Maison Noire Single Vineyard Hawke’s Bay Cabernet Franc 2023 $29 Grown high up on the Waimarama Road in the deep limestone clays of the Tukituki Valley, in a tiny vineyard tended by French winemaker Guillaume Thomas, this cabernet franc is deeply savoury, laced with brick dust and smoked blueberry and has gently drying tannins, fresh … Read More
cabernet franc
Maison Noire Hawke’s Bay Cabernet Franc 2022
Maison Noire Hawke’s Bay Cabernet Franc 2022 $35 Cabernet franc is a rare thing to see on its own here in New Zealand, so it’s exciting whenever I see one, particularly one from one of the tiniest vineyards in Hawke’s Bay. Very new and youthfully fresh, it boasts a huge lift of bay leaf, blackcurrant, … Read More
Elephant Hill Hawke’s Bay Hieronymus 2019
Elephant Hill Hawke’s Bay Hieronymus 2019 $125 A blend of 60% cabernet sauvignon, (clone 10), 29% cabernet franc (clone 326) and 11% merlot (clone 181) sourced from predominantly their ‘Stone’ Gimblett Gravels vineyard, this wine is the epitome of what the Elephant Hill team can achieve from an excellent vintage. Inky-dark and glossy, this wine … Read More
Te Mata Estate Awatea Cabernets Merlot 2020
Te Mata Estate Awatea Cabernets Merlot 2020 $40 If I were in a hostage situation and the gunman said “Somebody better tell me what’s the greatest local Bordeaux-style red wine that I can buy for under fifty bucks, in the next five seconds or the granny gets it!” I would be hollering “Te Mata Awatea … Read More
Pask Gimblett Gravels CMMF 2019
Pask Gimblett Gravels CMMF 2019 $22 Holy berries Batman! Those Paskers really know how to blend. This absolutely champion combination of Cabernet Sauvignon 43.8% Malbec 18.8%, Merlot 16%, Cabernet Franc 6.8% is super-stylish, spice-dusted and saturated with ripe plums, leather and cocoa layers and a dusting of liquorice. 2019 was a sensational vintage for Hawke’s … Read More
Maison Noire Hawke’s Bay Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Franc 2021
Maison Noire Hawke’s Bay Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Franc 2021 $35 The nose of this wine absolutely roars with bay leaf and bouquet garni characters, a dusting of dark cocoa, gentle, plush plums and boysenberries ahoy! Classic cabernet characters of cigar box and cedar merge with blackcurrant, dark cherry, hints of black olive and briny goodness … Read More
Trinity Hill Gimblett Gravels The Gimblett 2021
Trinity Hill Gimblett Gravels The Gimblett 2021 $40 The way that winemakers Warren Gibson and Damien Fischer have evolved this blend over the last decade or so has been super-exciting to see, particularly as the proportion of cabernet franc is now sitting at 50%. The remainder of the blend consists of cabernet sauvignon and petit … Read More
Leftfield The Hatchling Hawke’s Bay Red Blend 2019
Leftfield The Hatchling Hawke’s Bay Red Blend 2019 $17.99 Paired with: Annabel Langbein’s Steak and kidney pie in Canvas Magazine NZ Herald Sat 4th June 2022 Boost your core-ingredient count from two (steak + kidney) to six by serving up a gloriously spicy glass of this blend of merlot, tempranillo, cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon. … Read More
Kelly Washington Hawke’s Bay Cabernet Franc 2019
Kelly Washington Hawke’s Bay Cabernet Franc 2019 $50 Sourced from the iron-rich soils of the Bridge Pa Triangle district, this is a velvety-smooth example scented with blackcurrant leaf, dark cocoa, a hint of liquorice and blueberry. All those characters wash across the palate and leave a warm, woolly, textural finish. 100% cabernet franc isn’t the … Read More
The Greatest Te Mata Estate Coleraine Vintage Ever?
Te Mata Estate Hawke’s Bay Coleraine 2020 $130 2020 heralds the 36th release of New Zealand’s most famous red wine and the one that the Buck family are calling “the best in Te Mata’s history”. CEO Nick Buck said 2020 was “Simply perfect” and with tiny berries, alongside massive extract and tension, Te Mata’s winemaker … Read More