• French oak
• Dark fruits
• Cedar & spices
• Full-bodied

"Deep, dark, brooding aromatics of blackcurrant and ripe black fruit with lighter scents of vanilla from the generous oak present. A big blend with luscious chocolate flavours and juicy ripe fruit against rounded chewy tannins and a focussed, lengthy finish that persists. Undoubtedly this is a wine that time will reward" Cuisine Magazine, Jun 2023

"This is wonderfully composed and expressed, showing blackcurrant, subtle tobacco, cedar, clove and floral aromas on the nose. The palate delivers excellent weight and plump mouthfeel beautifully complemented by refined texture and chalky tannins, leading to a sustained structured finish. At its best: now to 2031" Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, Mar 2023

"Deep-tinted wine with cassis, dark cherry/berry, blackcurrant, dark chocolate and spicy oak flavours. A core of sweet fruit balances ripe tannins and promotes a pleasantly dry finish. Accessible now but with cellaring potential" Bob Campbell, Master of Wine, Real Review, Jan 2023

"Excellent A very enticing bouquet and palate with aromas and flavours of baked blackberry fruits and dark plums, there are layers of violets and raspberry, vanilla and stony-clay soil complexities. There’s a satin touch on the palate with core fruit flavours reflecting the bouquet, tannins are firm, polished and add texture alongside the acid line which layers in a freshness and clean finish. Oak flavours and textures are well placed with a moderate toasty quality laced with baking spices. Balanced and well made with a lengthy finish. Best drinking from 2023 through 2029" Cameron Douglas, Master Sommelier

Dense and deeply coloured ruby. Complex aromatic combination of spices and dark fruits. Rich and concentrated showing flavours of blackcurrant, cedar, and spices. A concentrated full palate leads to a long complex finish showing spices and toasted oak. Drinking beautifully from release and will continue to mature over the next eight years.

Our Hatters Hill Cabernet Merlot fruit was sourced predominantly from a single vineyard within the Gimblett Gravels wine growing area of Hawke’s Bay. The vigour moderating, free draining gravel provides a superb base for growing Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. This vineyard site has ideal ripening conditions for achieving the structure and full aromatic profiles of these varieties. The fruit was carefully monitored during ripening and harvested in the cool evening at maximum flavour maturity and physiological ripeness.

This wine is a blend of 62 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon and 38 per cent Merlot. Each variety was kept separate during fermentation through to the time of blending. The fruit was held cold for four days prior to ferment to help extract maximum flavour and enhance colour stability. Inoculation took place to carry out the primary alcoholic fermentation. When dry the young wines was pressed and then racked off gross lees to 31 per cent new French oak and 69 per cent seasoned French oak. The wine underwent a clean malolactic fermentation while ageing in oak for 11 months. It was then extracted from oak, blended and prepared for bottling.

Food Pairing: Well matched with smoky flame grilled steak served with garlic butter and roast beetroot salad.