Terroir: Limestone terrace and gravel with pebbles soil.

Winemaking: The grapes are destemmed before fermentation takes place at a temperature of 28° C for 12 days with daily pumping over for maximum colour and flavour extraction. Rack and return is performed twice at the end of the fermentation.

Tasting: Round and smooth Syrah with rich blackberry and plum aromas .

Luna winemaker Joel Watson is a devoted fan of Martinborough Syrah but is also candid about how tricky it can be to grow in this dry North Island wine region. His latest is a great example of cool climate Syrah with spicy black pepper aromas leading into a velvet smooth, highly structured wine with a full body and lingering finish thanks to its refreshing acidity. 

The Luna Syrah is made from grapes grown on the winery's Blue Rock Vineyard, which was planted south of Martinborough township in 1997 on a steep north facing slope. The sun shines all day here, providing evening ripening conditions for this late ripening grape variety but the wind also brings its influence to bear, making high crops a marginal prospect in this relatively cool climate. 

This is a stunning wine with huge complexity of clove and peppery spice coupled with dark chocolate and black fruit flavours. What's not to love in this wine. 

An elegant Syrah from Hawke's Bay winemaker Kate Radburnd, whose extensive experience of making Syrah brings out the best in this exotic spicy French grape variety. Red fruit aromas are supported here by a velvet smooth backbone of fine tannins. Pure fruited and fragrant, with blueberry and cardamon spice. This Syrah has lingering length and persistence of flavour, a hallmark of this variety.

This delicious, dark and juicy new release is made from hand harvested Syrah grapes, which were destemmed and fermented in open tops with some foot stomping. Some whole bunches were incorporated in the ferment.

One of New Zealand's premium Syrahs. Deep and savoury with rich tannins. The vines are planted in the stoniest parts of the vineyard to a heritage clone of Syrah brought to New Zealand in the 1840s. 

"Inky purple red. Enticing aromatics of boysenberry, blueberry, violets, clove and lightly seared meat. The wine exhibits a richness of fruit yet carries an ethereal quality as the fine grained tannins dance gracefully across the palate." Winemaker's note.

Vineyard Sites - Cornerstone Vineyard lies at the heart of the renowned Gimblett Gravels viticultural region, strategically positioned at the junction of Gimblett Road and State Highway 50 in Hawke’s Bay. This area is celebrated as New Zealand’s premier Bordeaux red grape-growing region, and it’s easy to see why. The vineyard’s unique terroir, composed of riverbed stones and gravels, challenges the vines, leading them to produce a limited yield of small, intensely coloured, and flavourful berries. The resulting grapes give rise to wines with rich, mouth-filling tannins and a depth of character that speaks to the harsh yet rewarding growing conditions. 

Vinification - The grapes were carefully handpicked and fermented in small, open vats. Traditional hand-plunging techniques were used to gently extract the rich flavours and colour. After fermentation, the wine underwent varying degrees of post-ferment skin contact to enhance complexity before being pressed off. The wine then proceeded to malolactic fermentation and was aged in French oak barriques, with 30% of the barrels being new, adding subtle layers of oak influence and refinement. 

Tasting Notes - Boasting an inky, deep ruby hue, this wine offers aromas of stewed red fruits, hints of raspberry jam, black cherry, black plum, and violets. Subtle light cedar and toast are so well knitted you almost miss them. On the palate, flavours of cooked red plum and hints of tobacco emerge.  The finish is long, with fruit carrying right through. An outstanding wine, perfect to drink now or age.

Legal academic, property dealer and vigneron, Rene Rostaing crafts some of the finest Cote Roties on the market today. He has owned 2 hectares in the Côte Blonde and La Landone since the 1970s but fortune has blessed him through his inheritance of four hectares of superbly sited vineyards from his father in law Albert Dervieux and another 1.4 hectares of particularly old vines from his uncle Marius Gentaz. He now has 7.4 hectares which in Cote Rotie terms is a significant holding. Rostaing is firmly in the modernist camp of Cote Rôtie producers, destemming the majority of his fruit and being one of the first producers to ferment using vinomatics (horizontal automatic vinifiers). However he dislikes the overt taste of new oak and uses a maximum of 15% in the maturation process. All the wines are bottled unfiltered.

Intense pepper and exotic florals on the nose merge with vanilla-saturated plum, cherry and boysenberry - plump tannins and smooth succulence round out the finish.

The baby brother of La Crau from Vieux Télégraphe, made using fruit from vines that are less than 30 yeas old and fruit from sites other than La Crau and Piedlong. This spends its first 10 month sin stainless steel before spending 7 months in small format oak. Ripe dark and red berry fruits are delivered in a wonderfully supple mouthful.

Church Road 1 is a range of single vineyard wines that showcase the terroir of our best vineyards. Situated in the Bridge Pa Triangle Wine Growing District, our Redstone Vineyard is one of the warmest in Hawke’s Bay, perfect for the cultivation of later ripening varieties. This site typically produces ripe, supple and very aromatic Syrah with an amalgam of red and black fruit and lifted floral fragrance.

AROMAS
This Syrah is built around a core of brambly, dark berry fruit, carrying lifted aromatic notes of violet, lavender and warm spice. It is complemented by underlying complexities redolent of new leather and smoky roasted notes, with subtle undertones of toasted oak and a minerality typical of this vineyard.
BODY
The palate is fine and long with a polished tannin structure and gentle mid-palate flesh combining to produce a very even and seamless mouthfeel.

TASTING NOTE Dark purple and ruby appearance with a pink rim leads to a bouquet of ripeness, concentration and power. On the nose, the wine bursts with aromas of fresh crushed blackcurrant, rosemary flower and violet, layered with smoky clove and new leather. The palate is opulent and velvety in texture, with concentration, ripeness and power. Plum, dark cherry and cocoa beans are vibrant and lingering. This wine is both intense and delicate.  A lovely reflection of the 2021 season. 

