $50, this is stunning value. A mix of clone 5 and Mendoza from the Three Sisters vineyard in Waipara, which was planted between 2001 and 2004. Wild fermented, 12 months in French barrels, 20% new. Bottled unfiltered and unfined.
Concentrated flavours, notably stonefruit, rockmelon and grilled cashews. A supple palate with a lovely creaminess to the texture. Good acidity. Young but finely balanced. Intense and it maintains that intensity on a long finish. seamless. A really good Chardy and I love it.
Pyramid Valley ‘Field of Fire’ Chardonnay 2018
96 Points – $150
Drink 2024 – 2032
Only 99 six-packs of this wine were made. That gives you an idea of the rarity of this cult offering. From a tiny south-east facing block on the Waikari Estate on Pyramid Valley Road, planted in 2000. A biodynamic vineyard, this wine is foot stomped and whole bunch pressed. Wild yeasts, 17 months on lees in barrel, then bottled unfined and unfiltered.
Powerful, nutty and complex. There are summer herbs with tropical and citrus notes. The highlight is the lovely creaminess of the texture. Incredible length, juicy acidity. Many years ahead. A seamless and superb Chardonnay.
Ken was born and bred in Brisbane, Queensland. He had a non-trendy, perfectly happy childhood, in a family convinced alcohol meant instant condemnation to Hades. But a break fishing on the Great Barrier Reef, and some good wine, started a serious obsession that eventually took over. It did not stop Ken being chastised later for drinking Pol champagne, disgusted he’d drink anything made by a Cambodian dictator. Now, Ken mostly writes on wine, champagne and spirits for various newspapers, magazines and books, but is perhaps best known for his work in The Courier Mail. He also has a little sideline writing on cigars, fishing, travel and food. When not writing, fly-fishing for trout in NZ or bonefish on the flats of Cuba, travelling or smoking cigars, he is no doubt following a variety of sporting teams – the occasionally glorious Queensland Reds rugby, the dysfunctional Washington Redskins, the dodgy Arsenal and especially revels in the world restored to its proper axis with the return of the Ashes to their rightful home.
