Support from Waiheke Island

Waiheke Wine Centre, one of Man O’ War’s key allies on the Island supports us yet again with one of their fabulous promotions!

Visitors to Man O' War

Man O’ War has had a smorgasbord of International visitors over the past six months, wine personalities from the UK, Europe, Canada, Australia and the US.
In November Pierre Antoine Dourneau managing director of Soho House, New York City visited the property to get a first hand view of Man O’ War and the wines we produce here, a new addition to the Soho House wine list.


In January Harry Hertscheg from Vancouver, Canada visited Man O’ War. Harry has been at the helm of Canada's premium wine show, The Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival (VPH) for nine years. In addition to this role he also writes about wine and contributes to a number of magazines including Northwest Palate and Tidings, one of Canada's top wine and food magazines.


Harry was blown away by the property and was a big fan of our Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc and both our MOW Chardonnay and Valhalla.
I am very much looking forward to joining Harry in Vancouver for the Vancouver Playhouse Event, of which Man O’ War wines will be featured.


Just last week we hosted Fernando Beteta and his lovely wife Ann, from Chicago USA.
Fernando is currently the Sommelier of award-winning NoMI restaurant of Park Hyatt Chicago. A Master Sommelier and often referred to as a ‘whiz kid’ in regards to wine, Fernando was awarded the title of Best Young Sommelier Midwest in 2005, 2006 and 2007 and took home the National Finals Silver Medal in 2007. In 2006 he received “Rising Star Sommelier” for Chicago from Starchefs.com and was featured in Wine & Spirits magazine’s list of “America’s Best New Sommeliers” following a poll of hundreds of restaurant wine professionals across the US. Fernando is also a contributor to several food and wine magazines.
Fernando’s wine picks for the day were the MOW Syrah and the Dreadnought Syrah, the MOW Merlot Cabernet and the Pinot Gris.


See you soon.

4 1/2 STARS Michael Cooper Listener Magazine 2.01.10

MAN O' WAR ROSE 2009
Pale red, merlot-based wine, mouthfilling, with deep berry/spice flavours, a vaugue hint of herbs and gentle acidity. Weighty, rich and rounded, this wine is like French rose - a sort of substitute red.

Through The Door.....Part One

Man O' War's new Cellar Door has only been open for four days and the response to both the concept and the wines has been overwhelming.

With only a week to push the button and make it happen following a nervous wait for our liquor license to arrive on time, the little cabin at Man O' War Bay was duly christened by the staff on Christmas eve ready for opening on Boxing Day. With a "mucking in" type environment the team worked late into the day putting the final touches on her before enjoying a well deserved coldie on her deck......(I am going to post some photo's as soon as I can....Duncan.....please don't be alarmed to see both of your decks from the winery in these photo's...How's Perth anyway?)

We have had a great time showing the public our wines in our own backyard and look forward to introducing more people to the range of wines in the months ahead.

I though I would share a few highlights (and lowlights) of the first days few days...

• 7 minutes to sell our first bottle....I cheated really; two boaties were lost at Stony Batter earlier in the day and needed a ride back to their boat, I told them only if they visited our Cellar Door and bought wine....we had a deal.



• Ironically one of these boaties just happened to be an old boyfriend of Rebecca's who was working the first day with me....go figure!



• Brooklyn (7) and Gracie (4 1/2) taking 45 minutes to show Rebecca (50 something) how to put the twin pack boxes together.



• Rebecca taking most of the day to show Matt how to operate the till and all of the day how to operate the eftpos.



• The lady who offered to drop flyers onto boats in the bay by rowing around and delivering them personally for her own exercise, then rowing back with her husband and buying four bottles for personal consumption (don't worry she got a special deal!) and informing us she'll do it again the next day....goddess!



• How about the kid that turned down a lollipop saying he didn't eat lollies...excuse me, I don't get that one, your an 8 year old kid aren't you? What would you prefer, a couple of brussel sprouts?. Lucky Gracie didn't hear that, she would have been permanently scared.



• Now boaties....we love you, you have been great support and we have enjoyed your stories, but standing in front of the bar, tasting 7 wines, and on the 8th saying "That was great but I've left my wallet on board" isn't going cut it for long. From now on the staff have been trained to ask to see all wallets before starting the tastings. Cheeky buggers! We now have a Jet Ski on hand to whip you back out to get it.



• Dude in the red singlet.....the cabin is small, it's summer, summer means it gets hot occasionally, just like Tuesday was, if you've been fishing all morning and wiping yourself on the ass of your cut off Levi's...at least wash your freakin hands! Poo man.



• The people who have walked to Stony Batter and back give a very real example of body sweat Sauvignon Blanc aromas! Remember...the cabin is small, it's summer, sometimes it gets a little warm in there.



• The punters that have come in at 12.30pm, bypassed everything else and gone straight for the "Dreadnought Syrah" in 25 degrees heat deserve special mention. Brave...very brave people.



• Lady in the white top...I know you had 4 tastes of our savvy by sending your friends in to get it for you. Naughty girl..hear me, naughty girl.



• Fat kid who was sent by his dad to see if we had some wire because he had locked his keys in his car......don't bring the coat hanger back like that! You can't hang anything off a straight piece if wire fella.



• Lastly...the look on the guy's face who thought he was buying a $55 T-Shirt for $35....priceless.

Thanks for your support everyone! For those who haven't been down yet we look forward to hosting you very soon.
Until then.

The team at HQ.

P.S Remember, Opening hours...every day 12-6pm until January 4th, then Friday to Sunday until Easter. OPEN TILL 8PM NEW YEARS EVE!

