On October 3rd, a very special luncheon was held at Bali’s fine dining French-Mediterranean restaurant, Metis, to showcase the wines of Matua – the very first winery to produce Sauvignon Blanc in New Zealand. As a final stop on a worldwide tour, chief winemaker Nikolai St George landed in Bali to exhibit a selection of their legendary collection.
Matua began as a small family-run winery in West Auckland, New Zealand in 1974, when founding brothers Ross and Bill Spence planted vines with a vision to revolutionise the New Zealand wine industry. Today, Matua produces a wide range of distinctive varieties that have quickly gained an international reputation as innovative, fruit-driven wines that are both approachable and appealing to consume on any occasion.
Matua proved exactly that when, befittingly so, the degustation lunch at Metis opened appropriately with their signature Regional Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, impeccably paired with an amuse bouche of herbed goat’s cheese and caramelised walnut. Clean, bright and vibrant, the tropical aromas of the Sauvignon Blanc were a perfect match to the warm Bali climate.
The complexity of Matua’s wines was then showcased with the “Lands & Legends” Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, the latter of which is uniquely grown in a southern glacial valley. The food pairings, respectively, saw a blue swimmer crab timbale with salmon roe, and a Tasmanian salmon fillet drizzled with an edamame puree.
The lunch came to a spectacular close with a combination of Matua’s smooth Lands and Legends Syrah and Metis’ rich and tender fillet mignon. The Syrah is one of only three varieties produced in the Central Otago region of New Zealand, bringing with it a beautifully intricate flavour profile reminiscent of a delicate Pinot.
All of Matua’s wines are conveniently easy to identify: look out for the signature arctic blue hues that symbolise New Zealand’s aquamarine oceans and glacial lakes, or the tribal Ta Moko markings that represent Matua’s devotion to its homeland.
(www.matua.co.nz)
