Some of the Best Wines of 2022 So Far.

Some of the best wines I have tasted so far this year and not given away to family and friends - meaning Janet and I have enjoyed more than a glass each of these wines with dinner – are listed below. It’s not the complete list by any stretch, I could add fifty more, but a list that you should have a lot of confidence in imbibing too.

NO1 Family Estate Rosé Methode Traditionnelle NV. Fine, delicate, complex and pure.  Red cherry and Auckland rose, pink apple skin and strawberry. Elegant and fine with a plush mousse and layered autolysis effect. Sophisticated, dry and delicious. 95/100"

Amisfield Methode Traditionelle Brut 2019, Central Otago. Complex, full-bodied and richly textured with a volumous mousse that is persistent with a fine bubble. White fleshed orchard fruits and citrus, dry, elegant and satisfying. 95 Points

Astrolabe Wrekin Vineyard Chenin Blanc 2020, Marlborough. Youthful, fine and pure with baked apple and pear, a plush silky texture and back bone of acidity. A mineral layer adds complexity and depth to an already impressive palate. 95 Points

Dry River 'Lovat Vineyard' Gewürztraminer 2021, Martinborough. Fragrant and very seductive on the palate with flavours of white and yellow fleshed fruits, exotic spices and flowers, ginger spice and lavender, apricot stone and white baking spices. Dry, very long and delicious. 95 Points

Mount Brown Estates Grand Reserve Chardonnay 2020, North Canterbury. Fantastic bouquet and palate with gun metal and leesy spices, roasted nut and roasted stone fruits and baking spices. Complex, youthful with chalky tannins, and toasted nut complexity. 95 Points

Blank Canvas Reed Vineyard Chardonnay 2020, Marlborough. What an excellent example with weight and richness, a core of fruit reflecting fresh and baked stone fruits, grapefruit, baked apple and baking spices of French oak. 95 Points

Ata Rangi Masters Chardonnay 2020, Martinborough. Seamless, pure, very elegant, varietal and complex.  Flavours of mineral and apple, white peach and citrus, raw cashew nut and a mix of sweet barrel spice with a gentle smoky quality. Fantastic texture with a lick of saline. 98 Points

Tony Bish Skeetfield Chardonnay 2020, Hawkes Bay. I love the bouquet and impact of this wine with mineral and fine flinty stone qualities, fresh white and yellow orchard fruits, apple and gun-flint. Very modern and quite delicious. 96 Points

West Brook Waimauku Chardonnay 2017, Auckland. This is a delicious wine built around texture, a sense of place with flavours of peach and grapefruit, a raw cashew nut oak quality, wood spice, clay mineral qualities and a satin texture. 94 Points

Clearview Estate Reserve Chardonnay 2020.  Captivating and complex, layers of lees and fine oak and a pure fruit drive. Fresh white and yellow peach, baked nectarine and sweet grapefruit. Fine tannins and core of fruit, fantastic length and persistency. 95 Points

Greywacke Chardonnay 2019, Marlborough. A captivating bouquet laced with aromas of baked stone fruits and wood spices. Apple and white peach, baking spices and a fine flinty quality. Complex and youthful, textured and dry, delicious! 95 Points.

Lawson's Dry Hills Reserve Chardonnay 2021, Marlborough. Fabulous wine with complexity and power, a core of barrel spices, raw cashew nut and roasted yellow fleshed stone fruits, Full-bodied, salivating mouthfeel and delicious. 95 Points.

Trinity Hill 125 Chardonnay 2020. An excellent wine, toasty sweet wood scents leading to aromas of baked orchard fruits and grapefruit then a stony earthy quality. Weighty, new and fresh with a youthful power and energy. Great length on the finish, but also still very youthful requiring cellar time. 95 Points

Greystone Organic Chardonnay 2019, Waipara Valley, North Canterbury. Mineral and ripe citrus fruits, lemon and quince, then peach and chalk, oak then fruit spice. I can’t decide what I like more on the palate, the texture or flavour - this really is a delicious wine of charm and elegance. 96 Points

Craggy Range Gimblett Gravels Syrah 2020. A top wine at Decanter 2022 showcasing a core of blackberry toasty plum flavours, toasty barrel spices and stony mineral complexity. Taut and firm, bold tannins and back bone of acidity, fruity and dry. 95 Points.

