Medium deep crimson. Fragrant redcurrant, cranberry, pepper, sage, dried herb aromas with underlying mocha notes. Supple sweet cranberry, redcurrant, raspberry fruits with some blackberry, brambly notes, peppery nuances, plentiful fine sinewy long and refined tannins, some savoury roasted walnut, light marzipan notes. A fresh chalky finish with persistent juicy fruits. The barrel maturation characters and mid-palate viscosity really distinguish this wine. Drink now – 2028+

– Andrew Caillard 96 Points

Hand picked grapes from a single vineyard and an extremely good vintage in Hawke’s Bay make this wine an impressive one for its price. Dark, rich and juicy with a full body and long, elegant finish from the elevated but balanced acidity, which adds freshness to the complex layers of cedar, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice. There’s a lot going on in this bottle, which may not tick the everyday drinking box in terms of price, but which delivers an extremely impressive red for drinking now and with great potential for further aging for up to a decade.

– Joelle Thompson 19/20