Winestore.co.uk Ltd New Zealand

Urlar wines

Founders and owners or Urlar, Angus and Davina Thomson hail from Scotland. As a fifth generation farmer and a family history in distilling (both grandfathers were in the whisky business) Angus’ love of the land is inherent.

We were introduced to Urlar by Angus' parents who are local to our shop in Crieff. When we tasted the wines, we were immediately won over and committed to supporting a winery that not only produces stunning wines, but is in complete alignment with our own beliefs ....

Economic and environmental sustainability are Urlar's driving principals.

These practices are about giving life back to the soil and managing the vineyard as a balanced sustainable farming unit. This includes organic practices such as recycling through composts and liquid manures and increasing plant bio diversity through inter-row crops. Urlar's Highland cow herd provide the manure to drive the composting process.

Using the biodynamic farming and gardening calendar, the rhythmic influences of the sun, moon, planets and stars are recognised and worked where possible.

This commitment has been recognised and rewarded recently when Urlar won the Hills Harvest and Gallagher Innovation Awards.

The result is beautiful, clean, hand crafted wines that have not impacted negatively on the soils as they have been created.

Urlar Sauvignon Blanc 2009 (75cl)

Tasting Note: The 2009 vintage has delivered zesty gooseberry, capsicum and lime flavours with a hint of passionfruit. While it remains a distinctively New Zealand sauvignon blanc the palate is full with great weight and length.

Food Matching Note: Suitable for all occasions but particularly well matched to seafood.

Vinification Note: Lightly crushed and pumped straight to press where it is gently pressed and the juice is taken to tank. The juice then cold settled for 24 hours. The juice is then racked off the heavy lees and moved to another tank where it is warmed and fermented under temperature control. After finishing ferment the wine sits on its lees for a period of time. A proportion of the blend is also fermented in old barrels. This wine was held in fermentor for 4 months post ferment sitting on its gross lees. This was then fined filtered and bottled.

OUR VIEW: This is an incredibly versatile wine - it goes with just about anything and oozes class. The initial palate has a fabulous balance of fruit and acidity which is underpinned by a rich, dry, roundness showing great texture and followed by a superb, long finish. A real multi-dimensional wine - forget Cloudy Bay, Urlar is, in our view, superior.

Price: £11.75 (Including VAT at 17.5%)

Urlar Pinot Noir 2008 (75cl)

Tasting Note: An enticing nose of ripe red fruits which combine beautifully with flavours of sweet dark plums intermingled with savoury notes and exotic spices. This wine is elegant and refined but with real weight and power.

Food Matching Note: Beautifully suited to a rack of lamb or gamey dishes such as venison or duck.

Vinification Note: The grapes are tipped into a mixture of stainless steel and Oak cuvees. A proportion of the grapes is cold soaked and the ferment is started with wild yeasts. The ferment is allowed to peak at about 32oc and then allowed to finish. The wine is then taken off the skins and put to tank prior to going to barrel. When in Barrel a portion is put through malolactic fermentation in the Spring and some in the Autumn. The wine then sits in barrel for up to 11 months.

OUR VIEW: Frankly, Pinot Noir's of this quality at this price are more than rare. If Urlar's Pinot Noir were sporting a Burgundy label, you would exect to pay two to three times this price. As the French would say, "FELICTATIONS".

Price: £15.75 (Including VAT at 17.5%)

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