TWR / Te Whare Ra Toru White 2021

I was not expecting to like Te Whare Ra Toru White 2021 at all because of the predominance of the Gewurztraminer grape (52% in this vintage); I find many Gewurztraminer or GWT wines to be overly fragrant, with over the top tropical fruit flavours and a level of acidity too low to balance the sweet fruitiness. Boy, was I pleasantly surprised by this wine! TWR Toru is beautiful – dry, elegant with subtle spice and fruit from the GWT, structure from the Riesling (25%) and texture from the Pinot Gris (23%). That texture has also been enhanced by a considerable of time sent on the lees (the dead yeast cells). It is creamy without being rich and has a very long finish of mineral, citrus and pear flavours. I love it!

Te Whare Ra Winery or TWR is a small, family-run vineyard and winery. The winemakers, Anna and Jason Flowerday, really care about the end product and it shows in the quality of their wines, most of which are certified organic. All grapes are hand-picked and hand sorted. There is minimal intervention in the vineyard and in the winery and TWR wines are given sufficient time on their lees to build texture and complexity. Te Whare Ra Pinot Noir is much loved by Wines With Attitude customers so why not give it a try.

Serve at 10 – 12°C

“TORU (which means “three” in Maori) is an aromatic blend we first created in 2006 and has now become one of our flagship wines. Toru was the first of its kind in New Zealand; it is a delicious, co-fermented “field blend” of three varieties – Gewürztraminer, Riesling and Pinot Gris. We are passionate about these classic Alsacian varieties and we spent a great deal of time coming up with the right proportions in the blend. We were aiming for a wine that displayed the essence of all three varieties, whilst creating a distinctive and interesting wine in its own right, and co-fermentation is key to that result. It has the aromatic spice and fleshiness of Gewürztraminer, the line and length of Riesling, and the great texture of Pinot Gris.

This 2021 Toru has an intriguing nose with notes of mango, fresh citrus, white florals and exotic spices. These lead into a multi-layered palate with flavours of mango, citrus, red apple and lychee with a lingering spiciness. The palate has excellent fruit concentration and weight with lovely creamy texture, plus a mineral edge which gives it great length of flavour.”

95 Points & 5 Stars – Sam Kim
“Splendidly fruited and elegantly aromatic, the wine shows nectarine, lychee, rich floral and lemon peel aromas. It’s succulent and supple in the mouth displaying bright fruit flavours together with rounded mouthfeel and juicy acidity, offering terrific drinking.”

94 Points – Cameron Douglas MS
“A striking bouquet with layers of spice, new white fleshed fruits, quite exotic and very new. Flavours of white fleshed fruits and apple, a core of citrus with lime and lemon, white peach and peppery white spices. Silk touches the palate first then a core of fruit and back bone of acidity take over. There’s a supple fine chalky texture which adds intrigue and texture. Lovely long finish. A wine for all occasions, people and food. Be quick!”

94 points – Bob Campbell MW
“Floral, white rose, lime and tree fruit flavours supported by gentle acidity. An appealing wine that shows remarkable compatibility with three very different varieties without a single variety dominating. Nice purity and an ethereal texture.”