Gimblett Gravels 2018 Annual Vintage Selection, Hawkes Bay

Gimblett Gravels Annual Vintage Selection – 2018
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Below is the eleventh release of the annual Gimblett Gravels selection. Twelve wines independently tasted and selected by Andrew Caillard Master of Wine. Master Caillard’s assessment of the wines showcases what he feels best represents the 2018 vintage from wines grown on the Gimblett Gravels soils.

My independent review, thoughts and tasting notes below.

Syrah

Stonecroft Reserve Syrah 2018, Gimblett Gravels - 18 months in 30% new French barrels. Winemaker - Dermot McCollum. This is the second time I have tasted this wine, the first being March 25th 2020. Now with another 12 months of bottle age.

The aromas of seduction and complexity prove that careful and quiet ageing of wine of this quality is necessary. Black currants and dark roses, old dried raspberries and violets have melted together. The core of fruit dominates while the aromas of dark spices and toastiness of oak sit comfortably s part of the foundation. On the palate - equally complex and alluring with a firm youthful texture and plenty of acidity to highlight the abundance of ripe tannins and mild peppery and meaty flavours. The core remains the fruit surrounded by by texture, flavour, weight, intensity and complexity. Long finish, expertly crafted wine and will continue to age through 2026+. 96 Points

Vidal Legacy Syrah 2018, Gimblett Gravels - 97% Syrah with 3% Viognier, 20 months in 49$% new French Oak. Winemaker - Hugh Crichton. Though Hugh is no longer part of the winemaking team at Vidal - I will be sure to follow his career and next winemaking adventure. You should as well.

Concentrated, complex and powerful bouquet with aromas of blue fruits and blue flowers, dark raspberry, plum and a complex savoury, fruit and wood centric core. This wine comes alive on the palate with flavours of wild farmers market black currants and blue berries, raspberries and aged meat, some licorice and dark spices of oak. No mistaking the abundance of fine chalky almost dusty textured tannins, medium+ acidity and delicious mouthfeel these attributes add - providing the perfect foundation for the fruit to sit, develop and mature as it integrates into the wine. Long finish, still young and will age comfortably for another two or more years. best drinking from late 2021 through 2027+. 97 Points

Smith & Sheth CRU Syrah 2018, Heretunga, Gimblett Gravels - 100% Syrah with 11 months in 35% new French Oak. Winemakers - Steve Smith MW and Warren Gibson.

Seductive, complex and curious bouquet with aromas of myriad red berries, plums and red currants. Moments of pink peppercorn and white pepper, licorice and red flowers. An underlying stony gravels earthy quality provides a strong foundation. On the palate - tense, youthful, savoury, complex and dry. Still very youthful with firm tannins and abundant acidity from which the flavours of red berries, spices and mineral qualities take hold. Persistent, firm and lengthy finish - a wine still harmonising. Decant of serving before 2022, otherwise best drinking from mid to late 2022 through 2027+. 95 Points

Smith & Sheth CRU Syrah 2018, Omahu, Gimblett Gravels - 100% Syrah with 19 months in 35% new French Oak. Winemakers - Steve Smith MW and Warren Gibson.

Fantastic bouquet - complex, layered, varietal, seductive and beguiling. Aromas of fresh red berries - raspberry and keriberry then white smoke, clove, vanilla, licorice and toasty wood scents. No mistaking the oak, no mistaking the stony soil aromas. On the palate - youthful, tense, textured, fruity and complex. A core of berry fruit flavours are at the core with textures from firm, ripe and polished tannins, plenty of acidity and flavours of savoury herbs and spices, pepper and barrel. Long finish, delicious now, but will continue to age also with best drinking from 2022 through 2028+. 96 Points

Elephant Hill Stone Syrah 2018, Gimblett Gravels - 99% Syrah with 1% Viognier and 21 months in 50% new French Oak. Winemaker - Steve Skinner.

A powerful bouquet - concentrated, focused and deeply complex with a core of dark berries, oak and wood spices, a mix of black and white pepper, licorice, violets and a stony clay earth frame. On the palate - very tense, poised, youthful, concentrated, sweet toasty woods and complex. Still quivering with concentration and power, tension and tightly wound. Persistent flavours of dark red berries and dried raspberry, dark red currants and wood spices. An abundance of fruit and wood tannins, acidity and savoury meats and spices. Long finish. A wine you could enjoy today - decant if you decide to open a bottle. The better approach is to wait till end of 2022 then start to enjoy. Best drinking from 2022 through 2028+. 97 Points

Trinity Hill Homage Syrah 2018, Gimblett Gravels - 99.6 % Syrah with 0.4% Viognier and 12 - 15 months in 32% new French Oak. Winemakers - Warren Gibson and Damian Fischer.

I first tasted this wine on June 7th 2020. It was so complex and powerful then that I decided to continue the tasting over three days. Read my notes here.

Today, I am excited to try this wine again. Aromas are of a wine that is still youthful, complex and totally alluring. Forest berries and toasty barrel spices, dark berries layered between aromas of violets and licorice, stony soils, pepper and meat. As the wine begins to open up in glass the fruit become more pure and sweet scents as does the oak and myriad aromas. On the palate - complex, weighty, densely packed, tight-textured and young. Polished tannins and youthful acid line along with baking spices and forest berry fruit flavours, pepper and spice - this wine has a long life ahead only emphasised by the long and detailed finish. A wine for the cellar please - with best drinking from 2023 through 2030+ 98 Points

Blended Reds

Elephant Hill Hieronymus 2018, Gimblett Gravels - A blend of 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 19% Cabernet Franc and 1 %Malbec with 22 months in 70% new French Oak. Winemaker - Steve Skinner.

