WELCOME
Top Tastes is designed to help you find the best food and beverage venues and products; whether you want delicious fish chips, beautiful café food in a winery setting, finely crafted formal dining, food ideas, wine reviews or cocktail recipes this is your guide to the best New Zealand has to offer.
Top Tastes was created by Neil Hodgson and managed by him, he has invited other writers to contribute to the site, this means more regional information will be added as time goes by. You will find a range of opinions, reviews and recipes from people who know their stuff when it comes to food and beverage.
Only reviews written by this select group will be published on the site (you are welcome to leave comments of course) so you will be able to trust the review – no fake reviews, no ranting, just good information to help you choose great things to eat and drink as well as the best places to eat out.
THE LATEST REVIEWS
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Neil Hodgson
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Neil Hodgson2021-09-01 15:52:002021-09-15 12:08:14Harry’s Prawn Cocktail
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Neil Hodgson
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Neil Hodgson2021-08-18 16:46:582021-08-18 16:47:00Gnocchi Romaine by Aaron Ballantyne from Hopgood’s & CoFEATURED ARTICLES
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Neil Hodgson2021-09-15 14:41:002021-09-16 16:48:08The perfect spicy croquettes by Ben Smith
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Neil Hodgson
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Neil Hodgson2021-09-10 16:07:002021-09-15 11:38:42Lockdown in Christchurch
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Neil Hodgson
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Neil Hodgson2021-09-01 15:52:002021-09-15 12:08:14Harry’s Prawn Cocktail
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Neil Hodgson
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Neil Hodgson2021-08-18 16:46:582021-08-18 16:47:00Gnocchi Romaine by Aaron Ballantyne from Hopgood’s & Co
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Neil Hodgson2021-08-14 15:22:002021-09-16 14:22:12Grandma’s Baking from Carol Shirley
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Neil Hodgson2021-08-11 14:53:002021-09-16 14:40:40Winter Warming CocktailsTOP WINES TASTINGS
Blackenbrook 2019 Family Reserve Nelson Pinot Noir
Taste & Other Notes
I first tasted this wine several months ago not long after it was bottled and thought it was an exceptional wine at the time, with extra time in the bottle my opinion hasn’t changed. While Pinot Noir can be light and floral this example is a delicious, powerful wine with lots of character and intrigue. From the initial intense fruit to the layers of smoky oak and juicy acidity this is a determined wine, it has presence and character.
Blackenbrook 2019 Family Reserve Nelson Chardonnay
Taste & Other Notes
This Blackenbrook Vineyards Reserve Chardonnay represents a full style with obvious oak that balances the fruit intensity nicely. Lovely butterscotch flavours upfront are enticing but it’s the balance of intense flavours, oak and ripe acidity that makes this wine special.
Blackenbrook 2019 Family Reserve Nelson Gewurztraminer
Taste & Other Notes
This reserve gewurztraminer from Blackenbrook Vineyards is a wine with spicy character, ginger heat is wrapped around delicate cooked pear flavours. The wine is medium/dry in style with about 12 gm residual sugar. The high natural sugar level has also resulted in a firm alcohol level. Rather than being overly intense and rich this is bright and fresh while retaining classic Gewurztraminer flavour.
We’ve put together a team of experts who have a passion for writing about food and beverages.
Harry’s Prawn Cocktail
/in Neil Hodgson, Nelson, Retailers, Seafood /by Neil HodgsonHarry’s Fish Shop has become one of our favourite places to buy lunch, we love the hand-crafted nature of the takeaway food, everything is cooked fresh by a couple of chefs rather than being pre-made and put into a self-service cabinet.
Gnocchi Romaine by Aaron Ballantyne from Hopgood’s & Co
/in Neil Hodgson, Nelson, New Zealand, Recipes /by Neil HodgsonCarrying on with my theme of asking some of my favourite local chefs to give me a tasty yet simple recipe you can cook at home this week’s recipe is supplied by Aaron Ballantyne, Head Chef at Hopgood’s & Co.