Two Paddocks Proprietor's Reserve 'The Fusilier' Pinot Noir 2019, Bannockburn, Central Otago. Complex, sophisticated, very seductive and captivating with an immediate sense of place. Seductive and perfumed, soft and floral with fruits that remind me of aged cherry and maraschino, plum and baking spices, silky-smooth texture and contrast from needle point fine tannins. 97 Points

Valli Bannockburn Pinot Noir 2020. A top wine at Decanter 2022, dark cherry and raspberry, contrasting fine savoury qualities showcasing wild thyme and rugged countryside schist qualities. Complex and youthful with sweet baking spices, polished tannins, core red fruit flavours and silk textured finish. 96 Points

Wild Earth ‘Earth and Sky’ Pinot Noir 2021, Central Otago. A very enticing, fresh and vibrant wine with a core of raspberry and dark cherry, earthy with stony chalk qualities and a pure fine savoury thyme quality. Complex and seductive. 95 Points

Dicey Inlet Pinot Noir 2020. Complex, mineral, savoury, youthful and vibrant varietal. Red currant and apple, dark cherry and thyme. There’s a spicy wood character and earthy complexity A wine for the cellar with best drinking from 2024 through 2032+. 95 Points

Luna Estate Silver River Pinot Noir 2019, Martinborough. Complex with a core of minerality with cherry and magosteen berries, old raspberries then strawberry and baking spices of oak. Complex and youthful, an abundance of tannins with pinosity at the core. 95 points.

Black Estate 'Home' Pinot Noir 2020, North Canterbury. Complex and new, a core of pinosity and sense of place with earth and mineral qualities then flavours of red apple and dark cherry, some sweet cranberry and wild flowers. Fine tannins, complex, savoury and detailed. 94 Points

Bruce by Matahiwi Estate 2019 Pinot Noir, Wairarapa. A wine of richness, complexity and personality. Dark cherry with a fine savoury complexity, plum and dried raspberry, moments of black currant and a youthful urgent layer of oak. Fruit flavours coat the palate, excellent structure and length, young and vibrant. 95 Points

Jackson Estate Vintage Widow Pinot Noir 2018, Marlborough. Myriad flavours of red berries and dried herb, barrel spices and a core of minerality. Flowers and autumn leaves, red cherry and plum, barrel spices of dusty clove and vanilla with an abundance of polished tannins and acidity. 95 Points

Black Quail Pinot Noir 2019, Felton Road, Central Otago. Fragrant, varietal, fruity and complex with dried raspberry and black cherry, wild red flowers and a core crush rock earthy quality. A lovely wine, youthful with savoury qualities and mature vine characteristics. 95 Points

Hans Herzog Blaufränkisch 2019, Marlborough. Fabulous bouquet of complexity and mystery, aromas of dark red berries, tilled earth and five spice with anise, sweet toasty wood scents and dusty clove. Excellent concentration and length, an abundance of fine tannins and acidity for mouthfeel and longevity. 95 Points

Fromm Vineyard Malbec 2019, Marlborough. A youthful, focused and complex with flavours of dark berries and baking spices, a natural earthy quality and sense of place. Taut and youthful on the palate, firm, ripe with textures of tannin and squeeze of acidity. 96 Points

Radburnd Merlot Cabernet 2019, Hawkes Bay. Another benchmark from Kate Radburnd with a bouquet of baking spices and dark plum, blackberry and sweet tobacco. A layer of leesy savoury complexity adds breadth and depth. A fine tannin structure with muscle and power, stony mineral core and very lengthy finish. 96 Points