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Wine Review

Sacred Hill ‘Special Selection’ Wines With Te Mata Cheese

By Raymond Chan
To taste the ‘Special Selection’ wines from Sacred Hill is a treat. They are among the very best wines of Hawke’s Bay, and indeed New Zealand. On every new release, we can see the continued improvement that winemaker Tony Bish has added to the styles, in greater finesse and interest. With wines at this top level, changes can only be subtle, but this is an expression of passion to do better. In what has become an annual event, Tony shows two vintages of each of the wines from this prestige range, the current release and an earlier wine, to give an indication of how bottle age adds to the character of the wine. With this tasting, we were shown the inaugural ‘Prospector’ Pinot Noir from Central Otago.

This year, Tony brought a selection of top Te Mata Company cheeses to accompany the wines and to see the interaction of wine and cheese at work – a classic presentation, but one not done at Regional Wines for some period. It is said among the English wine trade to “buy on apples, but sell on cheese”, referring to how the protein in cheese absorbs and integrates with wine componentry to soften, mellow and even hide key features of wine and thus ‘enhance’ its appearance. But the sheer enjoyment of the flavours with the interactions when they are good is truly a delight and worth seeking.

Tony and his wife Karryn were founding shareholders of the Te Mata Cheese Company, which has become increasing well-regarded for its sheep and goats cheeses. The cheese brought to taste with the wines were: ‘Kidnappers’ Brie, ‘Pakipaki” goats cheese, ‘Irongate’, a washed-rind, ‘Pacifica Blue’ a sheep’s blue and the ‘Bayview Blue’ made from cow’s milk.

Following are my notes on the wines tasted and how they interacted with the different cheeses:

‘Sauvage’ Sauvignon Blanc


First made in 1992, ‘Sauvage’ has become one of our most interesting and complex alternative Sauvignon styles. The ripe Hawke’s Bay fruit, indigenous yeast fermentation and barrel fermentation, but avoidance of malolactic conversion results in richness, body and complexity along with cellaring ability. Usually around 350 cases made. The Sacred Hill ‘Sauvage’ Sauvignon Blanc 2006 (18.0-/20) was pale, tight and restrained, with a raw acid edge at present, but there was concentration and length of oak-spices stonefruit flavours. The Sacred Hill ‘Sauvage’ Sauvignon Blanc 2005 (19.0-/20) was showing excellent development with its darker colour, breadth of rich and ripe fruits of limes, quince and savoury herb notes.

The ‘Irongate’ was the most versatile match with the wines, the 2006 ‘Sauvage’ possessing lovely cut and steeliness, while the 2005 ‘Sauvage’ matched the cheese with texture and richness. However the ‘Pakipaki’ and 2005 ‘Sauvage’ was the best match, the richness and savoury creaminess of both cheese and wine lifting each other. The blue cheeses were simply too salty for the wine.

‘Riflemans’ Chardonnay


One of New Zealand’s top Chardonnays, from its first vintage in 1995. A single vineyard wine that consistently provides a wine of distinctive fruit flavours and great length. Our bottles of the new 2007 failed to arrive, but we were treated to the 2004 in its place. The Sacred Hill ‘Riflemans’ Chardonnay 2004 (19.5+/20) was indeed a glorious wine now approaching its zenith. Brilliant appearance, fresh and elegant still, beautifully expressed minerals and citrus fruits, spicy oak with toasty penetration, dense, yet perfectly poised and textured. A slight volatile lift added to the brightness and richness. The Sacred Hill ‘Riflemans’ Chardonnay 2006 (18.5+/20) was youthfully pale and restrained in fruit expression. Tight and focused, this was exceptionally fine with mineral and citrus fruit flavours and toasty oak on a palate enhanced by beautifully refined acidity. Extremely tight and undeveloped, the density and length were indicators of its potential.

Interestingly, the 2006 ‘Riflemans’ matched well with all but the salty ‘Pacifica Blue’, either in balance of components or becoming more enlivened, especially with the ‘Kidnapper’s Brie and ‘Bayview Blue’. The 2004 ‘Riflemans’ came into its own with the ‘Irongate’, as wonderful nuances resulted from the interaction, as well as a pairing in terms of richness and weight. This was an exceptional match.

‘Prospector’ Pinot Noir


The first offering of this label from fruit grown near Lowburn, Central Otago. The Sacred Hill ‘Prospector’ Pinot Noir 2006 (18.0+/20) was classical Central Otago Pinot Noir, with its lovely red berry, cherry and strawberry fruit. The wine was finely structured with concentration, though a little on the austere side at present. Good dry tannins and length were features.

A fair match with the ‘Irongate’, with the density of both the cheese and wine in balance, the ‘Prospector’ came across acidic and steely with the creamy cheeses and was somewhat overwhelmed by the blues. As a wine to match with cheeses, on this occasion, the Pinot Noir was least successful of the varieties.

‘Deerstalker’ Syrah


With Syrah making a strong showing on the scene, the ‘Deerstalker’ is Sacred Hill’s entrant in the premium wine field. Tony admits it is a work in progress and is not inclined to co-ferment Viognier in the making. We are seeing real progress with the new release wine, the Sacred Hill ‘Deerstalkers’ Syrah 2006 (19.0/20). Purple red in colour this has lusciously ripe and rich pepper, spice and black fruits and essential perfumes showing succulence along with very fine tannins. Superb. The Sacred Hill ‘Deerstalkers’ Syrah 2005 (17.0+/20) showed some development and also reductive notes on a softer, more open palate, somewhat smaller in scale, nevertheless ageworthy from its balance.

With the cheeses, the 2006 ‘Deerstalkers’ was more successful than the 2005, generally showing a strength of flavour and texture that overrode the cheeses. However the ‘Pakipaki’ goats cheese had flavour complexity to work with the 2006 wine, but there was an outstanding combination of the brightness of this wine with the powerful ‘Bayview Blue’ and its acidity cutting through the creaminess of the cheese. The ‘Pakipaki’ brought the varietal fruit of the 2005 ‘Deerstalkers’ to the fore by combining with the sulphide wine component, and the savouriness of the ‘Pacifica Blue’ matched well with the funky notes of this wine. The Syrahs as a variety were the most interesting in their cheese matching abilities.

‘Brokenstone’ Merlot and ‘Helmsman’ Cabernet/Merlot


It was decided to taste the Bordeaux-varietal wines as a flight to compare varietal and vintage expression. Merlot has been receiving less than favourable reviews of late, but the ‘Brokenstone’ obviously has superb fruit of full ripeness and is not over-extracted, which are major criticisms of how New Zealand Merlot is seen. The Sacred Hill ‘Brokenstone’ Merlot 2006 (18.5+/20) is youthful in hue, but not impenetrable in colour. With fresh, lively plum aromas and flavours, t
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DAVID

Easter weekend I flew up to Auckland and had a great time visiting family. I made sure I went to Maison Vauron, a must if you enjoy French wines and also Galbraiths to try a few craft beers.

RICHARD

Roast Chicken for dinner evidently. Which Kumeu River Chardy shall I choose?
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