Te Mata Estate Bullnose Hawke's Bay Syrah 2024

Description

Cherry, Oak, Plum

"A glorious rendition of the variety, the enticing bouquet presents black and purple fruit purity with nuances of rich floral, warm spice, thyme, and cedar. It’s wonderfully expressed on the palate, with density and power, poise and structure, plush texture, and a supple mouthfeel. Tannins are ultra-fine and in abundance, offering a sturdy grip while remaining velvety and harmonious" Sam Kim, Wine Orbit

"Wild aromas of game and dark berries with hints of crushed stones, tobacco, flint, five spice powder and hazelnuts. Medium-bodied with very polished and refined tannins that caress the palate and give length and verve to the wine. Lovely caressing finish. A ringer for a Northern Rhone. Drinkable now but will improve with age. Drink or hold" James Suckling

"Red and blue fruit, cracker pepper, jasmine perfume, nutmeg and biscuit spices. Medium-bodied.. juicy red and blue fruit, toasted hazelnut and quite some spice, finishing long with a firm graphite grip to tannin and a savoury flourish. It has concentration and power, though it's light on its feet" Gary Walsh

Bright crimson at the edge with a deep purple-black core, Bullnose ’24 is wonderfully expressive and fragrant. Aromas unfold in layers of violet, fresh raspberry, ripe plum and dark cherry, wrapped in black olive with subtle spice and pepper. The palate amplifies the depth of fruit and textural intensity, delivering concentrated richness, framed by a vibrant, precise acid line that imparts energy and a bracingly youthful edge. With underlying power and elegance, fine persistent tannins carry the wine through to a long, beautifully driven finish. Bullnose ’24 is a showstopper. This is a Bullnose for the ages. Enticing, long and beautifully composed. Bullnose ’24 is closed with a Diam cork and will evolve in bottle for at least 10 years from harvest.

The wine is named Bullnose after an early Morris Cowley car, which was nicknamed Bullnose due to its distinctive radiator. The bull emblem that appears on the wine label is drawn from the car’s radiator crest.

Separate parcels of fully ripened syrah grapes were hand harvested from Te Mata Estate’s Bridge Pa, Gimblett Gravels and Dartmoor vineyards on 25 March and 9 April 2024.

The individual lots were each destemmed and given a traditional warm-plunged fermentation. The resulting wines underwent extended maceration on skins before pressing and then a secondary malolactic fermentation. The separate wines were then run to a mixture of new and seasoned French oak barriques for 16 months’ maturation, with 34% being new oak. During this time, they were regularly topped and racked, before blending and then bottling in November 2025.