TRINITY HILL HOMAGE SYRAH 2018

Selected for the 2020 Fine Wines of New Zealand List

18/20 Richard Hemming, JancisRobinson.com, February 2020 (2018 Vintage)
"Tasted blind. Lovely combination of meat, violet and stemmy complexity on the nose. Gets the fruit power of Syrah just right too: brambles and plums. Charred meat on the finish. Fine, chalky tannin. A great example, where canny winemaking has added extra complexity without compromising the integrity of the fruit. A classic."

5 Stars Michael Cooper (2018 Vintage)
"One of the country's most distinguished – and expensive – reds. Still extremely youthful, the 2018 vintage was estate-grown in the Gimblett Gravels. Dark and purple-flushed, it is notably concentrated, with vibrant, ripe blackcurrant and spice flavours, oak complexity, and a long, peppery finish. Highly fragrant, savoury and structured, it's crying out for time; best drinking 2025+."

5 Stars & 98/100 Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, June 2020 (2018 Vintage)
"Richly opulent yet impeccably structured and seamlessly harmonious, the wine exhibits stunning fruit purity together with seductive spicy complexity. The instantly appealing bouquet shows sweet plum, blackberry, cedar, olive and floral aromas with a hint of cracked pepper. It’s immensely concentrated on the palate, displaying exceptional depth and richness, while remaining graceful and poised. Built to last but enticing and irresistible already. At its best: 2026 to 2038."

98/100 Andrew Caillard MW (2018 Vintage)
"Medium deep crimson. Beautiful pure raspberry strawberry red cherry aromas with espresso/ sage/ white pepper notes. Inky textured wine with dense concentrated raspberry pastille, strawberry fruits, fine silky tannins and roasted chestnut espresso oak. Finishes chalky al dente firm with lovely mineral length and feathery tannin plume."

5 Stars & 97/100 Bob Campbell MW, The Real Review, July 2020 (2018 Vintage)
"Dense yet elegant syrah with floral, violet, dark berry, black pepper, anise and spicy oak. A wine that delivers its power with great subtlety. Surprisingly accessible but with obvious cellaring potential. This is a very serious red indeed."

97/100 Cameron Douglas MS, June 2020 (2018 Vintage)
"Day 1: Fabulous bouquet. Youthful yet entirely engaging. Pure yet complex. Primary aromas of forest berries and baked mushroom, raspberry and black currant, fruit spices and pepper then toasty wood, near new oak aromas are trumped by the core of fruit and concentration. As the wine opens up in glass it organically becomes more complex, but remains youthful and engaging. On the palate – complex and as equally primary as the nose suggests, dark fruits, raspberry and black currant, sweet meats and field mushroom, bracken and dark spices. An abundance of tannin and acidity – firm, chalky, ripe and resolved. Long finish, complex and young. No need to open till 2022 at the earliest, decant for service, will last in your cellar till 2030 – at least.

Day 2: Still very youthful with all the hallmarks displayed from yesterday, but starting to show some greater integrity and promise of time in cellar. Still 97/100.

Day 3: Slightly more peppery today with the oak signature bold. The fruit emerges and takes centre stage after around 2 minutes in glass. Complexity, elegance, energy, charm and length all in tact. Still 97/100."

94/100 Mike Bennie, The Wine Front, November 2020 (2018 Vintage)
"Ultra floral scents, strawberry too, whiffs of flint and wet stone, clove and cedar in tow. The palate is sinewy, lightly chewy, very long, finely wrapped in a web of firm, ribbons of tannin. Feels very composed, almost a little mouth perfume and floral ‘flavours’ emerging too. Suitably elegant in its vibe. Great red.

5 Stars Yvonne Lorkin, August 2020 (2018 Vintage)
"It’s incredibly aromatic, erupting with red fruits, raspberry, cherry, red apple and cranberry when then unveil a black fruit core. Silky, saturated with spice and showing style and sophistication, it’s elegant and lithe on the palate and reveals layers of liquorice, pepper and dark cocoa on its long, elegant finish. Lovely straight from the bottle, but absolutely stunning once decanted. I’d happily cellar this for 15 years or more."