VILLA MARIA RESERVE CABERNET SAUVIGNON / MERLOT 2020

Gold Medal – New Zealand International Wine Show 2022
Gold Medal – International Wine Challenge 2022

Winery notes (2020 Vintage)
"2020 will be remembered as a great Hawkes Bay vintage. Early season rainfall enabled healthy vines to get established followed by a hot and dry Spring. Some cooler weather in January ensured natural acidity and freshness was retained in the grapes, then a warm dry harvest period allowed the fruit to be harvested in great condition with good ripeness.

This densely coloured wine shows lovely aromatics with layers of dark berries, cassis, and roasted coffee bean, mingling with floral and spice nuances. The palate is rich and concentrated with a soft plush mid-palate framed by finely textured tannin and integrated oak. While approachable in its youth, this wine will benefit and gain additional complexity from careful cellaring."

Rated Outstanding & 95/100 Cameron Douglas MS, July 2022 (2020 Vintage)
"Pure, ripe and complex bouquet of dark berries and primary red fruit scents. Blackberry and dark cherry, boysenberry and Doris plum then aromas of oak and spices – clove and baked vanilla with some anise moments, toasty barrel and ironsand minerality. Excellent complexity and concentration on the palate. Fruit flavours reflect the bouquet accentuated by a strong backbone of acidity and abundance of tannins and flavour. A lengthy complex finish can only lead to an even better wine of allowed to develop and age. Best drinking likely from 2028 through 2040 if stored well."

5 Stars & 95/100 Bob Campbell MW, The Real Review (2020 Vintage)
"Intense, almost juicy red with impressive density and power. Cassis, blackberry, red-fleshed plum, dark chocolate and liquorice characters give a mega-flavour hit."

4 ½ Stars Michael Cooper (2020 Vintage)
"The 2020 vintage is dark and mouthfilling, with concentrated, ripe blackcurrant, plum and spice flavours, and a seductively smooth finish. It shows very good power and richness, but in its infancy also a slight lack of the density, complexity and structure of top past vintages. Time will tell. Best drinking 2025+."

IWC Judge's Comments (2020 Vintage)
"Deep purple, cassis with Victoria plum flavours, complex and subtly earthy, youthful, edgy and fresh."