ČUVAR GUARDIANS CORNERSTONE VINEYARD GIMBLETT GRAVELS SYRAH 2024

Winery notes (2024 Vintage)
"A beautifully perfumed nose of black doris plum, wild blackberry, licorice and brown spice. Flavours of freshly cracked black pepper, cured meats, lavender and dried herbs come through on the first sip. The palate is medium bodied and energetic with velvety, chalky tannins melding with bright acidity to produce great length, tension and structure.

Picked early in the morning to retain freshness. 100% destemmed to open top fermenters. Approx 2 weeks on skins with daily plunging to extract colour and flavour. Open top stainless steel fermenters. Pressed to 40% new and 60% seasoned French oak barriques. 100% malolactic fermentation in barrel. 14 months in barrel prior to blending.

The 2024 vintage will go down as one of the finest ever seen in Hawke's Bay. A cool, extended flowering period in spring 2023 resulted in lower than average yields. This naturally concentrated the fruit and enhanced flavour intensity while maintaining beautifully balanced acidity. The remainder of the growing season was near perfect, with warm days and cool nights allowing the grapes to ripen slowly and evenly. The result is a collection of wines defined by remarkable vibrancy, depth, and generous, expressive flavour."

5 Stars & No.1 Cuisine Syrah Tasting, June 2026 (2024 Vintage)
"If there is an example of ‘It’s never too late to start again,’ it is Sir George Fistonich who started his first wine brand, Villa Maria, in 1961 at the age of twenty one. The desire to start again with Čuvar in his eighties might bring people to think it will be his swansong but knowing the determination Sir George Fistonich is renowned for, I couldn’t be sure.

Čuvar means ‘guardian’ in Croatian, Fistonich’s father’s native tongue. The name plays homage to the immigrants who came to New Zealand from the late 1800s to work as gum diggers, doing wretched, back-breaking work for which they were poorly compensated. Having come from what was then the Austro- Hungarian Empire, these workers – known collectively as Dalmatians – formed bonds with other Dalmatian families and created tight-knit communities. They celebrated their culture and customs together, which included wine, literally a foreign concept to the then beer-drinking Kiwi culture.

Some Dalmatians morphed into vine growers and the impact has been etched on the bottles of iconic brands we love in New Zealand ever since, from Selaks to Babich all the way through to Čuvar which launched in 2023. It’s an incredible shared heritage and experience that is reflected in this syrah which is ripe and blue fruited on the nose with just a hint of herbs, underlying earthy tones and a hint of spice. The fruit is sweet through the generous palate which is well weighted and clean with smooth tannins, smoky toast and a lingering length."

95/100 Andrew Caillard MW (2024 Vintage)
"Medium deep crimson. Dried roses, roasted capsicum, blackberry, hint wax polish, sous bois aromas. Pure blackberry pastille, strawberry, dried roses, marzipan flavours, fine slinky textures and underlying sage notes. A chalky bittersweet finish with chinotto notes. Unusual tension, complexity and character. At the exquisite cusp of ripeness. High imaginative winemaking."

5 Stars & 95/100 Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, April 2026 (2024 Vintage)
"Offering excellent fruit purity with stylish complexity, the perfumed bouquet showcases Black Doris plum, blueberry, violet, olive, game, and fine oak aromas. The concentrated palate displays a fine flow and silky texture, well supported by beautifully melded tannins, finishing impressively long and refined. At its best: 2027 to 2036."

Rated Excellent & 94/100 Cameron Douglas MS, April 2026 (2024 Vintage)
"Hues of dark red and purple with a magenta-pink rim lead to a bouquet of ripeness and concentration, spice and peppercorn, blackberry and black currant with seams of oak spice and dark clay soil suggestions. A dry wine with weight and intensity striking the palate first, varietal flavours of dark berries and barrel spice, some wood smoke and baking spices. Firm tannins with plenty of polish and a backbone of acidity add mouthfeel and length. A lovely example with best drinking from day of purchase through 2033+."

93/100 JamesSuckling.com (2024 Vintage)
"Pepper, blackberries, chocolate and an herbal undertone. Medium- to full-bodied and fleshy, showing dark berries, a touch of cedar and balanced acidity. Well-crafted, with everything in place. Drink now or hold."