The Coleraine Cabernet Merlot is one of the most iconic and collectible red wines of New Zealand, and the 2020 release sold out in mere minutes in what can only be described as a frenzy earlier this year. It's a wine with tremendous pedigree, surely amongst the finest blends of this style in the world, backed by world-class reviews vintage after vintage.
Unfortunately, the 2020 Coleraine is long gone, but the next vintage is on the horizon...
While we eagerly wait for the next vintage of the Coleraine (very soon!), take a look at their great value Estate range (all sub $30!) and more here.
The award for Best Value Imported Red goes to one of our most favourite inexpensive Gamays that we just can't wait to share with you every year.
Dominique Piron combines old vines, natural freshness and high quality into a light, crunchy and smashable red that makes for incredibly delicious drinking that punches well above it's $26 price point. Across two vintages it was consistently one of our most popular imported reds of the year, and with it's unbeatable value, it was a shoe-in for our Bargain Imported Red of 2022.
The biodynamic Manzoni Bianco from the legendary hands of Elisabetta Foradori took us by surprise this year by climbing to the top of our best-selling imported wines.
It's an aromatic gem of a wine that flirts with the amber style, seeing some skin contact time in cement tanks before ageing in acacia barrels. Beautifully scented, crisp and textural, it's a white wine to savour over every sip.
The 2020 has sold out, but we've just received the 2021 in store and it's looking as good as ever. A natural wine almost without peer, and one to jump on.
The Stift Goettweig Gruner Veltliner Messwein is not only great value and delicious, but has a truly awesome lore behind it - and it's these three things, combined with its popularity, that has made this wine deserving of our award for Imported Bargain White of 2022.
Messwein, meaning altar wine, can only be produced with permission from the bishop and is required to be produced naturally with no alterations. It's a moreish and savoury Austrian Gruner with the faintest splash of Pinot Noir Rosé, coming out as an expressive, light and fresh wine.
It would be sacrilegious to put together our Imported Wines of the Year list without including a grower Champagne! So we've called in one of our all-time favourites, the Bereche et Fils Brut Reserve.
It's one of the most compelling and complex grower Champagnes we've come across: rich, toasty, yet fine-boned and extremely well balanced. The perfect wine for any special occasion, and the perfect choice for our Best Other Wine Style of 2022!