Not one but two wines this week - we wanted to make up for not doing a 'Wine of the Week' last week. Yesterday was Valentine's Day and these two make a lovely couple...an Antipodean match made in heaven?

Actually, they are two very different wines - apart from the obvious difference of one being a white and the other red!

The Greywacke Sauvignon Blanc 2009 is the epitome of bright, vivacious New Zealand Sauvignon from Marlborough - a full in-your-face blast of ripe gooseberries and green peppers on the nose. A nice mineral edge to support those intense varietal characters whose flavours develop in the glass as the wine gets a little air. This stylish example of Kiwi Sauvignon bears testament to great quality of fruit from the vineyard, and the experience of its creator Kevin Judd, ex-winemaker of the famed Cloudy Bay.

Kevin is not only a super-talented winemaker, but a first rate photographer of vineyards and all things wine-related. The name Greywacke refers to the sandstone/mudstone rock found in New Zealand.

If the Greywacke '09 is all fruit and youthful vigour, the Rusden Full Circle Mataro 2005 is a much more laid back, mature wine. 5 years of bottle age have begun to soften the tannins, but still leave plenty of grip to provide structure to the complex, savoury flavours that are layered throughout this intense yet balanced Barossa valley red.

Perfect with roast red meats - especially lamb with garlic and thyme. However,  it worked equally well with the garlic and lemon roast chicken Mrs C and I enjoyed for a quiet Valentine's Sunday supper yesterday. No love in the air with all that garlic though!

Try either (or both!) of this weeks 'Wines of the Week' and get 10% off when buying 12 bottles.

Update 01.03.10: New stock just arrived, plus price of Greywacke now reduced to £11.89 per bottle.

It's no longer our wine of the week - but it's cheaper now than when it was!

The Saturday newspaper round up at Surf4Wine...

Financial Times

Red and white go green, Jancis Robinson
Jancis Robinson has been running a campaign against extra-thick, extra-dark and extra-heavy bottles whose manufacturing and transporting costs are far more than those of regular bottles... [More]

 The Independent

Great burgundy vintages are usually thought of as red. But in 2007 the whites are better than the reds, Anthony Rose
'I wasn't going to comment on the latest burgundy arrival because the word on the grapevine wasn't sufficiently enthusiastic to justify it. That was before tasting the wines, and while I still don't believe 2007 is a vintage in which to sink your life savings, it merits attention for unexpected reasons. A great burgundy vintage is usually thought of as red, as in 1999, 2002 and 2005, and red wines and laying down are synonymous. 2007 is about the whites...' [More] 

 The Times

The Telegraph

 Bargain wines from Aldi and Lidl, Jonathan Ray
Aspirational thrift is the new byword among cash-strapped wine lovers

'Of all the supermarkets that crowd our streets (and I have half a dozen within five minutes walk), the credit crunch seems to have been kindest to Aldi and Lidl. "Our wine sales are up 40 per cent on last year," says Danny Gibson, wine buyer at Aldi. "We have just 65 wines on our list and I try to give as broad a range as possible. Some of our customers will only spend £3 a bottle and I have to get the best in that price range." .... [More]

The Guardian

Looking for a choice down under, Victoria Moore
There's more to New Zealand than sauvignon blanc.

"New Zealand," said a friend with the air of someone pleased to know what they're talking about. "They make good sauvignon blanc. Gooseberry tasting. Very delicious." And? I was subjected to another moment of preening. "Pinot noir. Delicious. Good enough to rival burgundy, and better value." Anything else? There was a pause and then, in a halting voice, "Something else white?"...  [More]

Goldwater Sauvignon Blanc 2007 (SnoothRank: 4/5)
New Zealand > Marlborough (January 2009)
Intense pineapple nose with hints of pink grapefruit. Fresh and very fruity. Lovely balance on the palate with crisp acidity and bags of tropical ripe fruit - nectarines and pineapple, and just a touch of greeness. Lovely stuff and a great pre-dinner aperitif myRating 0/5

We have set up an account at wine social networking site Snooth, where we can share our tasting notes for wines with you - and you can do the same with us. Hopefully, in due course we will ahve all our wines listed on Snooth and you ca comment on them all there as you taste them.

