Cloudy Bay is best known for putting Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc on the map, but their traditional method sparkling wine, Pelorus Brut NV, quietly makes a case for itself with understated depth and impressive finesse.

In the glass, it’s a pale lemon hue with a fine, persistent mousse. The nose is bright and expressive, offering ripe orchard fruit, crisp apple and pear, alongside notes of preserved lemon and peach. There’s a gently smoky undertone that adds interest, and a familiar seam of biscuity, yeasty complexity that marks time spent on lees. Hints of roasted almond and honey round out the profile, lending the wine a mellow, almost autumnal edge.

On the palate, the wine is dry, with high acidity that gives a clean, defined structure. The flavours mirror the nose: juicy apple and citrus up front, followed by pastry, toast, and a subtle suggestion of honey and smoke. The mousse is creamy, well-integrated, and adds a tactile richness to the mid-palate. The finish is extended and precise, if not quite expansive.

This is a very high quality sparkling wine and in blind tastings I’ve confidently had it down as a Champagne. It offers clear varietal and stylistic character, a fine balance between fruit and structure, and a satisfying degree of complexity Pelorus consistently delivers more you’d expect as this price point.