• French oak
• Ripe plum
• Layered spice
• Ripe tannins

With his inspiring energy and lifelong dedication to pioneering progression in the wine industry, Čuvar is the vision of legendary wine entrepreneur, Sir George Fistonich. Sir George founded Čuvar Winery to help preserve and nurture the essence of New Zealand fine wine.

"Dark hues of ruby and purple lead to a bouquet of plums, black berries and black spices, dark chocolate and wood smoke. Flavours of the palate of blackberry and black currant then plum, vanilla and clove are held together with a backbone of acidity and wood smoke, tannins and synergies of all. A dry wine with a salivating mouthfeel, texture and fruity finish. A wine that still needs some time for integration and a littl softening. Best drinking from late 2024 through 2029" Cameron Douglas, Master Sommelier, Jan 2024

Rich plum and pomegranate fruit with hints of tobacco leaf and spice layered over beautifully ripe tannins and well-handled oak.

Planted in the famous Gimblett Gravels appellation. The canopy was kept open to ensure airflow around the bunches which kept them clean and open to sunlight. This meant that the fruit was picked at the exact time we needed to make the wine, rather than be dictated by the weather.

2022 was a complicated vintage that saw our winemakers and viticulturists work closely with each other, drawing on their collective expertise. Watching the weather forecasts continuously throughout the day to ensure picking scheduling was exact, maximising the sun for as long as possible.

The varieties were hand-picked, de-stemmed into vessels and fermented separately. Gentle pump overs at varying times during the fermentation cycle extracted the ripe firm tannins. Natural yeast was used on 50% of the wine with added yeast on the remainder. Once the fermentation had completed the wines were pressed off to French barriques for a 14-month duration where they underwent natural malolactic fermentation.

Fermented in stainless steel and matured in 100% French oak barriques.

Food Pairing: Malbec Merlot is a quintessential match to red meat, especially a good steak and for those of you with a sweet tooth, it is great with anything chocolatey too. Think chocolate mousse, self-saucing chocolate pudding or a sneaky piece of Whittaker's Plum and Almond Chocolate!