 See you online at Snooth!

PS, I've also set up a personal account at Snooth under my own name - so you can see what non-surf4wine wines I'm drinking and tasting too!

One of our favourite importers dropped by this week with a couple of wines tucked under her arm, begging to be tried.

Wild Earth is a Central Otago winery. At 45^o south, Central Otago is the world's southernmost winemaking region. It is mountainous, rising to over 2000 metres with the vines planted among spectacular alpine scenery. The vineyards are the highest in New Zealand, located between 200 and 400 metres above sea level.

Central Otago is rapidly developing an International reputation for top quality Pinot Noir. More than 70% of grapes grown in Central Otago are Pinot Noir, as this early ripening variety is suited to the short growing season that results from such a southerly location. The key factor in Central Otago is the position of the vineyards. They need to be sited to ensure that the grapes ripen fully during the short window available to them. One of the best areas is Bannockburn, which is where Wild Earth's main vineyard is situated.

The Wild Earth Pinot Noir 2006 is a lovely wine: Dark blackcurrant, bramble, spice smoky plum and wild gamey aromatics, a warm rich complex mouth feel showing elegance, dark brooding flavours and a long persistent finish.

Wild Earth Riesling 2006 sits, stylistically, somewhere between the Clare Valley in Australia and a German Riesling, perhaps from the Mosel. Limey with hints of grapefruit, there is residual sugar, making this a distinctly 'medium'style. Excellent balance and a lovely zingy, fresh acidity. Great as an aperitif, but probably great with fusion food too - something I shall test out in coming months and report back on.

But for now, I'll settle for finishing off the Pinot Noir. Not a 'monster wine' - see tonight's earlier post. But certainly one that would make any Pinot-lover very happy.

We are currently out of stock of Cloudy Bay wines. We are working at getting more in very soon - hopefully in time for Christmas.

Of all the Cloudy Bay wines the Sauvignon Blanc is the most sought after - at least if our sales and enquiries are anything to go by. So, while we are waiting on the arrival of more Cloudy Bay we can recommend some excellent, award-winning New Zealand Sauvignon's from our list, all of which make great alternatives to Cloudy Bay.

To make things more fun, take a look at the video below of me tasting some of them. Find a full list of our suggested Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc alternatives here, including a mixed taster case to try.

Initially I was thinking red wines. With lots of flavour and interest to get the brain cells thinking and conversation flowing. Warming, but with alcohol levels nicely in balance and not over-whelming. Not too much extraction. Food friendly. It's the time of year to have friends round for big Sunday lunches and suppers round the fire.

Then I started to think about the food we eat at this time of year, and what is in season. I remember years ago going out mushroom-hunting one October Sunday with a friend (boy, does Patrick love his mushrooms; and he knows his stuff too, so no risk of poisoning either!) Bringing back our haul of exotically named and bizarre looking fungus, cooking it with garlic and herbs, and the drinking some amazing red Burgundy's.

It must have been a good memory as tonight we are having some Portobello mushrooms I found in our local farm shop (I went in for apples to make a favourite Autumn pud: Apple and Blackberry crumble), tossed in a hot pan with good olive oil, herbs from the garden and garlic. Only trouble is... I don't have a stash of great Burgundy at home to partner our little feast with (it's all back in Surf4Wine's hollowed out Volcano HQ!).

So, instead, it will be one of my favourite New World Pinot Noirs: Tuatara Bay Pinot Noir from Saint Clair from New Zealand's Marlborough region. Sure, there are other much better Pinot's, but not at this price! A snip at £7.99, and perfect with the earthy, vegetal flavours of the mushrooms.

So, what is your favourite Autumn food, and what do you like to drink with it? Over to you...