Ataahua Waipara Merlot 2019 $32 
The meaning of the word ‘ataahua’ in Māori is ‘beautiful’ or ‘thing of beauty’ and that’s pretty much what you’ll find in this North Canterbury merlot. A beautiful drink. So whoever suggested that you couldn’t make magical merlot in the Southern climes, clearly has never had the pleasure of sipping this salubrious thing. Intensely aromatic and bursting with bold blackberry, plum and dark cocoa characters on the nose, this merlot is juicy and spice-saturated in the mid-palate and boasts warm, attractively fuzzy, furry tannins on the finish. This is by far the best merlot I’ve ever tasted from the team at Ataahua, and I can’t wait to see how it matures over the coming years.
