The Nelson First XV (of Wine)

We Check out a World Cup of Wine

It was quite a sight. Forty-four bottles in brown paper bags, all lined up for me to taste. And it was a tasting of some significance.

Some background first. The Rugby World Cup is coming and it is inescapable, even for a non-rugby passionate like me (although I am quietly enthusiastic about it all). To capture the excitement and promote their wines during the tournament, Nelson Wine Growers (Nelson Wineart) are planning a series of events based around The Nelson Wineart First XV Wine Competition - a tri-nation competition involving wines from Italy, USA and Nelson (Nelson is hosting these two countries during the cup).

Each country is submitting 15 wines for the competition, and they will be judged on September 25, just before the Italy vs USA game in Nelson. These three countries are also providing a judge each - Leslie Sbroco (USA), Riccardo Castaldi (Italy), and yours truly (New Zealand). And there will be a "neutral umpire", Ralph Kyte-Powell from Australia. Three varieties are shown - Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer.

It sounds all serious, and it is.

To select the Nelson First XV for the final competition, I was to blind taste 44 wines submitted by Nelson producers, then rate them and rank them. So a couple of weeks ago on a cool morning, I was left alone in a spacious room with bright grey winter light coming through the windows, faced with bottles in brown paper bags. It was a crucial tasting - intimidating and thrilling at once. Time to work.

Some were richly scented; some were luxuriously textured; some were sweet and unctuous; while others were elegantly expressed in the mildest possible way. By the time I finished the tasting, I realised that picking the 15 wines was going to be an unenviable task. I was desperately thinking, "Could we please pick 30 wines?"

I put the pen down, sat up, and it was done. So here they are. The Nelson First XV to go up against some of the best aromatic wines from Italy and the US.

Greenhough Vineyard Riesling 2010
Neudorf Vineyards Moutere Riesling 2010
Kahurangi Estate Moutere Dry Riesling 2009
Woollaston Estates Riesling 2009
Blackenbrook Vineyard Riesling 2009

Rimu Grove Pinot Gris 2010
Te Mania Pinot Gris 2010
Neudorf Vineyards Moutere Pinot Gris 2010
Blackenbrook Vineyard Pinot Gris 2010
Brightwater Vineyards Lord Rutherford Pinot Gris 2010

Greenhough Vineyard Gewürztraminer 2009
Seifried Estate Winemaker≠s Collection Gewürztraminer 2010
Rimu Grove Gewürztraminer 2010
Kaimira Brightwater Gewürztraminer 2010
Waimea Estate Gewürztraminer 2008

There will be a fabulous degustation dinner at the Woollaston Estates to announce the trophy winners, and a tutored tasting featuring some of the top wines from the competition. Visit wineart.co.nz for more details. You'll also find the US and Italian First XVs on the site. It's been said that rugby is a beastly game played by gentlemen. Hopefully this wine competition will be a gentleman's game played by gentle people. But I'll be ready for a hard battle, as I would prefer to be tough and ruthless, rather than rough and toothless. And I will report back with full results after the event.

Sam Kim is a senior wine judge and author of Wine Orbit magazine (http://www.wineorbit.co.nz). You can follow him via Twitter @wineorbit.

Yahoo Lifestyle
22 July 2011
http://nz.lifestyle.yahoo.com/food/index/article/-/9885561/the-nelson-first-xv-of-wine/