Cityscape Christmas 2019

FOOD & DRINK
THE WINE LIST
Giving the gift of beer
You’ll start a conversation, help save the planet and ensure your
present is the toast of Christmas Day, says Ralph Bungard.
A few seasons back our extended
whānau decided to do away with
the gifting of gimcrack over the
festive season. The rule became
that gifts had to be homemade
and/or consumable. It’s a popular
rule. It reduces waste and suits our
changing world, where we are
looking to minimise our global
footprint. When it came to
homemade and consumable, I had
it easy – I had beer!
I know it’s hard to believe but
some people say they don’t like
beer and they may not appreciate
it as a gift. In most situations, when
questioned why they don’t like
beer, you may find that they don’t
like brown, slightly sweet and malty
beer synonymous with the
old-fashioned style that dominated
New Zealand brewing for decades.
I get great pleasure at the Three
Boys Brewery front-of-house
introducing these non-beer
drinkers to a sour and salty gose, a
fruity Belgian-style wheat, or even
a rich, roasty, chocolaty stout and
having them go mmm, I like that!
It’s hard to imagine anywhere in
Aotearoa these days that does not
have a genuinely local microbrewery
within reach. It is these
breweries that will have something
out of the ordinary that would
make a great gift for beer lovers
and those non-beer lovers who
need converting.
Go out of your way to pick
something unusual – a
fruit-infused sour, a chocolate
stout, a whisky barrel-aged pale
ale, a super-cloudy New
England-style IPA. And pick
them from a genuine local
brewer – not one of those
pseudo “craft” brands from
the multinationals. You’ll
tick all the boxes, you’ll
create a conversation, you’ll
introduce someone to the
amazing world of beer
flavours, you’ll support a
local business, and in some
small way you’ll be saving
the planet.
Besides, what’s the worst
that can happen – you’ll
have to help them drink it?
threeboysbrewery.co.nz
FIDDLER’S GREEN VINEYARD &
BISTRO CHARDONNAY 2018
After so long living in the shadow
of the all-conquering sauvignon
blanc, chardonnay is again finding
favour with New Zealand wine
drinkers. It’s examples like this
from Fiddler’s Green Vineyard &
Bistro in the Waipara Valley that
are stoking the switch as well.
This full but smooth and
elegant chardonnay has
flavours of ripe melon,
peach and apricot,
complemented by toast
and buttery complexities. If
it has been a while since
you sampled a chardonnay,
here’s a good place to start.
fiddlersgreenbistro.co.nz
PEGASUS BAY ESTATE PINOT
NOIR 2016
The excellent free-draining soils of
the Waipara Valley are gaining a
reputation for the quality of the
pinot noirs they produce, and this
example from Pegasus Bay is
clear evidence of why. The
bouquet is packed with red and
dark fruit, with hints of pepper
and spice. Layered beneath
that are savoury notes of
grilled game and black olive
tapenade. The palate is
satisfyingly concentrated
with fine-grained tannins,
while a refreshing minerality
ensures the wine remains
tight and focused, with a
lasting finish.
pegasusbay.com
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