Syrah 2020 Hawke’s Bay

A supple, richly textured Syrah which has a base of black fruited berries and sweet fruit fragrance. A combination of purity of fruit and restrained elegance which will unfold beautifully with age.

Syrah 2020

$85.00 NZD
Item
Vintage Conditions

The 2019 -20 growing season, whilst slightly cooler than the previous four seasons, was still above the long term average. A warm spring with above average temperatures and rainfall was accompanied by some frost and hail in parts of Hawkes Bay. Conditions for flowering in November were drier and warmer than usual. Summer was also warm and dry which lead to an early start to vintage and an Indian autumn followed. Glorious conditions for grape growing, intense fruit flavours and clean sound fruit.

Vineyards

Two vineyards have been blended to make this supple Syrah. Clone 470 from the Bridge Pa Triangle and MS Syrah from Mangatahi. The Bridge Pa fruit was plush and dark fruited, while the Mangatahi Syrah had lovely vibrancy and elegance, a wonderful combination. Both vineyards are Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand accredited, with low yields, open canopy management and managed irrigation.

Winemaking

The hand harvested Syrah was chilled overnight, followed by hand sorting the next morning. The chilled bunches were then de-stemmed and whole berries transferred to open fermenters with some foot stomping. The addition of some whole bunches to the ferments occurred. The berries were cold soaked and when ambient temperature was reached the indigenous yeast had initiated fermentation. Two pump overs a day at cool temperatures was the regime and an addition of cultured yeast ensured a clean dry finish to fermentation. The Syrah was then pressed to French barriques, new and 1 year old for approximately 17 months, blending in October 2021 and bottled in November 2021.

Tasting Note

A supple, richly textured Syrah which has a base of black fruited berries and sweet fruit fragrance. Ripe Syrah is plush and mouthfilling and the subtle fine grained French oak provides underlying poise and aids structural integrity to this fine wine. A combination of purity of fruit and restrained elegance which will unfold beautifully with age. Alcohol: 13.5% Total acidity: 6.2 g/l