Wild raspberry and plum fruit aromas with spice and a little vanilla from oak barrels. This is an elegant wine with firm but not heavy tannin structure. The texture is silky and there is great persistence of wild fruit flavours on the finish.

The characters typical of our Gimblett Road vineyards such as pineapple, grapefruit, fig and pear are evident. Mealy, biscuity barrel ferment and integrated oak characters add complexity. The wine displays the desirable character of elegance with power. This is a powerful wine, but it also shows softness and great balance.

"A marvellously fragrant wine suggesting blackberry, licorice, anise and violets. The intense, long palate marries opulence and fineness to perfection. This just might be NZ’s most intense Syrah / Viognier. It’s a huge wine with a velvet texture and masses of ripe plum and dark berry fruit flavours that are more than a match for the wine’s solidly oaky overcoat.”
Bob Campbell, Gourmet Traveller Wine, August / September 2006

The colour is a beautiful green/gold, with depth. The aromas are reminiscent of honey and crystallized apricots. The botrytis has a big effect, with hints of the floral, jasmine aspects of Viognier showing. It is very luscious and concentrated, with strong flavours of dried fruits, especially apricots. The finish is very long and despite the sweetness, finishes dry with no cloying sugar as sometimes happens with this style of wine

This wine combines spice and pepper with ripe blackberry fruit for a rich and soft palate with a long and complex finish.

Black fruits, such as plums, blackcurrant and cherry are evident, entwined with wet earth and smoky oak notes. These classic varietal characteristics found on the nose are reaffirmed on the palate. The firm, dry tannins give the wine excellent structure, while the degree of ripeness adds depth, complexity and a silky texture found in few wines. All of which lends itself to a delicious middle palate and long length.

The blackberry and black pepper nuances of Syrah, the leather and plum aromas of Merlot and the lifted red currant character of Cabernet Franc have combined to produce a complex, fruit dominated wine. The oak aging has added a further dimension to the wine without being obvious. Its richness with firm, ripe tannins make this wine extremely serious yet eminently drinkable.

Flavours and aromas of passionfruit and nectarine gently compliment the delicate aroma of gooseberries. A mineral character lends a distinctly Graves-like character to the wine. The addition of Semillon has added to the texture. The fresh acid is balanced by a tiny amount of retained sweetness.

Typical fruit characters from Hawkes Bay Chardonnay such as grapefruit and melon are supplemented by biscuity characters with a light butteriness. The wine is rich and round, with soft acidity and attractive sweet fruit.