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Vidal East Coast 2008 Viognier
This week I just felt like a great white wine, and since Viognier is
one of the world’s great white wine varieties, that is the one I
decided to try, but rather than looking for a bottle imported from
France (the variety originated in the Northern Rhone Valley), I
decided to try a New Zealand version, and in particular Vidal’s 2008
East Coast Viognier.
It isn’t the first time that I have tried Vidal’s Viognier, the last
time though was the 2006 vintage which I found exceptional. The
judges at the Royal Easter Show Wine Awards seemed to be in
agreement with my tasting, awarding it the title of Champion
Viognier in 2007. So the 2008 vintage has a lot to live up to.
Rather than just sourcing fruit from one vineyard or region, Vidal
has sourced grapes from Hawkes Bay and Gisborne regions, choosing
sites with high temperatures and a long ripening season. I would
therefore expect the wine to be styled as a classic Viognier,
showcasing the overall qualities of the grape, not focusing on
region. Viognier is also a temperamental wine, making it hard to get
right. Even though Vidal had a champion award once, it isn’t any
easier to produce a champion Viognier a second time. Either I was
going to be pleased that the wine lived up to my expectations and
memories of the 2006 vintage, or I was going to be disappointed.
Vidal’s winemaking team did put in the hard work to set up this wine
for success paying particular attention to vine health, yield
restriction and vine architecture throughout the growing season with
a focus on creating an open canopy to encourage light penetration
and minimise water retention, both essential to building the classic
Viognier qualities that can make the wine so good.
Once harvested, the grapes were gently crushed and left to soak on
skins before being pressed. The majority of the juice was then
fermented in seasoned French Oak barriques, and a small portion was
allowed to complete malolactic fermentation naturally. The wine
matured for five months on yeast lees with regular stirring to
encourage complexity and enhance mouthfeel.
And so, my verdict? I hear you ask. As you would expect from a good
Viognier, it is wonderfully aromatic, with a bouquet predominantly
of peach and peach blossom with more delicate notes of honeysuckle
and other floral aromas adding to the nose. On the palate, I found
this wine to exhibit delicious flavours of peach and ripe apricot.
It is wonderfully fruity, which I expect from a great Viognier, but
also has a spicy complexity and long, lingering finish. To me, this
wine seems very well balanced, with a rich texture making it an
excellent Viognier. It lives up to my memories and own expectations
of what make a superb Viognier.
Viognier also will cellar better than some other whites, so if you
can resist temptation and want to keep it for that special occasion,
I think it should cellar well for up to three years. The wine is
drinking well now though and those serving it slightly chilled not
long after buying it, I think will not be disappointed.
I would recommend trying this wine with roast chicken or lemon
chicken, alternatively you can try it with roast pork like I did or
even with seafood. I think you will find the Vidal 2008 East Coast
Viognier not only a superb wine but a very versatile one.
Reviewed by Stephen Clark (24/4/2009)
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