Nelson Winegrowers Chardonnay and Pinot Noir trophies

Each year for about the last 25 years Wine Nelson has held a competition for the Colin Harrison Memorial Trophy to find the region’s best Chardonnay. This year a Trophy for the region’s top Pinot Noir was added to the annual event, and I was hugely honoured when Wine Nelson asked if they could use my name for the trophy.

Of course I said yes, I have been a big fan of Nelson wines for decades and have many examples in my cellar. When asked what the trophy should be I asked if it could be something created by a local artist, after all the arts are another passion of mine.

The Colin Harrison Memorial Trophy is a beautiful wooden platter created locally so when it was suggested we approach Darry Frost from Frost & Fire to create something special I was fully onboard, as was Darryl when asked.

Darryl said “for me this is one artist making a trophy that recognises the excellence other artists, one artist to another, and I really appreciated the fact Nelson Winegrowers gave me free reign to create something unique.”

His imagination and use of bold materials resulted in a magnificent trophy made from corten steel and mounted on a piece of ancient Kauri from Northland. Corten Steel is a steel alloy that’s often used in outdoor construction and develops a rusted appearance. This is something that appealed to me as representing the natural environment.

A small group, including me, met with Darryl and as we discussed various ideas we decided that something that represented the land, people and wine would be appropriate. The result is three pieces of steel in the shape of wine bottles with the inside of the bottles shaped to represent those things.

Both trophies were presented at the annual Nelson Winegrowers dinner last week. While I didn’t take part in the judging of the Chardonnay trophy, I understand the standard of wines entered was to the usual very high standard and selecting a winner from the final three was as challenging as it always is.

The Colin Harrison Memorial Trophy was once again awarded to Seifried Estate Family Winemakers for their Winemakers Collection Barrique Fermented Chardonnay 2022 (RRP$29.00). This wine has won a number of awards so I’m not surprised it topped the table of local chardonnays. The previous awards include Gold at The New Zealand International Wine Show 2023, Gold at the New World Wine Awards 2023, and it was awarded 4.5 Stars by Cuisine Magazine in September 2024. This is an exceptional value for money wine that is made in a full, rich style that also expresses beautiful fruit characters created by Nelson sunshine.

I did take part in the judging of the inaugural Pinot Noir Trophy and the judging was equally as difficult. A panel of three judges tasted all the wines blind (not knowing anything about the wine) and after about two hours narrowed 19 wines down to six then three. Any of these wines could have won the trophy but a final decision was made with the inaugural awarding of the Nelson Winegrowers Neil Hodgson Pinot Noir Trophy went to the Kahurangi Estate Four Barrels Premium Reserve Pinot Noir 2019.

The judges said “the overall quality of wines submitted for this new award was excellent and narrowing the wines to one winner was exceptionally difficult. The judges considered the wines with a view that looked for wines expressing the best qualities of Nelson Pinot Noir, wines where the fruit shines yet have complexity that is enticing, characters one judge described as ‘pinosity’. After tasting several flights blind and choosing six wines to retaste any of the final three wines could have taken top place. However, the wine chosen as the winner has all the characters we expect to see in Nelson Pinot Noir, is beautifully crafted with layers of flavour and complexity that intrigues the palate and entices you to have ‘just one more glass please’.”

On a personal note, I am incredibly proud to see so many outstanding Nelson Pinot Noirs in one tasting, I have watched the development of the wine industry in this region with a lot of excitement over the years and while the industry in general is currently facing some challenging times as market demands change, wines being produced here continue to be world class despite those challenges.

The Annual Nelson Winegrowers Awards Dinner was held this year at Moutere Hills Restaurant & Cellar Door. I must say the main courses (choice of seared snapper or 55 day aged beef fillet) were perfectly matched with the winning wines and it was of great satisfaction to me having Darryl Frost at the dinner to see his wonderful work of art being presented for the first time.

New Café

Anyone who ate at North Eatery in Upper Moutere will be delighted to know that Rob & Jodie recently opened a great venue called The Craftsman Cafe at the Alchemy Arts centre on Bateup Road in Richmond. We stopped in for lunch and loved what we found.

They have brought their famous salads with them and rather than cooking pizzas at the new venue they have a great café style menu with cabinet food as well as making outstanding coffee served in beautiful McMillan Pottery cups, or to takeaway if you prefer.

The large open spaces around the café are perfect for the kids to play while adults enjoy the environment they have created. It is also another dog-friendly venue. Check them out soon.

Published in the Nelson Mail 05-10-2024