Domaine Rewa

AWARDS

Cam Douglas 95 points

Fabulous bouquet of fruit and freshness, varietal signatures of grapefruit and white fleshed stone fruits, there’s a distinctive lees and mineral core offering complexity and power. There is an oak signature as well, distinctive with sweet scented spices. Delicious on the palate, dry, framed by fine ripe fruit flavours and some wood tannins and acidity. The combination of oak flavours, fruit and textures deliver a modern wine with a great mouthfeel and length. Well made with attributes for cellaring as well as drinking from today and through 2029+.

Candice Chow 95 points

Bright, even, pale yellow gold. The nose is full, with aromas of stonefruit, citrus, vanilla and subtle roasted nuts. Medium-bodied, aromas of lemon curd and grapefruit melded with peach, apricot, delicate spice and roasted almond. The fruit shows purity, balanced ripeness and tangy acidity. Well-portioned oak details added complexity and fine-textured phenolics to the texture. This Chardonnay is elegantly expressed with balance and finesse. Match with scampi and chicken ballotine over the next 6+ years. Handpicked, gently pressed, and settled overnight. The juice then went into barrel for wild ferment and MLF followed. Lees stirred weekly for around 8 months. Aged 10 months in French oak, 31% new oak. 14% alc. BioGro organic certified. 19/20 pts (95 pts) Dec 2024

Robert Parker 93 points

AROUND THE MOTU - John Saker

The Vertical

DOMAINE REWA CHARDONNAY 2013-23

My first close encounter with Domaine Rewa Chardonnay was in 2015. I was serving on the Cuisine tasting panel and in that year’s chardonnay tasting, the Domaine Rewa Chardonnay 2013 took top honours. It was absolutely stunning – fascinating flavours, lean and lengthy. I’ve followed this winery’s chardonnay ever since and have come to appreciate just how special the site is for the variety. 

The Domaine Rewa vineyard occupies 5.5ha on the flat in Parkburn on the Wanaka Road. The chardonnay is split between Mendoza and clone 15 and was mostly planted in 1998. It was acquired sight-unseen by the then London-based banker, New Zealand-born Philippa Shepherd, via a phone offer in 2010. In 2012, she met her future French husband, Yannick Fourbet, when seeking out the source of his exquisite, clay, French Anduze pots for her New Zealand vineyard. They married and in 2018 left Europe for Central Otago with their young twin boys to make Domaine Rewa their new home. Each wanted a name embracing both their countries and cultures. Rewa, New Zealand’s native honeysuckle, was the given name of Philippa Fourbet’s grandmother. Yannick continues to create his handmade works of art as The French Potter at Domaine Rewa, using ancient artisanal techniques. The vines have been farmed organically since 2011. All the wines in this line-up were made by Pete Bartle, who has a soft spot for the vineyard: “I’d like to claim the quality of the wines, but it’s the site. It’s naturally low-yielding and has always given really pretty fruit. The wine made itself.” 

It was a pleasure to meet up with the 2013 again. It was holding beautifully. Scents of lemon, dandelion and touches of green. A hazelnut character and a reserved quality that is very Domaine Rewa emerged on the palate, which was lit up with bright acidity. On to the 2014,which trod a precise, tight line – nothing out of place – a generous fruit core with clear, ringing flavours: chamomile, yellow plum (Mirabelle), lime and lemon. Equally refined was the 2015, a beautiful mouthful – warm lemon, fennel, nougat and praline notes – of generous dimensions. “2016 was a summer with wide diurnal temperature variation,” said Bartle. “That accounts for the elegance of this wine.” It was very fresh and lovely, with a lean towards green, flavour-wise. PB: “We had fewer growing degree days in 2017 than anyone could remember.” Perfect for chardonnay – this release was taut and thrilling. In keeping with the hot summer that gave it life, the 2018 had a rich, quite opulent demeanour. One to drink earlier, rather than later. The 2019, par contre, was all youthful vitality, fresh and lightly floral, the product of a cooler year. 2020 was challenging all the way. “It was a vintage of variability between bunches and within bunches,” said Bartle. “That posed a winemaking challenge. Then of course you couldn’t work with anybody (because of the Covid restrictions).” Wind and warmth characterised the 2021 growing season, resulting in a wine with brassy aromatic fanfare, followed by a cornbread and sweet fennel-infused palate. A wine that was still coming together. Another warm vintage turned up in 2022. This wine had a generously weighted fruit core of citrus, quince and fresh-cut herbs, with a touch of oak sitting behind. The overall consistency was remarkable, reflecting a pretty much unchanged MO from Bartle across the decade: whole bunch pressed; straight to barrel (30 per cent new) after settling overnight; wild ferment, a weekly lees stir; 100 per cent malolactic fermentation. The midsummer heat and dryness of 2023 produced a distinctive wine marked by exuberant fruit (Californian grapefruit, melon, tangelo) and livewire acidity. An exclamation mark to finish (!)

Description

Medium straw with clear hues. The nose is fresh with melon, apricot, white flower, brioche and pineapple. The palate is dry with sweet citrus, stone fruit, nougat, lemon curd, honey, pineapple and a hint of toasty oak. Medium bodied, concentrated and complex. Nicely balanced with zesty acidity, flinty minerality and a lingering finish.