Region : Waiheke Island , New Zealand

Conceived by Dr Stephen White, the Chief Winemaker and Proprietor of Stonyridge Vineyards on Waiheke Island, New Zealand, the 1987 Larose was voted the Greatest Red Wine ever made in New Zealand by critics, press and wine lovers. The plan was to make the perfect Bordeaux 5 blend on New Zealand soil and the location of the vineyard was specifically selected for this very purpose – on Waiheke Island with North facing slopes to shelter from the wintry South-Westerly Antarctic winds and protected by a ridge which bears the name of the winery, Stonyridge.

Notable achievements :
" New Zealand's most collectable and expensive red", Bob Campbell MW in Cuisine Magazine, New Zealand

The Grape Expectations Scoop :
The Larose - Super Star Red. Cult Wine. Gotta book in advance.

Larose 2002
"Larose is the New Zealand equivalent of Grange, Australia's super-star red. Both have recently pulled away from the rest of the field in price and in unprecedented consumer demand."
Bob Campbell, MW, New Zealand

"One of the Top Twenty Cabernets in the World"
Roger Voss in the World Guide to Cabernet, London

"One of the Top One Hundred Wines in the World"
Arcigola Slow Food, Italy (the world's largest wine publication)

"One of New Zealand's '1st Fifteen' Wines"
Michael Cooper MW in Cuisine Magazine, New Zealand

"If New Zealand had a Classification of Growths Stonyridge would be highly placed in it. Stonyridge opens its order book for each vintage - just as a Bordeaux chateau would - before the wine is bottled, and all that is available sells out within forty-eight hours." Gourmet Magazine, New York

Larose 2004
Classic youthful Claret. Great fruit expression from the five Bordeaux varieties, cassis, plum, berries, our customary talc like fragrance with decreasing amounts of chocolate, tobacco and earth. Some fine spices, cedar and pencil shavings are also derived from the oak.

A big mouth-filling wine, matured in 90% new oak, this is all gobbled up by the huge ripe fruit. Richly flavoured and hauntingly complex, with immaculate tannin and amazing structure, this wine clearly has a long life ahead of it. It is greatly concentrated with a finish that lasts for minutes, a great vintage not to be missed.

“The 2004 (five star and rated as super classic) looks like a classic – dark and finely scented, with great weight, concentration, complexity, and structure. It may rival the star 2000 and 1996 vintages.” Michael Cooper, 2006 Wine Guide

Luna Negra 2003
Stephen White's steep northeast-facing slope and low cropping produces a "Black Moon" Malbec that is thoroughbred. Drinking Luna Negra is like doing an energetic salsa with an Cuban beauty queen.