2021 Te Mata Estate Merlot Cabernet, Hawkes Bay

This is instantly seductive on the nose showing blackcurrant, floral, subtle tobacco and toasted almond characters. The palate has excellent weight and fruit intensity, superbly complemented by spice nuances and finely flowing mouthfeel. Beautifully integrated chalky tannins provide classic structure and length, offering gorgeous drinking. At its best: now to 2033.

95 points Sam Kim wineorbit.co.nz

Pencils, black fruit, black olive, violet, spice. Medium-bodied, ripe tannin, rich, zesty, green and black olive, blue and red fruit. aniseed, crushed berries, such a good wine, so lively and packed with dark berry fruit and saline flavour. Firm grip of tannin on a very long finish. All the things. Impeccable. Hard to imagine a better value, and more serious Bordeaux blend at this price point. Incredible.

94+ points Gary Walsh winefront.com.au Oct 2022

Dark crimson with a bright purple hue, Estate Merlot/Cabernet ’21 has a complex and evocative scent of plum and blackberry, with the lightest fragrance of cedar. Seamlessly integrated, the aromas deepen on the wine’s palate into succulent, concentrated dark fruit with ripe, soft tannins. Structural, savoury and long, with a salivating acid/tannin balance, Estate Merlot/Cabernet ’21 runs a long, perfect line between approachability and elegance.

The individual parcels of each variety from each plot were de-stemmed before a traditional warm fermentation, followed by extended maceration on skins. The resulting wines were pressed, returned to tank for malolactic fermentation, then run off to a mixture of new and seasoned French oak barrels for 12 months’ maturation before blending. The wines were regularly topped and racked throughout maturation, blended and traditionally egg-white fined before bottling. The final blend is 49% Merlot, 43% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Cabernet Franc.

Established in 1896, Te Mata Estate remains family owned, producing internationally recognized wines exclusively from its Hawke's Bay vineyards. The Estate's ownership varied frequently until John and Wendy Buck acquired it in 1978. John and Wendy instigated a twenty-year development program, which commenced with the restoration of the original winery building and the replanting of all of the original vineyards, as well as the acquisition of new vineyard sites.