Yes it’s 2017, yet in wine land the big guns from 2015 are only just being got out. These three are at the top of the tree…
Te Mata Estate Hawke’s Bay Coleraine 2015 $129
The March 1 release of Coleraine, New Zealand’s most famous red wine, marked its 35th anniversary. Designed to age not across years, but across generations, it’s an assemblage (‘assom-blarge’ if you’re struggling) of cabernet and merlot from Te Mata’s oldest vineyards in the Havelock North hills. Left for a minute or seven in the glass, it unfurls layers of complex spices and bouquet-garni notes. Boasting a core of dark boysenberry, cocoa, fruitwood smoke and florals, the tannins are expansive and muscular, yet it boasts a lovely sophisticated silhouette. This wine needs to lay down somewhere cool and dark for at least a decade, and I mean ‘at least’. Drinking this vintage any earlier, is basically committing infanticide.
Sip with: Rare eye fillet steak sometime in the 2030’s
Sacred Hill Riflemans Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2015 $69.95
I’ve often said that when I die I want this wine piped into my veins instead of embalming fluid. I want to take it with me to the grave it’s that good. 2015 saw superb growing conditions in Hawke’s Bay, the third exceptional year in a row for this national treasure vineyard to shine. The lift of butterscotch, crème brulee, soft grapefruit and peach layers lead to a perfectly pitched palate of elongated, caramelised, spicy oak, succulent citrus and too many other gorgeous things to mention. Say no more.
Sip with: a steaming plate of seared scallops tossed with chorizo.
Clearview Enigma 2015 $55
I’m not one to tease, but in this case I kind of have to because if I don’t give you a heads-up on how good it is, then when it’s released in a couple of months you may miss out, and the wine will remain, an enigma. With its glossy, inky, crimson-black colour, seductive perfume of dark berries, vanilla and cocoa characters, this beautifully balanced mélange of merlot, cabernet franc and malbec is absolutely divine. To secure your bottle email Charles@clearviewestate.co.nz
Sip with: Braised Beef Cheeks Bourguignon
