"This has very attractive, spicy, fragrant lift. Nicely played, fragrant oak adds complexity to the plums and blackberries. The palate has a smooth, supple and juicy array of sweetly spiced blueberries and blackberries and a fresh finish" James Suckling, 2018 

This wine offers delicate raspberry and floral flavours in a light, fresh and peppery style. Aromas of dark plum, cherry, and boysenberry with vanilla. Medium weight and supple with a sweet fruited entry of raspberry and blackberry. Savoury leather and dried herbs join on the mid-palate and spice notes linger.

From our estate-owned vineyards in both the Gimblett Gravels and Bridge Pa Triangle regions and sometimes co-fermented with a small amount of Viognier. The grapes were harvested from our Hawke’s Bay vineyards and gently crushed into stainless steel tanks for fermentation. Vigorous cap management during the height of ferment ensured good extraction of colour and tannin. After extended time on skins to promote tannin evolution, the wine was then run off to French oak. It matured for eleven months prior to blending.

Babich's winemaking philosophy is simple. They seek out superior vineyard sites in the right regions, and plant them with the ideal grape varieties chosen to match the land and the climate. The Hawkes Bay region is blessed with a superb climate for viticulture – sufficiently cool to ripen grapes slowly, yet warm and sunny enough to promote optimum fruit ripening.

Food Pairing: Makes an ideal partner to strongly flavoured foods such as balsamic marinated steak or an antipasto platter of salami, artichokes, olives and sun dried tomatoes.