First time visitors to the LIWSF Graeme and Linda Cowley, owners of New Zealand’s historic Auntsfield Estate, picked up an IWC 2006 gold medal for the Auntsfield Estate 2005 Long Cow Sauvignon Blanc, two silver medals (IWC and Decanter World Wine Awards 2006) for the 2005 Hawk Hill Pinot Noir and an IWC bronze for their 2005 Cobb Cottage Chardonnay, among the recent accolades at this year’s London International Wine and Spirits Fair.

First time visitors to the LIWSF Graeme and Linda Cowley, owners of New Zealand’s historic Auntsfield Estate, picked up an IWC 2006 gold medal for the Auntsfield Estate 2005 Long Cow Sauvignon Blanc, two silver medals (IWC and Decanter World Wine Awards 2006) for the 2005 Hawk Hill Pinot Noir and an IWC bronze for their 2005 Cobb Cottage Chardonnay, among the recent accolades at this year’s London International Wine and Spirits Fair.

The 2005 Long Cow Sauvignon Blanc is already a success story boasting key listings in China Tang at The Dorchester and Boisdales.  Exhibiting the amazing fruit spectrum that Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc has to offer, it is widely recognised a wine of remarkable fruit concentration, texture and balance.  The fruit has been grown near 'the long cow paddock' - land that originally nurtured the Auntsfield house-cow!

The 2005 Hawk Hill Pinot Noir has recently been rated ‘Best New World Red’ by Steven Spurrier (source: Globetrotter, Decanter May 2006) who remarked on its “depth of colour, richness of fruit and purity, length and sense of place.”  Hawk Hill is named after the majestic Harrier Hawks that ride the thermal currents over Auntsfield’s elevated north facing slopes, where a variety of low-cropped Pinot Noir vines are carefully nurtured.

Graeme, himself a renowned film producer and former racing driver, and his wife Linda have set about renovating and expanding the original vineyard in the upper Wairau Valley, which had lain dormant for over 100 years.  Very much a family affair, their eldest son Ben is the viticulturalist and younger son Luc assisted legendary winemaker Mike Just (who wears a patch over one eye and claims to be direct descendant of King Edward III, the Black Prince) with the 2005 vintage.

Auntsfield's food-friendly wines get excellent notices wherever they're presented.  The target is to build a wide range of on trade listings in London and outside, with a spread of independent retailers.

The range of Auntsfield Wines are available in the UK directly from The Cellaret: 0845 226 0197

www.thecellaret.com

For further details and hi res imagery, please contact Francesca Law:

This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

tel: + 44 (0)207 100 9462