P.P.S Bronwyn, please stop worrying, I have it all under control....and if getting me to keep phoning you back is your way of saving your mobile bill so B doesn't get grumpy I've got news for you!

Man O' War Cellar Door opens 26th December 2009

An absolute must this summer is to pay a visit to Man O' War Bay, there you will find nestled amongst the native trees and literally a stone’s throw from the shore Man O’ War Vineyards new Cellar Door, a rustic cabin paying homage to keeping Kiwiana alive on Waiheke Island. “It’s a magical location, we just want people to come and enjoy the beauty of Man O’ War Bay and experience our award winning wines and produce”, says Man O’ War’s Bronwyn Skuse.

All of Man O’ War’s wines will be available for tasting, as well as produce from the surrounding farm, including olive oil and honey. You could also be one of the first to purchase our very limited release vintage T-Shirts, only available at the Cellar Door and for the very first time available to the public.

Because of the sheltered beauty of Man O’ War Bay, it is traditionally a popular boating destination. Now, 241 years after Captain James Cook first anchored, the new generation of sea faring men and women can try and buy Man O’ War Wines at Man O’ War Bay.

Whether by oars or wheels, Man O’ War Bay is a perfect picnic destination offering a public BBQ for use also! You can stop by, try our amazing line up of wines or settle in and enjoy this gorgeous Bay!

Between December 26 and January 4, the cellar door will be open every day between 12 and 6pm, and then between Friday and Sunday until Easter.

Man O’ War Vineyards is located on a stunning coastal site at the eastern end of Waiheke Island in Auckland’s Hauraki Gulf, the vineyards are made up of a patchwork of 90 individual parcels selected specifically for their unique terroir. Now, everyone can enjoy Man O’ War’s wines in this very special part of the world.

Ironclad named best new world red by Decanter’s Steven Spurrier

Man O’ War’s flagship wine, Ironclad 2008, has been named best new-world red by Steven Spurrier in the latest issue of Decanter magazine (January 2010).

It comes just weeks after three Man O’ War wines from the same vintage took 90-plus ratings in Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate.

“The 2008 vintage is being hailed as one of Waiheke’s best” says Duncan McTavish, Man O’ War’s winemaker. “It’s really gratifying that our flagship blend, Ironclad has been recognized by one of the world’s great wine authorities”.

Spurrier noted the Ironclad was an “arresting Bordeaux blend… Smoky from oak ageing with magnificent berry fruits and leathery undertones.”

It’s all the result of Man O’ War’s fastidious approach to winegrowing. Located on a stunning coastal site at the eastern end of Waiheke Island in Auckland’s Hauraki Gulf, the vineyards are made up of 90 individual parcels selected specifically for their unique terroir.

It’s this approach that allows each and every vine to produce the best possible fruit – and the results show through in the recognition Man O’ War is achieving for its wine.

Framework & the Art of Blending

There are many romantic notions about wine making and while many hold true others only hint at the hard work and effort that goes into crafting a memorable wine. Winemaking is a relatively ancient craft and one that historically follows the changing of the seasons and it is in these spring months where the task of tasting many of the wines begins as we carefully evaluate our work and start to assemble our blends.

One important element in many wines is the use of new oak in a blend. Balance is key in creating a harmonious wine and the judicious use of oak is a useful tool in attaining that balance. Now is the time that winemakers are evaluating their new oak purchases in preparation for ordering oak for the next season, the expense aside, it is often a daunting task to decide what oak best suits your wine.

To help us make the decision we often place the same wine into different types of oak so we can best evaluate what is working well for us. We decide which cooper has a style that suits our wines, the choice of forest, the length of time the oak has been seasoned for prior to construction, how the barrel has been toasted and on it goes, the variables are enormous, we question whether a barrel suits Merlot or is it better used in Syrah, do we want more spice or more char, sweetness or density?

At Man O' War we use predominantly French oak, we select which forests work well for us and the tightness of the grain of the wood, we work with the cooper as to which level of toast we prefer and we apply different barrels to different varieties that help us best achieve balance in our wine - the key to new oak is to look on it as the frame that supports the work of art, it is not the artwork itself!

In addition to tasting barrels now is often a good time to give ourselves a preview of how the overall blends are shaping up. For us we are looking at Chardonnay, Syrah and the most complex of all blends, our Bordeaux style wine.

Now it may sound like the best job in the world wandering around the cellar, glass in hand tasting exquisite wines, the lighting is often moody, music is filtering through from the background and the excitement of tasting the new seasons wine is palpable.

In truth tasting wines to construct a blend often involves military like discipline and organisation, in a brightly lit quiet room, one lacking in distractions and interruptions.

Firstly all the wines have been kept in their separate parcels since harvest began, for the Bordeaux blend we have 40 parcels. Each barrel within the parcel is sampled so we have an accurate representation of each; we have 300 barrels to sample. Each wine is then labelled and sorted by variety, we have 5; Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Sauvignon. We then mask each bottle so we have no preconceived notions about a particular batch to cloud our judgement and we begin to taste. Each wine is tasted blind and accurate notes are written about each. The wines are then unmasked, some surprise us and others we nod knowingly pleased with their performance.

Then the skill of blending all the variables into a harmonious wine begins, measuring cylinders and pipettes appear and we slosh measured amounts of each wine back and forth until beakers of wine are scattered across the table, options are produced and passed into judgement. It’s suddenly 5 o'clock and we realise we have been tasting since 9 o'clock that morning, weary we begin to tidy up, arrange our precious notes and scrawls of percentages that make up the blend and head home, mentally drained and knowing that we have come very close to the blend but it will take many more sessions until we are completely satisfied.