While in the Air New Zealand lounge at Christchurch airport we had the chance to taste wines from Tohu. Tohu is the first Maori owned wine company and began in 1998. The Koru symbol is predominant on the front label. This spiral symbolises growth, life and the natural world in Maori culture. It also parallels the growth, life and natural world for grapes in a vineyard. Wines are crafted with grapes grown in Gisborne, Marlborough and Nelson. With the connection to the land common for the Maori, all their vineyards are certified by Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand.

The 2009 Tohu Sauvignon Blanc was straw colored with light green hue. The aroma and taste offers mineral and citrus notes. The crisp finish ends with citrus yielding to mineral. Grapes for this wine are from the Marlborough region of New Zealand. The straw colored 2010 Riesling offered yellow stone fruit and a mineral aroma and taste. The crisp finish had multiple layers of fruits and minerals and slate was predominant on the aftertaste.

Cheers,
Terry