Te Mata Coleraine 2007, Hawkes Bay, North Island, New Zealand

 

 

Sometimes it is a challenge to take a photo of your wine when you are having guests join you for dinner and you are busy putting that last minute details together. My friend and fellow Sommelier, Sebastian suggested to me it would be a shame to omit a review for this wine.  His request was well supported. Here is a photo of the empty bottle and the cork (more on that later).

 

This wine is a blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot and 14% Cabernet Franc, maturation took place predominantly in new French oak for 20 months with alcohol coming in at 14%. When we opened this wine, I thought that it might be oxidized, the foil was covered with dry wine, half of the top of the cork was covered with dry wine and two separated lines of wine were running the length of the cork, through to the top. The quality of the cork appeared very good and the length was good, but it might not have been as tight as it could have been. This wine opened up with aromas of black cherry, blackberry, blackcurrants, roasted coffee beans, damp earth, smoky, exotic spices, cedar and mineral notes. On the mouthfeel, medium-full bodied, bone dry with great structure and energy, balanced acidity and fine grainy tannins. A very good length on a long finish, with a rich combination of smoky dark fruit, minerals and mild tannins.  A gorgeous Bordeaux blend (think Graves here), robust, yet approachable, this wine just keeps getting better the longer it breathes. This bottle was definitely not oxidized, who knows if I would have keep it for another year or two, but today, this wine was much enjoyed by all. Score 93 points.

Purchased September 17, 2011 LCBO New Release (640656) at $59.95 

 

Trinity Hill Syrah 2010, Hawkes Bay, North Island, New Zealand

New Zealand may very well be closer to Australia but this Syrah is similar to the Northern Rhône Syrah, this wine is made using 95% Syrah and 5% Viognier fermented together in French and American oak for 10 months and then in stainless-steel tanks.  A deep plum color, this wine opens up with aromas of plumy-blackberry fruit, dried violet, white pepper, meaty and dry spices notes. On the mouthfeel, medium-full bodied , black fruit flavours and rustic with fresh acidity and fined-grained tannins. Dry with a good length on the finish with blackberry and crushed stone texture lingering. Very interesting and enjoyable, better served with food (would be great with lamb). Score 90 points

 

Purchased September 1, 2012 LCBO New Release (194274) at $20.95

Craggy Range Gimblett Gravels Vineyard Merlot 2006, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand

I purchased this bottle at the SAQ in Québec thinking it was the same vintage I had enjoyed and reviewed for WineAlign last year. But it was not to be, the 2007 vintage was released at the LCBO on  June 26th of last year (2010), which I really enjoyed. From the start, I knew that this wasn’t the same wine, the aromatics were not close to being as nice as the '07 vintage, with little fruit and more secondary aromas of dark chocolate, smoky, earthy and oaky. This Merlot mouthfeel is disjointed with low acidity, tired fruit and well integrated tannins. The finish is short, and not what I expected from a good Merlot, which should be plumy and cherry fruit with fresh acidity and layered structure. A wine which should have been opened a couple years ago. Not recommended.

This wine was purchased on June 11, 2011 at the SAQ in Gatineau, Quebec at $28.75  .