Aromas of power and concentration, youth, a core of dark red fruits, toasty almost sweet barrel scents, violets and dark roses, forest shrooms and baking spices. There’s no mistaking the complexity and full-bodied power in the bouquet. On the palate - power and concentration is confirmed with a core of energy, fruit and barrel spices. Flavours of blackberry and fresh coffee bean, some chocolate and Doris plums, roasted nuts, clove, vanilla and toasty barrel smoke. Firm tannins, abundant tannins, medium+ acidity, polish, power and length. A delicious wine, salivating with a light salty mouthfeel on the finish. Best drinking from late 2022 through 2032+. 97 Points

Mission Estate Jewelstone Antoine 2018, Gimblett Gravels - A blend of 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc and 6% Merlot with 12 months in 50% new French Oak. Winemaker - Paul Mooney.

Enticing and salivating aromas of violets and sweet blackberry, dark plum and black cherry. Some light milk chocolate and blackcurrant then barrel spices suggesting baked goods and blond tobacco. Complex. On the palate - complex, textured, an equal measure of fruit and oak at the core with the first taste finishing with fine tannins and fruit. Cherries, plums, cassis and blackberry, chocolate, cigar, violets and black spices. A wine that reminds me of left-bank reds with a heart of Hawkes Bay. Lengthy finish, quite refreshing and bold. Best drinking from late 2022 through 2030+. 95 Points

Saint Clair Pioneer Block Cabernet Merlot 2018, Gimblett Gravels - A blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot and 4% Malbec with 10 months in 35% new French Oak. Winemakers - Hamish Clark and Kyle Thompson.

Pure, fresh, youthful and classic Hawkes Bay and GG example. Nice to be reminded of the true aromas of Cabernet first with with its bell-pepper and tobacco spices underpinning its natural core of blackberry and dark berry fruits. Plums and violets with a dark chocolate layer signal the aromas of Merlot and Malbec. On the palate - complex, layered, fruity, floral and dry. Fruit flavours mirror the nose with chocolate and toasty barrel spices with a light violet flock on the finish. Firm tannins with a satin polish, medium + acidity and lengthy finish. Expertly made, totally approachable today with best drinking from early 2022 through 2028+. 95 Points

Squawking Magpie Grand Gimblett Cabernet Sauvignon 2018, Gimblett Gravels - 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from 18 months in 35% new French Oak. Winemaker- Jenny Dobson.

The bouquet is compact, tense, varietal and very enticing with aromas of blackberry and cigar tobacco, olive and black cherry, sweet vanilla and wood smoke, crushed roses and violets. The core is the fruits, the foundation the gravelly earthy woody combinations. On the palate - equally compact and youthful, tense and taut. Flavours of dark berries then lead, gun-powder, toasty barrel spices and its natural sweetness, stony earth and non fruits reflecting the nose. Firm tannins and plenty of acidity, power, length and appeal. Decant for service. best drinking from 2024 through 2034+. 96 Points

Trinity Hill The Gimblett 2018, Gimblett Gravels - Made with 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 50% Cabernet Franc with 21 months in 100% new French Oak. Winemakers - Warren Gibson and Damian Fischer.

Wow - what a fantastic bouquet - packed with aromas of wild and farmed dark berries, a swathe of meaty fleshy black olives and field mushrooms, baking spices, smoky wood and cigar. On the palate - powerful, rich, fruity, toasty, smoky and dry. Youthful and tense with an abundance of tannins, acidity, oak and savoury complexity. A core of black fruit flavours, tar, tobacco and stony soils. Long finish. Delicious! Best drinking from late 2022 through 2030+. 95 Points

Villa Maria Ngakirikiri 2018, Gimblett Gravels - Made with 90% Cabernet Sauvignon with 8% Merlot and 2% Malbec aged in 60% new French Oak. Winemaker - Nick Picone.

Immediately captivating with aromas of dark berries and brooding complexity. Scents of iron and blackberry, crushed violets and spicy skinned plums. Toasty barrel scents suggest clove and baked vanilla pod, smoke and sweet wood. On the palate - youthful, varietal, compact, taut and delicious. Flavours of dark berries and wood, barrel spices and violets, stony soils and savoury spices with a tobacco edge. Firm tannins have a satin polish to them, an abundance of acidity and additional flavours of bell-pepper and toasty baked goods. Lengthy finish, complex and very appealing. Best drinking from 2023 through 2040+. 97 Points

Words by Gordon Russell - Chair of the GG Association

The 2018 vintage - recoded 555 mm of rain recorded. A mild spring with no frost events was followed by a warm and relatively dry, early summer before a very hot January. Warm and wet soils resulted in a strong early season canopy growth. This created high humidity pressure which extended throughout most of the growing season. A mild spring with no frost events was followed by a warm and relatively dry, early summer before a very hot January. Warm and wet soils resulted in a strong early season canopy growth. This created high humidity pressure which extended throughout most of the growing season. With congestion of the cultivars at key growth stages the vineyard teams worked to ensure good air flow, through shoot thinning, leaf plucking and lateral removal. A hallmark of the backend of the summer was the warm night temperatures reflected in the January average monthly air temperature sitting 1.5 degrees Celsius above the highest previous average for the month, w th GG-Days at record level highs.

Pristine Chardonnay was harvested the first week of March, before significant rainfall the following week. With rain events not unusual in the area and excellent forecasting available, the GG growers and winemakers knw how to react to the forecasted rain, managing the vineyards accordingly.

The red varieties held their fruit condition well, however the biggest challenge of the vintage was the high humidity over this period. The key was to get through to early April, when humidity and temperatures drop, before harvesting the later ripening varieties. Settled weather in early April was the saving grace, resulting in some fine red wines, particularly the Cabernet Sauvignon, which held strong with its thick skins.

The young reds are expressive and medium weight, with the Cabernet family as strong as any vintage going back to 2009.