Te Mata Estate Annual Release

Established in the early 1890s, Te Mata is New Zealand's oldest winery and, like Villa Maria and Babich, proudly family-owned. In the last thirty-odd years, Te Mata Estate has established itself as a leading force in New Zealand wine, with Te Mata Coleraine acknowledged globally as one of New Zealand's finest red wines, its Bullnose Syrah considered one of New Zealand's finest examples, and itsElston Chardonnay garnering huge acclaim.

The remarkable consistency that Te Mata Estate has achieved for over 35 years is attributable to its control over every aspect of winemaking and, importantly, the longevity of its team. CEO Nicholas Buck explains: "All grapes are harvested exclusively from estate vineyards; we don't source fruit from any other region and our wines are made, matured and bottled on-premise. We have retained an excellent team that has worked together managing the vineyards and the winemaking, vintage after vintage."

Each year in March, Te Mata releases its latest offering. This year, the Coleraine being released is from the 2017 vintage. Alongside this the rest of the range covers the 2017 and 2018 vintages.

2018 was an excellent year for the Hawke’s Bay region and Te Mata winery is certainly looking forward to showing us the top wines from this vintage next year. 2017 was more of a mixed bag. Spring and summer were very good, then in February it started to rain. Alternating weeks of cold and wet, followed by hot and dry. A tricky vintage, though one in which Cabernet did very well. A variety that does need time out on the vine to ripen, it enjoyed the cooler end to the vintage which added freshness. Tasting the 2017 Coleraine it reminded me of what the Bordelais say of such a vintage: ‘It’s classic’. In saying this they are meaning a year in which nothing really stands out, everything is there in just the right amounts and in perfect balance. 2017 Coleraine is 73% Cabernet with 27% Merlot. It’s a beautifully crafted Coleraine, very pure and precise. I like it a lot.

To celebrate the release, we are holding a very special tasting at our Victoria Park store. This will be hosted by Toby Buck on the 14th March.

The tasting line up will be; Te Mata Zara Viognier 2018; Te Mata Cape Crest Sauvignon 2018; Te Mata Elston Chardonnay 2017; Te Mata Awatea 2017; Te Mata Coleraine 2010; Te Mata Coleraine 2014; Te Mata Coleraine 2015 Te Mata Coleraine 2017.

For more details and to book – www.glengarry.co.nz/tastings


By: , Wine with Liz Wheadon, Glengarry

Issue 96 March 2019