Keeping it fresh, keeping it real, and we keep on learning more about our prestigious producers.

Building a bridge by education and experience is an essential part of our core values here at Dhall & Nash Fine Wines. So when another lock-down threw us a Covid curve-ball then the D&N team went back to “school” eager to learn more about one of our wondermakers – Digby Fine English.

Did you know that… England has 658 vineyards and 164 wineries?

To host a D&N Live Seminar, we hit up Trevor Clough who is owner and Head Blender of Digby Fine English, a charming trailblazer and scintillating raconteur. He took us on one helluva fizzy ride recounting the history of English viticulture, the terroir, and their ethos through to his and his partner’s vision to create a luxury lifestyle brand to rival French Champagne! Crazy you might say… but no! The proof is in the pudding (English pudd in this case) as the accolades and awards continue to come tumbling in for Digby since their very first vintage release in 2013.

Did you know that… in a blind tasting held by legendary wine critic Stephen Spurrier, Digby’s 2010 Vintage Reserve Brut OUTSCORED both Dom Perignon 2009 and Krug?!

Please, all the negative nellies and skeptics out there in wine-land, or even just diehard champagne addicts, let it be known that the soils of the Southern Downs area that spans English wine country has the same unique chalky limestone seams as Champagne. And, thanks to a touch of climate change, the English weather is now suitable to grow Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier to ideal ripeness for most vintages. Ye Olde England is now the hip cool new wine region producing serious quality sparkling wine.

So, what are you waiting for? Test your taste buds and salivate your way to sampling Digby Fine English wine. Raise your glasses to toast:

“… to past and present, to modesty and refinement, to foibles and follies, to courage and curiosity, to adventure and abandon, to science and satire, to bishops and brigands, to green and pleasant. To England!”

Once again Dhall & Nash is at the forefront of New Zealand’s wine merchant industry having invested in a state-of-the-art temperature controlled wine warehouse to house our wine at an optimum and consistent temperature.

Our facility, constructed in collaboration with our warehousing partner Rohlig Logistics in April 2019, houses every single one of our wines (that is over 1,000+ different lines!). We may be considered a smaller bespoke player in the wine distribution biz but this structure shows our immense commitment to our wines, our suppliers and to our clients.

Right from the time our wines leave faraway shores, travelling in refrigerated containers to arriving in our Auckland refrigerated warehouse, then into your glass, Dhall & Nash is dedicated to ensuring every wine arrives in primo condition.

All wine lovers appreciate that wine is a delicate living thing. It can only tolerate a very narrow margin of temperature fluctuations. At higher or at variable temperatures, wine will age faster and not necessarily in the desired way as the process becomes more volatile. To truly showcase our wines as the winemakers intended, storing them at the proper temperature is a no-brainer. There is really no excuse for storing wine poorly – now, at the DN refrigerated warehouse, all wine is stored at a constant 14°C.

Obviously the “Big Chiller” has some serious dimensions, being large enough inside to play a bit of “warehouse rugby” – that is an enormous 5,500m3 which translates into being able to fit in over half a million bottles of delicious vino! Still a bit more space left for future exciting products to be added to our quality portfolio.

We are proud to be NZ’s first wine distributor to house their entire stock in one “Big Chiller” ensuring our wines arrive in your glass just as the winemaker expected – now that’s commitment!

There are few things worse for a wine collector than finally opening that special bottle for a special occasion, to then find its contents have withered and dulled due to poor storage!

Wine storage temperature is critical to the optimum preservation of your wine, and when set correctly, you will experience the full flavour, aroma and character your wine is capable of delivering. Hence Dhall & Nash, with our state-of-the-art refrigerated warehousing, will enable you to side-step future disappointment by offering this perfect wine cellar alternative.

The service we offer is only $1.50 per month per 12 bottle (12 x 750mls) case. We can inventory your collection in your own Virtual Cellar. Conveniently, you can deposit, collect or have your wine delivered with just 48 hours notice.

Needless to say, this facility allows your wines to mature slowly and gracefully and you will yield the vinous rewards of a well-cellared precious wine.

Read what one of our customers had to say about storing their wines with us:

“I had been researching temperature controlled wine storage for my collection of Te Mata Coleraine. I’d run out of space at home and needed a secure, cost effective storage option. I discovered DNFW was offering private storage at their newly constructed warehouse and was pleasantly surprised by the very economical storage fees. While it’s not a large collection, my investment in it is into five figures so security is important. Pickup was arranged and I now have my favourite NZ red wines safely cellaring at the correct temperature, and available whenever I need to access it. I will be sending more wines to this warehouse in the near future.”
– Craig Hudgell

Send us an email at info@dnfinewine.com to discuss.

Speaking with various winemakers and vineyard owners, 2020 looks to be a vintage never to be forgotten given the global pandemic on our hands, but the potential quality of the wines is outstanding. By and large, this year’s growing season has been exceptional for most wine regions in NZ. One exception is Central Otago, where, until the last fortnight, has experienced their coldest growing season on record. There are concerns some fruit may not ripen in time before the leaves begin to fall off the vines. The last two weeks have settled in well for Otago, though, and it’s too early to get a read on the wines yet. My hunch would be that this cool, long, growing season could present a challenge that many of the talented winemakers of the region are up for and are accustomed to from time spent making great Pinot Noir in cooler regions across the globe.

On my last visit to the Hawke’s Bay towards the latter half of March, winemakers were taking a well-deserved break following a Chardonnay pick that began as early as the end of February and carried into most of March across various vineyard blocks, with Chardonnay fruit of fantastic quality. So while the Chardonnays are fermenting, many of the red varieties will be picked in April, a vintage of two halves in the Bay.

I had a quick word with some of the winemakers with Dhall & Nash – Takaki Okada from Folium Vineyard in Marlborough, who was thankful to even be allowed to be harvesting his fruit. He was picking his first parcel of Sauvignon Blanc this year.

“The 2020 vintage is one which we won’t forget for a long time, but at the same time want to forget if it is possible.”
– Takaki Okada, Folium Vineyards, Marlborough

 

Takahiro Koyama from Mountford Estate in Waipara is so happy with the wines thus far that he has guaranteed this vintage will be outstanding. It hasn’t been without its challenges though, as due to the current Covid-19 lock-down, their grape pickers were not available and it was all hands on deck to harvest the last 20% of their fruit, all by hand.

“Despite this being a really tough time for everybody in the world, the quality of the 2020 vintage wine will be superb. I can guarantee this.”
– Takahiro Koyama, Mountford Estate, Waipara

 

Dennis Marshall of Hawkshead Wines in Central Otago is feeling confident his bunches will ripen from the superb weather of late, especially so as the vines age, they appear not to be so susceptible to climate variations.

“We are looking forward to another vintage season!”
– Denis Marshall, Hawkshead Wines, Central Otago

– Brandon