![\"Niamh](\"https:\/\/travisschultz.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Niamh-Peren-300x250.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\u201cI like to try everything\u201d Niamh (\u201cNeve\u201d) Peren tells me. And these are not the words of an experimental millennial, but rather the open-minded views of the globe-trotting daughter of Adam and Kristin Peren, the folks behind the \u201cTwo Sisters\u201d brand from Central Otago. Niamh has recently returned home to the family property at Gibbston after visiting 17 countries in the last 12 months, yet she couldn\u2019t identify a favourite style of wine after all of her travels. I enquired, \u201cDo you prefer any particular regional Cabernet, Shiraz, or Merlot over Pinot Noir from home\u201d, only to be told \u201cNo. I like all of them!\u201d.<\/p>\n
I probably expected a bit of parochial support for pinot noir from Niamh, given her wine family background and ties to Central Otago. The \u201cTwo Sisters\u201d label was created by her parents after they sold the successful Peregrine Wines business they had established at Gibbston back in 2008. The \u201cTwo Sisters\u201d, of course, are Niamh and her \u201ccoolest sister in the world\u201d, Sorcha, who is currently in Christchurch pursuing a career in sustainable water management.<\/p>\n
Though the family home is in Gibbston, about 30 kms from Queenstown, the vineyard is further afield in the Lowburn Valley at an elevation of around 350 metres. And Adam was more than happy to take me there when I recently visited on a cold, foggy Saturday in late June. As you arrive on this relatively steep piece of terra firma, you can\u2019t help but notice the alluvial outcrops that surround the vineyard. The rocky schist soils underfoot don\u2019t give the impression that they would grow anything other than rabbits, but as our winemaking tour guide explained, stressing the vines intensifies the fruit\u2019s flavours and character and allows the terroir of the locality to impart it\u2019s arid charm on the Riesling, Pinot Gris and pinot noir wines that this six and a half hectare vineyard produce.<\/p>\n
Adam chose the site back in 1999 as he believed that it was ideally positioned being high enough to avoid the crippling frosts that can decimate low lying crops, and positioned on a rounded north-south axis, giving the pinot gris and Riesling vines morning sun, while the five hectares of pinot noir vines are graced by warm afternoon rays. These days, it seems that the Lowburn sub-district is focussed almost entirely on pinot noir production, though the local cherry tree orchards seem to be undergoing somewhat of a renaissance due to international demand for their sweet fruit from Japan and China. The cherry connection seems an appropriate coincidence given that those same ripe cherry flavours dominated the delicious \u201cTwo Sisters\u201d 2011 Pinot Noir that Niamh poured for us on our return to the Peren\u2019s Gibbston home.<\/p>\n
The 2011 edition of this flagship wine is rubyesque in the glass but delivers a powerful bouquet of red fruits on the nose. On the palate, the sweet red cherry flavours are joined by a savoury herbaceousness which is beautifully balanced by spicy oak and fine tannins.![\"Two](\"https:\/\/travisschultz.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Two-Sisters-300x250.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Our hosts insist that \u201cgood fruit leaves little work for the winemaker\u201d, and if that\u2019s true, there must have been precious little done in the winery recently as the current white vintages, the 2010 Two Sisters Riesling and 2015 Pinot Gris are exceptional examples of under-rated styles. I\u2019ve become a devotee to the Riesling which is made to a medium bodied Alsacian style with lemon and lime flavours woven between layers of toast, cream and honeysuckle. Harmony is found on the finish, where the sweet luscious fruit is balanced by understated acids and leaves a semi-dry conclusion.<\/p>\n
Just as the \u201cTwo Sisters\u201d wines are now found all around the globe, the \u201cTwo Sisters\u201d have flown the coop some years ago. But with wines like these to enjoy in such a beautiful part of the world, I can well understand why Niamh keeps coming home! For the rest of us, thankfully we can visit at www.twosisters.co.nz.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cI like to try everything\u201d Niamh (\u201cNeve\u201d) Peren tells me. And these are not the words of an experimental millennial, but rather the open-minded views of the globe-trotting daughter of Adam and Kristin Peren, the folks behind the \u201cTwo Sisters\u201d brand from Central Otago. Niamh has recently returned home to the family property at Gibbston…
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