VINEYARDS & VITICULTURE Our Waiheke Vineyard is entirely owned and managed by Cable Bay Vineyards to ensure we produce the best quality fruit possible. We practice regenerative viticulture, and we are accredited with Sustainable Winegrowing NZ. We are located on the sun-drenched, western side of the island, on steep slopes overlooked by Rangitoto volcano. We have predominantly mineralised clay volcanic soils over Jurassic era rock. This type of geology and soil provides wines with great mid-palate weight and minerality. This wine is made from the Hermitage MS clone of Syrah. 

WINEMAKING These Syrah grapes were hand-picked in March 2021, on a cool morning, and immediately taken across the road to our winery. The ferment was 100% whole berries, which helps to enhance the floral and bright fruit characters in the wine. At pressing, only the free run wine was retained to ensure delicacy, and run to French oak puncheons and barriques. In 20% new oak, it aged for 21 months before assemblage and bottling.

“Every now and then you come across a relatively low-priced wine that stops you in your tracks, you know: “That cannot be that price?” or “Perhaps they mislabelled this?” This is one of those once in a blue-moon wines, an amazing expression of one of the great red varieties and it isn’t eye wateringly expensive. Deep purple, youthful in colour, the nose boasts rich fruit aromas, dark cherry, raspberry, with pastille and chocolate undertones. Medium weight in terms of the palate, but there is concentration and generosity all the way through, juicy and savoury at the same time, with firm but elegant tannins on the finish. Fruity yet structured wine that will work in nearly every drinking situation. Gold medal wine at a ridiculously low price.”
- Paul Tudor MW 95 POINTS: Paul Tudor MW

“Fabulously fruited and perfumed showing Black Doris plum. The succulent palate delivers excellent weight & mouthfeel.”
- Sam Kim; Wine Orbit 93 POINTS & 5 STARS: Sam Kim; Wine Orbit

WINEMAKING NOTES

This wine was made from 100% MS Clone Syrah grown on the stony and sandy lower terrace of the vineyard. The grapes were fermented in open top tanks.  The ferments also included a 10% Syrah whole bunch component as well as 4% Viognier for added complexity.  Gentle hand plunging was used for extraction. The wine was then held on skins for a total of 4 weeks giving an extended period of post ferment maceration to build richness. The wine was then pressed and racked to French oak barriques where it was aged for 9 months. The final blend has a 20% new oak component and 60% second fill.

ANALYSIS

pH 3.75
TA 6.3g/L
Alc 12.5%

TASTING NOTES 

Fragrant and expressive, full of crunchy berry fruits, florals and scented spices, wild herbs and nuanced gamey notes. The palate plays on concentrated berry fruits and earthy complexity, balanced against bright acidity bringing wonderful length and flavour vibrancy through to the end.  Fine tannins gently fill and flow seamlessly through the wine.

Soil type

Limestone, clay and silt. Sandy gravel.

Grape variety

100 % Syrah.

Average age of vines

35 years.

Winemaking

Alcoholic fermentation in stainless steel vats at high temperatures. 3 weeks maceration in vats.

Ageing

18 months in oak barrels.

Average yield

40 Hl / hectare. The vines are mainly on steep slopes from the villages of Gervans, Mercurol, Larnage et Crozes-Hermitage.

Appearance : Dark and deep colour.

Nose : Red fruits, cherry and strawberry with delicate oak aromas.

Palate : A structured tannic wine. Aromas of blackcurrant buds and vanilla.

Overall : Remarkable freshness with notable and refined tannins to due long oak ageing.

Calatayud, a small appellation in the heart of Arag6n, Spain. A hidden valley and home to the red garnacha grape. A valley where the working conditions are difficult for the farmers. Rough slate soils, old bush vines planted on steep slopes up to 1,100m, hot summers and cold winters where rainfall is scarce and the wind is
always blowing. Furthermore, they have to deal with a fragmented landscape of small parcels and rarely have a successor for their years of hard labour. It's tough and challenging, and yet, they understand the value of their soil and grapes, each plot providing a distinct character to the grape compared to its neighbour. Las Pizarras (the slate soils) is our range showcasing the diversity of the region. Named after the town or plot the grapes originate from, each wine in the collection expresses its unique character, but all are born out of soil, nature and the right human touch.

FABLA is a language used in several places in the north of the autonomic
community of Aragén for over 1.000 years. Today is used by just 12.000 people.

Harvest: End of September, beginning of October
Clasification: Calatayud DO
Grape varieties: 80% Garnacha 20% Syrah
Vinification: Direct incubation and fermentation for 15 days at no more than
16 degrees Celsius to preserve all the fresh fruit of the Garnacha.
Ageing: 30% of the Garnacha is aged 3 months in barrel

TASTING NOTES
Intense cherry red colour. Typical Garnacha with aromas of ripe red fruit,
prunes, figs and some black pepper and minerality.

The pairing suggestion - lamb stew, carrots, courgettes and a couple of black olives

A great Syrah which as first made in the early 1990s from iron rich soils in Hawke's Bay. This makes Bullnose one of the oldest Syrah brands in Hawke's Bay, named after one of the vineyards from which the wine is made (which, in turn, was named after the vineyard owners' love of old cars, particularly the pre 1928 Bullnose). The grapes come from two vineyards, Bullnose and Isosceles, both in the Bridge Pa Triangle; one of the warmer growing areas of Hawke's Bay, thanks to both soil and climate there. 

Aging for 15 months in French oak, which provides its spicy notes and depth.

A beautiful wine for drinking now or for cellaring.